The best side hustle tools in the UK in 2026: start a newsletter, shop or website
Start with a newsletter. beehiiv is free for up to 2,500 subscribers, takes 0% of what your readers pay you, and our exclusive code HONESTCODES takes 20% off your first 3 months on Lite or Pro, after a 14-day trial that needs no card. Want to sell products? Shopify starts at £1 a month for 3 months after a free 3-day trial. Want a site? Wix lets you build one free and takes 50% off Premium if you upgrade within 48 hours, and Bluehost hosting starts at £1.50 a month. Add Elementor to design it, 123 Reg for the domain, CapCut for the videos and Cal.com to take bookings.
Key takeaways
- Lead pick, start a newsletter: beehiiv, free for up to 2,500 subscribers; HonestCodes-exclusive code HONESTCODES takes 20% off your first 3 months on Lite or Pro, on top of a 14-day trial with no card.
- Start a shop: Shopify, a free 3-day trial then £1 a month for your first 3 months (Basic is £25 a month after that, billed monthly).
- Start a website: Wix, build free with no credit card, and 50% off Premium when you upgrade within 48 hours of signing up; Bluehost WordPress hosting from £1.50 a month on a 36-month term.
- Design and domain: Elementor plans from £4 a month billed annually; 123 Reg .co.uk domains £3.99 + VAT for year one.
- Make and sell your time: CapCut gives you 7 days of Pro free for videos; Cal.com is free for individuals and takes 20% off paid plans for 12 months.
| beehiiv | Shopify | Wix | Bluehost | Elementor | 123 Reg | CapCut | Cal.com | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | A newsletter you can earn from | An online shop | A website, built free | WordPress hosting | Designing a WordPress site | Your domain name and hosting | Short videos for your hustle | Taking bookings for your time |
| The deal | 20% off first 3 months with HONESTCODES, 14-day trial | £1 a month for 3 months after a free 3-day trial | 50% off Premium within 48 hours of signing up | Hosting from £1.50 a month, up to 78% off | Elementor One £12 a month for the first year instead of £16 | .co.uk £3.99 + VAT for year one | 7 days of Pro free | 20% off for 12 months on paid plans |
| Free way in | Free plan, up to 2,500 subscribers | Free 3-day trial, no card | Free site, no card | 30-day money-back guarantee | 30-day money-back guarantee on new annual Pro plans | Domain prices show in the basket | Free to download | Free for individuals |
| Deal link | our beehiiv link | our Shopify link | our Wix link | our Bluehost link | our Elementor link | our 123 Reg link | our CapCut link | our Cal.com link |
| Brand page | our beehiiv page | our Shopify page | our Wix page | our Bluehost page | our Elementor page | our 123 Reg page | our CapCut page | our Cal.com page |
Start a newsletter with beehiiv
A newsletter is the side hustle you can start tonight for $0. beehiiv was founded in 2021 by early Morning Brew staff, and its Free plan covers up to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited email sends, a newsletter, a website, a podcast, custom domains, an AI website builder and the recommendation network.
Ready to earn? Lite starts at $49 a month and Pro at $95 a month when you pay yearly, for lists of up to 1,000. beehiiv keeps 0% of what readers pay for paid subscriptions and digital products; Stripe's standard 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction is the only cut. The Ad Network drops sponsored links from brands into your issues on any paid plan.
Use our exclusive code HONESTCODES. It is exclusive to HonestCodes, not listed on any voucher or coupon site, and takes 20% off your first 3 months on Lite or Pro. Open our beehiiv link and the 14-day trial and the 20% are carried for you, with no credit card to start. If you arrive another way, type HONESTCODES when you upgrade. Full plans and prices: beehiiv promo code page.
Start a shop with Shopify
Shopify lets you try a store for 3 days free, no card needed. Then your first 3 months cost £1 a month on most plans, and Basic moves to £25 a month, billed monthly. Basic comes with a complete online store, point-of-sale selling, the Sidekick AI assistant and Shopify's checkout. Setup is free and you can cancel whenever you like. Start at our Shopify link; no code is needed.
Start a website with Wix, Bluehost or Elementor
Wix: design your site free without a card, using the drag-and-drop editor, AI site creation and thousands of templates, with hosting included. Upgrade to a Premium plan inside 48 hours of joining and Wix's partner team says you pay half. Premium in the UK costs £9 a month for Light (paid yearly) up to £119 for Business Elite; every plan brings a free domain for a year and a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Bluehost: our link prices WordPress hosting at £1.50 a month on a 36-month term, a saving of up to 78%. Each plan bundles a domain free for year one, SSL and CDN, the AI site builder, round-the-clock support and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Elementor: build a WordPress site with a plan from £4 a month, paid annually. The all-in-one Elementor One plan is £12 a month in year one rather than £16, a 25% saving, and a 30-day money-back guarantee covers new annual Pro plans.
Your domain, your videos and your bookings
123 Reg: new customers pay £3.99 + VAT for a .co.uk in year one, and a three-year .com is £0.01 + VAT. Its Hosting and Website Launch Packs fall to £1.99 + VAT a month, and the checkout code for them is revealed on the 123 Reg page here.
CapCut: edit short videos for social and your shop. Open our link on a computer for CapCut's Pro subscription page with 7 days of Pro free when you subscribe; the app is free to download, and the plan can be cancelled any time.
Cal.com: give clients a booking page for coaching, consulting or tutoring. Individuals use it free forever; Teams starts at $12 per user per month on yearly billing, and our link takes 20% off paid plans for 12 months.
How to choose your side hustle tool: five checks
1) Start with what you already know. Write about it (newsletter), sell it (shop) or teach it (booking page).
2) Start free. beehiiv, Wix and Cal.com have free plans; Shopify has a free trial; CapCut is free to download.
3) Check how you earn. beehiiv takes 0% of paid subscriptions, leaving only Stripe's fee, so you keep what your readers pay you.
4) Check the full-price month. Shopify's Basic is £25 a month after the first three, and Elementor One renews at £192 a year after the first year.
5) Own your domain. A .co.uk from £3.99 + VAT for year one makes any of these look like a real business.
How these offers were checked
Every price, trial and term comes from the tool's own pages, as recorded on its HonestCodes page. Prices in US dollars are shown as the brand lists them, and offers apply to new customers.
Brand pages: beehiiv, Shopify, Wix, Bluehost, Elementor, 123 Reg, CapCut, Cal.com. More software picks in the best AI tools guide.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best side hustle tool in the UK in 2026?
For a newsletter you can earn from, beehiiv: free for up to 2,500 subscribers and 0% taken from paid subscriptions. For a shop, Shopify at £1 a month for 3 months. For a website, Wix, which you can build free.
Is there a beehiiv promo code?
Yes, and it is exclusive to HonestCodes: HONESTCODES cuts 20% from your first 3 months of Lite or Pro. Go through our beehiiv link and you also get a 14-day trial of a paid plan, with the 20% applied for you when you upgrade.
How much does beehiiv cost?
Nothing for the Free plan, which covers up to 2,500 subscribers. Lite is $49 a month and Pro is $95 a month when billed yearly for lists up to 1,000, in US dollars, and prices rise with your list size.
How much does it cost to start a Shopify store in the UK?
Shopify offers 3 days free with no credit card, then £1 a month for your first 3 months on most plans. After that Basic is £25 a month, billed monthly, and you can cancel at any time.
Can I build a website for free?
Yes. Wix lets you build a site at no cost and without a credit card. Wix's partner team says new users who move to a Premium plan within 48 hours of signing up get 50% off.
Where do I buy a domain name?
123 Reg sells new-customer .co.uk domains at £3.99 + VAT for year one. Bluehost and Wix plans each include a free domain for the first year.
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Verified against each brand's own terms · 23 October 2026 · Checked by Bez, Editor-in-Chief