Author: Abby Hayes / Source: fivecentnickel.com
Working from home is a dream for many. We love it! Ditch the commute with these 34 legitimate ways to make money from home.
As I write this article, I’m making money from home. Well, technically, from Starbucks. But, still, as someone with a nearly 10-year history of working from home–sometimes full-time and sometimes part-time–I can tell you that it’s possible.
The key is to find legitimate work opportunities.Luckily, the internet abounds with amazing tools to connect far-flung teams. Because of these tools, more employers are hiring part-time and full-time employees to work remotely. Or if you’re looking for a side gig, you can do many from the comfort of your living room. (Preferably in your pajamas with a cup of coffee in hand, if you’re anything like me.)
We’ve worked to round up a huge list of legitimate work-from-home opportunities. I’ve divided them into different categories, so you can quickly click through to the ones that interest you most.
Before you jump to your favorite category, though, you might want to check out our quick disclaimers first.
Quick Disclaimers
The More Things Change…
First off, know that I’ve done my best to research these options and opportunities. But work-from-home options change rapidly. So do your own digging before assuming a particular hourly rate or type of work will be available.
This is also why I haven’t tried to highlight specific companies or work opportunities. Certain fields and types of jobs lend themselves well to working from home. We’ll focus on this instead of particular job opportunities.
Otherwise, you’ll come back here in a month only to find the article is out of date!This list should give you a jumping off point when it comes to looking for remote work.
You’ve Got to Put in the Work
You should also know that many of these opportunities will require hustle on your part. I’ve gone from making pennies per word to serious dollars per article as a freelance writer. But that didn’t just happen. I had to build my business over time.
Many of these opportunities are the same. They’re legitimate, but it’ll take you time to build up to a decent hourly rate.
Beware of Scams
Finally, understand that there are still plenty of scams out there. If a business opportunity requires you to put in money up front (other than standard business costs for assets that you own, like a website), beware. Some multi-level marketing opportunities can make money. But more often than not, those who start these businesses lose money.
So just be aware of all the terms and conditions of a job, opportunity, or website before you sign up!
Great Unskilled Work-From-Home Jobs
If you don’t have a huge amount of experience in any one field, you might want to start working from home with one of these types of jobs. Generally, the companies hiring in these areas will provide the training you need. So you won’t have to show major skills up front.
Note that these jobs may require you to have a certain speed of internet connection or a certain type of landline phone connection. I wouldn’t consider these scam-related asks, as long as the requirements are reasonable.
Call Center and Chat Jobs
If you can work regular hours and like to talk people through problems, a virtual call center job might work well for you. If you type quickly, multitask well, and don’t prefer talking on the phone, you can get a similar job as a chat-based customer service representative.
These jobs typically require that you have uninterrupted work-from-home time. So they’re not a good option if your goal is to work from home with your children. The hours may also be less flexible than other work-from home jobs.
With that said, this can be a good way to make decent money without having to leave home. Glassdoor puts the national average salary for at-home customer service call center representatives at just over $29,000 per year. Some companies may even hire you full-time and provide benefits.
Data Entry Jobs
Most companies looking to hire someone for at-home data entry will hire you as a contractor. This job may be considered semi-skilled. You may need to be able to accurately type a certain number of words per minute to make it work.
Scams abound with this particular type of job. If a company promises to give you work only if you purchase a certain type of non-standard software, beware. You should be able to do data entry with a solid internet connection and some basic computer software, such as Excel.
This type of job may be fairly flexible. Instead of working certain hours, you may just need to meet certain deadlines with the work you’re given. This makes it ideal as a side gig or for a work-from-home parent.
According to Indeed, data entry jobs range from $13 per hour to about $20 per hour, depending on your job description and experience.
Search Engine Evaluation
Are you great at finding things on Google and other search engines? This may be the work-from-home job you’re looking for. With this job, companies hire individuals on a contract basis to make sure search engine results are accurate and comprehensive.
For this job, you basically need to be familiar with search engines and the local language. Many of these jobs are geared towards bilingual applicants who can check results in multiple languages.
Glassdoor puts the average national salary for a search engine evaluator at just over $33,000 per year. With that said, many are hired on an hourly basis and work less than full time. You can expect to make $10+ per hour on an hourly basis, however.
Website QA Testing
One of the banes of most web developers’ lives is that you don’t always know how your code will work on various browsers. That’s why companies hire quality assurance testers for their websites. You can also get QA testing jobs for apps and even physical gadgets.
Most of these jobs are on a first-come, first-served basis. You need to know where to find the gigs and how to get them quickly to benefit. You can make a few bucks per test, and your feedback will help brands and companies do what they do better.
This is the type of flexible job that is great to pick up when you have some extra time. You won’t likely make a living doing QA testing like this. But it can put a few extra bucks in your bank account.
Social Community Manager
These jobs vary widely and normally hire independent contractors. With these jobs, you’ll moderate forums or social pages in particular topic areas. You might contract to monitor a particular company’s social media presence in various platforms, and to make sure that followers are abiding by company guidelines when commenting and interacting.
Community manager and moderator jobs are great for people who are familiar with social media already. Certain jobs may look for experience in community-related areas, as well.
It’s difficult to find consistent pay statistics on this particular work-from-home job. It’s not the same as being an actual social media manager–who is responsible for developing and deploying a brand’s strategy on social. But you can likely expect to start out at around $10 to $12 per hour.
Virtual Assistant
As more and more companies move online, they’re hiring online admins, as well. These jobs normally go to independent contractors, but some companies may hire full-time work-from-home assistants.
These job listings can vary widely. Some are looking for an executive assistant with years of experience. Others give you the ability to learn on the go. These jobs are likely to include tasks like responding to emails, scheduling meetings, distributing business-related documents, and more. Some jobs may also verge into the creative and include tasks like creating content and running social media channels.
According to PayScale, virtual assistants can make anywhere from $10 per hour to $30 per hour.
Mystery Shopping
Here’s another job area where scams abound. But there are plenty of legitimate mystery shopping companies around. Some require you to go to a store in person, which makes the from-home element shaky. But others are now hiring work-from-home mystery shoppers to shop or test customer service by phone or online.
Mystery shoppers are typically paid on a per-assignment basis. But some salaried positions are also available for true professionals. JobMonkey says you can expect to make $8 to $25 per hour or about $10 to $75 per assignment most of the time.
Deliveries, Errands, and Ride Sharing
These are actually all quite different, but I’m going to throw them into the same category for one major reason: they all involve driving, which is obviously outside of the home. I’m including these jobs because they meet the flexibility requirements many “work-from-home” job hunters need.
Uber and Lyft are both excellent ways to earn some money on the side. In some areas with enough demand, you may even be able to drive for these companies full time. Another option is to run deliveries for a company like Instacart or DoorDash. These involve picking up groceries or takeout, respectively, and delivering on demand.
You can also check out jobs that let you run personal shopping errands for locals. Or start your own business as a personal assistant and errand runner. This type of business could fold in some of the tasks of a virtual assistant, combined with tasks like picking up dry cleaning, purchasing groceries, or even dropping pets off at the vet.
Income from these types of jobs will vary wildly. It’ll depend on demand in your area, the types of services you offer, and whether you decide to hang your own shingle or work for an existing company.
Jobs for Word People
If you like words–writing them, editing them, translating them, whatever–you’re in luck. Because words are so easy to create and edit online, there are tons of work-from-home opportunities for people who like words. Here are many of them.
Freelance Writer
Writers like me make a living doing a variety of types of writing. I specialize in blogging about personal finance, but I also do some journalism for trade publications. I’ve also written emails and web copy for local small businesses.
Working as a freelance writer is great because it’s super flexible. I’m able to maintain a robust side gig because I am rarely tied down for specific hours of the day. Instead, I just have to meet my deadlines. It’s a great option for people with a day job and/or kids.
Finding gigs as a freelance writer can be tough. The market is competitive. But you can start with job boards, sites like Upwork, and local publications. Then build up your portfolio as you work to land higher-paying jobs.
Pay for jobs like this varies dramatically. You could make anywhere from $10 per hour to $150 per hour or more, depending on the types of writing you do and your clients.
Social Media Manager
The social media moderator jobs we mentioned above generally involve taking direction from someone else. But as a social media manager, you can help a brand execute its vision on various social media platforms.
This type of job requires a deep understanding of social media platforms and how they work. They often involve setting strategy, running ads within a certain budget, creating and scheduling posts, and monitoring metrics to ensure you’re successful.
Many companies these days are buying into the importance of social media. You may be able to find a full-time work-from-home job in this field. If not, you can always cobble together a business of your own by running social media for several smaller companies. This difference makes it hard to pin down pay, but PayScale puts the median full-time salary at $48,200.
Marketing Manager
Do you have a broader background in marketing, including creating long-term marketing strategies? In this case, you might fold in some of the tasks of a writer, editor, and social media manager into a higher-level marketing manager role.
More modern companies that run entirely or mostly online these days are hiring work-from-home employees on a full-time basis. You’re more likely to command a high salary and benefits in this…
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