5 Businesses You Can Start With Less Than $1,000 in 2026

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1. E-Commerce & Online Selling

Selling goods online has become an increasingly popular way to earn a living or supplement your income.

Utilizing online third-party marketplaces like Amazon, Etsy, eBay, and Poshmark makes it easy to get started. Although these e-commerce platforms charge fees, you don’t need a large upfront investment to list your products and start selling.

According to Glassdoor, the average annual base pay an independent online seller earns is around $60,000, though actual earnings can vary widely based on your niche, pricing, and effort.

In general, you can expect start-up costs of around $500 for basics like initial inventory, packaging, and branding assets to establish your store.

For example, Amazon offers two plans: a professional seller plan at US$40 per month, plus referral fees on each sale, or an individual plan that charges US$1 per item sold, plus referral fees.

But it’s wise for every online seller to purchase product liability insurance or a broader business insurance policy to protect themselves from third-party bodily injury or property damage claims or lawsuits caused by the products you manufacture, distribute, or sell.

2. Airbnb or VRBO Host

If you own a home or condominium and have a room to share or wish to rent the entire premises on a short-term basis, you can become an Airbnb or VRBO host.

There’s no cost to listing your short-term rental on either homesharing platform, but you will need to ensure the property is cleaned before and after each guest visit. 

Also, each platform will charge a service fee when guest stays are booked – Airbnb adds a split-fee to each booking (typically 3% of the total booking for hosts), and VRBO has two fee models per each booking – a 5% pay-per-booking fee on the rental and a 3% payment processing charge, or an annual subscription fee (approximately $600) hosts can pay if theirs is a high-volume property.

Before you start hosting, be sure to review your municipal bylaws, condo board rules (if applicable), and any provincial regulations that may apply to short-term rentals in your area.

It’s also critical to ensure that you get short-term property rental insurance to cover your liability risks and damages that may occur to the abode, as most home insurance policies restrict or exclude coverage for short-term property rentals. Specialized short-term rental insurance can help close those gaps and protect your income if something goes wrong. 

3. Cleaning Services

Launching a small cleaning business to serve residential and commercial customers can be done for less than $1,000 by offering your services to customers who provide cleaning products and supplies.

However, even if you prefer to bring your own cleaning supplies and products, inform your customers that you will use their tools, such as mops and vacuum cleaners (promote it as a way for them to save money, too!). 

As you earn and grow, you’ll be able to purchase your own cleaning equipment and specialized tools, and charge more for your services while you work to build a steady customer base. 

However, before you begin soliciting your services to customers, ensure you have a cleaning business insurance policy to cover the cost of accidents that damage a customer’s home or office. A single slip, spill, or broken item could otherwise come out of your pocket.

4. Social Media Influencer

Starting a side hustle (or full-time business) as a social media influencer is one of the lowest-cost online businesses you can begin. However, it still requires a clear strategy, the right tools, and sometimes, a modest investment.

You’ll need to choose a niche or topic area to create content about, such as beauty and skincare or travel, use platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube to share your content, grow your follower base, and have a smartphone and basic editing apps (there are many free options available).

You’ll need to brand yourself consistently across your social media channels, but doing it yourself keeps it free. Having an active engagement strategy (posting consistently, replying to comments, and engaging with other creators) is not costly, but it is time-consuming.

A realistic startup cost is around $100. However, if you want to elevate your game, consider investing in a camera, ring light, USB microphone, and video editing software. Choosing wisely can help keep your startup costs to $1,000 or less, but most influencers don’t need these things when starting.

If there’s one minor investment you should make, it’s social media influencer insurance. This type of policy covers a wide range of liability risks, including third-party bodily injury and property damage claims arising from your operations or allegations of defamation, cyber insurance to protect your startup from cyber-attacks, and business contents insurance to repair or replace your smartphone, laptop, and other equipment you use if damaged by fire or water, vandalism, of if they’re stolen.

5. Home-Based Daycare

If you have ample living space and enjoy caring for children, consider starting a home daycare business.

Starting a home daycare is feasible, but it does require careful planning, compliance with regulations, and some upfront investment.

To become a licensed home daycare operator, you typically need a criminal background check, CPR and first-aid certification, and a home safety inspection. Licensing requirements vary by province, so be sure to confirm what applies in your area.

Assuming you have experience rearing or caring for children, and your home has safety features such as childproof gates, age-appropriate furniture and toys, and a secure play area both indoors and outdoors, you can charge between $25 and $60 per day per child.

You’ll definitely need to get daycare insurance to protect yourself, your property, and the young children in your care – most parents won’t hire you if your daycare is not licensed and insured. The right policy can help cover legal fees, medical expenses, and property damage if an accident happens on your watch. 

Many new small business owners initially start out doing a side hustle that becomes lucrative enough for them to make it their full-time profession. If you’re not ready to quit your day job, starting one of these businesses as a side hustle in 2026 can be a smart way to test your idea and build steady income before going all in. Here’s a list of side hustles to consider getting into before jumping headlong into starting a business.

No Matter What Business You Start – Get Business Insurance

If there’s one thing that’s consistent across any profession or industry, it’s the need to protect your livelihood and finances with low-cost business insurance.

Zensurance is Canada’s leading online business insurance brokerage, helping hundreds of thousands of small business owners, independent professionals, and entrepreneurs protect their finances and reputations with comprehensive, budget-friendly coverage.

Complete our online application for a free quote in less than five minutes.

Let our team of insurance experts shop our partner network of over 50 insurers to find the right policy that addresses your liability risks and suits your budget, answer your questions in plain language, and ensure you’re adequately protected to launch your new venture in 2026 and grow your bottom line without worrying about what to do if something goes wrong.

– Reviewed by Brandon Bowie, Senior Broker and Team Lead, Professional Lines, Zensurance.