Starting a business from home with no money might seem like an implausible concept. Many people dream of owning their own businesses but don’t know what idea to start with and how to make their dream a reality.
Table of Contents
Maybe you have a few friends who have taken the plunge to start the business they’ve always dreamed of and now you want a piece of the action. Perhaps you know someone who has purchased a franchise or taken out a Small Business Administration loan to kick off their plans. Or, maybe they’ve scrimped and saved to build their business.
But if you’re not in a position to save or take out a loan, you might be asking yourself, are there creative ways to start a business from home with no money?
However, there are some ways that you can start a business from home with no money. Read on to find out how.
Creative Idea #1 – Start an Online Store
One of the easiest and most common ways to start a business from home without investing start-up money is with an online store.
There are so many different e-commerce platforms that you can use to sell items and a lot of people make a decent living this way.
Once you have selected your platforms such as eBay, Amazon, or Etsy, you can begin by selling things that you already own.
If you are going to be selling clothes or household items, you can make your first money with items you no longer use.
As long as the items are in good condition, the money from them can be used to invest back into your business to purchase new things to sell.
For this business, you can also create an online store to sell arts and crafts items that you already make in your spare time. This can be a very successful business that costs no extra money.
Creative Idea #2 – Become a Niche Content Website Owner
Another common way that you can start a business online without the need for start-up investment is by becoming a niche content website owner (often referred to as a blogger).
For a niche content website, start by learning the basics of web design with WordPress (our favorite CMS). Then take a course on search engine optimization (SEO).
Once you get a grip on these skills, you can make a list of niche ideas and begin doing keyword research to find the site that has the potential to rank for keywords in your industry.
There are many experts in the niche content website industry who have excellent podcasts and share lots of free valuable information on how to get started.
Creative Idea #3 – Graphic Design
If you are looking for a creative outlet that can be your own business, graphic design is a great option.
There are tons of free courses and guides available online to help you hone your skills including LinkedIn Learning and community college.
Many designers are moving to Canva, which is a great platform for anyone to learn without a design background. Or, if you already know how to use Adobe Photoshop, you can get the whole Adobe Creative Cloud for a reasonable monthly subscription.
When you’re getting started, consider listing your services on Fiverr or UpWork to get your first clients. Once you have a few steady clients, build a simple WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace website so that you can begin to charge more.
Creative Idea #4 – Video Producer
If you spend any time on social media, you will have noticed content leaning more toward videos than still photos. This has created an increased demand for video producers.
It is very easy to teach yourself how to professionally cut and edit videos, even with no prior experience. Being a video producer for other online businesses and creators allows you to work from home, with very little equipment, and with a ton of flexibility.
This is perfect for anyone with a busy schedule. You also get to be quite creative with it.
Creative Idea #5 – Start a Consultancy Business
If you have a lot of knowledge and experience in a particular area or industry, you can start a consultancy business online without much capital.
All you need to do is build a basic business website, using a platform such as Squarespace or WordPress makes this super easy.
Once you have created your business website, you can promote yourself to your LinkedIn community to generate business.
This is a perfect option for anyone who has taken a break from their industry for their family or who has retired from their career and wants some extra money.
Just remember to set a reasonable price for your level of expertise. Don’t undersell yourself, but don’t overprice your services either.
Creative Idea # 6 – Tutoring
If you have any kind of teaching experience, or you use standard subjects such as math, English, or science regularly in your day job, you can offer tutoring services.
There are plenty of students and parents who are looking for someone to tutor their children to help them pass their exams.
Sometimes, just having the knowledge of a subject and no teaching experience can make you an excellent tutor as you won’t just be parroting the ways the teacher has already tried to teach the student.
Best of all, you can tutor people from your home over the internet.
Creative Idea #7 – Social Media Marketing
We have already mentioned various ways of using social media to make money, but it is a great resource if you have the right skills and know-how.
Social media is a huge part of what makes businesses successful, therefore, many businesses need people to take care of their social media marketing for them.
We use an incredible all-in-one marketing and social media calendar software called, Coschedule. We highly recommend this as it helps connect your online content with your marketing and social media messages and initiatives.
If you are always on social media platforms and have a good understanding of how they work and how to make the most of the algorithm, this can be a great business opportunity.
Creative Idea #8 – Stock Photography
This is a great business idea if you want to be able to make more of a passive income through your business.
If you have a high-quality camera and enjoy taking photographs and editing them you could sell your pictures to stock photography sites.
Sites such as Shutterstock or Pexels allow you to upload your photos to their site. When people purchase them for their website or advertising, you get paid. It’s a simple way to create an income streak from photos you’re already taking, if this is a hobby you enjoy.
This creative idea pairs nicely with creative idea #3, create a graphic design business.
Creative Idea # 9 – Dog Walking
If you have a lot of free time during the day, starting a dog walking business can be a real money maker right from the start.
Plenty of people get dogs to keep them company when they are home, however, they have to go to work for eight hours each day.
This means that plenty of people need someone to take their dog for a walk during the day. If you love animals and love helping pet owners, it could be a win-win.
Depending on where you live, you might need to purchase insurance to do this. The insurance is usually quite cheap. You might also need a background check as well.
Check out sites like
Creative Idea #10 – Fitness Trainer
If you already spend a lot of your time at the gym or working out at home, you could become a fitness trainer. There are plenty of courses available online that will give you the qualifications that you need.
You can also offer training over the internet if you do at-home workouts.
You can also set up a Youtube channel to showcase your training and make additional money. There are also apps for fitness trainers to help you manage your clients. Plus you can make your own schedule and be your own boss (and rarely get out of workout gear).
If you love helping people become their best and stay fit, this could be a fantastic choice for you.
Final Thoughts
It has never been easier to start a business from home with no money. There are so many resources available online to help you get started. Just work out what your passion is and follow it through.
