These Are the 10 Best States for Starting a Side Hustle, New Research Reveals One side hustle might not be as lucrative as another — and location matters.
By Amanda Breen Edited by Jessica Thomas
Key Takeaways
- These days, there's no shortage of flexible, creative ways to supplement your income.
- New research from business consulting firm Venture Smarter determines the most and least expensive states to start.
Fifty percent of Americans have a side hustle — even if they earn $100,000 a year, according to a 2023 survey from personal finance resource GoBankingRates.
These days, there's no shortage of flexible, creative ways to supplement your income, from building a consulting agency around your talents to jumping on the growing vending machine trend. Make the right moves, and you might even see your side hustle turn into a full-time business worth seven or eight figures.
Related: How to Turn Your Side Hustle Into a Full Business While Working a 9-to-5, From 3 Founders Who Did It
Of course, one side hustle might not be as lucrative as another — and location can be make or break. New research from business consulting firm Venture Smarter analyzed several metrics relevant to setting up a side hustle. By examining each state's average LLC filing fees, disposable income per capita, internet speeds and the number of remote workers, Venture Smarter assigned each state an index score out of 10 to determine the most and least expensive states to be an entrepreneur.
The study revealed some compelling insights: Maryland comes in at the top for side-hustlers because of its high number of remote workers, relatively high disposable income per capita and comparatively low LLC filing costs, and Alabama is at the bottom because it ranks poorly across those same categories.
Check out Venture Smarter's full list of the best states to start your side hustle in 2024 below:
Index Ranking | State | Index score (out of 10) |
1. | Maryland | 6.19 |
2. | Connecticut | 6.07 |
3. | New Jersey | 6.03 |
4. | North Dakota | 5.99 |
5. | New Hampshire | 5.9 |
Colorado | 5.9 | |
6. | Rhode Island | 5.86 |
7. | California | 5.78 |
8. | Virginia | 5.74 |
9. | Utah | 5.56 |
10. | Delaware | 5.25 |
