55 Best Internet Business Ideas

Working from home is becoming more and more appealing.

Imagine having a internet business that allows you to work in your underwear, set your own hours, give you creative freedom and allow you to spend more time with your family.

But, buying a McDonald's franchise or starting your own store can be very expensive, as well as stressful. You would need startup capital, employees, lease space, equipment, inventory, and much more.

Traditional brick-and-mortar business don't seem to be worth it anymore, do they? That is why people are more interested in going internet-based.

Here are 55 of the best internet business ideas you can start with:

 

1. Blogging

Blogging gives you lots of perks. You can pick a subject you know a lot about and start writing articles regularly to gain an audience. Then, there are countless ways to monetize the blog once you have plenty of traffic.

Read more about starting a blog here.

 

2. Affiliate Marketing

I talk about affiliate marketing all the time because it costs very little to start and requires little management. You basically just need to get traffic to affiliate links for quality products you are promoting. When a sale is made through you, you get a commission.

I recommend Clickbank for affiliate marketing.

 

3. Web Design

With about 900 million websites, there will never be a lack of work for web designers. If you can do some coding, edit some WordPress themes, and redesign website layouts for people, your skills are in big demand.

 

4. Social Media Consulting

Facebook alone has over a billion users. Imagine how many there are when you combine Instagram, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, Tumblr and Linkedin with it. Businesses are always looking to reach more people and social media is one of the best ways to do it.

Social media management is a full time job in itself, so if you are good at getting followers, engagement and traffic from these platforms, you should take advantage.

 

5. eBay Sales

eBay is still one of the biggest online marketplaces in the world. If you want to sell anything at all, that is a great place to start. Whether it is cars, clothes, electronics, or anything else, an eBay store can make you a nice income.

If you want to see a cool success story from eBay, check out Nasty Gal.

 

6. Ecommerce Store

Start a website and sell products to people without even having a physical store. You will need hosting, a domain, traffic and manufacturing, but an online ecommerce store can be a great internet business.

Check out SaleHoo for finding suppliers for your store.

7. Drop-Shipping

Drop-shipping is kind of like affiliate marketing for manufacturing. By definition, it is when you “move good from the manufacturer directly to the retailer without going through the usual distribution channels.”

This can be a great way to start a business without actually having to have your own products. Check out Shopify for more on drop-shipping.

 

8. Virtual Assistant

Running a business or just managing life can be extremely time consuming. Having full time employees around you all the time is very expensive. This is where virtual assistants come in.

You can hire them on places like UpWork or individual agencies. Then, business owners give them step by step instructions for tedious tasks that must be done by the assistant, so they don't have to do them.

The assistant can be in a completely different country and it wouldn't matter because they are doing only internet based tasks for the most part. You might try being a virtual assistant.

 

9. SEO Consultant

Good at helping websites rank in search engines? The services are in huge demand these days. Whether it is local SEO for a small business or worldwide SEO for a big blog, rankings help businesses get traffic and make money.

You might try local SEO first and possibly work your way up if you want to take on bigger clients.

 

10. Resume Writing

Unless you're an entrepreneur, you need a job to get by. To get a job you usually need an interview with the employer first and a resume to send them with your qualifications.

The problem is, not everyone is good at making their resume appealing to employers. If you are good at this yourself, you could have an entire business built just for resume writing services.

11. Yahoo Store

Another place to start a business is Yahoo. With Yahoo Stores, you don't have to worry about the headaches that come with owning a website. You don't have to deal with hosting, domains, customer support, spam, rankings, etc.

All you have to do is signup and start selling your products. This can be a great way to get started and make a nice alternative to eBay.

 

12. Info Products

If you do something for a hobby, read about it consistently, or do it for a living, chances are you know more than most people about the subject. You can use this knowledge to create a business for yourself that pays as much as you're willing to charge for your products.

You can use video courses, written courses, templates, audios, etc. as your mediums for teaching the information.

13. Freelance Writing

If you want to rank any website, especially if you aren't just going for local search, you will definitely need content. Blogging is one of the best ways to get a website to rank.

The only problem is that many people just aren't natural writers or don't have time to learn the proper way to blog effectively. This is where you come in.

As a freelance writer you can charge a fee by the word or by the article and write high quality content for people.

 

Related: 30 Ways To Make More Money Blogging Online

 

14. Domain Deals

You can actually treat web domains like virtual real estate. Buy domains cheap, fix them up and sell them. If you're good at building websites, this could be a great way to make some big sales.

Lots of companies don't want to start from scratch with their websites, so buying an established domain can be in theirs as well as your best interest.

Also, many big companies will pay good money to buy out websites that could compete with theirs. This is another way you could sell your domains that you've fixed up.

15. Make Apps

Their really is an app for everything it seems like. From slingshotting virtual birds into structures, to keeping up with the latest sports news, you can find all kinds of apps.

Just about every brand or game developer wants their own app these day. You can be their go-to person for building it. Good app developers make quite a bit of money, I might add.

 

16. Coaching

Whether it is relationships, business, self improvement, parenting, health, or anything else, a little advice from an expert can go a long way. It never hurts to have a wise coach or mentor that you can always get great advice from.

You can be that coach. All you have to do is help people make better decisions and advise them how to be successful in the area you specialize in.

People really appreciate and pay a good price to people who are always there for them when they need help.

 

17. Gaming Channel

One newer way to start an internet business is to create a gaming channel on a video sharing site like Youtube. If don't believe this is a legitimate way to make money, think again.

Check out the guy who makes millions playing video games and recording his funny reactions on Youtube. His channel name is Pewdiepie.

 

18. Translating

It isn't easy to learn a new language. In fact, it is extremely difficult. If you happen to be one of the lucky few that is multilingual, you could turn that into a business.

People are always needing translators, especially for meetings or phone calls where they can't just type in phrases into Google Translate.

 

19. Advertising

Whether it is with your blog, Youtube channel or site that has an online tool people can use, you can make monetize your traffic through advertisements.

Adsense is one of the biggest ad services in the world and is run by Google, the biggest site in the world.

You can make a free account with them and start monetizing your traffic without even having to get product sales like you would with affiliate marketing.

Just make sure you are strategic with keywords and have tons of traffic if you want to make a living with these types of ads.

 

20. Niche Sites

A niche site is just a small website you build for a very specific group of keyword phrases. It could be a site for how to train your parrot to talk or how to make more money from twitter sponsored posts.

Your niche site could literally be about anything. Some people make a nice living creating dozens of these sites and ranking them for specific types of keyword phrases.

These sites usually make money through Adsense ads, affiliate products or courses that are sold. If you are good with SEO, you could make a lot of money doing this.

 

21. Sponsored Posts

Sponsored posts are when you have an outside brand pay you to post on their behalf. Maybe it could include an image on Instagram of you using the company's product or a blog post the company wrote being posted on your site.

If you build up enough social followers or website traffic, you can make a ton of money for just about 5 minutes of work.

For instance, celebrity, Scott Disick, makes between $15,000 and $20,000 per sponsored Instagram post with a little over 13 million followers.

 

22. Private Ads

If you have plenty of traffic and want to make money from ads, you might try private ads. These ads remove the middle man between you and the advertisers.

In other words, instead of using a service like Adsense and bringing in only 50% or less of the ad revenue per click, you would cut them out and make 100%.

You would just need to negotiate a deal with the advertiser directly and come to an agreement of where to put their ad, the size, the content of it, the time length it will be visible and how much they will pay.

 

23. Podcasting

All you have to do is look at people like Tim Ferriss, Pat Flynn or John Lee Dumas if you are wondering whether you can make a lot of money from podcasting.

All three of them make hundreds of thousands per year, if not per month and their podcasting is a big reason why.

All you have to do is interview industry influencers, talk things you've learned, address questions your audience asks you, repurpose blog post subjects, etc. to come up with great content.

It's just another way to expand your brand. If you build a big subscriber base, advertisers tend to pay very well for promoting them on your podcast episodes as well.

 

24. Book Reviews

A lot of people try to make a living writing and selling books. Whether they are hard copies, ebooks or kindle versions, they all have one thing in common… They need reviews.

They need reviews from book readers posted on Amazon. They need reviews before publishing to know if the book has a chance or needs some changes. They need critic reviews, editor reviews and regular reader reviews.

If you can be unbiased and give an honest, insightful review for people's books, your services will be in high demand. You might get some free books out of the deal too.

 

25. Transcription

If only you could just let Youtube or a transcription software transcribe your audios without worrying about it. Too bad that isn't a reality yet.

I've never tried a transcription service that is very accurate unless you talk in super slow motion, almost having to spell out each and every word. Therefore, we need humans to transcribe.

You can have your own business or work for a site like Transcribeme to help people turn their audio into text accurately without the headaches of trying to get it right with software.

 

26. Tax Services

We all have to do taxes, unfortunately. On top of that, taxes can be very complicated. If you know the tax structure inside and out though, it pays very well to be a CPA.

You can easily make $300+ per client and do all the work from your home office.

 

27. Network Marketing

Network marketing is very similar to affiliate marketing. You sell products, make a commission and get paid, without having to be an employee. The difference is that you can also recruit other affiliates to work on your team.

If you are selling products and also have a team of people selling products that you get a commission from, you can have your own mini-organization making you loads of commission sales each day without having to hire or work yourself to death.

Some of these companies can be sketchy though, so do your research, find a good mentor to learn from and make sure you have a good strategy for getting traffic before starting.

 

 

28. Write Books

Ebooks sell like crazy in today's digital world. They take up less space and are cheaper than hard copies while still offering the same exact content.

Gone are the days when you needed a publisher, editor and marketer to become a professional author. Now, you can self-publish as many books as you want on a site like Amazon and reap the rewards with little investment.

 

29. Photography

If you love photography or creating your own custom images on your computer, you might sell your work on iStockphoto and Shutterstock for royalties.

These sites allow you to upload your photos and get paid every time someone buys the rights to use your images. If you crank out a few new photos a week, you can build up a substantial income for yourself from what used to be just a hobby.

 

30. Amazon

There are a lot of ways to make extra money online with Amazon. You can make commissions from Amazon Associates, sell ebooks, or even sell physical products. You have endless possibilities.

You could focus on one or do them all, but when it comes to making money online, Amazon should be one of the first places you look.

 

31. Etsy

If you are pretty artistic, Etsy is the place for you. You can create an Etsy store and actually sell your crafts, t-shirts, sculptures, drawings, paintings, etc. to the public.

This way you won't need a website, a lot of marketing, or anything complicated to get started making a living from your artistic talents.

 

32. Coding

Coding experts are becoming essential to today's society. We need people to code websites, spreadsheets, etc. because it is pretty complicated to do ourselves.

Technology is basically growing as fast as it is because of the coders who figure everything out. If you are good at coding, you can't make yourself a lot of money by doing professionally.

 

33. Makeup Tutorial Channel

Believe it or not, a lot of Youtubers make as much as 6-figures or more online just by doing makeup tutorials. These videos to my amazement get millions of views, therefore making tons of ad revenue.

These channels also get a lot of sponsored video opportunities where they can use a company's product for free and get paid lots of money just to use it in the video.

For example, Michelle Phan makes about $20,000 per month with a makeup channel on Youtube.

 

34. Product Review Channel

One of the best ways to make lots of money from a Youtube channel is doing product reviews. You won't need near as many views of your videos with this kind of channel as you would for a music, makeup or gaming channel.

You won't need as many views because product reviews tend to do much better for advertisers. The more advertiser-friendly your video keywords are, the more your Youtube ads make per click.

You could review software, toys, tools, or just about anything you can think of. Some channels that review toys, for instance, make millions.

 

35. Tips or How To Channel

Just like a blog or a podcast, you can use your knowledge in a certain area to make a popular channel that teaches people how to be successful at something.

Youtube videos are actually much easier to rank than blog posts, so this may be the best way for you to get started anyway. Instead of making a course, make a channel or better yet, do both.

 

36. Udemy

Speaking of courses, Udemy is a great place to get started creating them. With Udemy, you don't need a website to sell your online courses that teach people how to do different things.

You can just make some in-depth videos on the lessons you want to teach to your Udemy account and turn it into a course. Another great about doing it this way is you can get tons of traffic and promotions without knowing anything about marketing.

Udemy already has a huge audience and knows how to help them find the courses they want.

 

37. Software

Everybody loves a good piece of software. Whether it is for automating a business, playing a game, making you more productive, etc., software is always going to be in demand.

If you can make a good piece of software that won't have to compete with huge brands like Microsoft or Adobe, you could do very well for yourself.

 

38. Plugins

Plugins are like little pieces of software that you add on to a WordPress website. These plugins can allow you to automate post sharing, attract more social followers, speed up your site, get more leads, and much more.

If you want to do more specific software-like programs for just websites, plugins might be the way to go for you. And trust me, there will always be plenty of people willing to give your plugins a shot if they do something useful.

 

39. Stock Trading

Stocks are tricky, but if you really do your homework and know what to look for, you can make millions off of them. With just a laptop and a stock portfolio, you can make yourself very well off.

This is probably the highest risk and reward internet business idea on the list. Be careful.

 

40. Fantasy Sports

Fantasy sports has really exploded over the last few years and now there are a lot of people who actually make a living from it. I'm not talking about those season-long fantasy football leagues you do with your buddies.

No, I'm talking about daily fantasy sports. People can make way more money from these because there are games going everyday. If you want to make this a business, the real question is whether you are good at crunching numbers and if you are legally able to participate.

If you live in the U.S., some of the big fantasy sports companies like Fanduel and DraftKings have pulled out of some states because their industry was termed “online gambling”.

Online gambling happens to be illegal in many states. I'm not exactly sure how the rules work in other countries, but that is how it is in the U.S. It is up to the states to decide if it's legal.

Although these companies are working on rebranding daily fantasy sports as a game of skill and not gambling, you need to check if it's legal before trying to play where you live.

If you can though, don't play based on players you like, but on the numbers and probability. That is how people make a lot of money on this.

 

41. Fiverr

Fiverr is a great place to make a living online. It allows you to become a freelancer and sell your services without having to create a website or worry too much about marketing.

You usually start out with services that cost $5 and then can work your way up to selling more expensive services as you get more customers. If you provide quality services in a timely manner, this site can help you build a great internet business.

Lots of people go here to get transcriptions, graphic design, SEO, writing, and lots of other services.

 

42. UpWork

If you want to attract more high-paying clients for your freelancing, you might create a profile at UpWork. UpWork, formerly ODesk, is one of the top freelancing sites on the web.

While Fiverr might be easier to get started with, they don't attract as big of clients as UpWork does. Maybe this is a better fit for you freelancing services.

 

43. Membership Sites

When it comes to running an internet business, one problem you may run into is inconsistent income. Depending on your business, you may have trouble figuring out how much your business will make from month to month.

With membership sites, you eliminate that uncertainty. Customers pay a monthly fee to be part of a club of sorts and get new reports, tutorials, advice, etc. that changes month to month.

For instance, a stock investing membership site would be good. Stocks are always changing and if you are good at finding the latest trends, you could have an exclusive membership site where you give members advice on what to do.

 

44. Programming Services

Some of the richest people in the world started out as programmers. These people include Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Bill Gates, and Larry Ellison.

If you are into complex programming like creating or editing software, plugins, or apps, you can offer your services to others. As you can tell from the success stories mentioned, people who can program can do very well for themselves.

45. Copywriting

If you are good at writing and selling, you should give copywriting a shot. Whether it is for advertisements, sales pages, or sales emails, copywriting is essential to the business world.

 

46. Book Cover Design

Let's face it, not everyone has an eye for detail. Not everyone can create magnificent graphics that capture people's attention. But, if you can, you should take advantage.

Book covers are needed now more than ever with the rise of ebooks. You can make a nice living just doing nothing but book cover designs, if that's your thing.

 

47. Product Label Design

If you are good at art and designing things, while also knowing the marketing side, product label design could be perfect for you. You can design packaging, supplement labels, and things like that for people while charging a nice price.

Most people don't have the skills to create their own professional labels. You could even try to work with 99Designs to compete with others to design these types of things for people.

 

48. Banner Ad Design

Advertisers need banners to capture people's attention, so they might click on their offers. If the banner doesn't look professional or capture the attention of potential customers, it is useless.

This is why a lot of companies outsource their banner ad design to people who know what they are doing. If you are good at art, know a little marketing and can use software like Photoshop, you might do banner ad work as a business.

49. Infographic Design

Another graphic design category that is commonly outsourced is infographics. These are basically huge image versions of blog posts that brands love to use for getting more social shares and backlinks to their content.

If you are good at creating these professionally, you should charge brands to do it for them.

 

50. Editing

Writing takes enough time by itself without even factoring in the time it takes to edit. This is why a lot of big companies have lots of writers with editors that go through and double check everything before allowing it to be published.

If you are really good with words, making articles flow, correcting punctuation, and coming up with good titles, try doing some freelance editor work for your business.

 

51. Website Consultant

Just because millions of people have a website, doesn't mean they know what they're doing. You can actually do pretty well as a website consultant who advises site owners on their design, content, products, performance, domain name, etc.

If you have built successful websites, a lot of people would pay good money just to get your advise on how to run theirs correctly.

 

52. Solo Ads

If you are building an email list and need to make some extra income, you can allow advertisers to send a promotional email to it in exchange for a fee.

You can charge a flat fee or cost-per-click for each email the advertisers send to your list. Be careful though.

Usually it is best to mention in your terms and conditions that you allow advertisers to sometimes email them if they are on your list.

53. Traffic Services

Some people just hate having to get their own traffic the hard way. If you are good at driving traffic through SEO, social media, PPC ads, solo ads, or any other ways, you could do that for others.

Many companies actually find advertising services they trust and just buy traffic when they need it. This way it is all done for them. You could do the same for other companies.

 

54. Recruiting

If you have a Linkedin profile, there is a good chance a recruiter has tried to contact you before about a job position, project, business opportunity, etc.

If you are good with people, you might offer your services to other brands for recruiting people for whatever they may need them for.

55. Freelance marketing

Every business needs marketing. Without it, we would have a lot of great products that no one would know about or have a chance to enjoy.

Freelance marketing can be a great business because there is never a lack of work, you can do everything from a computer at home and it pays well.

Do you like driving traffic, doing ad campaigns, building social followings, collecting subscribers and converting sales? If so, freelance marketing may be the way to go for your next business.

 

Related: How To Accomplish Anything You Want In Life In 4 Steps

 

Conclusion

When it comes to finding the best internet business, there really is no one-size-fits-all approach. Everyone is wired differently. Everyone has different strengths. Those are the things you have to consider.

Either way, there has never been a better time to become an entrepreneur. The internet gives us so many effective options now, so that you can find the best business for you.

 

 

 

What do you think is the best option for starting an online business?