20 Lucrative Online Businesses You Can Start With No Money

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The notion that there are businesses you can start with no money seems too good to be true. But you better believe it:

Many large, successful brands that earn millions of dollars in annual revenue began their journey as small businesses. How they developed their businesses made them profitable and not their starting points.

While the idea that you can build a substantial business with no financial input might sound outrageous, you shouldn’t dismiss it in an instant:

Nowadays, the opportunities the Internet provides allow anyone with a laptop and access to the web to launch a business. Not only can you start a business without a large upfront investment, but you can do it with no experience.

Plenty of tools exist to help you build an online business to surpass the income of most nine-to-five jobs.

In this article, I’ll cover the most lucrative online businesses to start with no money.

This post contains affiliate links – check my affiliate disclaimer for more info.

Recommended Read:

Is There A Business You Can Start With No Money And Turn It Profitable?

Quite frankly, I can keep telling you there are many businesses you can start with no money, but that won’t help put your mind at ease.

Let’s take a step back and look at the big picture, shall we?

In other words, we’ll take a minute to cover the fundamentals of any successful business.

What does a business have to accomplish to become profitable?

Must this business offer something no one else in the world is offering? Should your business invent a product that will improve the lives of millions of people?

Does the success of your business depend on something as simple as keeping your prices more affordable than the competition?

Forget about these answers – none of them does enough justice to the question of what makes a business successful.

If you want to build a profitable business, you must be well aware of who your target audience is and how to solve its problems.

What Business Can I Start With No Money?

You can start many businesses with no money. The most profitable ones are:

Service-Based Freelancing: Offer your skills as a service, such as graphic design, writing, web development, social media management, or virtual assistance.
Content Creation: Start a blog, YouTube channel, or podcast on a topic you are passionate about.
Dropshipping: Launch an online store without holding any inventory.
Affiliate Marketing: Promote products or services from other companies and earn a commission for each sale or lead generated through your referral links.
Online Courses or Ebooks: Share your expertise in a particular area by creating and selling online courses or ebooks on platforms like Udemy, Teachable, or Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing.
Online Consultancy: Use your expertise in a specific field to offer online consulting services to businesses or individuals who need advice or guidance.

How To Start A Business Online With No Money

So, you want to have a business but have no idea how to start it. That’s OK – we all have been there!

Here is a checklist of the process you should go through when starting a business:

Evaluate Your Business Idea: Evaluating your business idea is a crucial moment that requires a comprehensive approach. Overall, you’ll have to assess the market demand for the product or service your business will offer to the audience. By conducting a thorough evaluation, entrepreneurs can make informed decisions and increase the likelihood of turning their business idea into a successful and profitable venture.
Create A Business Plan: Creating a business plan is a fundamental process that will lay the foundation for a successful venture. Conducting market research is essential in understanding customer needs and preferences, which helps in formulating effective marketing and sales strategies. More importantly, outlining risk management and contingency plans prepares the business for potential challenges.
Find Out The Financial Requirements For Starting Your Business: Launching a business entails careful consideration of the financial requirements of that business. Do your homework and research key aspects, such as initial capital, operating expenses, marketing/promotion expenditures, etc.
Outline Promotional Strategies: Before you launch your business, you must have different promotional strategies in mind. No matter what your main promotional strategy is, it has to reach and make an impact on your target audience.

Online Businesses To Start With No Money

“I want to start a business but have no ideas.”

If a similar thought is passing through your mind quite often, you don’t have to sweat it anymore.

Instead, let go of all the uncertainties and insecurities – there is no place for them in an entrepreneur’s mindset.

Once you do that, browse through the businesses you can start with no money below until you pick one:

1) Start A Blog

blogging is the best online business to start with no money

It may be hard to believe, but blogging is still one of the most profitable businesses you can start with little investment.

Think what you will about the near future and how people choose to digest information nowadays:

Blogging to reach a wide audience is not going anywhere anytime soon.

While most people prefer to watch a video to learn something, just as many people use Google to find the answers they’re looking for.

With that said, starting a blog and turning it into a powerful source of income is not something you can achieve over the weekend. Building a lucrative blogging business takes a long time – it will be at least six months until you start seeing some results.

How well those results will translate into real cash depends on many factors, such as how competitive your chosen niche is, how hard you’re willing to work, how much time you can devote to it, etc.

Assuming you can afford to invest a tiny amount of money to have a self-hosted blog, I highly recommend you do that.

BigScoots will allow you to launch your business for just a couple of bucks – their hosting services are outstanding, in my opinion.

To learn more about blogging, read this related content:

2) Start A SEO-Based Online Business

Since we’re still on the subject of blogging, let’s talk about one of the secrets that makes a blog successful – SEO.

SEO stands for search engine optimization – something every blogger needs to learn when writing for the web.

Without in-depth SEO skills and a profound understanding of what Google expects from your content, your site will fail to receive significant organic traffic.

And that’s the last thing you want to face as a business owner.

Make no mistake – a deep knowledge of SEO helps one site outrank another. That’s why bloggers spend a long time learning and improving the on-page and off-page SEO they do for their websites.

Let’s say that you know SEO like the back of your hand. If that’s the case, then not offering SEO services is a waste of time, money, and abilities.

Bloggers are busy – there is always so much to do, especially at the beginning. Helping them optimize their content for the search engines will allow them to beat the competition.

In other words, you’ll never be short of clients:

After all, millions of new blogs come to life every single day.

3) Offer WordPress Developing Services

It seems like the businesses you can start with no money circle blogging. There is a reason for that – many aspects of the blogging world can turn you into a wealthy individual.

One of these aspects is WordPress development.

According to statistics, over 800 million blogs live on WordPress. That shouldn’t come as a big surprise – WordPress is the best website builder.

How could it not be when it allows complete newbies to build a blog in minutes without any coding or tech experience?

Well, if WordPress is that good, that’s because the people behind it are better than good. Are you one of those people?

Do you have programming skills that make designing WordPress themes and plugins seem like child’s play for you?

Your abilities will turn quite lucrative if you put them to work, no doubt about it.

Selling themes and plugins on a market that attracts millions of clients can and will bring you millions in profit.

4) Mobile App Development

Apparently, many people don’t see a big difference between a WordPress developer and a smartphone app developer.

While there are similarities, the contrast between these two business models does exist.

Yes, programming skills are a must for both. But in my opinion, that’s where the common ground ends.

By all means, building a profitable mobile app development business is an extremely challenging task to tackle.

Excellent coding and programming skills are nowhere near enough. On the contrary, you need an extensive marketing experience and knowledge of your chosen field.

Also, you have to be willing to work hard to examine the market and the odds of your app idea becoming a huge success.

To conclude, if you have what it takes to come up with the next ground-breaking mobile application, I would say don’t hesitate for a minute:

The amount of money you’ll be able to make as an app developer will most likely surpass your initial expectations.

5) Graphic Design Business

Moving further down the list of businesses you can start with no money, it’s time to discuss graphic design.

I believe many of you will see this online business as one of the most suitable options for beginners.

Obviously, you need to have professional graphic design skills to make this business work. Even if you don’t right now, you can develop them fast.

There are a lot of free resources that will help you do that – research the topic on Google and watch tutorials on YouTube.

Another reason to consider this business idea seriously is that there is no start-up cost. You can learn the skills for free and use the free version of Canva to create the graphics at the beginning.

Plus, the niche will allow you to create products in many categories, such as brand logos, web design, promotional banners, infographics, etc.

6) Advertising Agency

If you’re shooting for the stars, financially speaking, launching an advertising agency should be at the top of your list.

Don’t succumb to intimidating thoughts just because you lack significant digital marketing skills:

Believe it or not, Google offers a dozen of marketing courses you can take completely for free. It gets even better – once you conclude any of these courses, you’ll receive a certificate from Google.

By the way, you don’t have to pay anything to grab your well-deserved badge – it will also arrive free of charge.

In your opinion, isn’t that enough to see advertising as one of those unique business ideas that are worth the effort?

Working to increase marketing sales and reduce your client’s costs is going to be fun!

Not to mention, you can take on as many clients as you wish, adding more and more streams of income to your newly created business.

7) Resume Writing Business

Honestly, I can see why some of you won’t dive into the world of advertising after all:

No matter how lucrative this field is and how easily you can master it, being an advertising manager is not for everybody.

How do you feel about building a resume-writing business?

Starting such a business means that you’ll be writing other people’s resumes for them.

Many people don’t feel comfortable writing about themselves. That’s why they prefer to hire professionals to do that for them.

Before you dismiss this business idea as not good enough of an opportunity, let me tell you – it is.

This niche is not as over-saturated as some other entries on my list.

Less competition is a favorable situation to find yourself in, especially at the early stages of your business.

Once you prove yourself as a capable resume writer on the market, I bet you’ll be surprised by the amount of money you’ll be able to make.

8) Copywriting Business

business to start online with no money copywriting business

We’re already talking about writing, so directing your attention to the copywriting field seems like a natural transition.

Good copywriters have their way with the phrases they use to achieve what the copy is supposed to achieve.

And great copywriters know they can develop talent through practice and training if they lack it.

So, if you’re interested in launching a copywriting business but doubt your abilities, there is a simple solution to your problem.

Choose one of the free resources available online that will help you become an in-demand copywriter.

It’s more than a profitable field, especially if you pick the Business-to-Business (BTB) sub-niche.

More importantly, you can master it while using free processing software like Google Docs, for example.

9) Freelance Writing Business

How good a list of business ideas you can start with no money could be if freelancing is not a part of it?

Good writing skills will deliver more than a decent income for you. Furthermore, you don’t have to invest anything other than time and effort to make it work.

Chances are, some of you doubt your writing abilities and don’t see yourself as a capable freelancer.

If that’s the case, you should free yourself of any anxiety.

Freelancing is one of those fields where you’ll pretty much get paid, even if you’re a newbie with no previous experience.

Beginners writers earn around $50 per article, but that’s just a start:

Once you polish your writing skills and gain more experience, you’ll be able to earn anywhere between $250-$1,500 per single writing piece.

With that said, if you don’t have the slightest idea about freelancing and how to write convincingly for the web, I suggest you take an online course.

My Freelance Paycheck is affordable (less than $50) and will help you become a professional freelancer that earns more than $3,000 per month.

10) Write And Sell eBooks

As you know, eBooks are digital products – as such, they can sell over and over again.

The beauty of creating and selling digital products is that you’re doing the work once and keep profiting from it constantly.

After all, isn’t making money while we sleep what we all hope for?

Nowadays, creating eBooks from scratch is one of the easiest things a person can do.

Tools like Sqribble will help you create high-quality eBooks in minutes (read the full review).

There are plenty of online platforms that will sell and market your product for you for free.

For instance, Amazon Kindle, Google Play, and iBooks Author are some of the most popular sites you can count on.

Your future eBook can be about anything – a personal experience, fiction, or a topic you know well.

Assuming you have some money to spare, you might want to invest in the Kindle Money Mastery – online training that will teach you how to earn $10,000 with Kindle Publishing.

11) Online Coaching

By all means, online coaching is one of those businesses you can start with no money that is not for beginners.

Yes, you might have what it takes to coach people online, regardless of the skill you’re happy to pass along.

But an extensive knowledge of a particular topic is not enough to build a profitable coaching business.

Here, you’ll need experience and marketing insights on building a client base.

Since online coaching is usually one-on-one, you’ll need as many clients as possible.

Therefore, you should look at online coaching as more of a side hustle idea than a source of full-time income.

It might be the cheapest business to start, but the return on your time investment will not be extraordinary.

12) Create And Sell An Online Course

Basically, if you’re ready to teach, it makes sense to do it through an online course rather than coaching one-on-one.

Why teach just one person when you could reach thousands?

Furthermore, why should you receive a single fee when you could receive thousands?

I’m pretty sure that you understand where I’m going with this!

Make no mistake, though – creating a high-quality course that helps its audience solve problems requires hard work.

Then again, the best businesses you can start with no money that could make you a wealthy person do.

Platforms like Udemy, Skillshare, and Teachable will accommodate your course and help you reach a wide audience.

13) Start A YouTube Channel

The fact that some YouTubers make thousands of dollars each month is not a secret.

YouTube has grown tremendously in recent years, and that makes perfect sense.

These days, people prefer to watch and listen than to read.

So, if you have something to say on camera, why you’re not doing it already?

You don’t even have to show your face if you’re not comfortable doing so:

Many videos I watch are just a voice narrating and explaining what happens on the screen. Whether I see a face or not, such videos still resolve my problem.

Building a successful YouTube channel will take time. Also, the algorithm will favor you if you post consistently.

If all that is OK with you, and you’re happy to do it, you’ll be able to earn anywhere between $100-$500 per day.

Nobody can give a specific number of what your earnings will look like – that depends on a couple of factors.

Your monetization strategy matters as well – Google AdSense and affiliate marketing are both preferred choices for vloggers.

14) Affiliate Marketing

Speaking of affiliate marketing, I’m glad I can finally share my personal preference with you.

In my opinion, affiliate marketing is the best online business to start with no money.

It just is, for more reasons than I could ever write down. Here are some of them:

Affiliate marketing is perfect for beginners and will allow you to start earning from day one.

You don’t have to create and sell products – you only need to concentrate your efforts on promoting them.

Most importantly, you don’t have to pay a cent to become an affiliate marketer.

With that said, making thousands of dollars from affiliate commissions is not something you can achieve in a day or two.

But going through free affiliate training that will help you develop the necessary skills will improve your chance of marketing success.

15) Dropshipping Business

Dropshipping is another favorite of mine where businesses you can start with no money are concerned.

This business model is pretty awesome on so many levels.

For example, you don’t have to bother creating your products or services – you’ll be selling other people’s products.

Plus, you won’t ever have to think about inventory, shipping, or any other activity that will deliver the purchased product to its client.

Nowadays, dropshipping is one of the top 10 most successful businesses to start.

How To Start An Online Store With No Money

Considering the bigger part of any shopping activity is happening online, web stores are not just surviving – they’re thriving.

Shopify is the industry leader in the dropshipping field.

The platform will allow you to build your online store for free – there is 3 months trial for $1/month on select plans after that.

Once that trial is over, the basic plan will cost you around $35 per month.

By all counts, that’s a small investment compared to the thousands of dollars you’ll be able to make in profits once you develop your online shop.

Related Read:

16) Selling Art

Generally speaking, artists taking their work online instead of just the local gallery are killing it right now.

Reaching a worldwide audience will give you a much bigger chance to sell your art – that goes without saying.

If you have a couple of paintings completed, it’s time to dust them off.

Financially it doesn’t make sense to keep them hidden from the world.

With that said, you can build a shop on Etsy – the platform will give you great exposure. And you can start selling pretty much immediately.

Or you can build a store on Shopify – this option is preferable if you want to have ultimate control over your business.

No matter which platform you’ll launch a store on, selling art is one of the best businesses you can start with no money.

17) Selling Printables

Now, let’s talk about how to make money if you’re good at creating printables.

Etsy is the place you should be heading to as we speak.

During my research, I was surprised to find out how well printables are selling on the platform. Items such as monthly calendars, weekly planners, and daily checklists are as popular on Etsy as ever.

Printables are much easier and faster to create than most other products you could sell online.

Even if you don’t know how to create them, you can learn in no time.

18) Print-On-Demand Business

Print-on-demand is another online business to start with no money. Zero start-up costs and less responsibility are just a few of the advantages of this business model.

Most of the work on your POD business will go into creating the designs.

Platforms like Teespring and Redbubble will do all the rest – using them means you won’t have to print or ship the ready product.

Instead, you only have to focus on creating interesting designs the audience would love to see on a product.

And if you prefer to do this business with your own Shopify store and do all the work yourself, you won’t be sharing any of the profit with a third party.

On the downside, you’ll have to invest in a printer and a shipping partner.

19) Baking Business

Baking delicious treats could be so much more than just an activity you do for your loved ones.

How do you feel about baking for strangers?

You better get on board because launching a baking business has the potential to turn into a quite lucrative side hustle.

Sure, you’ll have to invest a bit in the necessary ingredients, but I doubt that will cost you a fortune.

Showing your work on visual platforms like Instagram will bring you much-needed brand awareness.

Once you get the word out there, you can have serious conversations with different businesses that would love you to stock their shops.

20) Knitting Business

top businesses you can start with no money a knitting business

The last entry on my list of businesses you can start with no money belongs to the knitting business.

I can’t knit to save my life. But if knitting comes naturally to you and you enjoy it, you should start thinking about the potential profits it could bring you.

Spreading the word about your products on Pinterest and Instagram will advance your business big time. Knitting is quite a popular topic on both of those sites.

Regarding a platform to accommodate your shop, I think Etsy is an excellent choice.

Again, you don’t have to pay anything to start a knitting business.

You just have to create the best knitting items you possibly can!

Businesses You Can Start From Home With No Money

Landscaping Business

Starting a landscaping business can become profitable if you have a passion for outdoor work and a flair for design. Like any business, it requires careful planning, dedication, and hard work. Such a business will allow you to pick your working hours and interact with plenty of people.

House-Sitting Business

House-sitting is one of the businesses you can start with no money that almost anyone can manage. It’s the perfect fit for people who enjoy taking care of homes and pets while the homeowners are away. Expect minimum start-up costs when launching a house-sitting business.

Organize Travel

Do you have a passion for travel? Can you help people to plan their trips? If you can, consider starting a travel business. An organizing travel business typically involves providing customized travel planning services to individuals or groups.

More Business Ideas To Start With No Money

Podcasting

Podcasts have become a popular form of entertainment, education, and communication, offering a unique platform to share ideas and connect with an audience.

A quality microphone and audio editing software are all you need to start your own podcast.

Translator

Are you bilingual? If you are, consider offering translating services and building a business around your bilingual abilities.

Feel free to provide translation services online and in person.

Life Coach

A life coaching business should aim to help individuals achieve their personal and professional goals.

As a life coach, you will work with clients to identify their aspirations, overcome obstacles, and create action plans to lead more fulfilling lives.

Businesses You Can Start With No Money FAQs

What Business Can I Start With Nothing?

Professional organizing business
Grocery delivery
Junk removal
Carpet Cleaning
Party planning
House Cleaning

What Is The Easiest Business To Create?

Profitable Business Ideas That Are Easy To Start:

Freelance services
Selling items online
Social Media Management
Pet-sitting
House-sitting

What Is The Cheapest Business To Make?

Virtual assistance
Online tutoring/teaching
Content creation
Personal training
Handmade crafts
Event planning services
Errand running service

My Closing

These are not the only businesses you can start with no money.

On the contrary, the list can go on for a long time.

That’s why I’ll do my best to update it every time I find a new and interesting low-cost business you may love.

Until then, which business do you like the most?

And which one will be the best fit for your lifestyle and abilities? Let me know in the comments section, and we’ll continue the discussion.