There are hundreds of apps you can use to make money from side-hustles or to transform your passions into passive income. Imagine that just a couple of years ago, apps like Instagram, Airbnb and Uber did not exist. The opportunities to make money using apps is ever-growing, and this article explores 12 of them that can allow you to make active or passive income.
What are the best passive income and side hustle apps for beginners? There are many passive income ideas supported by apps. Some of them include eCommerce, rentals, delivery services, and other service-based ideas. Some of the apps include Ecwid, eBay, Uber, Craigslist, FatLama etc. Understanding how to use the app can help you save time, reach a larger audience and make more money.
If you are a beginner looking for passive income ideas that you can undertake using an app, you are in the right place. In this article, we uncover twelve passive income apps and side hustles that can help you earn passive income. You can learn more about each app or idea in the guides on our website. Just click on the orange button or the image within each idea below. Let’s dive right in.
1. eCommerce
Ecwid is a SAAS (software as a service) tool you can use to build your own online store. Like other eCommerce platforms, Ecwid allows you to sell products online, but their big advantage is that you can add your Ecwid store to an existing website. If you are using WordPress, Wix or Weebly for example, you can add your Ecwid store to your existing site. If you don’t have a website yet, Ecwid offers a free site with your account.
The platform also allows you to set up payment methods, shipping rates and more – all the essential things you’d be able to do using an ecommerce solution. With a paid account, you can also connect to dropshipping and print-on-demand services. But if you don’t need advanced features and if you intend to sell less than 10 products, Ecwid is totally free!
Learn More About Passive Income from eCommerce
How could Ecwid help you earn passive income? You can place your Ecwid store on your website, Facebook or Instagram business page and sell products to your audience. You earn passive income from the products that sell via your site using Ecwid. Learn more about how to make passive income through eCommerce our guide.
2. Chatbots
You can earn passive income by automating communication between yourself and your audience, or for businesses and their customers using Chatbots.
Businesses need chatbots to cut down the time required to communicate with clients, to enhance customer satisfaction, and ultimately boost sales. As an individual, you can use your chatbot to make passive income by having it refer to affiliate products or capture leads.
Learn More About Passive Income from Chatbots
3. Uber
If you have a car and would like to earn a passive income from it, Uber is a very popular way to go! The company allows you to offer rides to clients and earn passive income using their app. Through the app, you can see available customers in real-time who require a ride to take them to a specific location. If you are already on your way or drive around a lot during the day, it’s a passive way to make money while you commute!
Uber indicates essential information like your client’s location & distance, the distance to their destination, price etc. It also allows you to benefit from customer reviews, which boosts your reputation and popularity as a driver. The uber app is mobile compatible (both IOS and android versions), which allows you to benefit from real-time information while on the go. The app eliminates the demanding aspects of searching for a client in need of taxi services and can help you earn up to $1,000/monthly.
How could Uber help you earn passive income? You earn passive income from the app by offering taxi services to clients. So long as you have a car and meet the requirements, you can join the platform and earn passive income from the clients you serve. Here’s a detailed guide on our site about this passive income idea.
4. Craigslist
You can earn passive income using Craigslist by flipping items on the platform. Flipping items on Craigslist can help you rake in $1,000 or more every month. Of course, depending on what you flip, the amount of income you make passively can be more or less than one thousand dollars. You can check out Google Trends to find out what is trending, and what people are looking for online.
Like other peer-to-peer classified listing platforms, all you need is an account and you are good to go. Once your account is in place, you can buy cheap products, sell them at a higher price, and make profit passively. The secret is to resell popular, high-quality products that are in high demand. Craigslist isn’t available worldwide but there’s probably a similar peer-to-peer platform that offers classified listings in your area. Learn more in this guide on our site.
Learn More About Passive Income from Craigslist
How could you earn passive income using Craigslist? You earn passive income on Craigslist by flipping items on the platform. You can do so by choosing high demand products that sell fast, purchasing, and reselling high resale value products, boosting an item’s resale value, or buying a product there, and reselling it elsewhere. The process will be very active in the beginning until you find a product that you can eventually sell more passively (automate, outsource, dropship etc). For details about making passive income through flipping items on Craigslist, please read our guide.
5. Lime/Bird
Scooter popularity is growing rapidly and you can earn passive income by charging them. You can earn up to $2,000/monthly or more charging scooters. Scooter companies like Lime and Bird pay anyone authorized to charge their scooters for each scooter they recharge. All you need is to sign up on either platform, ace their training program, and you can get started.
Both Bird and Lime have mobile phone apps that allow you to locate possible scooters within your area. They payout different rates per scooter you recharge (between $3 and $20) depending on your location and the availability of a scooter. Charging costs average .5 cents, making it a cool passive income idea. Of course, this is an active income since you will somewhat be trading your time for money, but if you pick up a couple of scooters after school or work, recharge them overnight, and then drop them off in the street the next day, it remains pretty easy income. Each company has its own particular policies and functions so ensure you research them well before deciding to sign up to either of them. Learn more in our guide below.
Learn More About Passive Income from Charging Scooters
How do you earn passive income using Lime and Bird apps? You earn passive income by charging scooters and electric bikes within your area. You can boost your passive income by buying more chargers and charging more scooters, offering delivery services, and charging affordable prices for every scooter charged. For more details on earning passive income by charging scooters, feel free to read our guide.
6. eBay
eBay is a search engine and marketplace where you can sell new or used products and earn thousands of dollars monthly in passive income. With over 180 million active users across the globe (source), the platform is ideal for anyone looking to make passive income selling products. You can sell almost anything on eBay. All you need is to sign up on the platform and learn how to leverage it to earn passive income. You can sell your own personal products from home, stuff from garage sales, products from other platforms like Craigslist, thrift shop products etc.
eBay also has an app compatible with both Android and IOS phones, which helps you sell products on the go. As a beginner with the right products, you can earn an excellent income. To boost your passive income, ensure you sell high-quality products, popular items with high resale value at affordable prices. Learn more about how to make passive income from eBay in our guide on our site.
Learn More About Passive Income from eBay
How do you earn passive income using the eBay app? Like in other eCommerce websites, you earn passive income by selling or reselling products on the platform. Depending on the type of items you sell, eBay can be a good source of passive income for most beginners – you only need to know how to leverage the site to make the most out of it. For more details, you can read our guide.
7. Rover
If you are a pet lover looking to earn extra income passively, Rover is an app you might want to consider. You can earn up to $1,000/month by offering pet sitting services. Rover is a platform that allows pet owners to find suitable sitters to take care of their loved one, while they are at work or away (e.g. on vacation). Some of the services you can offer include pet boarding, drop-in visits, pet daycare, pet walking etc. The Rover app allows you to find clients on the go and is compatible with both IOS and Android phones. The app is extremely easy to use, which makes it ideal for beginners.
Learn More About Passive Income from Pet Sitting
How could you earn passive income with the Rover app? You earn passive income by offering pet sitting services. I already know that this is more of an active income since you will need to trade your time for money. You can earn more passive income by offering night services which pay more. For more details, check out our beginner guide.
8. FatLama
Are you looking to earn passive income by renting your stuff? Fatlama is the platform you’re looking for. FatLama is a platform where you can rent your stuff including tools, camping equipment, and household goods at a reasonable fee. You can earn up to $3,000/monthly renting your stuff according to the platform. Most members are out looking for anything to rent especially if it’s expensive to actually purchase, or unavailable in their location.
The platform also has an app that’s compatible with both Android and IOS phones, which allows you to earn more passive income while on the go. Some of the things you can rent include cars, electronics, fishing gear, sports equipment, furniture, jewelry etc. The quality of your stuff and listed price can go a long way in boosting the income you make. All you need is to sign up, wait for your account to be approved, create your listing, and start earning from your rentals.
Learn More About Passive Income from Renting Your Stuff
How could you earn passive income with the FatLama app? You earn passive income by renting out your stuff to people who need to use it. You can list anything that is allowed on the platform so long as its good quality and you don’t use it often (otherwise you may have to cancel rental requests). Prices and quality of your product are key for you to make more passive income. Here’s our guide for details about this passive income idea.
9. Printful
Printful is a print-on-demand fulfillment service where you can have your designs, embroidery, and merch printed and shipped directly to consumers. The service delivers customized products like clothing, kitchenware, designs, and handles printing and delivery on your behalf. Print-on-demand services have become increasingly popular and some people are making $500+/month passively by printing and selling their merch.
Printful offers over 160 print-on-demand product variations for you to choose from, making it ideal for beginners with no design experience. Unlike other similar platforms, there are no set up costs or monthly fees. You pay per order and prices depend on the type or quality of your merch or designs. Printful can easily integrate with blogs, eCommerce sites (eBay, Amazon, Ecwid etc.), which makes it an ideal tool to grow your clients. Some other ways you can boost your income from Printful is by creating your own high quality, popular designs that keep your clients coming back for more. If you have no design experience, you can get things created for you on Fiverr for example.
Learn More About Passive Income from Print-on-Demand
How could you earn passive income with the Printful app? You earn passive income by designing products and merch through the site. Once your customer hits the ‘buy button’ and their payment is processed, Printful will print the product and deliver it to your customer. Here’s our guide on details about print-on-demand services as a passive income idea.
10. AirBnB
You can earn up to great passive income renting your home on AirBnb. The service’s popularity has grown amongst travelers shunning the hotel experience and preferring a home-stay environment. Using the AirBnb app, you can list anything from a house, apartment, room, cottage, RV, campsite, treehouse, boathouse, tiny home, island, castle, cave etc. You only need to sign up on the site, post HD photos of your space and wait to receive booking requests from potential clients. The space has to be habitable, clean, and fit for any guest who wishes to stay there.
You can make the idea more passive by hiring a cleaner/assistant to cater to your guests as you do other things. Check out more ways to make this idea very passive in our beginner guide to AirBnB.
Learn More About Passive Income from AirBnB
How could I earn passive income from the AirBnb App? You earn passive income by renting dwelling space on the site. Depending on the number of monthly rentals, location, ratings and pricing, you can make around $2500/month. For more details about this passive income idea, read our guide.
11. Turo
You can earn up to $500/month renting your car on Turo. If you own a car that you don’t use often, you can list it on Turo and other car rental apps to earn extra income on the side. All you need is to sign up on the site, post HD photos of your car, and wait for clients to contact you. Your car has to meet certain requirements like age (12 years and below), less than 130,000 miles, insurance requirements, and other auto insurance standards. As a driver, you have to be 21 years and older to sign up on the platform.
Turo charges a 25% fee and you keep 75% of the fees paid by clients. The money you make depends on the make of your car. Turo provides a calculator to help you range the rental price of your car. You can boost your income by offering a fair price or offering discounts to your clients.
Learn More About Passive Income Renting Your Car
How could I earn passive income with the Turo App? You earn passive income by renting your car on the platform. The amount of money you make depends on many things like the make of your car and your popularity as a host. Feel free to read our guide for more details about this great passive income idea.
12. Uber Eats/Deliveroo/DoorDash
You can earn passive income by delivering food during your free time. Food delivery apps like Uber Eats, Deliveroo, and DoorDash are easy to join and can help you earn hundreds of dollars every month. Uber Eats is a subsidiary of the larger Uber Company that offers food delivery services. To join, all you need is a car in good condition, pass the Uber test, deliver food, and earn money. Uber Eats drivers earn money per delivery plus tips.
Deliveroo is a UK based food delivery service that delivers food from local restaurants to customers. All you need is a bike, sign up and pass the test, deliver food and make money. Deliveroo founder and CEO, Will Shu still makes deliveries and makes extra income doing it (source). You can make money two ways, per hourly rate or per delivery.
DoorDash is a San Francisco based food delivery service available in over 800 cities in the US. All you need is a delivery vehicle, sign up and pass the test, deliver food, and earn income. DoorDash drivers earn per delivery and keep 100% of the tips you receive from customers (source).
How could you earn passive income with food delivery apps? Participating in food Delivery Services is definitely a more active income. In most cases, you have to trade your time for money. You can make it more passive by incorporating it into your regular routine. This is mostly a good side hustle to make money quickly.
Related Questions
How can I boost my income from apps and side hustles? You can boost your passive income by combining two ideas. Most of these ideas are easy for beginners. For example, if you are a freelance writer who travels a lot, you can rent your house, car, and personal stuff. So long as you can, combining ideas is a great way of increasing your passive income streams.
Do I have to use Apps when undertaking these ideas? Apps are a great way of making the idea more passive. Imagine you have rented your car on Turo, and your house on AirBnb while on vacation. Using the apps, you can manage everything remotely via direct notifications without having to worry about the need to be actively involved. You can also outsource management to an employee.
Are some Apps and Side Hustles better than others are? Some Apps and side hustles will be better for you depending on your centers of interest and skills. You will also earn more from some rather than others. For example, you can earn more from renting your house compared to renting your camera. Choose an idea that you are passionate about and fits your financial expectations.
Make sure to keep your financial expectations realistic. Passive income can take a long time to build. Find more passive income ideas on our passive income ideas page.
More Passive Income Ideas Here!
