Introverted. Antisocial. Shy. Psychopathic.

There’s a range of words to describe people who don’t exactly love interacting with the public. If that’s you, we know it’s not that you dislike people—or maybe you do—it’s just that day-to-day life is so people-y all the time. We get it.

So you might be thinking ‘can’t a person make a little money without having to deal with all the people?’

Why yes—if you know where to look, you can. Here are some of the best jobs, as a side hustle or full-time, that are light on interaction with people.

1. Data entry

Data entry is a flexible job that doesn’t require any experience or training. It typically pays between $10 and $20 an hour, and while it can be repetitive, it’s fairly easy. There are data entry jobs in a lot of different categories—e-commerce, real estate, legal, and accounting are just a few.

If you do e-commerce data entry, you might be entering order information or product descriptions. For real estate, it might be entering and updating property information. 

2. Transcriptionist

A lot of industries still rely on transcriptionists, basically just typing out the words that are spoken in an interview or dictation. There are a lot of transcription jobs where certification isn’t required, but for more specialized industries—like legal or medical—you may need a certification, and in some cases an associate’s degree. Transcriptionists can make between $15 and $30 an hour, and certified transcriptionists typically earn rates at the higher end of the range.

3. Virtual assistant

Virtual assistant jobs have become very popular in the last few years. It’s basically the same as being a regular assistant, except you’re not there virtually and not in person. That’s pretty great if you don’t like people, because you can basically sit in your own isolated room and do things like answer emails, book appointments, prepare letters, transcribe documents, and make travel arrangements.

If you really don’t want to deal with people, even remotely, then you’ll want to be careful to find jobs that don’t involve answering a phone. 

Virtual assistant jobs generally pay between $18 and $44 per hour.

4. Virtual bookkeeper

If you’re good with numbers—but not people—a promising career in virtual bookkeeping awaits. You can spend your time at a computer, managing day-to-day financial tasks. You might record transactions, process payroll, reconcile credit card and bank statements, or even order supplies. Or you might handle billing and accounts payable.

Because you’re remote, you’ll need to make sure you have a reliable  computer and internet connection. You also may need to have specific software, which your client may or may not provide.

5. Soap maker

If you want a job where you won’t deal with people, but you don’t want to sit at a computer, soap making could be a great job for you. (You didn’t see that one coming, did you?)

Soap making is creative, and it doesn’t require total focus—so you can do it while you’re spending time with family members or listening to music or an audiobook.

To start, you’ll want to learn the basics of soap making, but it’s not complicated and there are lots of online resources to help you. You’ll also need a few materials, like ingredients, soap molds, and packaging. And the last thing to figure out is how you want to sell your soap; you can set up an online store, sell at your local farmers market (which might be more interaction with the public than you want), or find businesses to sell to.

The bottom line

There are a lot of ways to earn money that don’t require you to be ‘on’, or to have to navigate exhausting and unpredictable human interactions. The remote nature of all of these jobs means that you can do them from anywhere, and often with flexible hours. Go find your ideal people-free calling, and enjoy the life of a solopreneur!