Make money online – associated with the dream of location-independent work in a beach chair, flexibility, self-determination and passive income. In this day and age, there are so many ways to make money online than ever before. Internet makes it possible.
However, due to the abundance of information, it is sometimes difficult to keep track of everything. Therefore, here is a list of all possible jobs that you can do online (and thus in most cases also remotely, i.e. location-independent).
This article is meant to serve as an inspiration of what is possible and I am sure you will find at least 2 or 3 online jobs in it that even you can do right now with your current level of knowledge and qualifications. Of course, you won’t be able to work directly as a programmer on a freelance basis for $150/h, but with a good knowledge of English and German, translation and proofreading jobs are open to you.
So whether you’re looking to make a little extra money online or you’d like to travel around completely remotely as a digital nomad in the future, you’ll find what you’re looking for in this article.
Table of Contents
What are the Types of Remote Jobs?
In principle, “remote” work means nothing more than that you can work completely independent of location from anywhere in the world and make money online.
A distinction between remote jobs can be made at different levels of consideration. On the one hand, of course, the activity itself. Logically, there is a difference if you work remotely as a developer, consultant or translator. Before you start looking for remote jobs, you need to be at least roughly clear about what job you can or want to do in the first place.
On the other hand, the type of “employment” plays a role. In principle, three types can be distinguished:
- Non-self-employed Remote Jobs
- Independent Remote Work as Freelancer
- Independent Remote Work with own Online Business
Each form has its own characteristics, advantages and disadvantages.
Non-self-employed Remote Jobs – Advantages and Disadvantages
Remote jobs on an employee basis bring some advantages as well as disadvantages compared to remote jobs on a self-employed basis.
Let’s assume that you are a remote worker employed by a US-company or a company in Europe. Then you benefit from regular working hours, vacation days and weekends off. In many european countries your employer also pays half of your social security contributions. It is therefore regulated in the same way as a “normal” employment, with the only difference that you can work and earn money from anywhere. This form of “Make Money Online Jobs” is particularly relevant for those who shy away from the leap into self-employment and prefer regulated work processes. Maybe even the company you’re currently employed with offers a remote option. Just ask them!
However, experience has shown that working as a digital nomad as an employee is the exception rather than the rule. Job ads from companies that talk about 100% remote work usually turn out to be home office jobs where you are only free to choose your location within the country the company is located.
Real remote jobs as an employee, where you can work from anywhere in the world, are rather rare. This is also due to the fact that companies shy away from the additional expense (taxes, insurance…) and fear problems (accessibility due to different time zones, IT security, etc.) associated with employees working remotely.
Therefore, if you can make money online with a 100% remote, salaried job, it can be a 6th in the lottery, as you can combine the relative security and regularity of a salaried job with freedom of location and thus great cost savings through geo-arbitrage. On the other hand, you are still an employee and not as “free” and flexible as a self-employed digital nomad.
The following professions and activities are particularly suitable for non-self-employed remote workers:
Jobs for non-self-employed Remote Workers
- Software Developer (generally IT)
- Editors and Copywriters
- Employed Translators
- Graphic Designer
- In general, any activity that can be performed online
Independent Remote Work as Freelancer
To make money online, self-employment as a freelancer is also an alternative to employment.
As a freelancer, you are basically responsible for customer acquisition, which is a significant part of your working time, especially in the beginning, when you do not yet have a solid customer base.
As a freelancer, your long-term goal should be to establish yourself or your work as a brand. Visibility is the key to getting orders, so having your own website is highly recommended.
To get started, or in parallel to your own online presence where clients can book your service directly, freelancer platforms likeFiverr* or Upwork are ideal.
Freelancer platforms bring freelancers and clients together and thus offer the advantage that they relieve you of the customer acquisition that is often perceived as a nuisance.
Notice: More Make Money Online Jobs you can find on my Blog.
Freelancer Platforms
I can recommend the following freelancer platforms:
- Fiverr*
- Upwork
- Freelancer.com
- Truelancer
- PeoplePerHour
You can find a detailed article on the best freelance platforms with their respective advantages and disadvantages here.
Advantages and Disadvantages – Best Make Money Online Jobs as a Freelancer
The advantage of working as a freelancer is greater self-determination and flexibility. You choose the projects or clients you want to work on or with yourself. Conversely, this means, especially in the beginning, that you will certainly work significantly more than a remote employee in order to first establish yourself on the market.
As a person with an affinity for languages, you can also make money as a beginner on freelancer platforms. Translation, copywriting and proofreading jobs are always in demand. English-speaking virtual assistants are also needed. However, with such jobs you will surely work for below minimum wage in the beginning, as you will be competing with many freelancers from third world countries who also work for $5 USD/hr.
The higher or more sought-after your qualifications, the higher your hourly rate. As a freelance programmer, you can charge a much higher hourly rate than a copywriter right from the start. However, with enough diligence and perseverance, both activities can make good money online in the long run.
One disadvantage of working as a freelancer is that you are usually providing a service that you have limited ability to outsource. You perform the service yourself (especially in the beginning, as long as you can’t hire employees yet) and exchange your working time for money. In return, only small costs are incurred (e.g. for your own web presence).
Independent Remote Work with Own Online Business
The supreme discipline is working independently with your own online business. This way you are not dependent on other (freelancer) platforms, but directly build your own presence or brand. The focus is primarily on selling products and less on selling services.
The following remote activities may be considered:
- Blogging
- E-Commerce
Make Money Online as a Blogger
To make a living solely from blogging, you need a lot of stamina, even though it’s definitely doable. The advantage of this is that once you create blog posts, you will benefit from them for years to come. Once created, an article generates income even years later through advertising (e.g. Google AdSense, Affiliate) or royalties (VG Wort).
Writing blog articles can also be outsourced by giving this work to a freelancer. The opportunities to outsource unloved, time-consuming activities, scale your business and earn “passive” income are much greater than when you work as a freelancer.
Make Money Online in E-Commerce
If you are in the field of e-commerce, it is also possible to make money completely online and work remotely. For beginners, setting up your own online store by selling items via dropshipping is particularly suitable. Dropshipping means that you do not have the offered products in stock yourself, but when your customer buys something in your store, you in turn buy the item from a wholesaler (in China or Europe) at a low price. He will then ship the item directly to your customer. This way you don’t need your own storage space and you only pay for something when orders come in.
Alternatively, selling on online marketplaces such as Amazon is also an option. With Amazon FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon), Amazon takes care of shipping your products to the end customer.
If you want to make a lot of money online, an e-commerce business offers the greatest revenue potential in principle compared to freelance work or non-self-employed remote jobs. On the other hand, you also have to invest a lot of money in products and advertising. Especially in the beginning you have to expect losses!
Conclusion: Make Money Online Jobs
Whether you choose to work as an employee remotely, work as an independent freelancer, or get started in e-commerce, to make money online it’s important to just get started.
If you don ‘t have the startup capital to build and promote an online store and your employer won’t let you work remotely, working as a freelancer on freelancer platforms like Fiverr* or Upwork is recommended to get started and gain experience. Even without previous experience, you can certainly get started as a translator, copywriter, proofreader or virtual assistant.
