One-quarter of Americans make money from the gig economy

One-quarter of Americans in some way made money from the gig economy last year, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center.

Twenty-four percent of those surveyed earned money using a digital platform. Of that segment, 8 percent earned money by completing a job or task (like working for Instacart or Uber). Including some overlap, 18 percent of those surveyed made money by selling goods online. Only 1 percent made money by home-sharing through Airbnb or another site.

A McKinsey report estimated in October that between 20 and 30 percent of the working-age population had participated in the gig economy in some way.

Both reports set out to determine how gig work is reshaping Americans' working lives.

“These findings highlight the great diversity of experiences within the gig economy, and also illustrate the extent to which these services are blurring the boundaries between formal and informal employment,” Pew study author Aaron Smith said in a statement. “A slight majority of these workers rel[ies] heavily on the income they earn from these platforms, and use them for largely financial reasons. But a substantial minority views this work much more as a hobby -- or simply a way to pass the time -- as opposed to a true ‘job’ or a dedicated source of income.”

The Pew report surveyed about 4,500 adults in July and August.

Of the 8 percent of respondents who had earned money through a gig economy job requiring labor, 5 percent completed an online task like taking a survey. Two percent earned money through a ride-hailing service, and the rest were split between delivery and shopping services, cleaning and laundry services and other options.

Earning money by providing labor in the gig economy was more common for black and Latino survey respondents (at 14 percent and 11 percent, to white respondents' 5 percent) as well as among young adults.

Sixty percent of those who earn money through labor relied on their earnings for common expenses, while only 20 percent of online sellers did.

It was more common among white and older respondents to have earned money by selling something online.

Twenty-six percent of gig economy workers consider themselves employees of the services they work for, which is a contentious distinction for Uber and other companies.