Nearly 1 in 4 Canadians and half of Gen Z have a side hustle, survey finds

Caught between the high cost of living and mounting debt, Canadians are resorting to side hustles to get by, a new survey has found.

Nearly one in four (23 per cent) of Canadians say they have a side hustle, averaging 13 hours a week on their secondary job, an Ipsos survey conducted for incorporation and business registration platform Ownr found on Thursday.

The proportion rises to nearly half (47 per cent) when you add those who are considering getting a side hustle soon.

Younger Canadians are more likely to have a side hustle, with nearly half (46 per cent) of Gen Z respondents saying they currently have a side hustle of some sort.

The biggest motivation for having a second job was the need to supplement regular income (39 per cent), followed by those who were most concerned about the rising cost of living (33 per cent).

More than a quarter (26 per cent) said they took on a side hustle to pay down debt.

While many start a side hustle out of financial stress, it could also be an entrepreneurial opportunity, said Ownr CEO Jordan Casey.

“There’s a lot of entrepreneurial ambition in Canada, and this data proves that even more of it may be hiding in plain sight,” Casey said.

Around one in five (19 per cent) said they are likely to leave their primary job and turn their side hustle into a full-time business, rising to 29 per cent among Gen Z side hustlers.

More than half of Gen Z respondents said they consider their side hustle a legitimate business.

However, many still face challenges when it comes to forming an exit plan.

“What starts as extra income often becomes a realization: ‘I’m actually good at this.’ Then comes the thought, ‘I could do this full-time.’ That’s where it gets hard,” said Casey.

Four in 10 (40 per cent) of all respondents said they aren’t sure whether or not to incorporate their side hustle as a business, while another 40 per cent said they don’t understand the legal requirements of starting a business.

The “confidence gap” is larger among women, with only 58 per cent of women saying they know when they need to register their business, compared with 69 per cent of men.