The best hooks for side hustle reels, from 1,359 that went viral
We read the opening line of every viral side hustle reel in Aubrium's library: which hooks show up most, which travelled furthest, and 15 real ones to learn from.
"You are a creator. Which deal would you sign?" The question came from an account with 3,421 followers, and the reel reached 1.2 million views.
Side hustle is a niche full of big promises about money, and we didn't quote any of them. What we did do is read the opening line on all 1,359 viral side hustle reels in Aubrium's library, from 1,120 creators, and count which kinds of hook show up and how far each went. The bigger picture is in the hooks guide for all of Instagram and the other niches we looked at.
Bold claims open 32% of viral side hustle reels, with curiosity gaps and questions next. Relatable lines are rare, at 6%, but they travelled furthest, 39 times followers for the middle one, against 14 for a bold claim. 86% show the hook as text, and the middle hook runs 13 words.
Aubrium's library, 22 October 2026.
What kind of hook works best for side hustle reels?
The bold claim, by a distance: 32% of these reels open with one. Curiosity gaps take 16% and questions 12%.
On distance, the order flips. The middle bold claim went 14 times followers, the lowest of the big groups. Relatable lines, just 78 reels, reached 39. POV hooks reached 34 and negative hooks 28. "Behind the scenes me as a content creator." is one of those relatable lines.
15 side hustle hooks that went viral
Each is a different creator's most-viewed reel with an English hook. This niche has plenty of hooks that promise an income, and we left every one of them out. Tap a type to filter.
- QuestionText on screen
You are a creator. Which deal would you sign?
- Bold claimText on screen
The power of branding 🔥
- Curiosity gapSpoken
Smile without your eyes. Raise your eyebrows. Stop smiling. That's your model face.
- Curiosity gapText and spoken
Hey, Thrifters, I think someone donated this by mistake.
- Number listText on screen
i emailed 100 brands
- NegativeText on screen
I don't have aesthetic House i can't create content
- POVText and spoken
POV: your financially aware friend
- RelatableText and spoken
Behind the scenes me as a content creator.
- POVText and spoken
Oh my god, a brand emailed me.
- Bold claimText on screen
everyone says "just open canva and sell a digital product"
- NegativeText and spoken
I need an aesthetic room to make good content. Cute excuse, but no.
- POVText and spoken
POV: your mom finds that one shoe box 😭
- Curiosity gapText and spoken
When a brand says, hi, I love your content, can you send over your rate card?
- Transformation teaseText on screen
Buying Lawnmower to Sell
- POVText on screen
POV your rent is due in 3 days
How long should a side hustle hook be?
Up to about 12 words. The middle side hustle hook runs 13, but the ones from 5 to 12 words travelled furthest.
Those two bands reached 22 and 23 times followers for the middle reel. Then there's a cliff: 13 to 20 words, the most common length at 32%, managed 11. Oddly, the longest hooks, past 20 words, recovered to 16.
Should you say the hook or show it?
Show it. 86% of viral side hustle reels put the hook on screen.
Text alone went 26 times followers for the middle reel. Text with a voice reading it went 13, and a hook that was only spoken went 19.
How do viral side hustle hooks start?
In the first person: 86 hooks open on "I", and the next word, "this", opens 44. Side hustle hooks are personal: what I tried, what I learned, what happened next.
- I 86
- this 44
- if 39
- how 33
- POV 23
- here's 18
- you 17
- I'm 14
- the 14
- let's 13
- my 13
- what 13
The first word of 753 English hooks on viral side hustle reels, and how many start with it.
The same four shapes keep coming back. One real hook for each:
I… / My…
“i emailed 100 brands”
POV…
“POV: your financially aware friend”
When… / If you…
“When a brand says, hi, I love your content, can you send over your rate card?”
You… / Your…
“You are a creator. Which deal would you sign?”
Keep reading
For the formats and sound behind these reels, read how to go viral with a side hustle. Selling your own work? Try freelancing hooks or hooks from Etsy sellers. And for the brand side, there's what works in marketing hooks.
Questions people ask
What is a good hook for a side hustle reel?
Bold claims are the most common, opening 32% of viral side hustle reels in Aubrium's library. Relatable lines travelled furthest, 39 times followers for the middle one.
Are bold claims the best hook for side hustle reels?
They're the most common, on 32% of viral side hustle reels, but the middle one went 14 times followers. Relatable lines reached 39.
How long should a side hustle hook be?
The middle hook on a viral side hustle reel runs 13 words. Hooks of 5 to 12 words travelled furthest, 22 to 23 times followers.
Should a side hustle hook be spoken or on screen?
On screen, in this library. 86% of viral side hustle reels show the hook as text, and text alone went 26 times followers for the middle reel, against 19 for a hook that's only spoken.
How we did this
We looked at every side hustle reel in Aubrium's library on 22 October 2026: 1,359 reels from 1,120 creators with 1,000 to 100,000 followers, each of which reached at least twice its creator's follower count and at least 10,000 views. We counted every reel filed in Aubrium's side hustle niche; a reel can sit in more than one niche.
Hook types, delivery and on-screen text are labels Aubrium's reader puts on every post. Hook length and first words count the 753 reels with an English hook in words. Every number here describes reels that already went viral, so none of it is the odds for a new one.
Changelog
- First version.
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