Gen Z Side Hustle Boom: Half of Young Owners Work Full-Time

The 9-to-5 is no longer the whole story for young Canadian entrepreneurs. Nearly half of Gen Z side hustle owners in Canada are running a business on top of a full-time job, according to the 2026 RBC Small Business Poll released Sept. 16, and a growing share of their peers want to do the same.

The survey found that 46 per cent of current Gen Z business owners are balancing a side venture with full-time employment. Another 32 per cent of Gen Z Canadians said they aspire to start a side hustle of their own, and two-thirds said they have considered starting a business at all, more than any other generation.

It is a striking shift in how young people picture entrepreneurship. Rather than quitting a job to chase a startup dream, they are stacking income streams: a paycheck for stability, a side project for independence. The poll suggests that for Gen Z, the business owner and the employee are increasingly the same person.

Why Gen Z keeps two jobs at once

The high cost of living was the most commonly cited barrier to starting a business, named by 42 per cent of Gen Z respondents. At the same time, 81 per cent of Canadians agreed that financial uncertainty is pushing more people toward entrepreneurship to offset financial pressure, RBC reported.

That pressure is reshaping what success looks like. Only a minority talked about scaling up or chasing growth. For 42 per cent of Gen Z Canadians, success meant being able to support themselves or their families, while 35 per cent pointed to building long-term wealth. Pursuing a passion drove 27 per cent of those who want to own a business.

"Small businesses are the backbone of Canada's economy, and the next generation of entrepreneurs will help shape its future," said Amy Childs, RBC's vice-president of small business and partnerships, in a statement. "Gen Z is showing that business ownership doesn't have to follow a traditional path, with success increasingly defined by flexibility, financial stability and independence."

Optimistic, but stretched thin

Despite the economic headwinds, young owners are remarkably upbeat. Eighty-four per cent of Gen Z business owners said they are optimistic about the future of entrepreneurship in Canada, ahead of 76 per cent of business owners overall.

Technology is part of that confidence. The poll found that 85 per cent of Canadians agreed tech and digital platforms have made starting a business feel more accessible, and 49 per cent of Gen Z Canadians (56 per cent of Gen Z business owners) said entrepreneurship feels more accessible today than it did for previous generations.

The same tools that make it easier to start also raise the bar. More than eight in 10 Gen Z owners said entrepreneurs today are expected to learn and adapt to technology more than previous generations, and 63 per cent said they feel pressure to adopt artificial intelligence tools to stay competitive, according to the survey results reported by Wealth Professional.

The pattern is not just a Canadian story. In February, the advisory firm Certuity said in a brief that its Gen Z clients show elevated interest in entrepreneurship, creator economies, gig work, and portfolio careers that combine multiple income streams, and that financial advisers should expect clients whose career paths follow less predictable shapes.

RBC pointed to several of its own programs built for this segment, including its Ownr incorporation platform, the Futurpreneur mentoring program for entrepreneurs aged 18 to 39, and a free course developed with Western University's Ivey Business School.

The poll was conducted by Ipsos Canada from June 27 to July 6, 2026, drawing 3,137 self-completed online surveys from Canadian adults aged 18 and older across six regions. The results carry a credibility interval of plus or minus 2 percentage points, according to the official release on CNW.

For a generation that came of age during a cost-of-living squeeze, the Gen Z side hustle has quietly become the business plan. The question now is whether the full-time job stays part of it.

If you are weighing a venture of your own, it helps to see what is actually paying out. Check our rundown of what pays in the Gen Z side hustle shift this year, our Canadian freelancers guide to taxes, GST, and setting up a business, and the side hustle reality check for 2026 before you dive in.