The 10 Best Side Hustles for Architects and Designers

The 10 best side hustles for architects and designers use skills you already have, such as drawing, model-making, visual communication and software, to earn extra income outside your main job: art and murals, apparel, calligraphy, furniture and products, leatherwork, digital design, tutoring, photography, presentation design and writing. Before you start, check three things: your employment contract, the tax rules where you live, and, in the UK, the rules on using the protected title “architect”. This updated guide explains each option, where people usually find work, and the practical rules to check.

Before you start: contract, title and tax

• Your employment contract. Many contracts restrict outside work, especially work that competes with your employer or uses its software licences. Read yours and ask before you start.
• The title “architect” (UK). Under section 20 of the Architects Act 1997, it is a criminal offence to use the title “architect” in business or practice unless you are on the Architects Register, according to ARB’s title protection policy. If you are not registered, describe a side business as design, illustration or similar. Other countries have their own registration rules.
• Tax (UK). HM Revenue and Customs gives a single £1,000 tax-free trading allowance per tax year for all side income combined; above that you must tell HMRC, as its tax help for side hustles explains. Elsewhere, check the self-employment rules in your country.
• Insurance and liability. Selling products or giving design advice can create liability; consider whether you need insurance.

The 10 best side hustles for architects and designers

1. Artist and muralist

Painting, printmaking and crafts let you work without a client’s brief, and a mural on a real wall is a portfolio piece that speaks for itself. Architects are used to working at the scale of a facade, setting out a large composition and coordinating with building owners, which helps with mural commissions. Many artists sell through their own social media and online portfolio sites such as Behance, and through local galleries and markets.

2. Apparel designer

Designing clothes shares much with architecture: proportion, material, structure and how a body moves through and inside something. Virgil Abloh is the best-known example. He studied civil engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and took a Master of Architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology (2006), founded the Milan-based label Off-White in 2013, and in 2018 became artistic director of menswear at Louis Vuitton; he died in November 2021, as his biography records.

Print-on-demand sites such as Redbubble and Zazzle let you sell designs on clothing without holding stock; social media is usually how buyers find you.

3. Calligrapher and lettering artist

Hand lettering builds on the same control of line weight and spacing as hand drawing. Commissions include wedding stationery, signage, logos and lettering for interiors. It is slow, careful work, and many people find it a calm contrast to screen-based days in the office.

Etsy, Instagram and local craft fairs are common places to sell lettering and take commissions.

4. Furniture and product designer-maker

Furniture is architecture at the scale of the body, and many architects have designed it. Start with a few pieces you can make or have made, photograph them well and document the process; prototypes can be made with access to a workshop or maker space. Collaborations between architects and manufacturers are common in the industry, such as the sofa collection models shown below, credited to the Danish furniture maker Erik Jørgensen.

Etsy, social media and your own small website are the usual starting points; larger manufacturers usually work with designers through portfolios and introductions.

5. Leatherworker

Leatherwork, from keychains and card holders to bags, uses pattern-making, precise cutting and stitching, skills close to model-making. The tools needed to start are modest, and handmade goods sell well on Etsy and at markets.

6. Digital and multimedia designer

Graphic design, branding, illustration, 3D visualisation and motion graphics are in demand, and many architects already use the software. Freelance marketplaces such as Upwork, Fiverr and Freelancer connect designers with clients worldwide; a clear portfolio of your best work matters more than the platform. Check your employer’s software licence before using office software for private work.

7. Tutor or online teacher

After a few years in practice, you can teach software, portfolio preparation or design skills to students and graduates. You can tutor one-to-one, teach evening classes, or publish a recorded course on platforms such as Udemy, where you set the content and the platform handles payment. Check the platform’s current revenue terms before investing time.

8. Photographer

A trained eye for composition, light and lines is the basis of architectural and interior photography. You can start with a phone or a good camera and a tripod, build a portfolio of buildings and interiors, and offer shoots to small practices, estate agents and interior designers. Stock agencies such as Shutterstock, Alamy and Adobe Stock (which absorbed the former Fotolia in 2019) sell images, but remember that photographing private homes and people may need permission.

9. Presentation design consultant

Architects present constantly, to clients, planners and juries, and good layout and clear diagrams are skills many businesses lack. Freelance presentation design is offered through design agencies and freelance marketplaces; a few before-and-after examples make the best portfolio.

10. Writer

If you spend your free time reading about buildings or visiting them, writing is a natural side hustle: blogs, essays, guides, competition briefs or copywriting for design firms. A personal blog on WordPress or a similar platform is an easy start, and design magazines and websites accept pitches from writers with knowledge of the field.

How to choose

Pick a side hustle that you would enjoy doing anyway, that fits the hours you really have, and that does not compete with your employer. Start small, track your income and expenses from the first sale, and review after a few months whether it still feels like a pleasure rather than a second job. Of the 10 best side hustles for architects and designers listed here, the ones closest to your existing skills, such as digital design, presentation design and tutoring, usually earn soonest; crafts and products take longer but can grow into a business of their own.