Looking to boost your income? Imagine how life changing it could be to earn $20k a month…
You could travel without having to worry about money, you could buy a nicer home, you could go on that vacation you've been planning for years.
The truth is, making $20k a month, while challenging, isn't impossible.
News flash! You don't need to be a genius or have a doctorate degree to earn this income.
In this post, I'll show you exactly how you can make $20,000 a month from scratch including some of the methods I've personally used to reach this income level. Ready? Let's get started!
How Much is $20k a Month?
Whenever creating a financial goal like making $20,000 a month – it's a good idea to know how much money that really is.
For example, making $20,000 a month is equivalent to $240,000 per year.
But it can be helpful to break down your income daily and weekly to get a better idea.
Making $20k a month is equal to making around $666 per day or $5,000 a week.
Okay, while this sounds like a ton of money and you can never reach this goal, don't give up just yet!
It's best to set smaller goals like making $100 a day, then $300 a day, and finally $500 a day before striving for your goal of $666.
How to Make 20k a Month
1. Blogging
Blogging is one of my favorite ways to make $20k a month or more online.
The income you make can eventually replace your full time job so you can quit the rat race and experience some of the benefits of entrepreneurship like:
- Being able to work whenever you want
- Being able to work from anywhere in the world
- Unlimited income potential
- And much more
While it can take time to grow a blog to make that much money, it is possible if you're consistent and willing to put in the effort.
It costs almost nothing to start a blog and you don't need a ton of equipment to get your site off the ground. That means anyone can start this digital side hustle, whether you have $100 or $1000.
You can start by securing a domain name with Namecheap and purchasing hosting from SiteGround. This should cost around $100 per year.
Next, you can install WordPress on your site and select a theme. WordPress is completely free and one of the best content management systems available. I've been using it since starting my blogs and it's super easy so you don't need any technical skills to get started.
Now you're ready to start creating content!
But how do blogs make money?
There are several different monetization strategies but some of the best include display ads, affiliate marketing, selling digital products or online courses, or offering sponsored content.
Check out my earnings from Adthrive (display ads) below!
How much can you realistically make?
It's possible to make $20k a month or more from your online business if you're strategic with your marketing and monetization efforts.
But it's not going to happen overnight.
Blogging and other content creation businesses rely on compounding to build their earnings over time.
For example, my portfolio of blogs now makes over $10k a month. It took some time to get here, but blogging has been so worth it.
This means that each piece of content you create has the potential to make money for years or even decades into the future.
As your blog grows, it will start to generate passive income that can be used to build long term wealth and generate multiple income streams.
But that's not it!
Blogs are also digital real estate that can be bought and sold.
There are tons of great website valuation tools out there. For example, the one I used gave my blogs a valuation of between $350,000 and $385,000!
Blogging is hands down one of the greatest ways to make $20k a month, especially if you don't have a ton of money to invest. It's going to take some serious work but it's 100% possible.
2. Start a Business
If you're wondering how to make $20k a month – starting a business should be at the top of your list for a few different reasons.
First is the income potential.
Just like blogging, starting a business has the potential to make you a millionaire – or even billionaire, in some rare cases.
If you work a 9 to 5, the chances of you making millions are slim, but making billions is impossible.
The next benefit is the flexibility.
If you work a corporate job, chances are, you'll be expected to work 40 hours each week until you retire. No thanks!
This can make it hard to spend time with family and do the things you love whenever you want.
Finally, starting a profitable business can give you the freedom to travel and work from anywhere in the world.
You're not tied down to one location like you are with some traditional jobs. This isn't for every business, but it is possible for some online businesses.
Of course, starting a business is not easy and it will take a lot of hard work to get it off the ground – but it's definitely worth it if you want to make $20k a month or more.
There are endless business ideas you can start that have the potential to make a significant income each month.
I recommend starting with small service based business that is relatively easy to operate at first so you can learn the basics of business.
Some business ideas could include:
- Lawn care business
- Mobile car wash business
- Pressure washing business
- Painting business
- Print on demand business
- Cleaning business
To start a business, you'll first need to have an idea and create a business plan.
Once you have a plan, you can start working on the logistics of getting your business up and running.
It's important to understand how you will attract customers and start making money from your venture before starting. This is the area where I see many entrepreneurs make mistakes. If you don't know how to market and sell your products or services, it will make your business very challenging to grow.
If you want to shortcut your way to making $20k a month, you can also purchase an existing business, but this can require large sums of money. For example, check out some of these businesses for sale in my area.
If you want to make $20,000 in monthly revenue – starting a business is one of the best methods for several reasons. You'll gain flexibility, have a large income potential, and have the freedom to work whenever you want.
And just like with a blog, as your business makes money, it will become a valuable asset you can sell one day for a nice profit.
3. Sell an Online Course
Looking for other ways to make money online? Selling an online course can be just that!
If you have a skill or knowledge that you can share, you can make a lot of money by packaging it into an online course and selling it.
Creating an online course is a great way to make $20,000 a month or more because it's a scalable business model. Some course creators have made millions from their offerings!
This means that you can put in the work upfront to create the course and then continue to make money from it month after month with little to no additional effort. It's sweet, sweet passive income.
To get started, you'll need to determine what topics you will cover in your course and how you will structure it.
Once you've determined the curriculum for your course, you'll need to create the content.
This can be done in a number of ways, but most courses are made up of a combo of videos, PDFs, and audio files.
Once you have the content created, you can start selling your course on platforms like Podia or Teachable that make it easy to manage and sell your course.
But your work doesn't end there. You have to create a plan to market and sell your course in order to make money.
This can be one of the most challenging aspects of selling online courses, but it's also the most important.
Many course creators will use a combination or paid marketing, affiliate marketing, and word of mouth marketing to promote their course, but it will vary depending on the course.
For example, if you're creating a course about cooking – you could contact popular Facebook groups and see what they would charge to promote your course. There are tons of different options to market your course, so you need to spend time testing to find what works best.
Selling online courses can be an excellent way to make $20k a month, but you have to have the skills and knowledge to not only build your course, but sell and market it. Need help? Check out the video below!
4. Open an Online Store
Online stores can be cash cows that many entrepreneurs overlook. But if you want to make $20,000 a month – they can be tremendous options.
An online store can sell anything you can imagine. Whether it's coffee, fitness gear, or health supplements – your options are endless. For example, check out this online store Koffee Kult that sells coffee beans and gear.
Now, online stores can be a logistical nightmare for some people. You'll need to source inventory, manage your website, and market your store so people can find it.
If you can do these things, however, there's fortunes to be made.
Online stores can make an endless amount of money, so you can certainly make $20k a month with this method.
5. Invest in Real Estate
Investing is a great way to make passive income and reach your financial goals, no matter how big they might be, whether you want to make $100k a year in passive income or make $50k a month.
Any contrary to what you might think, you don't need a large amount of money to get started.
By using a platform like Arrived, you can invest in rental properties with as little as $100!
What I love about this platform is that you can pick and choose exactly what properties you want to invest in. This gives you more control of your investments that other platforms.
Some properties have generated returns greater than 10% annually, making it one of the better compound interest investments you can find. Register below to get started!
Now, in order to make $20,000 a month from investing in real estate, you're going to need some serious cash, or an extended time horizon.
To figure out how much you need to invest, we can do some math.
If you want to earn $240,000 a year in investment income, you would need to amass a portfolio of around $2.4 million (assuming a 10% rate of return). With this in mind, you would need to contribute a little over $1,100 per month for 30 years to reach this number.
Now, if you can contribute more, the time horizon will shrink. Additionally, if you increase your initial investment, you can reduce the monthly contributions or reduce the time horizon.
When it comes to managing your money, investing isn't an option – it's a requirement in my book. In order to get ahead with your money you should invest and Arrived is an excellent platform to get the ball rolling.
6. Work as a Freelance Writer
Want to make $20 a month that's flexible, laid back, and fun?
Freelance writing can be a great way to make extra money on the side or even build a full-time business.
As a freelance writer, you'll be tasked with writing content for different publications and companies. This can include things like writing blog posts, articles, website copy, and more.
Some writers charge over $.50 per word written. While this is on the higher end, it's common to charge anywhere from $.20 to $.25 per word for more novice writers.
Check out the rates for some freelance writers I found on Upwork. They're charging $100 an hour for their work which is a great income.
So how can you make $20k freelance writing?
If you make $.25 per word, you would need to write 40 2,000-word articles each month to reach your goal. While this is certainly challenging, it's possible if you're motivated.
Working as a freelance writer also has many benefits. You can work from anywhere in the world (with an internet connection), you can set your own rates and hours, and there's no limit to how much money you can make. What's not to love!?
If you enjoy writing and want to earn an income online, I would highly recommend giving freelance writing a try.
7. Work as a Freelancer
While I've already covered freelance writing – there are many other kinds of freelancing that can be great options to make $20k or more.
For example, if you're a video editor you can earn money by offering video editing services to businesses and online publishers.
The same goes for graphic designers, web developers, SEO specialists, and just about any other skill that businesses are willing to pay for.
For example, Charles Floate, a popular SEO consultant charges $1,000 for a 1-hour SEO consultation.
If you don't have a ton of special skills, one of the easiest freelance jobs is working as a virtual assistant.
You can find work as a freelancer by using online platforms like Fiverr or Upwork or you can network directly with publishers and others who might need your help.
The pay for freelancers will vary widely depending on the work that you do but it's possible to make over $200 an hour in some cases.
If you have a valuable skill that businesses need, then freelancing can be a great way to make extra money online and earn $20k a month or more.
8. Start a Podcast
Podcasting is a great online business that generates cash flow each month from the content you produce.
It's similar to blogging and other forms of content creation except in the audio format.
While growing a podcast can be challenging in the beginning, there's tremendous potential to make money down the road. Check out the projected podcast market. Talk about opportunity!
The key to making money with podcasts is to find a niche topic that you're passionate about and build an audience around it.
You can then monetize your podcast through sponsorships, advertisements, or by selling products and courses.
Building and growing a podcast is no easy task, but you can make large sums of money if you're willing to do the work.
Here's great video that can help you grow your podcast!
9. Start a YouTube Channel
When you think of YouTube, you probably don't think about making money, but this can be an amazing platform to earn an income.
I know some YouTube channels that make over $10k a month that still have loads of opportunity to expand.
For example, Kevin from Epic Gardening has built a following with over 1.9 million subscribers on his channel. Between his online business, he makes well over 7-figures each year.
But just like with other forms of content creation, it takes patience, tons of effort, and a passion for your content in order to be successful. You can't short cut your way to success with content.
You'll need to consistently film new videos, market them, and do research to find new ideas to be successful.
If you want to make $20 a month with YouTube, it's going to take some time. For most YouTubers, it'll take a few years, but if you can make superior content that flies to the top of searches, it could be quicker.
Quality content = quality revenue.
10. Sell Digital Products
If you're searching for passive income streams that generate monthly income, then selling digital products is an excellent option you should consider.
The profit margins on these items are enormous, typically exceeding 75% or 85% because you online have to make the items once and then you can sell them over and over.
Now, you have to figure out a marketing strategy in order to get sales, but if you can crack the code and generate sales, money will start flowing in.
Take a look at this budget planner on Etsy.
With over 3,869 sales, that's $1.5 million in revenue from this digital product!
If you're having a hard time thinking of ideas for a digital product, here is a great resource that can help you!
11. Flipping
Looking for a side hustle you can start with virtually no money?
Flipping can be an excellent option for those willing to put in the work.
The process is pretty simple to understand.
You'll need to find products that are highly discounted and sell them for a profit.
You can source your inventory at garage sales, flea markets, or online through sites like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace.
Once you have a few products, you can list them for sale online and watch the offers come in!
If you want to make more money, you can try to find items that could use a little TLC before selling them.
This is popular when it comes to things like flipping furniture.
You can purchase an old coffee table, add a fresh coat of paint, and sell it for a nice profit.
This is definitely one of the more work intensive ways to make money, but I like these because anyone can do them if you can put in the work.
I know people who make great money from flipping so if you're looking to start a side hustle this is a great option.
12. Retail Arbitrage
Retail arbitrage is essentially flipping, except you'll visit large retailers to source your inventory.
The process works the same way as regular flipping except you'll find products at stores like Walmart, Target, Amazon, and other similar retailers.
Finding items can be hit or miss, but when you hit – you can make great money.
Here's an awesome video that explains how it works.
13. Invest in the Stock Market
Another way to start investing your money is via the stock market.
Just like with real estate, investing in the stock market will take some time and money to reach your goal of making $20k a month.
To get started, I recommend using an investing app like Acorns to invest in index funds with as little as $10. They're also currently giving new investors $10 completely free!
While investing in stocks isn't the fastest ways to make $20k a month – it's one of the most passive and guaranteed methods if you stick to it.
14. Find a New Job
Finding a new job is one of the easier ways to make $20k a month if you're not already making that much.
There are plenty of jobs that pay over 6 figures a year, so if you're willing to put in the extra effort to find one of them, it can certainly pay off.
Of course, finding a job that pays that much can be difficult, but it's certainly not impossible.
You're going to need some specialized skills to find a job at this income level, but they do exist!
You can check out these jobs that pay $300k a year for a few ideas.
15. Ask for a Raise
While this method isn't guaranteed, it can be possible to reach your goal of making $20,000 a month.
If you've been working at the same company for a few years and have done well at your job, asking for a nice raise is worthwhile. Even if you don't get a massive raise, even a small raise can help you reach your goal.
When asking for a raise, you should be sure to have some metrics and numbers to back up your performance at work.
Check out these tips to get a raise!
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Final Thoughts on How to Make $20k a Month
If you want to make more money and earn $20k a month, there are plenty of ways to do it.
Some of the best methods include:
- Starting a blog
- Starting a business
- Freelance writing
- Investing in real estate with Arrived
Reaching your goal likely won't happen overnight, but if you stick to it and work hard, eventually you'll reach your goal of making $20k a month.
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