If you want to make money online, you need an idea. Without an idea, there is no chance to start your own online business.

With tons of entrepreneurs out there this first step is one of the hardest challenges, where you might find yourself wandering around the web to get your creative juices flowing.

Don’t look any further, as I have put together a list of 50+ online business ideas which you can start tomorrow. Obviously, there is a need for tremendous preparation and research, but hopefully, this list can get you started.

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54 ways to make money online

Start Your Own Listicle Blog


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The recipe is quite simple.

Look for emotional, inspirational, interesting stories on Facebook or Reddit. Then, rewrite the short stories into a detailed article. Set up your own site and publish the articles.

The fact that Viralnova.com was sold for $100 million might get your motivation high.

Even though it seems as a simple business, monetizing your site might prove to be a bit of challenge. However, if you know a few things about SEO and AdSense, there is a great chance for success. With a successful promotion, you will be able to pull in tons of unique visits per month, as it seems like we just cannot get bored of these stories.

Want to write a great listicle artcile? 14 Tips to write a great listicle, from Vegibit will help you.

Get Into the Domain Business

Even though you might think that best deals have been made long ago, the domain business is still an ongoing thing.
Lots of people buy and sell domain names to earn money as it requires only a small investment. With some thorough research, you can get an idea about what are the most trending domain names currently. This will help you to buy potential domain names which can be sold later for a profit.

Look for domain auction websites on the web, as you can stumble upon expired names, which are back in the pool and are available to buy. You can make a profit with only a few clicks from home. The chances are high, that you will be the next domain guru.

Flipping websites

Unlike the domain business, this is not easy, but can fetch you a huge amount of money. The process is really simple: Search for low-cost profitable websites. Build these websites further and optimize them. Work on the On- and Off-site SEO factors to get a decent amount of traffic. Register in website auction sites, list your websites, find the correct customer and sell them these websites at a huge profit.




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Recommended Reading: Website Flipping – Buy And Sell Websites To Make A Living Online

Sell Apps

Smartphones are everywhere and everyone enjoys quality applications. In case you feel like you are up for the challenge, start building apps. With a few clicks, you can get them into the Google or Apple market and start selling.
Check for the latest trends and start developing.

Overall, app building is a cost-efficient online business, which, if done right, can get you great profit.

You might need some time before getting things right. However, in the long run, apps can get you the success that you’ve always dreamt about. As well-performing apps can make thousands in ad revenue in each month, this might as well be a great choice for you to make money online.

Sell Your Design

If you are good with designing and creating unique images, you can simply start selling your own design.

There are numerous sites out there offering the opportunity to sell your design in the form of T-shirts, bags, mugs etc. The only thing to keep an eye on, is to keep your creations printable. Once your ideas start selling, you will be receiving a commission for each sold piece.

You don’t have to worry about shipping, or actually printing the design. The only thing you’ll be asked to do, is to upload your images.

The registration is free, there are usually no fees, however, before you would start, you should start thinking of your own brand. It always proves to be a great decision to come up with a catchy name at least, as people can follow your shop and will keep an eye on your work. By creating your own brand and selling creative images, you can gain a better reputation, which will lead to better sales.

Start Freelancing to make money online

There are numerous professional platforms on the web which offer the opportunity to start your own freelance career. These sites enable businesses to get that required extra help for their project success, while they enable freelancers to build their reputation and apply to various types of projects.

Starting from graphic design, translation, programming to data entry tasks, you will find various projects which you can join. Build your own rockstar profile and start bidding to get your business running.

Watch this video to see how I made my first $1000 online by freelancing and how you can make your first $1000 too.

Build Websites

If you are into coding, offering a website building service can get you big bucks.

Set up your own site and describe your services.

Start advertising your service on social media and start a marketing campaign. Pay attention to the latest trends and keep up with them to attract as many customers as possible. (Recommended read: Simple tips to get targeted-traffic from Social Media)

As the world of web design is constantly changing, you will be needed to learn things constantly. You can get an idea about the latest design trends with a simple Google search.

Create WordPress Themes

Another option if you have a talent for designing websites, is to create your own WordPress themes and sell it. As many people look for easy and simple solutions to establish their online presence, WordPress themes are highly popular. You can sell your own designs for numerous sites and profit from your hard work.

Become a Blogger

Even though nowadays it seems impossible to get profit from blogging, lots of people manage to do so.

If you are passionate about writing and have the right amount of motivation, you can give blogging a chance. Setting up your own blog does not require a lot of technical skills. Gettting high traffic, however, is a different challenge altogether.





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Blog Word – Showing Words Online And Site

Picking a topic is always hard.

If you are an expert in something, you might want to choose to share your own insights, which can help other professionals. Whatever your topic is about, you have to invest time to build a strong audience. This will enable you to promote other brands, build new business relationships and finally gain profit. Blogging is rather competitive but if you are good with the words, you can make a profit. (Recommended Read: A detailed guide to Blogging)

Become an Online Affiliate

If you are up for making a few bucks online and would like to do it without developing any product yourself, becoming an online affiliate might be your best choice.



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Amazon, Ebay and most of the bigger companies offer an affiliate program. The only thing that you need to do, is to drive traffic to their site and get people buy their products.

After each sale, you will be getting a considerable commission, where the top commission tier is around 8.5%.

You will be also generating profit after users sign up via your referral.

You can either build a new site for a specific product type or add referral links to your already existing blog or website.

Recommended Reading: 10 Best Affiliate programs for bloggers and influencers

Get Started with Ecommerce

Shopify and Woocommerce make it easy to set up your own online shop in a second. In case you have a product in mind, you can easily start selling online. To make things easier, there are also several methods (like dropshipping) available which can save you from a headache when it comes to storing or delivering products.

Social Media Expert

With the growing popularity of social media, large corporations are in need of professionals who can manage multiple social media accounts at once. Look for social media expert/consultant opportunities and be prepared to implement, or in some cases even create a social media marketing plan for the company. If you have professional experience and you know how to turn social media connections into customers, this is your best choice.


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Stock and Forex

The stock- and forex-market is considered to be a risky investment. Having said that, there are numerous success stories all over the web. In case you have previous experience this might be a great opportunity to start your own online business. By exchanging foreign currencies and stocks you can earn a considerable profit. But, it is always advisable to start out small.

Sell Your Website Space

If you already own a blog or website, you can work with advertisers and sell a portion of your page. This way, you can earn money each time the ad placed on your site is clicked. The CPC (cost-per-click) model is based on the level of traffic to your site, and the CTR (click-through-rate).

You can further enhance your profit by utilizing SEO tools and Google AdSense.
There are numerous other tools which can help you maximize your advertising potential and get a great profit.

Write

If you want to solely focus on writing without worrying about the various marketing aspects that come with an online business, you can do that too.

Either by writing for other sites or blogs, you can get paid per article. E-books, topics that require special knowledge (marketing, legal, pharmaceutical etc.) will get you higher paying projects. You can also become a professional copy or content writer or editor.

Freelance writing is getting more and more popular, so if you have a talent for writing, you should considering this new career path. (Recommended read: 20 Websites that pay you to write)

Become an Online Marketing Expert

Do you have experience with SEO?

Do you know what SEM is?

Then, you have yourself a career in the world of online marketing.

Once a site has been optimized for SEO and is full of rockstar content, it is time for the SEM (Search Engine Marketing). In case you have experience and professional knowledge about promoting techniques around the web, the chances are high that you can get an online business running. As usually these tasks are outsourced by companies, there is a vast pool of potential customers out there. Also, a great chance to get a huge profit!

Share Your Knowledge

Webinars have brought online education to a new level. In case you are an expert in a topic, you can share your knowledge online and make an extra income in your spare time.

There are numerous platforms on the web which offer courses on various topics, while they also enable professionals to sign up as online tutors. Dedicate a few hours a week to sharing your insights and you can easily end up with a new passion and source of income.

Sell Quality Photographs

The era of stock photos is slowly coming to an end, as web designs are aiming to feature unique, quality photographs. If you are a passionate photographer, you have numerous options to sell your pictures online. Putting quality material on the web will get you a great opportunity to generate revenue, while if you also focus on creating your own brand, you can get higher chances for an even bigger profit.


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If you’re just starting out online, Shutterstock is a great place to start. Makeuseof.com has published an in-depth article on the amount of money you can earn by selling photographs online. Go read about it here: 12 most profitable places to sell your photos online

Become a Virtual Assistant and make money online

As all businesses are in need of a helping hand to run their everyday administrative tasks, there is a great chance to land a full-time virtual assistant job. This work from home type of job will get you flexibility, while you will surely not get bored, as virtual assistants have to deal with several types of tasks.

If you have a phone, an internet connection and a skype account and some office experience, you might as well get started right away.

Create Video Content

Since the popularity of video content is on the rise, especially when it comes to online marketing, if you have experience with video content creation, you can surely get a business running. Offer video packages to potential clients, look for online projects to participate in and most importantly have a compelling portfolio. Video content can get you a huge profit, but only if you have the required technical skills and marketing knowledge.

Podcast / YouTube Channel

Are you an entertainer? Well, it might be time for you to hit the virtual stage and show people what you got. With the rising popularity of podcasts and YouTube channels, you now have the opportunity to build a huge audience and share your ideas. Either if you are planning to comment on daily political events, or you would like to create gameplay videos, you can with a few clicks. There are millionaires who became wealthy thanks to the online community, so don’t be afraid to step out there and let others enjoy your talent!

Get paid to give advice to people online

If you are a good listener and can give good advices to others online, this option is great for you. Give any useful tips or insights into your area of expertise to people looking for it. This can help you earn a decent side income online with minimum efforts.

Find a platform as per your expertise and offer advice via email or SMS to get paid.

Listen to music


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Who would have thought that listening to your favourite songs can help you earn some money easily at home? There are many nig music companies that are looking for people who can listen to their music. They use the data gathered from these people to study the customer behaviour about popular music trends.

You can also become a music researcher and help music companies analyze and acquire customers based on which type of music is getting popular and how music lovers are responding to certain trends.

Participate in online surveys and fill forms


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This is one of the most common ways to earn some simple money online. You can complete simple surveys at your home and get paid in vouchers or cash.

Some brands use customer surveys to gauge a product’s demand in the market. By participating in these surveys and sharing your opinion about a particular product, you can earn good money.

Become a mystery shopper

Many companies hire mystery shoppers to rate and review their stores and services to get an honest feedback. You can choose the stores or restaurants you want to review from the mystery shopping websites. Then, you can go to these stores at your own convenience to review them. Some companies ask you to fill out a survey after you have availed the services to get your feedback.

In return for your valuable opinion, you either get to avail the services for free with some additional payment for your efforts. You can get free meals at great restaurants and earn some pretty decent money too, by sharing your opinions.

Play online games


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Have you ever wished to get paid for playing video games? It seems like a dream, but there are companies which pay you to do exactly that. You can win real cash rewards and online coupons by playing video games or any other games online.

You can earn up to 150$ per hour by testing and playing high-paying video games with people across the world.

Become an app tester/ Use a paying app

A very common way to earn some simple money online is by using some apps. You can become an app tester or simply use apps that pay you for downloading and using them.

You can get direct money in PayPal or get gift cards to buy anything you like. Some apps also pay you to take mystery polls and explore your neighbourhood. You can easily earn 10$-15$ a day using this method.

Type captcha online

This might seem difficult but you can earn up to a 100$ a day by simply typing captcha online. The amount of money you can make depends on your typing speed. So, if you can type around 25-30 words per minute, you will earn much more compared to what others earn.

Captcha typing is a very easy job that requires absolutely no investment or specific skill set. In fact, some websites even offer up to 1$ per minute or per captcha to some of their advanced users.

Sell on ebay or etsy

Like to make something which can sell easily? Turn your hobby into a business by opening an online shop on Ebay or Etsy. Ebay is a big marketplace where all kinds of goods are sold by individuals and big brands as well. Etsy is more focussed on vintage or handmade items or other unique things which are not sold anywhere else.

You can sell cards, jewellery, vintage home decor pieces, homemade cookies, food products and any other product which you like to make, in these marketplaces.

Promote brands

Do you have an Instagram account with too many followers but nowhere to go? Monetize your social media channels by connecting with brands and promoting them in exchange for some money. Some social media influencers get 100$ -200$ for every Instagram post or a Facebook shout out.


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Nowadays, real opinions from real people matter more than celebrity endorsements. So, more and more brands are hiring social influencers to get the word out in the market. By promoting these brands or their new launches in social media, you can earn a good income online.

Write an eBook

Create a good passive income by writing an eBook and selling it on Amazon Kindle or other websites. You get paid for every sale. So, don’t stop yourself from sharing it with your friends and family. This is one of the easiest methods to make some side money, as more people are shifting to eBooks and are looking for interesting ebooks online.


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Pick an interesting subject and include a lot of visually appealing elements, like infographics, to attract the readers. Hire a professional from fiverr to design a good cover, or design it yourself to get more conversions.

Answer questions online

There are websites which pay you to answer questions online. You can answer questions about relationships, facts, arts, science or any subject that catches your fantasy. These websites pay you directly to your Paypal account.

You can also participate in discussion forums, which pay, in points, for each comment you make. You can convert these points into dollars anytime you want.

Get paid to tweet

This is included separately, as you can easily earn a few dollars everyday using Twitter. You can earn by not just promoting brands, but also for every visitor who visits the website through your links.

There are some twitter marketing platforms which pay you to tweet, retweet, or add links to your tweets. You can earn by simply sharing press releases, offers, company information etc.

Rent out your space or assets


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Do you have a room in your house that you do not use? Or can you spare your car for a few days in the week? Rent out the space or the assets and make a good online income with easy-to-use hotel aggregators like Air BnB, by listing your property.

Write online resumes

Do you have a knack for creating attractive resumes or CVs? Convert this passion into an income. Write resumes for people who want to apply for jobs, and are looking for help with their resume development.

Do you understand what employers look for, when looking at a resume? or have you been an employer yourself? If so, Resume-writing is the suitable job for you.

Create Podcasts


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You can also make short podcasts, as they are all in rage right now. People are listening to podcasts while driving or exercising or walking. Also, making an interesting podcast is pretty easy.

Inspirational podcasts can become quite successful. So, if you can get somebody to share their journey on your podcast, you are bound to get a good audience.

Become an online juror


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This is the perfect way to earn some money online, if you are good at arriving at a verdict after studying all sides of the case. Each verdict can help you earn 10-15 $. By doing so, you can help real attorneys practice for their case before the trial.

Invest in Cryptocurrencies

The hottest way to earn quick money online now, is to invest in cryptocurrencies. Research about cryptocurrencies thoroughly before investing, because they are quite volatile.


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There are many cases, wherein dubious platforms have been hacked by people to get access to investors’ money. Therefore, trade Cryptocurrencies only through reliable platforms.

Become a product tester

Get free products while getting paid to use them, by becoming a product tester. You can get to try new products before they are even launched in the market and can earn reward points, gif cards, and cash, by sharing your experience of using the product.

This not only helps you earn extra money, but also helps you save some money, since you get free products.

Become a life coach

Love lifting people and their spirits up? Hiring a life coach is becoming more and more common these days. As a coach, you can: motivate your client; develop strategies for them to get successful in life; and help them to achieve their personal and professional goals.


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You can become whoever you want to: a business coach; a productivity coach; a time-management coach; a leadership coach; or a health and wellness coach. You get paid for guiding people in the right direction using your knowledge. You also get the satisfaction, that you are making money by uplifting someone’s life.

Sell your class notes online

More often than not, a professor’s notes are crucial for passing the finals. For one reason or another, there is usually less than 100% attendance for the lectures. These absentees need the lecture’s notes. Even those who attend may not write the notes during class. This leaves them needing the notes after the lecture. These two occasions necessitate the demand for notes.


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For those that attend classes and write good notes, they can sell them online for such people, who do not have the notes. Sites such as Stuvia offer platforms for you to sell your class notes. For further details, visit Money pantry.

Retail arbitrage

This is one way that not so many people employ, though it can be an opportunity to make serious cash. It works in a very simple manner. You buy items at certain prices from certain retail stores like Walmart and sell them later at higher prices.

In another scenario, you can secure a sale prior to buying the goods. While buying, alter the shipping address such that it will reach your buyer. More information on this can be found here.

Sell your unwanted gift card

Getting a gift card for stores you do not buy from, let alone have heard of, can be annoying. Forcing yourself to go to the store so that you use the gift card can be very uncomfortable. Maybe, at times, the nearest store is very far away and you barely have the time to go use it.


The good news though, is that you can make money online by selling your unwanted gift cards. Raise is one such platform you can use to sell your gift card. For more, visit their site.

Become an officiant

This is one of the easiest ways to make money. All you need to do, is obtain your license online at a small fee. Afterwards, you are free to perform weddings.


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A vast majority of people who get a license often tend to officiate at a family’s or friend’s wedding. Later they make themselves available for other weddings at a fee. You can get the steps to being ordained at Withjoy’s blog.

Buy and sell used books

Rather than sitting on the books that you have completed using, why not make some cash from them?

You can sell these books online and earn money. All you need to do is find a site and place your books up for sale. In no time, you will have made your sales. For further information on these sites for selling used books, visit this page.

Get paid for watching TV

Did you know that you can earn while doing one of everyone’s favourite things, watching TV? With the app Viggle you can.


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Viggle pays its users for streaming TV through the app. Viggle awards its users points which can be redeemed for rewards like gift cards. This app requires its users to be patient before they start earning, as points are awarded slowly. To find out more visit Tough nickel.

Scan your groceries

This might sound ridiculous, but it can earn you money regardless of how it sounds.

Nielsen has a program that allows people to scan the barcodes of everything they buy and relay this information to them, in order to earn redeemable points. The points are often redeemed for a range of items on the Nielsen Gift Catalog. You can receive a barcode scanner from Nielsen or you use the barcode scanner on your phone.

Get inked


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A considerable number of organizations out there are looking for people to tattoo their advertisements. The tattoos are temporary. So, you do not need to worry about them forming layers or covering your body, regardless of the number of jobs you decide to do. You can visit the Lease Your Body website, set up an account and offer your body. You will be paid for every job you are selected for.

Work from home as a nurse

Plenty of people often use the services of Fonemed. Fonemed offers services of registered nurses online at a fee that can be up to $27 an hour. All you need to do is sign up, provide relevant information to clients over the phone and you will earn your money.

Stake on you losing weight

Many of us often begin the year determined to lose weight. However, we lose focus somewhere in between as the year goes on. Maybe we lack motivation to meet our goals.


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HealthyWage and DietBet offer you the ability to bet you will weigh a certain kilogrammes at a specified period of time. If that time comes and you have met the goal, then you earn your winnings, but if not, you lose your stake. You can benefit twice in this scenario – get into better shape and earn a little money online.

Do customer service from home and earn

You can do this as a part timer and earn some extra cash. This should be an easy job for regular phone users. A company called VOIQ offers such opportunities. Part of your job description is reaching out to customers, who had sought to speak to client firms. Visit the following site for more information.

Get paid for finding coupons

Online shoppers often look for coupons. At times, you may get one that you may not use for a while. You can give this to certain sites that will pay you once someone uses your coupon. Try using CouponChief to earn money from coupons.

Give feedbacks to websites

Many websites are often developed primarily for members of the public. Hence, your feedback is very important to them. You can get paid by offering such feedbacks. Further information to be found here.

List items for sale on Facebook

Many towns have Facebook groups for selling and buying stuff. These groups are often only for locals. You can put up some items you want to sell and get customers willing to pay.

With an internet connection, it is very easy to make money online. All you need to do is identify opportunities and start working towards your goal of earning online.

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