The internet is a beautifully simple marketplace for people to make money, and get paid for their services. We’ve compiled the five best places for you to make money online, whether you want to start your own business – or just make a little extra on the side.
Amazon
You can sell pretty much anything on Amazon, although selling in some specialized categories requires Amazon approval and an upgraded selling plan. Amazon charges several kinds of fees on items sold, depending on what kind of selling plan you have.
If you opt for the standard Individual selling plan, you’ll pay Amazon 99 cents per item sold, plus a referral fee. The referral fee is a percentage of the item’s total sale price, including shipping costs but not taxes, and generally ranges from 8% to 20%. If you’re selling media items, including books, movies and video games, you pay a $1.80 closing fee, as well.
Etsy
Are you crafty? If you’re artistic and are the type of person who can make custom jewelry or refrigerator magnets with the best of them, Etsy is the place to sell your products. For the rest of us, we must find another website to go to, so we can earn money to buy things from the crafty entrepreneurs at Etsy.
Fiverr
Fiver is a long established freelance site where everything costs a $5 minimum. It’s a simple and easy to use website, where you post the services you can provide: and if someone needs them, they’ll pay you to work.
Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, Letgo
These websites and apps don’t always take a cut of your sales, but you’re responsible for connecting with your buyer, meeting up in person and making the exchange. It’s definitely a different style than the online auctions and sales. If you’re not comfortable handling all the logistics yourself and then meeting up with a stranger, you should probably stick to online only.
Depending on what you’re selling, you can arrange to meet your buyer in a public place (many local police stations offer a “safe haven” for such sales) or have a friend hang around while you make the sale. The simplicity here is the key: no packing, shipping or fees, just cash in your hand. But unlike many online-only sales sites, these marketplaces don’t have any guarantees or protections if your buyer turns out to be a flake.
Poshmark
Poshmark is an online sales and social network hybrid for men’s, women’s and children’s clothing, as well as other goods. Its fee structure is simple: For all sales under $15, you’ll be charged a $2.95 fee; for anything $15 or more, the fee is 20%. Poshmark charges your buyer $7.11 for expedited shipping, so you just print out a prepaid shipping label, box up your clothing and send it off.
YouTube
YouTube is another platform that has made it possible for people to earn money online. There are a ton of YouTube channels out there on any topic if you can think of, and most of the people with a big following are earning some money in exchange for their videos and time.
Last year, Forbes profiled some of the biggest players in the YouTube scene. According to the study, the top ten biggest grossing YouTube stars brought in $127 million from June 2016 to June 2017. The most popular, a gamer named DanTDM, earned $16.5 million of that on his own.
Will you earn that much? Probably not. However, you can start making money via YouTube using the platform’s own ad network or by getting sponsored posts. If you like doing videos, starting a YouTube channel can a fun way to earn some cash on the side.
The Bottom Line
There are a ridiculous number of ways to make money online and the ones I’ve covered here are just the tip of the iceberg. If you have time, a passion for almost anything, and at least some creative skill, you may be able to build an online income stream — or several — if you give it enough time.
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