As the holiday season quickly ramps up, so does our spending. From buying gifts, food, and getting ready for parties, many folks are strapped for cash. 

But the holidays also bring about something that may help – seasonal holiday jobs. 70% of full-time workers are picking up extra work to afford the holidays this year, according to a survey done by ResumeTemplates.com. 

This is partially due to the fact that they just don’t make enough. Less than half of the workers surveyed said that their current salary falls short of covering holiday costs  – something that many of us know all too well. 

I know you’re already exhausted from working but taking on a second job doesn’t have to be a drag. There are tons of interesting and creative ways to increase your income during the holidays, starting with this list of the highest-paying holiday jobs.

Key points:

• Holiday jobs are in high demand, with the highest-paying jobs making $60 an hour or more.
• There are niche job boards that cater to certain seasonal jobs and are great resources to use on a job hunt.
• Holiday jobs can either be worked directly as an employee or as a freelancer.
• There are several apps to list your services on as a freelancer that will help find holiday gigs.

6 Highest-Paying Holiday Jobs With The Most Demand

Holiday jobs aren’t limited to only working in retail or delivery driving. There’s a lot going on this time of the year. Stores and events need Santas, people need pet sitters, and gifts need wrapping – all of which you can get paid quite the pretty penny for.

Having said that, we identified 6 highest-paying jobs for the holiday season using wage data from a variety of sources. Many of these jobs can also be freelance roles, which would entail contracting out your services to stores, event organizers, on an app, or getting paid directly by your customers.

1. Santa 

Average hourly wage: $60 an hour (up to $500 an hour for freelance Santas)

Fictional Santa may make his elves do all the work while he takes the credit. But in the real world, he’s just another worker bee like the rest of us. He gets paid well in his line of work too, with some Santas making as much as $500 an hour!

Santas can work year-round or seasonally at stores, malls, visits, and community and corporate events – and they even do virtual gigs too. Sites like HireSanta.com serve as talent agencies for Santas and are a great way to find work. Santas can also apply directly to jobs at stores, events, or work as independent contractors. 

When looking for freelance Santa gigs, listing your Santa services on a talent booking app like GigSalad may help find work.

2. Holiday Resort Staff

Average hourly wage: $39 an hour

The holiday season is one of the busiest seasons at resorts, ski lodges, and ranches. Their clientele multiplies during this time and they need the staff to help cover the overflow. Some typical roles may include cooks, servers, bartenders, housekeepers, caterers, front desk agents, attendants, ski instructors, shuttle drivers, and more. 

These job-search sites are great places to start when looking for seasonal jobs in hospitality:

• CoolWorks: Find seasonal jobs in a variety of categories.
• SeasonWorkers: Find seasonal winter jobs in hospitality, ski resorts, child care, and more.
• VailResorts: Search seasonal jobs at over 40 different resorts.

3. Decorator

Average hourly wage: $33 an hour

December is a busy month for decorators. Christmas displays at stores, events, and even houses need professionals to help bring their holiday fantasies to life. This guy makes $3,600 a day from just decorating people’s homes (that’s $1,200 per home a day)! 

The fun of this high-paying creative job is if you’re already holiday-obsessed, you get to bask in the glitz of it all – and get paid for it too. Some people make their entire living from holiday decorating.

Duties may include setting up Christmas trees, putting up lights and outdoor displays, and decorating spaces for holiday events.

Decorators can find gigs by listing their services on an app like Thumbtack or starting a small holiday-decor business with a company like Christmas Decor.

4. House, Pet, or Plant Sitter

Average hourly wage: $22 an hour (with some sitters on Rover making as much as $78,000 a year)

Holiday travel means houses, pets, and even plants need someone to look after them, and their owners are willing to pay a lot to book you. The top earners on Rover make $78,000 a year or more, or $37 per hour.

House sitting and pet sitting are actually combined services that you can offer as a sitter on apps like Rover, Meowtel, and Trusted Housesitters. You can either work drop-in gigs or pet sit overnight in the owner’s home. Daily care may include feeding and water, taking them on walks, playing, scooping boxes, and anything else they need. 

If you’re allergic to pets, plant sitting is another option to earn extra cash. Apps like Airtasker and TaskRabbit make it simple to find gigs by connecting you with plant owners.

5. Gift Wrapper

Average hourly wage: $18 an hour

There is an art to gift wrapping but not everyone excels at it. For those who do, they may be able to create a lucrative holiday side hustle with it. 

Stores, resorts, lodges, events, and every-day people need talented gift wrappers to make their presents look beautiful. Gift wrappers are responsible for boxing and neatly packaging merchandise with a creative flair.

Gift wrappers can either apply to jobs like this one at places like ranches, offer services as independent contractors either on an app like TaskRabbit or starting a gift-wrapping small business.

6. Personal Shopper

Average hourly wage: $16 an hour

Shopping for gifts can really stress people out. Personal shoppers are there to take away that stress by doing the shopping for you, and doing a good job at it. 

They will buy your gifts, any clothes you need, food for parties, decorations, and even help with the style. Your friends and family won’t notice that you didn’t do the shopping yourself but will still be touched.

Personal shoppers can either work as shoppers on Instacart or Shipt, or list their services as independent contractors on apps like Thumbtack or Fiverr.

How to Get a Holiday Job 

When looking for seasonal holiday jobs, start with what works best for your schedule. If you already have a busy schedule between work and festivities, pick a side hustle that best compliments that. 

For instance, pet sitting may not be something you should take on when you don’t have a lot of time to spend with them. However, you could instead do part-time gift wrapping for a few hours on select days. 

Make sure to also be transparent about your availability when interviewing with companies, but also to yourself. The holidays are a time when we tend to stretch ourselves too thin and need to be wise about what we commit to.

Whatever you decide to do, have fun with it, and happy holidays!

Don’t forget to browse our other resources as you start your job hunt, including finding your market rate, interview questions and answers to prepare for, salary negotiation scripts and myths, how to ask for a raise, and more!

That wraps it up for this week. Until next time, stay awesome, stay strong, and keep advocating for yourself no matter what! I’m Daniella, a writer, engineer, and creator of I Like to Dabble and Remote Work Bestie - my blog and podcast for leveling up your money, career, and side hustles. I’m extremely passionate about workers' rights and financial freedom, so it’s a pleasure to be able to bring you this type of content through the Salary Transparent Street blog (thank you for the opportunity, Hannah!) You can also follow me on Instagram, TikTok, Linkedin, and Twitter. Chat soon!

If this guide helps you land a higher-paying job, let us know! Send us an email ➡️ hello@salarytransparentstreet.com

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