Side Hustle Statistics 2026
By Axis Intelligence Research
Co-author: David Park (Careers & Workforce) | Last updated: September 30, 2026 | License: CC BY 4.0
8.5 million Americans held two or more jobs in August 2026, 5.4% of everyone employed on a seasonally adjusted basis, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Axis Intelligence Research finds that women account for 54.0% of them, up from 50.8% a year earlier, as 284,000 women added a second job while 259,000 men dropped one.
Quick Answer: How Many Americans Have a Side Hustle in 2026?
Two official numbers answer this, and they differ by design. The BLS Current Population Survey counted 8,505,000 multiple jobholders in August 2026 (not seasonally adjusted). The Federal Reserve’s SHED survey found 20% of adults did some gig activity in the prior month. Axis Intelligence Research calculates the broad measure runs 6.4 times the narrow one — the Hustle Definition Multiple.
Key Findings
- Axis Intelligence Research finds women held 54.0% of U.S. second jobs in August 2026, up from 50.8% in August 2025, based on BLS Table A-16.
- Axis Intelligence Research’s Stacked Shift Ratio (SSR) reads 61.2% for August 2026: six in ten multiple jobholders carry a second job on top of a full-time primary job.
- The Hustle Definition Multiple (HDM) is 6.4x: the Fed’s 20% gig-activity rate is 6.4 times the 3.1% of the 16+ population that BLS counts as multiple jobholders (2024).
- The seasonally adjusted multiple-jobholding rate reached 5.4% in July and August 2026, up from 5.2% in April and May, according to BLS data published via FRED.
- Widowed, divorced and separated women posted a 7.8% multiple-jobholding rate in August 2026, the highest of any group BLS publishes in Table A-39, up from 5.9% a year earlier.
How Many People Have a Second Job in the U.S.?
The hard count comes from the monthly household survey behind the jobs report. BLS defines a multiple jobholder as someone who held two or more jobs in the survey reference week, at least one of them a wage and salary job. Self-employed people running two businesses don’t count, and neither does anyone who sold a jacket on a resale app last month.
| Measure | Value | As of | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple jobholders (NSA) | 8,505,000 | Aug 2026 | BLS Table A-16 |
| Multiple jobholders (NSA) | 8,479,000 | Aug 2025 | BLS Table A-16 |
| Rate, % of employed (SA) | 5.4% | Aug 2026 | BLS via FRED, LNS12026620 |
| Rate, % of employed (NSA) | 5.2% | Aug 2026 | BLS Table A-16 |
| Annual average multiple jobholders | 8,800,000 | 2025 | BLS CPS Table 36 |
| Annual average multiple jobholders | 8,431,000 | 2024 | BLS CPS Table 36 |
| Annual average rate | 5.4% | 2025 | BLS CPS Table 36 |
Is the Side Hustle Rate Rising in 2026?
Modestly, and the direction matters more than the level. The seasonally adjusted rate sat at 5.2% in April and May 2026, ticked to 5.3% in June, and held at 5.4% in July and August. On an annual basis, the count grew 4.4% from 2024 to 2025 (Axis calculation: 8,800 ÷ 8,431 − 1).
One caveat that journalists routinely miss: BLS notes its 2025 annual averages are 11-month averages because October 2025 data were not collected during the federal government shutdown. Compare 2025 against other years with that in mind.
Side Hustle Rate by Month
| Month (2026) | Rate, SA | Source |
|---|---|---|
| April | 5.2% | BLS via FRED |
| May | 5.2% | BLS via FRED |
| June | 5.3% | BLS via FRED |
| July | 5.4% | BLS via FRED |
| August | 5.4% | BLS via FRED |
David Park’s read: If you’re working a second shift and wondering whether you’re unusual, you are not — and you’re also not part of the “half of America” some headlines describe. Roughly one in nineteen employed people is doing what you’re doing. The requisition market softened this year; the Fed’s own survey shows 42% of adults now worry about finding or keeping a job, up from 37%. A second income stream is how a lot of households are hedging that worry.
Why Do Side Hustle Statistics Disagree So Much?
Because they are counting different things. Search “side hustle statistics” and you’ll find claims that 39%, 45% or more of Americans have one. None of those come from the monthly federal count. Most are opt-in consumer surveys with a broad definition — any extra money, any time in the last year.
The two federal sources bracket the answer:
- Narrow: BLS counts people with two or more jobs this week, one of which is a paid job.
- Broad: The Federal Reserve’s SHED counts anyone who sold items, rented property or did short-term tasks for money in the prior month — including selling your own used clothes.
The Hustle Definition Multiple (HDM™)
Axis Intelligence Research built the Hustle Definition Multiple (HDM™) to put a single number on that gap, so readers can translate between headlines.
Formula: HDM = (SHED share of adults doing any gig activity) ÷ (CPS multiple jobholders as a share of the civilian noninstitutional population 16+)
Inputs (2024): 20% (Fed SHED 2024) ÷ (8,431,000 ÷ 268,571,000 = 3.1%, BLS Tables 36 and 1)
Reading: HDM = 6.4x (baseline reading, 2024).
We put both measures on the same population base before dividing — SHED reports a share of all adults, so we converted the BLS count from “share of employed” to “share of population.” A small age mismatch remains (SHED covers 18+, CPS 16+). HDM is not an estimate of how many people “really” hustle; it states how much the definition inflates or deflates the count. A headline claiming 40% is roughly twelve to thirteen times the BLS population-based rate, and no federal survey supports it.
| Definition | Share | Population base | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Two+ jobs, one paid (BLS) | 3.1% | Civilian population 16+ | 2024 | Axis calc. from BLS |
| Two+ jobs, one paid (BLS) | 5.2% | Employed | 2024 | BLS CPS Table 36 |
| Any gig activity incl. selling own items (Fed) | 20% | Adults 18+ | Oct 2024 | Federal Reserve SHED |
| Short-term tasks (Fed) | 9% | Adults 18+ | Oct 2024 | Federal Reserve SHED |
| App or website tasks (Fed) | 4% | Adults 18+ | Oct 2024 | Federal Reserve SHED |
The SHED gig module is the latest available: the 2025 SHED report, released May 2026, did not repeat the gig-activity questions. [older data]
Who Has a Side Hustle? Demographics of Multiple Jobholders
Side Hustle Statistics by Gender
This is where 2026 breaks from the pattern. Between August 2025 and August 2026, the number of men holding multiple jobs fell by 259,000 (−6.2%) while women added 284,000 (+6.6%), per BLS Table A-16. The total barely moved (+26,000). Underneath a flat headline, the side-hustle workforce changed sex.
| Group | Aug 2025 | Aug 2026 | Rate Aug 2026 | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Women | 4,311,000 | 4,595,000 | 6.0% | BLS A-16 |
| Men | 4,169,000 | 3,910,000 | 4.6% | BLS A-16 |
| Women’s share of total | 50.8% | 54.0% | — | Axis calc. |
Side Hustle Statistics by Age
| Age | Aug 2025 rate | Aug 2026 rate | Aug 2026 count | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16–19 | 4.2% | 4.2% | 239,000 | BLS A-39 |
| 20–24 | 5.5% | 5.4% | 787,000 | BLS A-39 |
| 25–54 | 5.4% | 5.4% | 5,650,000 | BLS A-39 |
| 55–64 | 5.0% | 5.3% | 1,380,000 | BLS A-39 |
| 65+ | 3.6% | 3.8% | 449,000 | BLS A-39 |
Women aged 20–24 rose from 6.1% to 7.3%, while men the same age fell from 5.0% to 3.7%. Under the broad Fed definition, gig activity peaks young: 26% of adults 18–29 versus 12% of those 60 and older.
Side Hustle Statistics by Race, Ethnicity and Marital Status
| Group | Aug 2025 rate | Aug 2026 rate | Aug 2026 count | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black or African American | 6.4% | 5.8% | 1,191,000 | BLS A-39 |
| White | 5.0% | 5.1% | 6,116,000 | BLS A-39 |
| Asian | 4.2% | 4.0% | 524,000 | BLS A-39 |
| Hispanic or Latino | 3.5% | 3.9% | 1,327,000 | BLS A-39 |
| Widowed, divorced or separated | 5.2% | 6.4% | 1,428,000 | BLS A-39 |
| — women in that group | 5.9% | 7.8% | 1,014,000 | BLS A-39 |
| Never married | 5.4% | 5.1% | 2,953,000 | BLS A-39 |
Hispanic multiple jobholders grew 15.0% year over year. That group has one of the lowest BLS rates yet the highest Fed gig rate (24%) — a pattern consistent with Hispanic workers’ side income running more through informal and self-employed channels the monthly survey doesn’t capture as a second job.
David Park’s read: The number I’d put in front of any HR leader is 7.8%. One in thirteen employed women who are widowed, divorced or separated is working a second job, up from one in seventeen a year ago. That’s a single-income household covering a two-income cost base. When those employees look distracted, check the comp band before you check the engagement survey.
Are Side Hustlers Working Full Time Too?
Mostly, yes. That’s the finding the “passion project” framing misses.
The Stacked Shift Ratio (SSR™)
Axis Intelligence Research’s Stacked Shift Ratio (SSR™) measures the share of multiple jobholders whose primary job is already full time (35+ hours).
Formula: SSR = (primary job full time, secondary part time + both jobs full time) ÷ total multiple jobholders
Inputs (Aug 2026, BLS A-16): (4,755,000 + 452,000) ÷ 8,505,000
Reading: SSR = 61.2% as of August 2026 (64.2% in August 2025; 62.0% for the 2025 annual average; 61.6% for 2024).
| Hours pattern | Aug 2025 | Aug 2026 | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary full time, secondary part time | 5,048,000 | 4,755,000 | BLS A-16 |
| Both part time | 2,000,000 | 2,107,000 | BLS A-16 |
| Both full time | 398,000 | 452,000 | BLS A-16 |
| Hours vary | 969,000 | 1,095,000 | BLS A-16 |
| SSR (Axis) | 64.2% | 61.2% | Axis calc. |
The dip in SSR isn’t people easing off. Both-part-time combinations rose to 24.8% of multiple jobholders, and “hours vary” arrangements climbed 13%. Read that alongside the women’s surge: more second jobs are now being stacked on part-time or unpredictable primary schedules — the profile of someone assembling a full income from pieces rather than topping one up.
What Kinds of Side Hustles Do Americans Do?
The Federal Reserve’s 2024 survey is the most detailed federal breakdown by activity.
| Activity (prior month) | Share of adults | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Any gig activity | 20% | Fed SHED 2024 |
| Selling any items | 13% | Fed SHED 2024 |
| Short-term tasks (driving, handyman, etc.) | 9% | Fed SHED 2024 |
| Reselling items bought to resell | 4% | Fed SHED 2024 |
| Tasks arranged through an app or website | 4% | Fed SHED 2024 |
| Selling items made or repurposed | 3% | Fed SHED 2024 |
App-based platform work — rideshare, delivery, task apps — is 4% of adults. It dominates the coverage and is a minority of the activity.
How Many Side Hustlers Are Independent Contractors?
In BLS’s July 2023 Contingent Work Supplement, the most recent, 1.9 million multiple jobholders were independent contractors on their second job — 22.8% of all multiple jobholders. Another 12.8% held a contingent second job. [older data: BLS runs this supplement irregularly; the prior edition was May 2017]
How Much Time and Money Do Side Hustles Actually Take and Pay?
Hours
70% of people doing gig activities spent under 5 hours a week on them, and only 21% called gig work their main job (Fed SHED 2024).
Pay and Financial Stability
The Fed data show gig income is a patch, not a cushion. 65% of gig workers said they were doing okay financially, versus 75% of adults with no gig activity; for app-based workers it was 55%. Half of gig workers (50%) had three months of emergency savings, against 56% of non-gig adults. And 49% wished their gig pay were more consistent — 61% among platform workers.
Among full-time workers whose main job is independent contracting, BLS measured median weekly earnings of $949 in July 2023, against $1,132 for workers in traditional arrangements. Yet 80.3% of independent contractors preferred their arrangement.
David Park’s read: That last pair is the whole story of independent work in two numbers. Lower median pay, overwhelming preference to keep it. People aren’t confused about the money; they’re pricing autonomy. The Fed found 61% of gig workers agree “I am my own boss” — the most-endorsed statement in its survey.
Do You Have to Pay Taxes on a Side Hustle?
Yes, on all of it — the reporting threshold and the tax threshold are different things, and that’s the most expensive misunderstanding in this market.
| Rule | Value | As of | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form 1099-K threshold (payment apps and marketplaces) | Over $20,000 and over 200 transactions | 2026 | IRS |
| Self-employment tax rate | 15.3% (12.4% Social Security + 2.9% Medicare) | 2026 | IRS |
| Net SE earnings that trigger Schedule SE | $400 | 2026 | IRS |
Not receiving a 1099-K does not mean the income is untaxed — the IRS states you must report all income from goods sold at a gain or services provided, whether or not a form arrives. A side hustler who nets $400 or more owes self-employment tax at 15.3% on top of income tax, with no employer paying half.
Methodology
Collection. Axis Intelligence Research retrieved every figure on September 29, 2026 directly from primary publishers: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (CPS monthly Tables A-16 and A-39 for August 2026; annual average Tables 1 and 36; the July 2023 Contingent Work Supplement), BLS seasonally adjusted series LNS12026620 as republished by FRED, the Federal Reserve Board’s Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking (2024 gig module; 2025 fact sheet), and the Internal Revenue Service. No consumer-survey vendor, aggregator or platform marketing figure is used.
Seasonal adjustment. BLS publishes demographic detail only on a not-seasonally-adjusted basis, so demographic comparisons use August 2025 versus August 2026, the same calendar month, which removes seasonal effects. The headline rate uses the seasonally adjusted series.
Axis formulas.
- HDM™ (Hustle Definition Multiple) = SHED any-gig share of adults ÷ (CPS multiple jobholders ÷ civilian noninstitutional population 16+). 2024: 20 ÷ 3.139 = 6.4.
- SSR™ (Stacked Shift Ratio) = (primary FT/secondary PT + both FT) ÷ total multiple jobholders. Aug 2026: 5,207 ÷ 8,505 = 61.2%.
- Shares and year-over-year changes are simple ratios of the published BLS counts; each formula is in the CSV
method_notecolumn.
All arithmetic was verified in Python using both floating-point and exact rational (fractions) computation.
Scope. CPS counts second jobs held in a single reference week and excludes people running several self-employed businesses. SHED is a once-a-year survey with a broad definition that includes selling personal items. BLS monthly demographic estimates carry sampling error; smaller groups (e.g., ages 16–19) move more month to month. HDM compares definitions and is not a population estimate.
About This Dataset
The Side Hustle Statistics 2026 dataset contains 155 rows of U.S. multiple-jobholding and gig-activity data (2023–2026) with full provenance columns: metric, value, unit, as_of_date, segment, source_org, source_document, source_url, retrieved_date, is_primary, axis_calculated, method_note and license.
- File:
side-hustle-statistics.csv· License: CC BY 4.0 · Also available on: Hugging Face, Kaggle and GitHub. - Citation line: Axis Intelligence Research, Side Hustle Statistics 2026, 2026.
How to Cite This Page
APA: Axis Intelligence Research, & Park, D. (2026, September 30). Side hustle statistics 2026: 8.5 million Americans hold a second job — and women now hold most of them. Axis Intelligence. https://axis-intelligence.com/side-hustle-statistics/
MLA: Axis Intelligence Research, and David Park. “Side Hustle Statistics 2026: 8.5 Million Americans Hold a Second Job — and Women Now Hold Most of Them.” Axis Intelligence, 30 Sept. 2026, axis-intelligence.com/side-hustle-statistics/.
Chicago: Axis Intelligence Research, and David Park. “Side Hustle Statistics 2026: 8.5 Million Americans Hold a Second Job — and Women Now Hold Most of Them.” Axis Intelligence, September 30, 2026. https://axis-intelligence.com/side-hustle-statistics/.
Side Hustle FAQ: What the Data Says
Is it true that 40% or more of Americans have a side hustle?
No federal data support that figure. BLS counted 5.4% of employed Americans holding multiple jobs in August 2026, and the Federal Reserve’s broadest measure, which includes selling personal items, found 20% of adults earned some gig income in a month.
How many Americans work two jobs in 2026?
About 8.5 million. BLS counted 8,505,000 multiple jobholders in August 2026, not seasonally adjusted. Most (61.2%, per Axis Intelligence Research’s Stacked Shift Ratio) hold that second job on top of a full-time primary job.
Are more women or men working second jobs?
Women, by a widening margin. Women held 4,595,000 second jobs in August 2026 versus 3,910,000 for men — 54.0% of the total, up from 50.8% a year earlier, per Axis Intelligence Research analysis of BLS data.
Which group is most likely to hold a second job?
Among groups BLS publishes monthly, widowed, divorced or separated women: 7.8% held multiple jobs in August 2026. Women aged 20–24 were next at 7.3%.
Does a side hustle count as self-employment for taxes?
If it’s your own business or freelance work, yes. Net self-employment earnings of $400 or more require Schedule SE and self-employment tax at 15.3%, per the IRS — separate from ordinary income tax.
Will PayPal, Venmo or Etsy report my side hustle income to the IRS?
Payment apps and marketplaces must file Form 1099-K when you receive over $20,000 in more than 200 transactions for goods or services, per the IRS. They may report below that, and all business income is taxable either way.
Is rideshare and delivery driving the most common side hustle?
No. App-based tasks were 4% of adults in the Fed’s 2024 survey. Selling items was 13%, and most of that was people selling things they already owned.
Do side hustles make people financially secure?
The Fed’s data suggest they mostly patch gaps. 65% of gig workers reported doing okay financially versus 75% of adults without gig activity, and 31% said they’d struggle to make ends meet without the gig income.
Related reading on Axis Intelligence: Gen Z statistics: work, money and the gig economy. Gig Economy Statistics