Looking for work-from-home business ideas? Good idea.
Renting commercial real estate, warehousing, or office space can put massive financial strain on a new business. In contrast, many home business opportunities are quick and easy to start.
But there are so many home-based business ideas out there — which one should you consider?
Some work-from-home business ideas require an upfront investment to get the ball rolling — and some require just $29. Also, some home-based businesses are easier to start if you can turn a spare bedroom into an office or workshop — others are easy to run from your dining table.
So, what's the best work-from-home business idea for you? In this article, we'll explore 10 of the best home business ideas that you can start quickly and easily.
(Disclosure: This website is a part of Shopify inc. media properties. Although we strive to publish objective, accurate, and factual content, this article may contain biased opinions.)
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10 Profitable Home Business Ideas You Can Start Today
While there are countless ways to start a home-based business, here are 10 of the most approachable home business ideas to consider:
- Sell handmade products
- Purchase products in bulk and sell them online
- Start a dropshipping business
- Start a print-on-demand business
- Purchase an existing ecommerce business
- Start a subscription box business
- Teach online classes
- Start a service-based business
- Sell digital products online
- Build an online following that you can monetize
1. Sell Handmade Products
Do you love to create things at home? If you love crafts or art, why not sell your handcrafted products online? For example, you could:
- Make candles
- Create jewelry
- Create pieces of art
- Make homemade food
- Design and sew clothing
- Knit clothes and blankets
- Craft wooden furniture
Whatever you like to create, selling handmade products is a great way to turn a passion into a work-from-home business opportunity.
There are two main ways to start selling handmade products online:
That said, you could also sell via both channels with Shopify's Etsy integration.
If this home business idea has caught your eye, start by writing a list of everything you could create. Then, do some online research to see what other people are selling.
2. Start a Dropshipping Business From Home
If you like the idea of running an online store, but you're not sure what to sell, consider starting a dropshipping business from home. Plus, this is a home business idea with low startup costs.
Dropshipping is a type of ecommerce in which sellers don't need to purchase or store the products they sell. Instead, sellers partner with dropshipping suppliers who manage the inventory and ship products directly to customers on the seller's behalf.
Check out the image below to see the dropshipping business model in action:
Pretty cool, right?
The best part is that starting a dropshipping business from home is as easy as 1-2-3 thanks to tools like Oberlo.
Yep, this is a shameless plug… but for good reason.
Here's why: You can use Oberlo to start selling dropshipped products online today — just sign up for Shopify, install the Oberlo app, and search for products to add to your store.
Check out this guide for a step-by-step tutorial on how to get started.
3. Start a Print-on-Demand Business From Home
Similarly, if you like to create art and eye-catching designs but don't want to make products yourself, you could start a print-on-demand business from home.
Print-on-demand is a type of dropshipping in which you can sell products that are customized with your designs, such as:
- Apparel: T-shirts, hoodies, leggings, yoga pants, etc.
- Footwear: Sneakers, boots, flip flops, etc.
- Accessories: Jewelry, watches, phone covers, bags, bottles, face masks, notebooks, stationery, etc.
- Homeware: Mugs, towels, bedsheets, cushions, blankets, throws, etc.
- Art: posters, wall hangings, stickers, magnets, etc.
- Electronics: Headphones, speakers, etc.
Check out some common print-on-demand products in the image below from Printful:
To start this work-from-home business idea, sign up for a Shopify account and choose a print-on-demand app to install, such as:
4. Purchase Products in Bulk and Sell Them Online
Another way to sell products online is to buy products in bulk — also known as 'wholesale' — and sell them individually.
When you purchase products in bulk, you can get a lower cost-per-unit than if you buy them individually. Then, when selling the products one-by-one, you're able to increase the prices to create a profit margin.
So, where can you buy fantastic goods in bulk?
Start by researching products on business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce marketplaces like Alibaba and Handshake.
You can then create an online store with Shopify to sell your products to consumers.
Plus, instead of selling products individually to consumers, you could also purchase products in bulk and sell them to retailers in smaller quantities — this is called wholesaling.
5. Purchase An Existing Ecommerce Business
If you don't have the time — or the inclination — to set up a home-based business from scratch, you could always buy an existing home business opportunity via the Exchange marketplace.
This website facilitates the sale of ecommerce businesses in a range of niches. Plus, you can buy an established business or a relatively new business.
This may sound pretty complicated at first, but in practice, it's pretty straightforward.
Start by browsing the home business opportunities listed on Exchange. When you find a business you like, consider reaching out to the buyer to find out more information. Then, if you decide to purchase the business, Exchange will facilitate the… well, exchange.
On the other hand, if you want to start businesses but you're not interested in growing them to their full potential, you could create and sell ecommerce businesses on Exchange.
It's also possible to 'flip' businesses — or to put it another way, buy a business, improve it, and then sell it for a profit.
6. Start a Subscription Box Business From Home
Why sell one product at a time when you can sell a bundle of products every month to the same person? This is what subscription box businesses like Birchbox do.
Plus, Google Trends shows how interest in subscription boxes has boomed in recent years:
This home business idea is a fantastic way to grow a sustainable income, thanks to the recurring revenue generated by ongoing purchases.
You can sell almost anything as a subscription box, too, such as:
- Makeup
- Clothes
- Fashion accessories
- Indie records
- Books
- Homeware and kitchen gadgets
- Information products (such as up-to-date industry reports)
- Food, such as snacks or sauces
What's more, you don't necessarily have to sell products — you could also rent them. For example, Haverdash rents clothes.
To get started with this home business idea, sign up for Shopify and use the built-in subscription management tools.
7. Teach Online
If you have in-demand skills or knowledge and a talent for teaching, consider sharing your knowledge via online video calls
Popular subjects taught online include languages, maths, science, and business. But there are no limits to what you can teach, so you could also teach things like music, sewing, or even DIY!
According to PayScale, most online teachers earn between $10.18 and $39.87 per hour, depending on their level of experience.
There are countless online teaching marketplaces that will help you to connect with students and manage your classes, such as:
Plus, there are plenty of feature-rich online teaching platforms to help you create incredible virtual learning experiences, such as:
8. Start a Service-Based Business From Home
The need for digital services is rampant — from designers and developers to digital marketers and doodlers, there's a need for virtually every talent.
If you're wondering what service you can offer, here are 20 service-based home business opportunities to consider:
- Graphic designer
- Web designer
- Developer
- Transcriber
- Translator
- Marketing writer
- Resume writer
- Photo or video editor
- Social media manager
- Digital advertising manager
- Data entry clerk
- Virtual assistant
- Bookkeeper
- Accountant
- Career coach
- Life coach
- Marketing consultant
- Management consultant
- Finance consultant
- Calligrapher
Some of these home business ideas offer more income potential than others. So, make sure to do your research to choose the right service-based home business idea for you.
To get started, consider signing up to a freelance marketplace like People Per Hour, Upwork, or Fiverr.
You could also create a website and then find clients independently by networking and pitching.
9. Sell Digital Products Online
If you've mastered a particular skill or subject and don't want to teach online or provide a service, you could package your knowledge and experience in a digital product.
Selling digital products is a fantastic home business idea because — like dropshipping — there's no need to source or manage inventory or ship products to customers. Plus, once you've created a digital product, it doesn't cost anything to replicate.
So, what types of digital products can you sell? Here are 20 to consider:
- Courses
- Videos
- Ebooks
- Written templates (résumés, scripts, marketing emails, etc.)
- Spreadsheets
- Photos
- Fonts
- Icons
- Logos
- Graphics
- Illustrations
- Animations
- Graphic templates
- Overlays
- Editing presets (for videos, images, or audio)
- Software
- Online tools
- Membership sites
- Audio (music, samples, podcasts, etc.)
- Research (statistics, reports, etc.)
For example, Gabriella and Andrew Morrison sell courses and house plans to help people build tiny houses on their website Tiny House Build.
10. Build An Online Following That You Can Monetize
If you love creating content, you could build an online following around a particular topic or niche and monetize your audience.
If you're interested in this home business idea, you need to choose a way to build an audience. Now, there are many ways to create a following online — for example, you could:
- Grow an Instagram following
- Build a YouTube audience
- Create a blog and grow your readership
- Grow a Twitch following
- Build a TikTok following
Once you have a relatively large following or plenty of website traffic, how can you make money? In essence, there are three ways to monetize an online audience:
- Brand sponsorships: Get paid to promote a company's products (also known as 'influencer marketing.'
- Affiliate marketing: Promote a company's products or services and earn a commission.
- Sell products: Create and sell physical or digital products to your audience.
For example, Adam Enfroy built a blog that reviews many software products. In the image below, you can see his blog post reviewing the Shopify platform:
This blog post contains Adam's affiliate link to Shopify. As a result, whenever someone reads the post, clicks the affiliate link, and signs up for Shopify, Adam will receive a small sales commission.
Choose A Home-Based Business Idea and Get Started Today
There are tons of profitable home business ideas out there to choose from. So, if you're wondering, "What business can I start from home?" Here are 10 of the best home-based businesses to consider:
- Sell products you make at home online
- Start dropshipping products with Oberlo
- Sell print-on-demand products
- Buy products in bulk and sell them online
- Purchase an existing business on Exchange
- Sell subscription boxes
- Teach online
- Start a service-based business
- Sell digital products
- Build and monetize an online following
When deciding which home business opportunity to pursue, try to capitalize on any skills and experience you have — and consider following your interests or passions.
Which home business idea has caught your eye? Let us know in the comments below!
Want to Learn More?
- How to Use Shopify: A Quick and Easy Shopify Tutorial for Beginners
- What is Dropshipping: Things You Need To Know Before Getting Started
- Shopify Pricing Plans 2021: Which Shopify Plan is Best For Me?
- Do You Have an Entrepreneurial Spirit? Find Out Here (With Quotes)
