The ultimate list of the most popular online business ideas

There are so many reasons that you might decide to start a business. It might be that you have had enough of the 9 to 5 grind, because you’ve had enough of reporting to a boss, or a commute that is taking up too much of your day. Or perhaps you need to earn a bit more – either to make ends meet, or to put towards a big celebration or a holiday – so you’re wanting a side hustle to go alongside your day job. Or maybe you’ve been one of the unlucky folk that have lost their job due to COVID-19 and so you’re looking to create income that may or may not become your full-time gig, depending on how things go.

Whatever the reason, or your skillset, you can get your business started pretty quickly these days. The power of the internet means that whatever your interest, you can get cracking almost instantly, and usually with pretty limited amounts of money needed to be paid upfront too.

The best online business ideas you can start today

In this first section, we’re looking at some of the more business-oriented ideas that you can set up and do online. Some of these ideas will require a certain amount of prior knowledge and skill, but if you already have this, then what are you waiting for?

If you fancy doing something different and having a go at one of these jobs, and you have time and energy to put into learning a new skill, then now is a great time to do so. A lot of colleges and universities are providing online programmes that you can do over the course of a year, starting in September. But if September, or committing to a whole year doesn’t suit, then you might not need to look at attending college or university – look online instead. There are loads of different training providers who offer their courses at pretty low prices, and you can look at MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) – you can even earn credits towards university study, or get certified by Harvard University or MIT without even going there, and at a fraction of the cost too.

Offer SEO services

SEO – Search Engine Optimisation – is one of those things that many businesses put to one side because it can be difficult to understand, and there is a lot of conflicting advice online. If you do have a good understanding of technical SEO, and you know what EAT, DR and a CMS is, then you could be offering your skills to new and existing businesses.

Since SEO is an online task, it is pretty logical that you can work remotely. You’ll probably need to have calls – either of the Skype or Zoom variety, or a traditional call to establish what the needs and the aims of your clients are. Once you’re working on SEO for your client, it is likely you’ll be able to just email, with occasional calls to update you as the needs of the businesses you work with change.

Offer bug testing services

Businesses that are creating apps, software, websites and games need to be sure their product is as perfect as it can be before they release it – but even with testing, most of us will have encountered software bugs somewhere along the line. If you have, you’ll know how frustrating it can be that your printer won’t work on your operating system for some reason, for example (looking at you Microsoft!).

If you’re a stickler for attention to detail, and are able to clearly and concisely detail issues such as this then this could be a great opportunity for you to make some decent cash. You could offer this service on freelance marketplaces, but you can also find your projects through marketplaces like Crowdsourced Testing.

Provide video production services

People love video! We talked for ages in our post about video marketing statistics about how much video there is around already, and how much is being uploaded every day. We challenge you to find someone who hasn’t heard of YouTube – we bet you can’t. Anyway, in our post we also talked about how businesses are using video (and YouTube) to increase brand awareness and to reach new customers – but the thing is, not all businesses have someone with even basic videography, or editing skills. If you have the ability to create video – either shooting it with video cameras, or creating animated clips, and you can edit video, then you’re on to a winner.

Not only can you offer your video editing skills to businesses, but you can also offer to train employees for businesses, and offer consultancy so that they can create their videos themselves, but you step in to do more complex editing, for example. There are a world of possibilities for earning money if you have these skills – so what are you waiting for?

Graphic designer

Websites might have the best content in the world, but if they look drab, people won’t return to them. Just because Wikipedia is a mostly white page with black text and occasional photos, don’t assume that it will work for everyone! If you’re able to make the world online and offline a much more beautiful place with your artistic, or graphic design skills, then you’re in luck. Graphic designers are almost always hugely in demand, so if you can use Photoshop (or an alternative package) as well as being able to draw or paint, you can build a business offering your skills.

The first thing you’ll need is to showcase your work, and any previous projects that you were involved with – so choose the right platform for you. You could choose your own website, use Instagram or Pinterest to hold examples of your work, or use one of the many dedicated portfolio websites that are available. From there, you can start reaching out to businesses, market your services through your social media channels, and so on, as well as listing your services on freelance marketplaces.

Become a website developer

Businesses that don’t currently have a website are pretty rare these days, but there are a few that are still out there -but there are plenty of businesses that invested in their website a long time ago and they need a completely new one. These are the businesses that need your skills – so that as their businesses grow and evolve through the 2020s, they can continue to reach their target customers.

Once you have a website, you can pretty much forget about it – can’t you? Well, those of us who know even a small amount about tech know that it is essential to keep your website up to date, and that is even more important if your customers can make payments to you on your website. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on where you’re standing) many business owners don’t realise this is the case until they need something updating, and find they don’t know where to start.

Offering website development on a consultancy basis, or offering to take care of a website with a retainer fee can be an affordable option for businesses, and you get paid for doing what you do best. Everyone’s a winner!

Create themes and templates

If you’re more interested in the design part of building a website than the coding, then you might look at creating themes for different website providers. Whether you’re a pro at creating themes for WordPress, Magento or Shopify, (or another platform entirely) there are websites being created every day that could look so much better with one of your themes.

You’ll need to be able to make websites look great (of course) but you’ll also need to be able to look objectively at the website themes that are already available, so you can find what works on those sites, and try to solve the issues that the most popular (and the less popular) themes have. If you’ve got skills from another role, such as that you’ve worked in eCommerce, or something less technical like bricklaying – then you can apply these to your themes and templates, so that you’re able to show off your expertise.

You won’t necessarily even need to create a website to promote your themes (although if you’re looking to find full-time work, you might want one) because you’ll be able to upload them directly to the relevant store, and watch the proceeds roll in. Don’t forget to keep an eye on the feedback you get, so that you can fix any issues that arise.

Create apps for businesses

Businesses are investing more and more in apps to provide a better service for their customers. However, some agencies that offer app development are often overpriced and don’t include maintenance – or if they do, it is costly. If you have app development skills, and have a good understanding of both UI and UX, and you can undercut the prices that some of the app development agencies are charging while creating a decent profit for yourself, then it is quite possible you’re onto a winner.

Whether you set yourself up with a website for your business, or you start by offering your service on freelance websites initially, you’ll be able to control the amount of work you take on and ensure the businesses are aware of the updates that will be required in the future, and you can offer them special or inclusive rates for working with you in the future.

Be a social media manager

Just like website management, social media is a crucial marketing tactic for most businesses. But it really is time-intensive, especially when you start looking into using hashtags and the research that takes, taking the time to create a strategy and series of posts that make sense to followers. That’s why small businesses are often ready to pass this task to a freelancer to manage on their behalf – whether they are creating posts daily, or they’re paid for a few hours per week to set up posts for the week ahead.

You might offer services like getting set up on all social media channels, or create an ongoing service that provides everything from creating effective graphics and posting for the week, to understanding metrics. Once you can demonstrate the value that you’re bringing to a business, you’re more likely to be retained, and recommended to others – and good word of mouth is incredibly valuable. Start with identifying businesses locally that don’t have a social media presence and approach them in person to become well known in your local area.

Give language lessons

Now, this should go without saying, but we’ll say it again anyway: this option is pretty dependent on you actually being fluent in another language. But if you can speak a language that is in demand, especially if you are fluent to native level – such as French, Spanish or Mandarin – then you can create a business teaching it.

If you’re not able to quite teach all the way to business or native level, you might be able to make money offering short courses (for example, five x 1 hour slots with you) to get people confident enough for their holiday in the language you want to teach. This means you wouldn’t continue to work with each student for quite so long, but there is the opportunity to work with more students.

You can offer your lessons via Skype, Zoom or Google Hangouts or Meetings, and of course, you’ll need to keep on top of your calendar pretty tightly so you don’t overlap your appointments. You’ll also need to consider whether you need to create teaching materials such as crib sheets, which you can send via email or however you are holding your lessons. You might find you need presentations, too, depending on the needs of your students – so be sure you have accounted for your preparation time too.

Offer translation services

For some of us, teaching just isn’t in our blood, or perhaps you just don’t want to teach full time. If you’re proficient in another language (or more than one) you can earn by offering translation services – either in addition to teaching, or instead of teaching. Businesses that are moving into new markets often want their website and marketing assets translated for this purpose, and if you’re able to offer your language skills at business level, you’re probably onto a winner.

There are often ad hoc positions available providing translation services for courts and police services, but these are dependent on demand. By creating a website, social media and listing your services on websites for freelancers, you’re almost certain to pick up work that can help you earn the money you need – and as your reputation grows, the more likely you’ll be able to continue to work.

Tutoring

We’ve already mentioned teaching a language, but if you can teach English or maths, or any of the subjects that pupils might need a bit of extra support with to succeed in their GCSEs or A-levels, then you can make money tutoring. Ideally, you’ll have expertise in the field that you’re teaching, or a degree. If students happen to be local to you, then you might visit them in their homes, but you can also conduct sessions on Zoom, Skype or another video calling platform. You might want to look at obtaining a DBS check that you can share with parents, and if you’re going to be visiting homes, then an enhanced check is likely to be relevant.

Provide remote customer service

Since COVID-19, businesses have realised how simple it really is today to have their customer service teams work from home, rather than having everybody cooped up in a call centre. Although working for a corporation may not be your dream, being able to choose the hours you work, and helping to resolve issues from your own home can be a viable way to earn a living.

There are a number of ways that this can work – you can answer enquiries via live chat or email (if talking to people isn’t your thing) or you can use phone or video chat to offer assistance. Customer service roles often don’t pay incredibly well (it almost certainly won’t make you a millionaire), but it might just be enough to keep you afloat, or to top up your travel fund in your spare time.

It is pretty likely you’ll need to spend some time doing training before you get started, so you know how the business and their systems work, but if you have already had customer support roles in the past, you’ll know the ropes and will be able to hit the ground running.

Be someone’s virtual assistant

Small businesses that are just getting started often need someone to give them a hand, but don’t have the means to be able to employ someone full time just yet. Enter: the virtual assistant. You might be asked to carry out tasks like data entry, to create invoices, or even to do research. Unless there is something you definitely can’t do, then don’t limit yourself – your potential employers are going to need your skills for all kinds of things!

Offer remote sales

Many businesses are slimming down their teams right now, as you’re likely to be aware. But if you have the ability and the know-how, then you can offer your talent for sales to small and medium businesses to identify leads, create sales pitches and to research potential B2B customers. You might need to be ready to do cold calling, or to create email campaigns to generate interest in their business, so be sure to specify what your area of expertise is.

Generate leads for businesses

This idea might fit alongside our previous one – so if sales is your thing, you’re likely to be well versed in creating leads. As you’ll probably know, generating leads and doing the research that goes alongside it is pretty time-consuming, which is why so many businesses are choosing to outsource this to other companies and freelancers to tackle for them. You’ll need to be great on the phone, enjoy spending time looking into businesses and understanding their needs and pain points, and reaching out to strangers. This might sound a bit daunting at first, but can end up being pretty lucrative.

Create affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing is pretty simple – you advertise someone else’s product or service for them, and they pay you for it. You’ll need to have this agreed in advance and signed off, and these campaigns are usually advertised on affiliate marketplaces, but you can also earn from Amazon or eBay in this way, as well as Shopify and Rakuten. You’ll then advertise their product or service by posting about it on your website or social media, and when customers click through and buy, you get paid. There is a little learning to be done if you’ve never done it before, and you may need to be aware of advertising rules and regulations – but once you’ve mastered it, you’ll be well on your way to adding your bank balance.

Become a Kickstarter advisor

When someone has a great idea for a product, but they don’t have the funds to get it going, they often turn to crowdfunding options like Kickstarter. One of the biggest success stories that emerged from Kickstarter is the politically incorrect party game Cards Against Humanity. They raised over 400% of their target investment in their two month Kickstarter campaign, and today there are multiple specialist packs that have driven the brand to enormous success.

We’re not suggesting that you should create the next Cards Against Humanity – rather, if you have the business acumen, that you help other Kickstarter projects become the next success story. Many people who have a great idea for a project don’t have the knowledge they need to take their campaign to the next level, so if you do – this is where you can make your money.

Writing an eBook on how to deliver a successful Kickstarter campaign is one way you might create your business (or could be a single aspect of it) while another could be an online course. Once you’ve created this sort of asset, they are evergreen content and easily updated, so well worth your time doing so. You can also offer consultation hours, and charge hourly so that you can help people with those questions that they don’t know the answer to (and don’t want to spend time researching!).

If you’re able to build your business sufficiently, you may find that potential new Kickstarter businesses offer you a percentage of their future business in return for your expertise. If you can find those unicorn projects, like the Cards Against Humanity one – you could find that your retirement fund grows pretty quickly!

Offer business consultancy

If you’re a whizz at business and can easily spot where things are going wrong in a company and solve the issues, or perhaps where they could save some cash, you can earn money by offering your services as a business consultant. Since you’ll need to build credibility to encourage people to engage with you, building your social media, YouTube channel and potentially looking at creating a blog, podcast or a book is going to be a must.

Turn your passion project into getting paid

Most of us have hobbies and interests that we indulge in – so why don’t we turn our passions into our profits? We’ve looked at some businesses here that can grow from your side project to your monthly paycheque.

Create a DropShipping business

We couldn’t not give this a mention – because we think it is one of the most successful ways you can make money online, and if you’re a shopaholic, why not have a go at being on the other side of the equation? You get all the fun of choosing what to sell, and you don’t have to buy anything – unless, of course, you really want to!

At you would expect, we’ve talked at length about DropShipping on the Avasam blog before, so we’re not going to go into too much detail here. However, what we will say is that all you really need is a little time, and a free Avasam account – and you can get your business started with no upfront cash investment. Can you earn enough to live on by creating a DropShipping business? Sure you can – as long as you have the right strategy, a great supplier (which we have ready on Avasam) and you identify a successful niche. Ready to get started? Sign up for your account here, and start selling today.

Sell ethical fashion

Fashion is big business, but there is a lot of competition. If you can find a niche – such as with ethical fashion – then you can turn a pretty decent profit. It might be slightly more tricky to identify suppliers, but once you’ve found your way in, and grown your following on your social media, as well as your website there are plenty of opportunities to be had to make money.

Sell sportswear

Whether you’re a lover of the athleisure trend, or you’re a fitness fanatic, selling your own range of sportswear could be a great way for you to create your business. If you have a certain look in mind that you can’t find, and you have a bit of money to invest in your business, then you could approach a clothing manufacturer to create your range with you, while you do the marketing.

Not sure you can design, let alone sew your own sportswear? Not a problem – DropShipping is the answer. Choosing your products from a range of designers means that you’ll be able to sell as much sportswear as you can, whether on a marketplace like Amazon or eBay, or through your own website combined with your fantastic social media marketing.

Sell beauty products

If you love all things makeup and self-care, then selling cosmetics and toiletries can be a great way to earn some extra money. Avon has been a way for people to earn extra money working as sales representatives for over 130 years, and you can follow in all those footsteps and use your social media channels to grow your customer base even further. You can feel good about your work for Avon too, since as well as earning up to 25% commission on your sales, Avon supports charities that are for women – such as breast cancer and domestic violence.

Other companies that you could work with selling ethical products include The Body Shop, and Tropic Skin Care. If working with a business like these doesn’t appeal to you, then you can also look at selling cosmetics by DropShipping.

Create online courses

There are loads of ways you can create online courses – whether you decide to make them available for free on YouTube, and you earn by monetising your content, you host your content behind a pay wall on your own website, or you upload your course materials to a learning website like Udemy or LinkedIn Learning.

Naturally, like all teaching, you will need to have a strong grasp of the subject you’re teaching. It doesn’t matter if you’re teaching embroidery, metalwork or something that is less hands on, such as leadership and management – you have to know what you’re talking about! Aside from needing your subject knowledge, you’re going to need a decent camera, as well as any teaching materials that you might need to provide in PDF format.

When you’re pricing your course, remember to keep in mind, you have a lot of competition, and many people are providing their content for not much money at all – so do your research before you create your course. You will need to have a unique selling point (USP) that will encourage people to engage with your course. If you don’t have that, you’ll need to think about how you might otherwise grow and diversify your business, such as working as an influencer in your field, so that you can earn more money that way.

Design and sell t-shirts

We wrote all about how easy it can be to launch your own business selling t-shirts in this post, so we won’t go into too much depth here. But suffice it to say, if you have the creativity to design great looking t-shirts, hoodies and other accessories, it is pretty simple to get going – and you’ll have complete control over your designs, where you sell them and so on. Sell on your own website, on marketplaces like Amazon and eBay – and you don’t need to be able to store, or ship your designs, since your print on demand suppliers will take care of that for you. All you need to do is sell your designs, and you can use mock-up tools to show how the finished product will look, rather than ordering one of everything to photograph for your listings.

Create and sell posters

While we’re talking about print on demand, clothing isn’t the only way you can earn money from your designs. Creating posters, small framed prints and designs that are printed on canvas are easy to do, with no cash investment required – simply your time and perhaps an Adobe subscription, depending on your preferred design software. Your print on demand supplier will take care of printing, packing and posting – so you can get on with the fun bit.

Sell handmade goods

We took a look at Etsy and how handmade goods websites can be useful for businesses that are using the DropShipping model before, but we didn’t look at the maker’s side of it. If you’re pretty crafty, and you’ve gifted your creations to as many of your family and friends as you can, perhaps now is the time to consider setting up a store, or listing on handmade marketplaces. Depending on what your craft is, the size of each item and how quickly you are making your items, you may encounter some challenges – storage and shipping being just two that could cause you some issues.

If you’re able to store your wares, all you’ll need to do is photograph and list your items on marketplaces. Depending on where you’re based, in addition to Etsy you’ll be looking at Aftcra, Zibbet or Storenvy (if you’re in the US) and Folksy or nuMONDAY if you’re in the UK. You might also consider creating your own webstore, either using an artisan-specific website like IndieMade or Big Cartel – or any of the regular website platforms.

Become an influencer

To become an influencer can be a pretty simple thing in theory – start a social media channel as an expert in your field, to post regularly and monetise your content. But it’s not always quite as simple as that, and it can take time to grow your following. If you’ve already got a pretty decent following though, then it could be relatively simple to step up and start earning.

Many influencers make their money by working with brands to get their products in front of their target audience in a much more authentic way. It’s similar to affiliate advertising, so you’ll need to be aware of those advertising rules and regulations we mentioned before, but you’ll be able to use pretty much any of the social media networks, as well as your blog, vlog or podcast.

Offer private chef services

Have you got a culinary flair that doesn’t translate to working for a restaurant? You might use that to create your business. Whether you document it to become an influencer, or you’re able to set up a catering business, you sell your food at local markets, or even teach people how to cook through YouTube videos that you can monetise, or doing cook-along Zoom lessons, your cooking skills could be the answer to increasing your earnings.

Become a nutritionist

If you’re already an advocate for healthy eating, then this idea is probably not a difficult jump to make. There are so many pages of advice online about what is good for you and what is not, and as many of us have found – there simply is no one-size fits all approach to dieting, especially when there are underlying health issues to consider.

Where this is the case, people are seeking out professional advice, which you could give them. If you’re not already qualified, then it’s a good idea to do some study – and there are plenty of accredited training programmes online that you can take. As you’re doing this bit, you’ll want to build a following on your social media channels, and think about creating YouTube videos as well, so that you’ll be increasing your credibility for when you’re ready to go.

With this idea, you’re going to need to be aware of the laws in your country – if your country demands a degree in nutrition to be able to market yourself as a nutritionist, and you don’t have one, you’ll need to be careful how you market your services.

Create a subscription box

This isn’t without significant challenge, but the subscription box market has been growing over the past decade or so. Brands like Glossybox (a beauty box), Pyjama Drama (a pyjama and self-care box) and GeekGear (licensed Harry Potter goods and other geeky products) are all making a huge profit, as well as making customers happy by providing a monthly treat through the post.

Setting up this kind of endeavour will be potentially critical when it comes to storing stock, and you may need some investment in the first place to get launched – but if you can go for it, you have a potential gold mine of a business.

Provide online research

We’re not talking as simple as just Googling stuff for people – but businesses need data for their infographics and their blog posts, or market research before they move into new markets. If you’re able to collect data and put it into order so that it makes sense for senior managers, so they don’t have to do it themselves, then offer your service on freelance websites. There will be some not-so interesting topics that you will end up needing to research, but you will almost certainly find some topics that you will love working on.

Offer proofreading services

This might seem like a dream has come true, but if you are able to read content for people before they publish it, pick up any typos or other errors, and give them honest feedback, you can indeed get paid to read! If you’re going to pursue this as a business, you’ll need to be absolutely hot on your spelling, punctuation and grammar – you can’t just run the content through Word and Grammarly and then get paid.

Help people write their CV

Creating yourself a job by helping people get their next job? Sounds like a winner to us! If you’re able to sell people’s skills and highlight the benefits of being out of work or a stay at home mum for five years – such as ‘time management skills, attention to detail, multitasking and reacting well to high pressure situations’ for example, then you can start making money from writing CVs. If you have design skills, you’ll also be able to sell CV templates through a number of different channels, to increase the amount of money you can potentially make.

Write speeches

Although giving a speech can be daunting (which can be putting it mildly, depending on how many people you’re going to be addressing!) being prepared is half of the battle – which is why many world leaders and influential people in industry use a speech writer, to lessen the load before they get started. Writing a really impactful speech is a skill that can take time to hone, and of course, different types of speeches need different tones and language. Let’s face it – you wouldn’t expect a world leader to give a speech that sounded like a best man’s speech for a wedding (unless they were actually the best man at someone’s wedding, of course!)

Start by writing a few and think about recording yourself and putting the videos on YouTube. Get feedback on your speeches from friends and family before you start offering your services professionally, and don’t take constructive criticism personally – nobody is perfect when they start out.

Publish your book

They say everyone has a book inside them, and whether that is true or not, getting your work in front of readers is easier than ever. Sure, getting your work picked up by a publisher is still incredibly difficult, and you may never hit the bestseller list, but you can publish your work on self-publication platforms like Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing and the Kobo Writing Life with very little effort.

There are so many genres that you can write about, and if you’re not sure you can write the most gripping thriller or the sweetest of romances, then think about non-fiction. Perhaps you have a memoir about a unique experience that you could publish (as I did!) or you have incredible knowledge about your local area, or a little-known tradition that you could write about.

Write for someone else

You don’t really think that celebrities write their own books, do you? Of course they don’t. If you’re able to write well, but you don’t have any ideas about what you can write about, then you can capitalise on your skill by ghost writing books on behalf of other people. You’ll need to be able to write in detail about whatever they want their book to be about, so you may need to spend a lot of time with that person (if the book is a memoir) or researching the topic they want their book about. Remember though, you’re writing a book – and generally you’re going to be looking at a minimum of 50,000 words – so make sure you know how many words it is realistic for you to write each day, and add a bit of contingency time when you’re planning your projects.

3D-printed products

If you’ve got a 3D printer at home that you’re able to make use of, then you can put it to work creating products that you can sell. Jewellery, accessories for phones and PCs, models, parts for cars and bikes – the list goes on. The great thing about selling this way is that you won’t need to store stock, just your raw materials, and you can print the items when the orders come in.

If you’re more of a designer than being bothered with printing, packing and posting your creations, you can make money from creating the technical specifications and print files for items. There are a number of websites that you can use to publish your designs and earn from them, or of course, you can upload and publish them on your own website – although that will mean you’ll need to think about how you’re going to get people there.

Create a podcast

Podcasting is a quickly growing industry. There are already thousands of podcasts out there, but don’t let that put you off. Like with any business, if you can find a niche, and there is a market for what you’re talking about, creating your own podcast can be a way to earn money.

Perhaps you’re a supporter of a football team that doesn’t get much attention by the media, but has loads of fans, or maybe you’re an aspiring comedian – or perhaps you’re considering a more academic, or business-focused topic? There are loads of opportunities to earn from your podcast, from advertising, to charging a fee to listen.

Plan events

If your idea of heaven is throwing a party, or organising the finer details of a wedding, and you can keep track of key dates and deadlines, then you could put those skills to use by offering event planning services. You can create your business starting with your social media channels, using photos from events you have already worked on, and create Pinterest boards to work with your clients – or to showcase ideas that you have. Your events don’t need to be grand affairs though – throwing birthday parties for children can be incredibly time consuming, and so people may look for someone to manage the event completely.

You could also look at creating all-in-one kits for birthday parties, so that people can save time on finding things like table cloths and paper plates, balloons, party favours and so on.