Making money online is easier than ever. There are tons of opportunities out there, but how can you tell which ones are legitimate and which ones aren’t? You may also be wondering if you need specific training or experience to take advantage of these opportunities as well.
We’ve put together a guide of legitimate ways you can earn money with a laptop. You don’t need a lot of experience or even a huge block of time. In fact, some of these money-making opportunities can lead to bigger possibilities, such as a full-time work-from-home position.
The jobs you do with your laptop can easily turn from hustling on the side to paying the bills with some savings to spare. Students can make money with a laptop, along with anyone who wants to add a passive income source to their life.
Are you ready to learn how to make money with a laptop? Let’s get started.
How to Make Money with a Laptop
The list below includes examples of ways you can make extra money with your laptop. Try out a few today to see which ones fit your lifestyle, and income goals, the best.
#1: For Hire: Virtual Assistant
If you’re not sure where to start, you can easily make money online by becoming a virtual assistant. In fact, it’s one of the easiest ways to make money online for beginners, as there’s little experience required and a whole lot of opportunities to take advantage of.
Most virtual assistants (or VAs, as they’re called) typically send emails, post on social media, make and answer phone calls, update website content, and many other tasks that support an individual and/or business.
It’s a digital and easy side hustle for millennials to break into or just about anyone with a laptop. Plus, you can network with website owners and content creators to market your skills and gain experience to earn more.
If you want to become a virtual assistant with no experience consider taking training courses and figuring out the prices to charge. Once you create an online presence you can start applying for VA jobs.
You can start your first freelance virtual assistant job today by creating a profile on professional networking sites and start looking for companies who need help.
Did your ears perk up at the mention of social media?
You can easily make money with social media by becoming a social media manager for a company. And yes, you get to spend the majority of your time on social media networks, for occupational purposes, of course.
Becoming a social media manager can be a great online job for teens. As a social media manager, you’ll manage Facebook ads, social media accounts, and responding to the public in general. You may even get to attend events in order to collect content to share.
#3: Take Advantage of GPT Sites
Get-paid-to (GPT) websites are more common these days, but do surveys really work? Can you actually earn money from answering survey questions?
The truth of the matter is, that the majority of survey sites won’t make you rich but they can make you side money with your laptop.
Surveys are only part of it. The highest-paying survey sites are worth a look if that is all you want to do, but these four pay for a wider mix of small tasks:
- Freecash: surveys, app trials and game offers, all from the browser. Payouts by PayPal, crypto or gift card land within minutes, and new accounts get $10.
- Testerup: paid app and game testing rather than surveys, so nothing screens you out on the way in. Up to $100 on the bigger tasks, $10 to start.
- Bigcash: over 3,000 offers running at once, though it is a phone app, so this one is Android and iOS rather than your laptop. Cash out by PayPal or gift card, $15 for signing up.
- SavingLoop: one free spin a day on a wheel loaded with real gift cards. Takes a few seconds and costs nothing.
#4: Create Your Own Podcast
Recording yourself talking to no one, in particular, can seem like an odd way to earn money with your laptop, but it’s a legitimate way to get your voice out there and bring in some extra cash.
The first step you’ll want to take to start a podcast is to find a profitable niche. You’ll also want to decide on the format of your show.
For example, will you interview guests, incorporate multiple hosts, or go it alone? Running the podcast yourself for the first few episodes can help you establish a rhythm, but it takes two to have a dynamic conversation.
With your laptop, you can record, edit, and upload your podcast. There are programs that will allow you to monetize your podcast as well, with things like affiliate links or promotions and sponsored ads.
Some of the most successful podcasts break the mold to gain popularity. Grow your business on Instagram to take advantage of new audiences and opportunities.
#5: Design and Sell Digital Products
One of the best passive income ideas you can do to make money with a laptop is to design and build digital products. There are very few expenses associated with this side hustle that allow you to make money on autopilot. In fact, pricing your products can be one of the hardest parts.
Examples of digital products include things like printables. These documents could be calendars, to-do lists, or any number of files you get paid for when someone purchases them for download. You can also create longer digital products, such as eBooks, which we’ll talk about in a later section.
#6: Invest in Real Estate
Making money on a laptop can begin with investing in real estate. If you are just getting started, you may only need to invest $10, rather than putting an immediate $10k into real estate. At the same time, there’s nothing saying you can’t get to that point in the future.
Fundrise is a great way to dip your toes into real estate investing without needing tons of cash upfront. For as little as $10, you can start building a real estate portfolio. Whether you’re new to investing or looking to diversify, Fundrise offers an easy and flexible way to grow your money while investing in properties nationwide.
- Earn passive income with real estate investing starting at just $10
- Easy-to-use app for seamless access to crowd-funded real estate deals
- Perfect for those who want their money to work for them
#7: Access Your Paycheck Today
Living paycheck to paycheck can make every unexpected expense feel like a crisis. But what if you could access the money you have already earned before payday even hits?
EarnIn lets you tap into up to $200 per day and $1,000 per pay period of your paycheck without waiting for payday. That means if you need gas money on a Tuesday or groceries before Friday, the cash you have already worked for is available when you need it.
The best part is there are no hidden costs. EarnIn charges no interest, no mandatory fees, and no late fees on a standard Cash Out. Ever. You even have the option to get your money within minutes for a small optional fee. There is no credit check required.
It takes just a few minutes to sign up and check your eligibility. If approved, after connecting your bank and verifying your employment, you can start accessing your pay right away.
#8: Establish a Blog
Individuals who prefer to express themselves through the written word might prefer to start a blog, rather than a podcast. That’s okay! Either endeavor is certainly a great way to make money with your laptop by talking/writing about what you love.
To make money blogging, you’ll need to decide on a niche and obtain a domain name. You should also source a website host, such as Bluehost. Picking a platform to blog on requires a content management system (CMS) such as WordPress or Wix. Once you’ve gathered these resources, you can publish your website, as well as your first blog post.
Most bloggers earn income through monetization. Examples include display advertising and affiliate marketing. You can also sell digital products like we talked about earlier. You should also market your blog on social media and with SEO and email marketing.
In any case, a blog is a great way to earn passive income that can supplement your lifestyle with just a laptop and a few ideas.
#09: Teach Online Courses
Teaching online courses takes tutoring a step further by putting up your instructions for students from all walks of life to see. You can decide what topics you’ll explore in an online course, so you’re not necessarily restricted to certain subjects such as math, English language, and science.
Most online course teachers produce videos, but this can take some time if you’re not familiar with the editing process. Instead, you could come up with a slideshow that features the information you’re going to talk about, and voice over that information as a blend of podcast and tutor sessions.
Most online course creators draw traffic to their courses through marketing such as digital ads, affiliates, and website monetization. If you’re interested in becoming a course creator, establish what topics you’ll want to explore, how you’ll present that information, and how you plan to market it for a wider reach. Then, it’s all about maximizing your passive income.
#10: Create an Online Store
Entrepreneurs of all kinds enjoy ecommerce success by opening their own stores. They may sell on platforms such as Etsy or Shopify or create their own ecommerce website from which to sell.
Step one in creating your own store is determining what products you want to sell. How will you run day-to-day operations and handle supply shortages, shipping, inventory, and everything else that goes with a store? These are questions you should consider before you dive into purchasing a bunch of items to sell. At the same time, you can easily turn $10k into $100k just by opening a store of your own.
#11: Sell Your Photos
Another one of our many money-making ideas starts with taking photographs and selling them. If you’re particularly skilled with a camera, this side hustle can be easy to build and grow with a laptop. You will need photo editing skills to be successful, but you can easily sell on sites such as Shutterstock. Marketing yourself can be hard, but many photographers have excelled in making money with a camera and a laptop.
#12: Invest in Cryptocurrency
In addition to your regular investments, you may also want to try your hand at investing in cryptocurrency. This is a great way to utilize your laptop to diversify your investments and potentially earn quite a bit of money.
If you’re new to cryptocurrency, check out Cryptocurrency 101, our guide to getting started in this fast-paced investment. We’ve also put together a list of the best places to buy Bitcoin, including Robinhood Crypto.
- Trade crypto without commissions
- Manage crypto, stocks, and more in one app
- Trade anytime, day or night
#13: Create a YouTube Channel
Laptops go hand-in-hand with creating your own YouTube channel. You can decide on a topic you like and produce videos to post as entertainment for your audience. While it’s not as easy to make money with YouTube as it once was, you can still make money through YouTube advertising and affiliate links. The key is to capitalize on a unique feature and remain popular for higher returns.
#14: Build Websites
Companies of all kinds are moving online, where having a website is critical to connecting with customers and providing an ecommerce solution. If you know how to build websites and have a flair for graphic design, this is the perfect opportunity for you to make money with a laptop.
The amount of money you make will depend on how in-demand and marketable your skills are. Design skills go a long way, but you’ll need a bit of coding experience to create more complex websites for higher-paying clients.
#15: Buy and Sell Websites
If building websites isn’t your thing, you could try to buy and sell websites instead by using sites like Flippa. This opportunity allows you to earn money from the get-go if you purchase a profitable website. Some may pay only for the hosting fees and not much more, but the best websites earn you passive income as you build them up from a small scale. A single website could make you enough to purchase and sell plenty of other websites as you make money with your laptop.
Flippa is a global online marketplace where individuals and business owners buy and sell websites, online businesses and other digital real estate.
#16: Watch Videos and Get Paid
Many websites will also pay you to watch videos. These include:
You can also use your laptop to apply to become a content tagger on Netflix. In this role, you’ll get paid to tag episodes in regards to cast, languages, scene types, etc.
#17: Learn How to Edit Videos
As more internet users find themselves watching videos, you can easily make it big with your laptop by editing videos for other people to watch. This skill is in high demand and though it does require technical proficiency, you can easily grow your portfolio as you add to your experience. The more videos you edit, the better you’ll become, which in turn can allow you to raise your rates and even take on video editing as a full-time career.
#18: Write an eBook
We mentioned earlier that you can create digital products to sell, one of which is an eBook. This particular digital product typically centers upon a single topic and yet it can be published for free on self-publishing websites.
To write an eBook on your laptop, simply come up with a topic you’re passionate about that you want to share information about. It could be something you talk about in a podcast, write about in a blog post, or even produce a video on. The key ingredient here is to monetize your eBook through marketing on social media. This form of passive income does take a fair amount of effort in the beginning, but with some knowledge and a laptop, you can easily start making money in just a few hours.
Arrived lets you buy shares of rental homes starting at $100. It’s worth a look if that’s money you won’t need for a few years. If you might need it back soon, skip this one.
You pick the houses from your laptop (or a fund that holds a bunch of them) and Arrived deals with the tenants and repairs. Once a home is leased, the rent left after expenses gets paid out monthly. If it sells for more later, you get your cut.
The catch: you can’t sell for the first six months. After that, home shares only trade one week a month, if another investor wants yours, and selling costs up to 2.5%. And you can lose money. An empty house usually pays nothing, and home values do drop.
Arrived charges about $1 to $3 a quarter for every $1,000 you put in. Closing costs and a one-time sourcing charge are already baked into the share price.
It’s open to U.S. citizens and green card holders 18 or older who live in one of the 50 states.
- Invest in rental homes with as little as $100
- Earn passive income from rent payments
- No landlord duties, Arrived manages everything
- Diversify with properties across the U.S.
- Easy sign-up and no accreditation required
#20: Become a Freelance Writer
You can easily become a freelance writer with a laptop and a general sense of the written word. Freelance writers typically decide on one or two niches to focus on as they search for opportunities on job boards. Popular job boards include Upwork and Fiverr, but you may be able to find private clients as well if you market yourself well on social media and through your portfolio website.
As you gain more experience working with clients, it’s possible that you can turn the money you make from freelance writing on your laptop into a full-time income source.
FAQs
You can make money with your laptop by writing blogs, taking surveys, becoming a virtual assistant, etc. Our list is a great way to explore the opportunities available to you so you can earn more with a laptop than you thought.
If you want to make money with your laptop, the sky is really the limit. You can earn a few dollars here and there to support a coffee habit, or you can scale your earning up enough to supplement your full-time income. In some cases, you may even be able to trade your full-time job for the side hustle you built with little more than a laptop and some good old-fashioned dedication.
The best way to earn money with a laptop is to find something you like to do and put more time into it. See how it can make you money by working in your spare time. Connect with the larger community and gain experience while you’re still in school. Once you graduate, you can potentially use that experience on your resume or as part of your interview.
Besides the initial cost of the laptop itself, you’ll only need to pay for an internet connection in order to start making money with your laptop. You will have to dedicate some time to the endeavor as well, but by the time you’ve completed your first few jobs, you should be able to pay for your investment or at least a large part of it.
How Can You Make Money With Your Laptop
You might be waiting for the catch after hearing you can make money with a laptop. The truth is that besides some trial and error, a dash of effort, and a smidge of perseverance, you can make money with a laptop in just a few hours, with no strings attached. Our guide introduced you to a good number of opportunities available to you to make money with your laptop, some of them more profitable than others. Which will you choose to make money with your laptop?
