Over the past several years, interest in quick ways to make money online, from the comfort of our homes, is on the rise.
The magic of the web is that it’s a powerful sales channel, marketing network, and community hub all in one—plus so much more. There are many creative ways to make money fast online beyond filling out surveys and selling used goods on marketplaces.
That said, some side hustles are better suited to the laptop lifestyle than others. In this idea guide, we’ll break down the pros and cons of 30 of the top online money making ideas.
To make choosing the best ways to make money online easier, we’ll look at several key factors:
Business type: whether the idea is product based, service based or driven by an audience.
Effort: how much time, skill, or experience you’ll need to put into the idea.
Leverage: how well positioned you are to turn the idea into a money-making one that increases in value without needing your direct attention. A high-leverage idea isn’t a 1:1 trade of time for money.
Startup costs: the upfront budget you’ll need to launch the idea.
Profit potential: how much profit you can expect to make from your idea per year.
1. Sell stuff online
One of the best money-making ideas for quick cash is selling stuff online. For example, you can sell clothes, furniture, and handbags from your own home, or you can buy and resell higher-value items like laptops, TVs, or phones. You can buy these products online through sites like AliExpress or from local garage sale and thrift stores—a great way to make money fast and earn extra cash.
Try to sell your products on multiple platforms and marketplaces instead of just one. The more places your products live, the more likely people will be to find them. There are hundreds of online selling sites, all with their own niches and commission fees. A few examples include:
eBay
Facebook Marketplace
VarageSale
Mercado Libre
Your own online store
If you enjoy this process, you can start a legitimate reseller business and sell anything from vintage clothing to refurbished electronics.
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: Medium.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on the marketplace in which you’re selling your products.
What to know:
The more places your products are available to buy, the more likely people are to find them.
There are hundreds of online selling sites with their own special niches.
Each marketplace has its own rules and fees. Make sure to understand them before you sign up for a marketplace.
Requirements:
Products to sell.
You may need to create an account and get verified to sell in a marketplace.
2. Print on demand
Print on demand allows sellers to customize white label products with their own designs and sell them only after a customer buys, eliminating the need to hold inventory (which is what makes it a subset of dropshipping). When a customer places an order, a print-on-demand company will add your design to the product, fulfill the order, and ship it to the customer.
The most significant advantage print on demand offers over dropshipping is that you control the aesthetic of your products—a key differentiator for product categories where the design is the distinguisher, like t-shirts or fan merch.
When it comes to making money online, you can also use print-on-demand services to:
Test online business ideasor new products lines without the risk of buying inventory.
Monetize an audience you’ve already built, whether it’s on YouTube, social media, or a personal blog.
Offer diverse products by selling t-shirts, books, shoes, bags, mugs, phone cases, laptop skins, wall art, and more.
Sell photos online by placing your images on physical products to sell to your fans.
Overall, print on demand lets you create customized products quickly. You don’t have to worry about shipping or fulfillment—it’s taken care of by your suppliers. And since you have no inventory to worry about, it’s a low-risk, low-investment way to make money online.
Startup time: A few hours to set up an ecommerce platform, then however long it takes to create your designs.
Effort to start: Very easy with little ecommerce knowledge.
Time to first payment: It depends on when you get your first sale and which ecommerce platform you decide to use, but Shopify’s pay periods are five business days.
What to know:
You can set up accounts with ecommerce platforms like Shopify that have the logistics included in their services.
Payments will vary depending on how much you sell and your profit margins.
Pay period using Shopify Payments is five days, plus the number of days remaining until your payout day.
Requirements:
Most ecommerce platforms require that you’re at least 18 years of age. If you’re under the age of 18, your parents can start one on your behalf.
Requirements vary by state, but you need to have licenses or permits to sell anything online.
3. Start freelancing
An increasingly popular home business idea is offering freelance services to clients online. Freelance writing, graphic design, data entry, digital marketing—almost every role an online business would hire for is viable as a freelance service. I’ve worked with writers, illustrators, and designers for years at Shopify, most of whom make their full-time living freelancing, not just doing it in their spare time.
Almost all of these services are best positioned toward business clients, for reasons similar to why business software is an attractive product: business clients are willing to spend. What most freelancers quickly learn is they have more leverage over the price they can charge when they position their work as outcomes instead of deliverables.
Put another way, businesses hire freelance writers to create content that drives traffic and leads, not for wordsmithing. Sell clients on the outcome and prove it, where possible, through customer evidence like case studies and testimonials.
The last thing to consider for these businesses is that they are a direct trade of time for money. You can make good money with a small selection of high-paying clients, but the moment you stop working, the cash flow dries up. You may be able to turn a freelance business into more of an agency, where hired help handles some client work.
Startup time: Varies, depending on service.
Effort to start: Medium.
Time to first payment: Varies.
What to know:
Collect customer evidence cases, studies, and testimonials to help you in getting your next job.
Freelancing is a direct money-for-time trade, so you may eventually want to grow your business model into one with a standalone asset.
Sell clients on the outcome you can achieve, then prove it.
Know your worth. You have the power to set your pricing.
Requirements:
Ability to talk to clients and meet deadlines.
An internet connection and laptop.
You’ll need to be at least 18 years old to work on freelance marketplaces.
4. Start a dropshipping business
Consider dropshipping—startup costs are low and it’s an increasingly popular way to make money online for beginners and pros alike. Dropshipping is a business model where you don’t keep the products you sell in stock. Instead, when a customer buys something from your store, a third party fulfills and ships the order for you.
Dropshippers can cash in on the latest trends and sell trending products, or there are many steady product categories that offer similar opportunities to do well.
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: Very easy with little ecommerce knowledge.
Time to first payment: Two weeks to one month, on average.
What to know:
At Shopify, we regularly see these categories on our list of top performers: clothing and accessories, jewelry, home and garden.
You can create a Shopify store and test it out with a free trial.
The pay period using Shopify Payments is five days plus the number of days remaining until your payout day.
Requirements:
You must be 18 years or older to start a Shopify store. If you’re under the age of 18, your parents can start one on your behalf.
Requirements vary by state, but you need to have licenses or permits to sell online.
While the options above come bundled with the convenience of not holding on to expensive inventory, they also come with some limitations—mainly that you don’t have full control over the product you’re selling.
And when you think of most direct-to-consumer brands, this is what comes to mind: original products that make meaningful improvements or add interesting details to well-known items. Personally, I’ve purchased many messenger bags, but I’d never seen anything like the one made by Vermilyea Pelle until it reached my doorstep.
Making products by hand is popular among jewelry brands, fashion brands, and home décor brands. It gives you full control over the product development and quality of your items.
The only drawbacks are:
It can be time consuming
It’s difficult to scale
The costs associated with making products by hand are the cost of materials, storing your finished products, and labor.
Startup time: A few hours to set up your ecommerce platform, followed by however long it takes to create your custom products.
Effort to start: Medium, but it takes a lot of effort to maintain.
Time to first payment: The pay period using Shopify Payments is five days, plus the number of days remaining until your payout day.
What to know:
Sellers must collect the state tax where their item is delivered to.
Make sure to factor in your packaging costs when pricing your items.
You can set up a Shopify store and use it for free.
Requirements:
Most ecommerce platforms require that you’re at least 18 years of age. If you’re under the age of 18, your parents can start one on your behalf.
Requirements vary by state, but you need to have licenses or permits to sell anything online.
25 more ways to make money online
6. Sell on Etsy
Every online marketplace, from Etsy to Amazon, offers a shared set of advantages and disadvantages. The upside is that you get access to their network of shoppers—people regularly browse these sites when they need to buy something, so setting up shop lets you meet them there.
That said, since these channels can work in harmony with your own website, sometimes they’re a great place to begin. New online makers can use Etsy to grow brand awareness at first. We’ve seen many businesses successfully switch to Shopify, for example, after generating their first few sales on Etsy.
If you have an Etsy shop and don’t want to leave just yet, you can always run both stores simultaneously. Once you set up your Shopify store, use a free Shopify app like Etsy Marketplace Integration. You can easily sync inventories, manage orders, and make money online using both Shopify and Etsy.
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: Easy, but it takes a lot of effort to maintain.
Time to first payment: Your funds will be available for deposit three days after a sale for the first 90 days. After that, they’ll be available for deposit the next business day.
What to know:
To post an item on Etsy, it costs 20¢/item every four months, until the item sells.
When you sell an item, Etsy charges a 5% transaction fee on top of your sale price (this is paid by the buyer) and a 3% + 25¢ payment processing fee per transaction (this is paid by the seller).
There are also possible pattern fees, conversion fees, and a variety of ad fees you might be charged, so make sure to read up and see if they apply to you.
Requirements:
Sellers must be at least 18 years of age to sell on Etsy. If they are between 13 and 18, they may use Etsy with the supervision of a parent or legal guardian. Children under the age of 13 are not allowed to sell on Etsy.
You must comply with Etsy’s guidelines for what items are acceptable to sell and how your items are represented.
7. Sell on Amazon
Amazon has become a marketplace that welcomes ecommerce entrepreneurs. It takes a few minutes to sign up for an account and a few more minutes to get a product listing live.
The platform has a massive audience, it’s a global marketplace, and it’s a go-to destination for product discovery and research. Listing optimization can help your products get found and unlock new opportunities. And Amazon’s in-app promotions can increase your brand’s visibility for highly targeted audiences.
Yet some ecommerce entrepreneurs question the long-term sustainability of selling on Amazon. While the marketplace is great for helping shoppers surface desired products, it’s challenging for sellers to get their business noticed. Amazon attracts many resellers of the same products you may offer.
Homesick went from not being on Amazon two years ago to becoming the number one scented candle company and the number two candle brand in the world. Amazon proved to be a good springboard for selling its products online.
Despite its success, Homesick used Shopify to build an online store as its home base. This gave the budding ecommerce business a place to showcase its brand, connect with its customers, and maintain control over its sales and promotions.
Startup time: A few hours, depending on how many products you’re listing.
Effort to start: Medium.
Time to first payment: 14 days after your first sale is delivered.
What to know:
You can only have one seller central account for each region you sell in, unless you have a legitimate business need to open a second account and all your accounts are in good standing.
Product detail pages do not belong to a single seller; they are for the specific product itself.
You must only ship products that you’ve included in the product detail page. Any additional items sent to the buyer is prohibited and may lead to the deactivation of your seller account.
You must confirm that you have shipped the product with Amazon in order to receive payment.
Requirements:
An Amazon account.
Must provide a product feed to Amazon or use its FBA program and send your products to an Amazon warehouse.
Must be at least 18 years old to create an Amazon seller account.
8. Sell digital products
Digital products carry some of the best margins of any product you can sell. The upfront costs of development can be high, but the variable costs of selling digital products is comparatively low. Once media or software is made, it isn’t very expensive to deliver to customers.
At its core, a digital product is an intangible asset you can sell repeatedly without restocking inventory. They often come in downloadable files such as a PDF, plug-in, or interactive document. These products have become such a good source of passive income that many top professional influencers, bloggers, or public icons release digital products like guides, ebooks, templates, research findings, plans, and tutorials.
Many creators make digital products to add another revenue stream to their main business, whether it be consulting, education, or memberships. You could build a presence on Twitter and LinkedIn or build an email subscriber list to promote your products and make sales.
Startup time: Varies, depending on how long it takes to create your digital product.
Effort to start: High initial effort to create the digital products you want to sell.
Time to first payment: It depends on the ecommerce platform you use, but platforms like Shopify take five business days to pay out.
What to know:
E-learning is becoming very popular as a digital product that people are investing in.
Digital products are scalable. There’s no limit to how many products you can sell. No inventory. No manufacturers. No shipping or logistics. Just market the products
An understanding of licensing laws, if you want to license your product or use licensed materials.
Requirements:
An online platform to sell your digital products.
9. Sell media
Media is a wide-ranging term, but the best description available if you’re a creator in the market to sell music, videos, digital art, paid newsletters, magazines, or podcasts. Media seems closely related to digital products, but the difference with media is that it tends to be geared toward creative ventures—for example, a writer starting a paid newsletter subscription or an artist learning how to sell art online.
The best part about selling media is that, a lot of the time, it’s a way for people to express themselves online. Artists and creators who didn’t have access to networks, galleries, or PR in the past can now build a brand, grow a following, and make money online doing something they love.
Startup time: Varies depending on how long it takes to create your piece of media.
Effort to start: High.
Time to first payment: Varies depending on the ecommerce platform you use to sell your media.
What to know:
Licensing laws, if you want to license your work or use licensed work in your pieces.
Requirements:
An online platform to sell your media.
10. Start Blogging
You’ve probably read a business blog at some point in your life. Businesses use blogging to share knowledge and insights, build an audience, and get more leads and sales. Blogging has endless benefits, such as building thought leadership in an industry and improving search engine visibility for a brand.
Blogging to make money online has grown beyond big businesses and side hustles. Anyone can now build an audience by putting out great content and make a lot of money from their blog. Bloggers also tend to take a personal approach that resonates with an intended audience versus getting information from a company blog.
People start blogs for many reasons, some being:
An outlet to share their thoughts, passions, or life experiences
A platform to educate readers on a topic they know about
An avenue to sell products or services
A space to build a personal brand
While blogging is a low-investment business idea, it can take time to pay off. Chances are, you won’t find yourself on page one of Google’s search results overnight. But with the right niche and determination, you’ll be well on your way to making money online through your blog.
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: Medium to start, but it will take a lot of effort to maintain.
Time to first payment: Varies depending on how you are monetizing your blog
What to know:
It may take a lot of trial, error, and time for you to begin to see the monetization you want.
So, how do you make money affiliate marketing? Essentially, publishers or individuals can apply for affiliate programs, wherever they’re available, in order to be added as an official affiliate. Once you’re accepted, you’ll receive a way to share an affiliate link to the product or service you’re interested in promoting. (Don’t forget to add a disclaimer!)
When someone buys the product after clicking your link, you’ll receive credit for the referral, along with a commission. The commission amount depends on the affiliate program and the product being sold—commodity items on Amazon.com won’t pay out much, but referring a high-ticket account may pay out hundreds or even thousands of dollars.
Because affiliate marketing works best when you help a visitor understand why a certain product may be the right one for them, you’ll typically notice it deployed on content-focused websites. Search engine optimization also plays an important role here, and you’ll see everyone from homegrown sites to massive, globally known publications competing for terms like “best gaming laptops 2023.”
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: Medium.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on how successful your affiliate marketing campaigns are.
What to know:
Growth in affiliate marketing can be sporadic in the beginning, but if you stick with it and refine your strategies, it can become a great source of passive income.
Building trust with your audience is the most important thing to cultivate with affiliate marketing.
Disclaimers are required by the FTC and most reputable affiliate programs.
Requirements:
A website or social media presence where you can promote products as an affiliate.
Traffic to your website or a social media following.
12. Create online courses and workshops
There’s a reason online courses have a pretty broad appeal. Once a course is created, it accrues all of the benefits of any digital product: the costs to deliver the product to more customers is essentially zero, with the exception of hosting.
Compare that to the need to maintain inventory that all physical product businesses face and you’ll find yourself dealing with fewer product-related headaches as you scale.
The appetite for digital courses and continuing education is there, too. That’s why sites like Udemy and Skillshare thrive. Your biggest hurdle is actually the web itself, where there are thousands of wonderful resources available for free. And content on every topic is getting better by the day.
Remember, though, that while there are countless topics to create content about, there are far fewer topics that people are willing to pay for. Usually, the bestselling courses teach people a valuable skill that helps them progress at their job or get deeper enjoyment out of a beloved hobby.
Startup time: Varies, depending on course, but anywhere between 25 and 100 hours.
Effort to start: Very high.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on your course’s payment structure.
What to know:
Feedback is your friend. After you’ve sold your first round of courses, don’t be afraid to tweak it and improve it based on customer responses.
Live elements, like a live Q&A or a live webinar, will raise the value of your course and make it stand out.
Creating an online course takes a lot of time and energy, but once you’ve created the course, it will become a source of passive income for you.
Requirements:
A way to record audio and video and edit segments together for recorded lectures.
13. Start a YouTube channel
Ever thought of becoming a YouTube star? Micro-celebrities like 10-year-old Ryan Kaji are making more than $29 million per year on YouTube selling toys. Another top earner on YouTube is David Dobrik, who makes about $15.5 million entertaining his audience with comical videos.
Create a YouTube channel around one niche. This will help you build a loyal audience that repeatedly tunes in to your channel, giving you more opportunities to make money online. You could offer tutorials, review products, keep up with celebrity news—whatever you think will keep your audience interested.
The key to a successful YouTube channel is to entertain or educate with your content. Once you’ve reached 1,000 subscribers, you can make money running YouTube ads on your channel. Beyond advertising revenue, you can also offer paid product placement to big brands, sell products, or become an affiliate to make money on YouTube.
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: High.
Time to first payment: Once you’ve reached 1,000 subscribers.
What to know:
You can create a high-paying YouTube channel with the right niche.
The key to a successful YouTube channel is entertaining or educating with your content.
You can use your channel to become an affiliate.
You need at least 1,000 subscribers to start earning money.
Requirements:
A way to record video and audio, and a way to cut your video together.
Creators between the ages of 13 and 17 need parental permission to start a YouTube channel.
14. Become an influencer
Influencers are a popular marketing channel for brands big and small, with 68% of US marketers at companies with more than 100 employees working with them in 2021. If others can become influencers, so can you.
To become an influencer, you’ll need an engaged following. Influencers today don’t need to have millions of followers. There are opportunities to become a nano-influencer or micro-influencer, which are accounts with up to 10,000 and 50,000 followers, respectively.
The two biggest platforms for this are YouTube and Instagram. Some of the most popular influencers found fame through these platforms like Lele Pons and pewdiepie. Check out our article on how to grow your Instagram following to build a big audience.
Once you have a following, you can make money several ways as an influencer:
Charge for sponsored posts
Speak at conferences
Sell products in your online store
Become an affiliate
Sell ads
Become a brand ambassador
Write a book
Startup time: Varies, but generally, about three to four months.
Effort to start: High.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on how you are monetizing your influencer status.
What to know:
The number of followers you have isn’t as important as the number of engaged followers.
TikTok is the hottest social media platform attracting influencers.
Use multiple avenues to monetize your influencer status.
Requirements:
Knowledge of how to engage and build trust with your audience.
A particular niche.
15. Write ebooks
Got a story inside you just waiting to be released? It’s time for you to write that ebook. With Amazon Direct Publishing, it’s easy to publish an ebook. You just need to write the content, format it, create a cover, then publish and promote it online.
Use a keyword research tool to find trending topics people search for. You can use this information to inspire your book’s narrative, if you get stuck. Not the best writer? That’s OK. Hire a ghostwriter to work on the book with you. They’ll help you get your words onto the digital page. Then you can work with a designer to create the cover and a freelancer to format the ebook, if you need help.
To sell your ebook, market it a few different ways. Run a giveaway and offer it for free for a few days. The more traffic that comes to your page, the higher you can rank in search results. This can lead to more reviews, which can also boost your book’s visibility and earn more sales.
Engage in social media communities around the topic you plan to write about. For example, if you want to write a recipe book, you could get involved with food and culinary communities on Facebook and in real life. Once your book is published, you’ll have a strong community of folks who might buy it from you.
Startup time: Varies by book, but could take upward of two years.
Effort to start: Hard.
Time to first payment: Amazon takes 60 days after end-of-month sales.
What to know:
Market your book in several ways to drive traffic to your website and get your book ranked higher in search results.
Social media is your friend when it comes to marketing your book. Take advantage of the different platforms to gain a following.
Requirements:
A way to get your book published. Amazon Direct Publishing is perfect for this.
16. Look for side gigs
Side gigs are the classic way to earn money online while keeping a full-time job. It’s not for the long run, but you can earn cash online with near zero startup costs.
Similar to freelancing, you can use platforms like Fiverr to create gigs. If you have administrative skills, you can sell side gigs on Fiverr for a low price. Top Fiverr users typically have multiple gigs available, which helps you get found on the platform more easily.
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: Medium.
Time to first payment: Varies depending on the freelance marketplace you use. TaskRabbit takes about three to five days for the payment to hit your bank account after the task is finished.
What to know:
Some side gig marketplaces require an upfront fee to sign up, so read the fine print carefully.
Review the side gig marketplace’s payment schedule to make sure it works for you.
Requirements:
A computer or mobile device.
An internet connection.
17. Do translation work
Speak multiple languages and want to make money online? Test your skills at translation work. The top five language pairs for business are:
English —> Spanish
English —> Chinese
English —> French
English —> German
English —> Russian
If you’re fluent or have working knowledge of these pairs, translation work may be a fitting gig for you to try. You’ll need to prove you can translate between the two languages, so create samples before you start applying for jobs. These samples should be around the types of text you want to translate. For example, if you want to translate blogs, fill your portfolio with relevant articles from top media publishers on the web.
There are many places to apply for translation work online:
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on the freelance marketplace.
What to know:
You will need to prove your fluency level before being approved to list yourself as a translator for any reputable freelance marketplace.
If translation is something you plan on doing for a long time, remember to continue studying the language(s) you’re translating now in order to stay up-to-date with the language’s slang and esoteric terminologies.
Requirements:
A way to receive items to be translated and a way to upload them to your client.
18. Livestream on Twitch
Livestreaming becomes more and more popular each year, with viewership increasing 49% in 2021 from the year prior.
Many platforms now offer native livestreaming, including YouTube and Instagram. Yet the most popular platform is Twitch, which has evolved from gaming to other types of content, such as adventures and arts and crafts. If you can go live regularly, you’ll build a strong audience on Twitch.
To make money online from streaming, you’ll need a consistent channel. Are you going to be funny or educational? Are you streaming your biking trips or World of Warcraft? Set expectations for viewers so they know exactly what they’ll see when tuning into your livestream. Engage with viewers in Twitch’s live chat. This will help you build a niche following.
You can monetize your Twitch channel a handful of ways:
Selling products
Brand sponsorships
Fan donations
Subscriptions
Twitch ads
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: High.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on streaming service, but Twitch pays out 15 days after that month’s end.
What to know:
Consistency is key to building a following. Try to regularly broadcast at the same time/day.
You can monetize your Twitch channel in many ways.
Requirements:
A camera.
A microphone.
Livestreaming software.
Twitch is recommended for ages 15+.
19. Take online surveys
A tried-and-true way to earn money online is through completing online surveys. The payouts won’t turn you into an overnight millionaire, but you can earn some pocket cash. Some survey sites like Swagbucks will give you points, which you can redeem for cash back or rewards. You can also earn points for playing games, browsing the web, or watching videos.
How your survey sites pay you out (gift cards, PayPal, etc.) and make sure it works for you.
Most survey sites require a minimum balance before they pay out your earnings.
Requirements:
Your time.
Online survey sites have age requirements.
20. Sell photos online
The web is a beautiful place for photographers. Whether you’re shooting on the newest iPhone or the latest Canon DSLR, you can sell photos online as a photographer.
You can sell prints of your most popular photos through your online store, so you don’t pay fees or commissions to outside platforms. But that’s only one stream of income. You can also partner with a service like Printful to put your photos on products like clothes, phone cases, pillows, and more. You don’t have to pay anything to Printful until your product sells.
You can also sell your photos to online stock photo sites like Alamy or 500px. If you’re brand new, you can submit certain photos for free to sites like Burst, where millions of people find stock photos for their projects. This helps build awareness for your brand and talent, which can lead to future sales.
Startup time: A few weeks.
Effort to start: High.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on where you sell your photos.
What to know:
Building awareness of your brand—even if you have to do it for free—will be worth it in the long run.
Many photo marketplaces only charge you a percentage of your sales. You can also build an online store and sell your prints there.
Requirements:
A camera.
Photo-editing software.
21. Become a social media consultant
Another trend for making money online is becoming a social media consultant. Successful creators on platforms like TikTok and Instagram offer their skills for sale.
As a social media consultant, brands will contact you to brainstorm creative ideas, develop a content strategy, produce videos, and more. It’s a smart money-making opportunity for digital nomads because you can run the business from a smartphone.
Your goal will be to grow a brand’s awareness and audience. You’ll need to know how to create viral videos and manage a community.
Startup time: Varies, depending on experience and current following, but could take months to years.
Effort to start: High.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on how you structured payment for your services.
What to know:
Choose a platform to focus on, like Instagram or TikTok. Become an expert on it.
Build your own social following first and use it as a portfolio to land new gigs.
Networking is a big part of social media marketing. Be ready to put yourself out there and make friends.
Requirements:
Experience creating a successful social media presence that makes money.
You’ll want to choose a niche area to focus on, like beauty or cars. This can help you find the right clients.
22. Start a podcast
Podcasts continue to get more popular each year. Recent research shows that podcast listener numbers were up in 2021 by 10.1% compared to the previous year, with 117.8 million people tuning in monthly for an episode.
If you know the value of content for your brand, then you already know the value of podcasting. It allows you to reach new audiences you might not find through long-form content via people who prefer audio.
You don’t need to be a technical person, and it doesn’t take much money to start. Best of all, you don’t need to be a popular blogger or influencer to become a successful podcaster.
As you build your following, there are different ways to monetize your podcast:
Sponsorship deals
Affiliate partnerships
Premium content offerings
Donations
Advertising networks
Selling merchandise
Hosting live events
Startup time: Average nine to 14 hours per episode.
Effort to start: High.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on how you are monetizing your podcast.
What to know:
There are many ways to make money through your podcast. Use several to optimize the monetization.
It may take a while before your podcast starts making money. Pay attention to feedback, make adjustments, and be patient.
Requirements:
Microphone.
Audio recording equipment.
A place where listeners can stream your podcast, like Spotify, Stitcher, or Apple Music.
23. Become a transcriber
Looking for a career where you can make $25 an hour working online? A transcriptionist could be the role for you. Transcribers are in demand for companies needing interviews, podcasts, and other audio transcribed. You can lock in a part-time role with a company or work on a freelance basis with multiple companies on specific projects.
To succeed as a transcriber, you’ll want to strengthen your typing and grammar skills. Your work needs to be error-free and done on time. Practice transcribing short audio files so you’re ready to apply to gigs with transcription companies. Create a transcription-focused website and CV.
Dedicate time to practicing transcription before you go out applying for jobs. Once you build your skills and know what companies need, you can land more jobs and earn more money.
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: Medium.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on payment structure agreed to with clients.
What to know:
You don’t need any official transcription certificates or degrees to become a transcriptionist, but if you complete a transcription course, it does give you a little extra credibility with clients.
Requirements:
Transcription software.
A way to receive audio to be transcribed and a way to send the transcription back to your clients.
24. Review apps, websites, and software
Got an eye for good user experience? UserTesting will pay you $10 to give other companies feedback on their apps and websites. It’s a quick way to make money online. All you have to do is answer some questions as you browse the website or app through a video. Each video is about 20 minutes long, so if you complete three in an hour, you can make $30.
The one challenge is competition. You’ll receive an email when a project goes live, but you have to act fast or someone else will take it.
Top user review sites you can sign up for include:
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on which user testing site you sign up with.
What to know:
The really profitable jobs go quickly, so when you see one, snatch it up as soon as you can.
Requirements:
Internet access.
25. Narrate audiobooks
Love audiobooks and reading aloud? Or maybe you have the voice of Samuel L. Jackson and want to share it with the world. Either way, put that marvelous voice to good use by becoming an audiobook narrator. It’s a fun gig because you’re not just reading words from a book, but bringing a story to life for listeners.
Audiobook narrators often work as freelancers. Organization, professionalism, and meeting deadlines are key skills for this line of work. Audiobook narrators often have additional skills like:
Background in acting
Ability to use different voices, accents, and dialects
Persistence
Becoming an audiobook narrator may not make you money overnight, but it’s a dream job for those passionate about it. To start, volunteer to read as a public service. This will build your narrating skills and portfolio, plus do some good for someone—a win-win.
Networking is key to narration. Consider joining the Audio Publishers Association to meet other narrators and potential work contacts.
Create a website and set up your social media profiles to showcase your talents. Post samples of your narration and make them easily accessible on your website. When recruiters or companies come looking for you, they want to know you’re the right voice before reaching out.
Lastly, try applying for jobs through audiobook-specific marketplaces like:
Networking is essential, so join meetups, audiobook networking events, and social media to get your name out there.
Create a website or find a way to post samples of your narrations in a centralized place so you can refer possible clients there.
Requirements:
Ability to meet deadlines.
Professionalism.
Organization.
26. Become an Airbnb Host
Put that extra room to good use by renting it out on Airbnb. Just look at Sasha Im: She rented out her spare room in Seattle from 2016 to 2019 and made an extra $16,000/year.
Becoming an Airbnb host is easy. First go to the Airbnb host page and follow the prompts to publish a new listing. When creating your listing, make sure to:
Include accurate and eye-catching photos that capture your space in the best light.
Be aware of all the fees and taxes that might apply to short-term rentals.
Make your price competitive with your area.
Establish a clear cancellation policy.
It will take 72 hours for your listing to go live after you publish it. When you start accepting bookings, be super communicative with potential and current renters. That’s the best way to avoid scams and any misunderstandings that may pop up.
Startup time: Your listing will appear in the search results 72 hours after you publish your listing.
Effort to start: Medium to high.
Time to first payment: Airbnb will send your payout 24 hours after your guest checks in.
What to know:
Local laws, restrictions, and regulations for your area when it comes to short-term rentals (state, local, HOA, etc.).
Any area transient occupancy taxes.
Requirements:
Necessary certificates and/or permits required by your area to rent out your space on a short-term basis.
An Airbnb account.
A room or dwelling that you have the legal rights to rent out.
27. Buy and sell domain names
Whether you’re a major retailer or a small business, choosing a memorable and eye-catching domain name for your website is a crucial part of making your business a success. In 2021, there were more than 1.8 billion websites in the world and every single one of those websites needed a domain name.
Much like comic books or cryptocurrency, you can buy and sell domain names for a profit. If you go to domain-buying websites like Namecheap, GoDaddy, and Hover, you can buy as many domains as you want. But the trick is finding the domain names that are valuable.
There have been domains that have sold for nine figures—like Cars.com, which sold for $872 million—but those are few and far between. The name of the game in flipping domain names is to buy a number of promising domains and sell them for a modest profit.
Don’t be surprised if you have to sit on your domains for months, if not years. But with minimal effort, you can make extra money and comfortably work from home.
Startup time: Less than an hour.
Effort to start: Minimal.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on form of payment accepted. Usually three to five business days.
What to know:
Buying and selling domain names is not a way to make fast money. Many times, you have to sit on a domain for months or even years.
Be wary of depending solely on the price domain appraisers set for your domain names, as they have a tendency to set their valuations on the higher end.
Laws on trademarked names.
Requirements:
An internet connection.
A way to accept payment.
28. Invest in real estate
There are a lot of ways to invest in real estate, and it can be very confusing. But apps and websites have simplified the process for you.
Apps like Fundrise offer investors the ability to invest in a portfolio of properties along with other users. This allows people with limited funds to invest in projects that they might otherwise not be able to on their own and begin to make their money work for them.
You can also invest from the comfort of your keyboard, while Fundrise takes care of all the logistical and legal matters for you.
Just be warned: even through an app, real estate investment requires time. Most properties take at least five to 10 years before you’ll see a return on your investment. This is a long-term investment that can become passive income for you in the future, but make sure you can live without your initially invested funds.
Startup time: As little as a few minutes.
Effort to start: Varies, depending on the method of investment.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on the method of investment. Fundrise requires a minimum five-year investment. If you pull out early, you could incur penalties.
What to know:
This is a long-term investment. Expect to not see any dividends for at least five to 10 years.
Research the apps you’re going to use to find ones that work better with your investment plans.
Requirements:
Many of these apps have a minimum investment requirement. It can be as low as $10 and as high as $10,000.
29. Invest in the metaverse
The metaverse is a virtual world where users can interact and do things they do in real life, but in virtual reality. For example, in the metaverse, you can do things like:
Buy, sell, and rent out digital property
Get a job
Advertise for a business
Create experiences
Open a business or store
The way you can participate in the metaverse is by joining a metaverse project like Axie Infinity or The Sandbox. You participate by investing in that project’s cryptocurrency. For example, Axie Infinity uses AXS, and The Sandbox uses SAND (i.e., PayPal and credit cards are useless in the metaverse).
Be forewarned: Metaverse projects are tied to cryptocurrency, so there’s the potential for high returns in a short amount of time, but along with that, there is also high risk.
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: Easy to medium.
Time to first payment: As soon as you want to transfer funds you make in the metaverse into real-world currency.
What to know:
The metaverse can be a high-risk investment, but there is also potential for high returns if you can get in on the ground floor of a burgeoning metaverse project that ends up being popular.
Requirements:
A computer and an internet connection.
Knowledge of how cryptocurrency and the metaverse works.
30. Become an online tutor
During the pandemic, education turned virtual. Schools and universities switched to entirely online classes, and the tutoring business was no different. The online tutoring business is expected to grow by $97.66 billion from 2023 to 2027.
If you enjoy seeing that light turn on in people’s eyes when they finally grasp a concept, this is a good option for you. You get to decide which subjects you feel comfortable helping others with and set your own hours and rates.
On top of that, you can freelance as a tutor more easily than ever. With sites like TutorMe and Fiverr, you can easily find students who need your help.
Startup time: A few hours.
Effort to start: Minimal.
Time to first payment: Varies, depending on the site you use to get your clients. Fiverr can pay you out in as quickly as two hours.
What to know:
Most freelance sites require some sort of proof that you know the subject matter you are wanting to tutor. It’s usually in the form of a test or proof of certification or diploma.
Most freelance sites also charge a transactional fee to withdraw your payments. Fiverr charges $1, or $3 if you want the transfer to go through within two hours.
Requirements:
Knowledge of subject matter you want to tutor.
Computer and internet connection.
Necessary licenses or diplomas required by the freelance site you’re using.
How to make money fast in 2023
The opportunities to make money online fast, sometimes passive, are only becoming more abundant. You could pick up freelance jobs, start a dropshipping store, create your own products, or promote other people’s products on a blog. It simply takes a little know-how and hard work to make it happen.
Start working on your ideas today to build something meaningful and exciting. Put your time and effort to good use and your work will pay dividends over time as you build your online presence, find new customers, and make sales.
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