35 Passive Income Ideas To Make Money in 2026

Passive income is money you earn without the need for ongoing work. That means more freedom, flexibility, and cash for you. A recent survey found that 60% of Gen Z feel that traditional jobs won’t help them reach financial goals, and 28% of Americans work a side hustle. Passive income ideas support the need for extra income, reducing time commitment and lowering effort.

Explore these straightforward passive income ideas, like investments, royalties, and rentals, to strengthen your financial portfolio and build a stronger foundation for your future.

What is passive income?

Passive income is money earned with minimal effort. Common sources of passive income include earnings from investments, like rental property, dividends, interest on savings, or leasing equipment.

Another source of passive income is ongoing earnings from something you’ve previously created. This could be sales of a digital product, like a pre-recorded online course, or commissions produced by affiliate marketing content, such as a YouTube video.

Passive income streams typically require effort to set up initially, but need little daily involvement to maintain.

Types of passive income

Passive income streams fall into four categories:

• Investment income. This type of passive income comes from investing your money in financial markets. Investments don’t need daily management and can grow over time through interest. Examples include stocks, bonds, and savings.
• Rental or asset share income. Example income methods include property rentals and roommates.
• Digital asset income. This category involves creating a digital product or service that generates income over time, like a course or app development.
• Monetized content income. Creators and influencers can generate passive income from the content they create through royalties, direct sales, and ad revenue.

Investment and interest-based passive income ideas

These investment and interest-based passive income strategies are a good starting point for those who have cash to invest rather than time to build.

1. Investment funds
2. Startup investments
3. Dividend stocks
4. Bonds
5. High-yield savings accounts
6. Peer-to-peer lending
7. Crypto staking
8. Buy a website
9. Buy a local business

1. Investment funds

Investing in funds like mutual funds, index funds, and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) allows you to pool your money with other investors to buy a portfolio of stocks. This diversification helps reduce the risk associated with individual stock investments.

Index funds like the S&P 500 track market indices, providing exposure to a broad range of companies. Mutual funds are managed by professionals who select the underlying investments, while ETFs trade on stock exchanges like individual stocks, often with lower fees.

How to start: Open a brokerage account with a registered financial institution. Research different funds to understand their strategies and performance. Consider consulting a financial adviser.

How much does it pay? Over the past 20 years, the average annual rate of return of the S&P 500 index has been around 10%.

2. Startup investments

Investing in small- and medium-sized businesses has become more accessible through online platforms. With a low initial investment, you can fund the next unicorn founder.

Potential returns range widely based on a business’s performance and broader market conditions. Remember that all investments carry risks, including the possibility of losing your initial investment. Know your risk tolerance and consult with a financial adviser to clarify potential outcomes.

The SEC requires that Regulation Crowdfunding transactions happen through an SEC-registered intermediary (a broker-dealer or funding portal). You generally can’t resell securities for one year.

Before investing in a business or other type of investment, the SEC recommends asking these questions about the products and people you plan to fund.

How to start: Funding platforms like StartEngine, Crowdcube, and Fundable vet businesses before they become available for investment. Conduct your own research on vetted funding proposals to make a well-informed decision.

How much does it pay? Earnings from startup investments vary widely; some may provide no returns at all.

3. Dividend stocks

Investing in dividend stocks is a more traditional way to earn passive income. Dividend stocks are shares in companies that pay a percentage of earnings, typically quarterly. This means you can generate income from a company’s profits, as well as stock appreciation.

How to start: Research and select reliable companies with a history of paying dividends, then open a brokerage account to start purchasing shares.

How much does it pay? Dividend yields vary by industry. For example, the average yield for oil, gas, and coal stocks is 4.27%, while tech stock dividend yields average 1.59%.

4. Bonds

Bonds are another investment strategy to generate passive income. When you buy a bond, you’re essentially lending money to the government in exchange for interest payments.

Bonds are lower risk than stocks and can provide a steady income stream over time. You can also consider bond funds, which pool various bonds together to diversify and reduce risk.

How to start: Research the types of bonds available to you, such as municipal or corporate bonds, and consider purchasing through a brokerage.

How much does it pay? Bonds generally offer returns between 2% and 5% annually.

5. High-yield savings accounts

A high-yield savings account generates passive income by offering a higher interest rate than a traditional savings account. By depositing money into this account, you earn interest over time without any additional effort. Some high-yield savings accounts and certificates of deposit (CDs) offer more than 4% annual percentage yield (APY). Interest accumulates as your savings grow, compounding your return. Although returns may be lower than other investments, high-yield savings accounts are a low-risk option beginners can use to start building wealth.

How to start: Check current interest rates for savings accounts with banks in your location. Look for special offers available to first-time customers.

How much does it pay? High-yield savings accounts typically offer interest rates based on central bank base rates. For example, if you invested $10,000 in a savings account with a 4% interest rate, you would earn $400 in the first year.

6. Peer-to-peer lending

If you have extra cash in a bank account, try peer-to-peer (P2P) lending as a passive side hustle. Peer-to-peer lending involves loaning money to borrowers or small businesses.

Interest rates for peer-to-peer loans are usually based on the borrower’s history, and the return is typically around 6%. The more you lend, the higher your cash flow will be.

However, P2P loan default rates can be high, especially during economic downturns. Expect to pay platform fees, which can eat into your returns. Unlike FDIC-insured savings accounts, P2P lending carries the risk of losing your principal investment if borrowers default.

How to start: Sign up with a loan website like Prosper (for individuals) or Worthy (for businesses), which connects borrowers with lenders.

How much does it pay? Typical returns for P2P investors per year average about 7% to 15%.

7. Crypto staking

Crypto staking means using cryptocurrency holdings to support the network on which the holdings are recorded. You can earn rewards by contributing to the upkeep of a blockchain.

Crypto staking typically involves freezing a portion of your assets for use in administrative tasks, such as validating transactions. In exchange, you’ll generate interest on your staked amount according to the terms laid out by the cryptocurrency or staking service. It’s a popular option in the growing world of decentralized finance.

Cryptocurrency prices are volatile, so while staking rewards can be attractive, the underlying currency may lose significant value, which can affect any rewards. Only stake crypto you can afford to lose, and understand the high-risk nature of this passive income method before engaging.

How to start: Choose a cryptocurrency that supports staking, create a digital wallet, and find a staking platform to begin earning rewards.

How much does it pay? Staked crypto generally yields between 3% and 10% returns, depending on the cryptocurrency you stake and the platform you use. You can find current annual percentage yields listed on the crypto exchange Coinbase.com.

8. Buy a website

Websites can make passive income through affiliate links, ads, memberships, or product sales. Buying an existing site is one way to acquire a business that already has sales and established web traffic. Once you complete your purchase, you will likely negotiate handover terms with the seller to ensure you can maintain the website.

How to start: Browse website marketplaces like BizBuySell and Flippa to get an idea of availability and pricing. Consider how you will negotiate a sale price when you find a website you’d like to buy.

How much does it pay? Several factors contribute to a website’s value and the amount of money it generates over time.

Learn more: How To Find Out Who Owns a Domain: WHOIS Lookup

9. Buy a local business

If you’re interested in entrepreneurship but want a hands-off approach, buying a share in a local business can be a path to passive income. Whether it’s a small café, laundromat, or local ad agency, you earn passive income from the profits without being involved in everyday management. Depending on the type of business, you may also be able to contribute your skills and experience as an active owner.

How to start: Look for local businesses for sale in your area and conduct thorough due diligence to understand their financial health and market potential.

How much does it pay? Earnings from buying a local business depend on your share in the business, its operating costs and liabilities, and the business’s overall profitability.

Property and asset-rental passive income ideas

Start earning passive income through asset sharing, which is when you rent out unused property or personal items, like vehicles. Low management examples include parking and storage space rentals, car sharing, and equipment rentals.

10. Rental properties
11. Unused space rentals
12. Short-term rentals
13. Roommates
14. Vending machines
15. REIT investments
16. Car rentals
17. Vehicle ads
18. Parking space rentals

10. Rental properties

Real estate investing is one of the most established ways to build long-term passive wealth.

If you have the capital available, leverage a mortgage to invest in apartments, land, or renovation projects, and benefit from the appreciating value.

You could also lease property for rental income. Since being a landlord is typically an active role, you may need to hire a property management company to handle tenants and maintenance to keep your income passive.

How to start: Check local laws and regulations for information about how to invest in properties in your area.

How much does it pay? In 2025, landlords in the United States reported an average annual income of $87,280, although actual income varies widely based on property and location.

11. Unused space rentals

If you have a basement, garage, or outbuilding you aren’t using, rent it out as storage or workspace. The storage industry is expected to grow by 7.1% annually until 2033. You can offer storage for a variety of items, including cars, boats, RVs, or even business inventory.

Crafters and entrepreneurs may look to rent production facilities and inventory storage. Tique Chandler, founder of Chandler Honey, generates passive income from her production space in two ways: She sublets a small area to another entrepreneur who works evenings, and also uses the facility to manufacture white label honey products for other brands.

“Because I’ve already invested in a production space,” she explains on Shopify Masters, the white label clients provide “recurring customers that continually keep paying me.”

How to start: Create an online ad or use a storage rental platform like Neighbor, Peerspace, or StoreAtMyHouse.

How much does it pay? Renting out an unused space, like a garage or ADU, can generate hundreds of dollars per month, depending on location and demand.

12. Short-term rentals

One rental business idea is to rent out free space as a short-term rental. Short-term rental regulations vary widely by city and change frequently; many cities require special licenses, limit rental days per year, or restrict short-term rentals in certain neighborhoods. Check your local laws and homeowners association rules before listing your property, as violations can result in significant fines or legal action.

How to start: Check short-term rental listings in your local area to gauge average prices.

How much does it pay? Hosting guests in a spare room or on your property can bring in hundreds to thousands of dollars per month. The median monthly earnings for an Airbnb host in the US is $2,408 per month, according to data from AirDNA.

13. Roommates

Collecting rent from a roommate is a great way to offset living costs. Before coming to an agreement, set clear expectations with your roommate regarding shared expenses, such as utilities and groceries, so you don’t incur extra costs.

How to start: Advertise your available space on rental platforms or local classifieds, then interview potential roommates to find a good fit.

How much does it pay? Earnings from renting a spare room depend on your local rental market, your space, the type of home you live in, plus any additional amenities.

14. Vending machines

Relying on vending machines for passive income requires an upfront investment of time and money. You’ll need to start by securing spots where you can install your machines, then rent or buy the machines themselves, and organize stock replenishment.

How to start: Online marketplaces like Craigslist, eBay, and BizBuySell can help you gauge the upfront investment you’ll need to buy your first set of machines, as well as how many you can afford to start.

How much does it pay? Earnings from vending machines need to be offset against rental or ownership costs, as well as the cost of stocking and maintaining your machines.

15. REIT investments

With a minimum investment of $500, you can use a real estate investment trust (REIT) platform to invest in a variety of real estate assets and earn more passive income as the assets appreciate.

A REIT is a company that owns and manages profitable real estate. It’s a great way for smaller investors to pool their money for investments they wouldn’t be able to afford by themselves.

How to start: Besides upfront capital, getting started with REITs also requires some in-depth research. Start by choosing a popular REIT platform, like Fundrise.

How much does it pay? Real estate investment trusts typically yield between 4% and 10% in dividends. As a result, investing $10,000 in a REIT could generate from $400 to $1,000 annually in passive income.

16. Car rentals

Renting out your car with a service like Turo can be an easy way to earn passive income. Potential customers include tourists, commuters, and people who want to rent upscale vehicles for special occasions.

Car rental passive income comes with significant expenses that can eat into your profits. You’ll need commercial insurance or enhanced personal coverage, as well as funds to deal with accelerated vehicle wear and tear, cleaning between rentals, potential damage repairs, and liability risks. Calculate these costs carefully before assuming profitability.

How to start: Read through Turo’s eligible vehicles list to see if your car is a viable rental option.

How much does it pay? A Reddit discussion among Turo users reveals it’s possible to make several hundred dollars per month on the platform, as long as you manage your vehicle finances well and select the right car for your local market.

17. Vehicle ads

If you’re looking to monetize your vehicle, consider wrapping it with ads. Car advertising companies pay you to display ads on your car, so they’re visible to passersby as you drive around town. Once the wrap is installed, all you need to do is drive around as you normally would, earning money while going about your day-to-day activities.

How to start: Sign up with car advertising platforms, like Carvertise or Wrapify, and wait for an offer based on your driving habits and location.

How much does it pay? Earnings depend on the number of miles you drive and how extensive the ad wrapping is. On Wrapify, drivers can make up to 450 per month.

18. Parking space rentals

Renting out unused parking spaces can generate passive income and requires minimal effort on your end. To monetize a parking space, list your available spot on a parking-sharing platform or through local ads.

How to start: Check out Spacer and other parking space marketplaces, or write an ad for general local marketplaces such as Craigslist.

How much does it pay? In urban areas like New York, some rented parking spaces earn more than $300 per month.

Product creation passive income ideas

If you can create a product to sell online, you have the opportunity to create passive income from ongoing sales. Here are some products that lend themselves well to passive income generation.

19. Digital products
20. Handmade goods
21. Stock photos
22. Job boards
23. Mobile apps
24. Spreadsheet templates

19. Digital products

Digital products are assets, tools, and pieces of media consumers can’t physically touch. These include downloadable or streamable files like ebooks, templates, and PDFs. According to Statista, revenue from ecommerce media (video, books, music, and video games) will surpass $30 billion by 2030.

Digital products can be a source of passive income because the work is front-loaded and profit margins are high. You only have to make the digital product once; then you can sell it repeatedly via your online business.

There’s no storage, inventory, or additional production needed; you can sell as many digital products as you want. Many creators scale passive income from digital assets by selling kits, printables, files, and other materials professionals can use.

Marketing and search engine optimization (SEO) skills impact digital product sales. Creating a great product isn’t enough—you need to drive traffic to your product page through search optimization, social media promotion, or paid advertising.

How to start: Use Shopify Digital Downloads to give customers access to your digital products.

How much does it pay? Income generated by selling digital products varies depending on the type of product you’re selling, how much you sell it for, and how many digital products you sell per month.

20. Handmade goods

There are hundreds of websites for selling crafts and homemade products, offering the chance to turn a weekend side hustle into an official income stream. Some have specific niches, like video games or handcrafted goods, while others let you make and sell whatever you want.

Popular marketplaces include:

• Faire
• Amazon
• Etsy
• eBay
• Ruby Lane
• AliExpress

The upfront investment needed to sell handmade goods is twofold. You’ll need to invest in materials and time to make and sell DIY goods, like pottery or clothing. You’ll also want to create an online store to house your products.

Selling from your own store reduces the fees you pay on each sale, plus you can create a brand for yourself. The benefits of building a brand compound as you grow an audience and connect with more customers; it’ll help you sell more over time and make money online.

How to start: Choose your niche, then browse popular products on major online selling sites to understand what makes handmade goods successful.

How much does it pay? On the handmade crafts platform Etsy, the average active seller makes 42 sales per month in their first year. Your actual earnings will depend on your product and pricing strategy.

21. Stock photos

Unlike many of the passive income ideas on this list, photography is a service-based business, which usually means you get paid for your time spent securing bookings for events and photoshoots.

Alongside this type of business, you can also generate passive income from photography by selling photos online. Stock photo sites like Pexels, Shutterstock, and other online media houses will pay for high-quality photos and videos.

If you run your photography business on Shopify, you can also offer digital products, like prints or print-on-demand items, which can also increase your passive income.

How to start: Learn the image requirements for major stock photo libraries and devices. Also, consider which stock image niche subjects you might specialize in.

How much does it pay? Photographer Peter Orsel shares that, during his first year selling stock photos, his average revenue per stock file was around 5¢ per month.

22. Job boards

Creating a job board platform or marketplace for a niche industry is a great way to earn passive income as an online entrepreneur. Employers use these websites to advertise vacancies to job seekers.

Job seekers can look for new job opportunities online or in-person. You can charge employers to post on your job board and offer premium features, like sponsored jobs or unlimited access, to your candidate database.

If you don’t want to design a job board from scratch, buy a job board theme to start generating passive income. Building the website is the easy part; creating awareness of your job board is where the bulk of the work is.

Once you get the flywheel going and your job board becomes established with returning customers, you can count on a large part of your income to be passive.

How to start: Check out sites like ProBlogger, Dribbble, or Construction Jobs for inspiration on how to structure your job board..

How much does it pay? Most job boards make money by charging a fee for posting a vacancy or receiving applications.

23. Mobile apps

Consumer spending on mobile downloads and in-app purchases reached $167 billion in 2026. AI coding tools like Claude Code mean that anyone with a clear idea and a willingness to learn can produce a professional app. Decide whether you want to create a website or mobile app and how you plan to monetize it. You can generate passive income with a mobile app using:

• Subscriptions
• Ads
• Pay to download
• A marketplace model

How to start: Review an app development guide for small business owners.

How much does it pay? Mobile apps generate income based on monetization strategies. Even free apps can earn money via ads and in-app purchases.

24. Spreadsheet templates

Earn passive income by creating and selling spreadsheet templates. Whether you create spreadsheets using Excel or Google Sheets, there’s a market that will pay you to create spreadsheets for all kinds of purposes: budgeting, profit projections, habit tracking, or even P&L spreadsheets business owners don’t want to create from scratch.

How to start: Connect a digital downloads app to your Shopify store to give customers a place to buy and download your spreadsheet templates.

How much does it pay? Beginners selling spreadsheets can anticipate monthly earnings of $300 to $800 for three to five spreadsheet templates.

Marketing-based passive income ideas

In a 2025 Shopify survey,* 36% of store owners said finding customers was tied for their top year one challenge; 53% of store owners cited word of mouth as their most common year one growth strategy.

If you have branding, sales, or content skills, start a side hustle using one of these marketing-based passive income ideas.

25. Dropshipping
26. Print on demand
27. Social media influencer
28. Affiliate marketing

25. Dropshipping

Dropshipping is a way to earn passive income even if you’re starting with a small budget. In a dropshipping business, you set up an online store where customers browse and buy products. When you receive an order, it gets sent to your dropshipping supplier, who fulfills and ships the product.

Dropshipping’s passive income potential comes from the supplier-seller relationship. Dropshipping suppliers handle everything from manufacturing and packaging to fulfillment, so once your store is up and running, there are minimal ongoing tasks.

How to start: Use Shopify and Shopify Collective to start a dropshipping business and sell products from your online store.

How much does it pay? According to a survey by ZipRecruiter, the average dropshipper earns around $41,000 per year. A Reddit thread on the topic highlights how dropshipping income can vary by month, depending on consumer trends.

26. Print on demand

If you’re an artist, designer, or entrepreneur, print on demand is a passive way to monetize your creativity. This passive income stream involves customizing white-label products like T-shirts, posters, and backpacks, then selling them on a per-order basis. Print on demand allows you to design assets once, then sell them repeatedly.

Similar to dropshipping, a third-party service handles production and shipping; you pay only for a print-on-demand product after you sell it.

Raven Gibson, founder of fashion brand Legendary Rootz, uses print on demand services to test new product ideas without inventory risk. “Your profit margin might be lower, but your operating cost could be zero to none,” she explains on Shopify Masters.

This ecommerce model allows her to create samples, get approval, and make products available without the financial risk of bulk manufacturing.

How to start: Choose a print on demand company and start experimenting with designs to customize your products.

How much does it pay? Successful print-on-demand sellers can earn between $0 and $100 monthly as new businesses and $1,000 to $3,000 monthly as a growing store, according to print-on-demand company Printify.

27. Social media influencer

To become a social media influencer—someone who can affect another person’s buying decisions—you’ll need to build a community of people who enjoy similar topics.

Building an audience requires significant work upfront, creating content consistently, engaging with followers, staying on top of platform algorithm changes, and responding to comments.

Once you’ve established a substantial following, income can become more passive through affiliate links and automated sales of your own products and merchandise.

How to start: Find brands to fit your socials using UpPromote, then build affiliate relationships to get paid for what you sell.

How much does it pay? A generally accepted influencer earnings rate is an estimated $100 per 10,000 followers, but earnings vary widely based on platform, post type, engagement rate, and more.

28. Affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing is a passive income model that involves recommending a product or service to an audience. It’s a great source of passive income because you earn a commission whenever someone uses your referral link to buy the recommended product or service.

Online entrepreneurs become affiliate marketers for a few key reasons:

• It’s easy to execute. You handle the marketing side of things while partner brands develop products and fulfill orders.
• It’s low risk. There’s no cost to join an affiliate program. You can sell established products without upfront financial investment.
• It’s scalable. Introduce new products to your audience while your past work makes money in the background.

Earning money through affiliate marketing can be a rewarding way to add passive revenue streams to your business. Once you invest the time upfront, you can reap the rewards continually.

How to start: Become a Shopify affiliate, join Shopify Collabs, or find another affiliate program that fits your area of expertise. Read the affiliate marketing beginner’s guide and come up with an affiliate marketing strategy.

How much does it pay? Affiliate marketers earn different amounts depending on their niche and the commission deals they negotiate with partners. For example, on average, Shopify affiliates earn up to $150 for each full-priced plan referral (specific to plan and region) and every eligible Point of Sale Pro referral.

Passive income ideas for creatives

Consider making passive income by writing, coding, or crafting a piece of online media.

29. Ebooks
30. Online courses
31. Blogging
32. Digital designs
33. Royalties
34. Audiobook narration
35. YouTube channel

29. Ebooks

If you have expertise or a passion for a particular topic, writing an ebook can generate passive income over time. Once writing, editing, and formatting are complete, you can sell your ebook on your website and in online bookstores.

This income source will continue to pay off as more readers download your book, without the need for ongoing effort after you create the initial product.

How to start: Choose a topic you’re knowledgeable about, create your ebook, and publish it online to reach potential readers.

How much does it pay? The revenue you can make selling ebooks varies by factors like genre, marketing costs, creation costs, and more.

30. Online courses

The online education market was valued at almost $83 billion in 2025 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 22.1% to more than $101 billion in 2026.

Consider making passive income by creating an online course. Whether it’s marketing, illustration, or entrepreneurship, create pre-recorded courses and start selling with few limitations. You can sell online courses repeatedly without holding any inventory or stock.

Teaching online requires some upfront investment in time. You’ll need to outline your course, record it, and create downloadable assets like templates for students. After that, create a repeatable marketing strategy. Maximize your income by selling a mix of courses, coaching, and digital products.

Email list building, webinar funnels, social media presence, and strategic partnerships are common tactics to reach students.

How to start: Create a mini-course with a few hours of content to test demand for your lessons. Then, research online course hosting platforms like Teachable or Courses Plus.

How much does it pay? According to Kajabi’s research, a typical online course earns about $3,653 across its entire lifetime.

31. Blogging

Starting a blog takes time, but if you create quality content and promote it through platforms like social media and email, you can grow an audience big enough to generate income.

SEO attracts visitors without paid advertising. Growing organic traffic through SEO is a long process, one that takes months or years of building a content library that ranks in search results, but it’s the foundation of truly passive blog income.

Earn passive income from blogging by using your posts to:

• Promote affiliate products
• Create sponsored posts
• Sell products
• Run ads through Google AdSense

With a content management system, you don’t need any advanced tech skills to start a blog. Once you’re up and running, sign up for a relevant affiliate program to add monetized links to your blog content.

How to start: Building traffic is essential; the more visitors you attract, the more passive income potential you have. Learn how to drive traffic to your blog with 30 proven strategies including SEO, social media, and content marketing.

How much does it pay? Established blog websites can generate upwards of $30,000 per month.

32. Digital designs

Design marketplaces like 99designs, ThemeForest, or Creative Market are places to generate a passive income stream by selling digital designs online. Whether you use a website builder to build themes, logos, branding resources, templates, illustrations, or fonts, these platforms offer a built-in market already looking for design resources.

To start selling designs on Creative Market, apply and wait for approval. From there, you can get your own storefront, where you can start selling your branded designs.

How to start: If you’re not a graphic design pro, try starting with an intuitive design tool, like Canva.

How much does it pay? Top sellers on marketplaces like Creative Market reportedly earn six figures annually through sales of their digital assets.

33. Royalties

Make passive income through unique inventions that are useful and solve a problem. If you want to sell your invention, sites like Invention City can help you get started. Depending on the deal you strike, you can passively earn a percentage or payouts from the income generated through your idea once it’s on the market.

How to start: Start by checking the US patent website to make sure your idea hasn’t already been created.

How much does it pay? For books, royalties can range from 5% to 25%, depending on the publisher and format, while music royalties range from 10% to 25%. Other types of royalty payments, such as trademark and patent royalties, tend to be a lower percentage.

34. Audiobook narration

Audiobooks have to be read and recorded by someone. If you break into the industry, it’s possible to create passive income in the form of royalties. To successfully make income from audiobook narration, you’ll first need to learn:

• How to audition
• Proper narration technique
• What niche you’ll work in
• Some editing skills

How to start: Research audiobook platforms. Check out sites like ACX to learn what you need to make it in the industry. Learn more about what you need to become a narrator for audiobook platforms like Audible.

How much does it pay? Audiobook narrators normally earn per finished recorded hour (average of $31), depending on experience level. For a more passive income model, narrators can agree to take a royalty share instead of a per-finished-recorded-hour rate.

35. YouTube channel

Worldwide, 2.7 billion people use YouTube every month. A 2025 Shopify survey found that 35% of store owners cited building a social media presence as their second most common year-one growth strategy. If you’re a long-term thinker and don’t mind front-loading your efforts, a successful YouTube channel has passive income potential.

“The thing about YouTube that I tell everybody that they don’t realize is that it’s so searchable. You can go on YouTube and type in ‘how to paint wood to look like stone,’ and you're going to find videos on it,” says Drew Scott, founder of Lone Fox.

Affiliate sales, sponsorships, branded integrations, and merchandise income all add up passively as you accumulate content, clicks, and views.

How to start: As you create your first videos, read how to optimize your content to make money with YouTube.

How much does it pay? YouTube creators earn revenue from ads displayed during their videos. Most estimates put the average earnings per ad view at 1¢ to 3¢, but videos with higher engagement may attract higher payouts. A study from NeoReach found that 56.55% of full-time creators make less than a living wage.

How to choose a passive income idea

Marketing and earning from passive income ideas takes effort and time. In a 2025 Shopify survey, 37% of store owners reported marketing as their top year one challenge. Be wary of any passive income ideas that seem too good to be true. For example, the FTC recently shut down a scheme called “Click Profit,” which promised customers passive income in exchange for “management fees” of $45,000 and up.

Start by finding a passive income stream that fits your lifestyle and skills. Use these criteria to judge how much time, money, and effort you want to invest, and how much you can expect to earn.

• Assess your skills. Take an objective look at your skills and interests. For example, if you’re good with cameras and photography, selling stock photos online could be a way to monetize your existing skills.
• Assess your resources. Making passive income with no money means relying initially on your skills and time to generate capital.
• Evaluate your financial goals. Define what you want to achieve financially. Consider whether you want to cover a small hobby expense or replace your full-time income. Your goals—and the amount of effort required to achieve them—will greatly influence which passive income stream you pursue.
• Consider time commitments. Some passive income ideas require a considerable amount of time to set up, such as starting a YouTube channel. Others, such as high-yield savings accounts, you can start within minutes.
• Start small. Don’t overwhelm yourself by starting too many passive income streams at once. Begin with a single idea, then consider exploring additional streams once you’ve had some initial success.
• Monitor and adjust. Once your passive income streams are up and running, monitor their performance. Use data insights to tweak and improve your streams or consider diverting your efforts to more lucrative options.

Passive income ideas to start without money

Ideal for beginners, these passive income ideas rely on your existing skills and free time to generate income with little to no upfront costs. Choose one of these ideas if you prefer to spend your own time, rather than money, on production, audience building, and marketing.

• Dropshipping. Sell products online without handling inventory or shipping.
• Print on demand. Sell custom products that are printed when ordered.
• Digital products. Sell downloadable items such as ebooks, music, or software.
• Digital designs. Sell graphic designs, website themes, or templates.
• Online courses. Develop educational courses and materials.
• Blogging. Generate income through ads, affiliate marketing, and sponsored posts.
• Affiliate marketing. Earn commissions through product recommendations on your website or social media.
• Stock photos. Sell photographs to stock photo websites.
• Social media influencer. Monetize your social media profiles by partnering with brands.
• Job board developer. Create a niche job board and charge employers to post listings.
• Mobile app developer. Develop and monetize mobile apps using ad revenue or in-app purchases.
• Royalties. Earn ongoing payments from licensing your intellectual property.
• Audiobook narration. Provide voice-over services for audiobooks.
• Spreadsheet templates. Design and sell customizable spreadsheet templates.

Passive income ideas to start with money

Choose one of these passive income ideas if you prefer to put funds, rather than time, in as an initial investment:

• Rental properties. Purchase real estate to rent out for monthly income.
• Stock market investments. Invest in stocks, bonds, or mutual funds for potential dividends and capital gains.
• Spare room rentals. Rent out extra space in your home.
• Car rentals. Offer your vehicle for rent.
• Peer-to-peer lending. Lend money to individuals or small businesses to earn interest.
• Website sales. Buy and sell existing websites.
• YouTube channel. Create video content that generates ad revenue.
• REIT investments. Purchase shares in real estate investment trusts to earn dividends.
• Startup investments. Fund startups alongside other investors.
• Unused space rentals. Rent out unused portions of your property.
• Vending machines. Purchase and stock vending machines.
• High-yield savings accounts. Deposit funds into high-yield accounts to earn interest.
• Parking space rentals. Own and rent out parking spaces in high-demand areas.

Easiest, lowest-effort passive income ideas

The lowest-effort passive income ideas share two traits: minimal ongoing management and a fast setup time. Based on the effort levels described above, these options require the least active involvement once they're running:

• High-yield savings accounts. Can be started in minutes and need no daily management. Simply deposit funds and let interest, sometimes above 4% APY, accumulate on its own.
• Index funds and dividend stocks. Need minimal management after the initial purchase. Index funds like the S&P 500 have averaged around 10% in annual returns over the past 20 years without requiring active trading.
• Affiliate marketing. Carries no cost to join and no inventory to manage. Sellers place referral links once, then continue earning commission as people click and buy.
• Digital products. Ebooks, templates, or spreadsheets are created once and sold repeatedly with no storage or production work.
• Cashback and shopping reward programs. Require a one-time sign-up. After that, points and rewards accumulate automatically from regular spending.

Ideas that need daily attention, like managing rental properties, restocking vending machines, or growing a YouTube channel, demand more hands-on effort. Sellers and businesses looking for the fastest, lowest-effort start might choose a high-yield savings account or an affiliate marketing strategy first, then add higher-effort income streams later.

*Based on a 2025 survey of 500 Shopify merchants conducted in English across Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United States. Respondents were established merchants with two or more years on the platform. Results reflect the experiences of this specific sample and may not be representative of all merchants.