20 Hobbies That Make Money: Build Your 6-Figure Business

What you do in your spare time is your own business. Literally!

Μonetizing your favorite hobby can transform your life. If you haven’t thought about it yet, start.

It’s amazing how you can make money online these days. A lot of people make money by simply completing questionnaires on survey sites, live streaming while playing video games or music sets on websites like Twitch, or doing grocery shopping for others.

But in this post, we won’t discuss side hustles and small gigs that occasionally earn you some extra money. We want to help you build your own business and create a source of passive income or a new full-time job.

Today we’ll focus on hobbies that give you real power – 20 fun hobbies that are also excellent business ideas! We’ll give you actionable tips to turn your hobby into an actual business and how to teach it to others.

3 Questions to Evaluate the Money-Making Potential of a Hobby

So, you have a hobby or skill you want to monetize. But can you really do that? Before we see the list of profitable hobbies, let’s see the 3 questions you need to ask to understand whether you can turn your hobby into a business or not.

1. Can it be turned into a business?

You can always start as a small business and expand. But ask yourself if this hobby can turn into something bigger and become a source of income in the long term. Even though you could make money out of most hobbies, some can only take you so far.

2. Is it popular?

Are people willing to pay to learn this hobby or skill? Are there influencers and bloggers talking about it? Are there online courses and events held around it? If so, it means that enough people are interested, so others are already making money.

3. Are you really good at it?

You want to sell knowledge online like many others, but how deep does your knowledge go? You might know how to knit a pair of gloves or maintain your own blog just for fun, but are you knowledgeable enough to teach others?

You’ve got to bring real value to the table and not superficial knowledge. Competition is fierce, and there are already free resources available for most topics. You must be really good at your niche and create an attractive offering to get people to pay for something they could get for free.

20 Money-Making Hobbies

Extra income or a new career altogether? These 20 lucrative hobbies that currently fill your free time can grow into a full-time business.

1. Social Media

Social media goes first on our list because it’s a jack of all trades. If you know how to engage an audience through social media, you can promote your business and make extra money from just about every hobby and skill we’ll see on this list.

If you want to gain professional experience, start as a social media manager, as many companies search for specialists to take care of their social media accounts.

How to turn social media into a business:

• Start your own business page on Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook. Once you build a large following, you will earn money from sponsorships, affiliates, and ads.
• Build online courses. Professionals across all industries want to learn more about building a social media following and professional social media profiles, or how to engage their audiences through social media.

2. Blogging

Blogging is a great hobby to turn into a part-time or full-time occupation and make money online. It can be done anytime and anywhere and requires minimum investment. You just pay to host your website and get access to stock photos (unless you produce your own images). You need no equipment besides a laptop that you most likely already own.

All you need is to have your way with words and a cool topic to write about. Heck, you can even create a blog about blogging if you like! According to RankIQ, the most high-traffic niches are food, lifestyle, travel, and arts/crafts. The biggest income sources for bloggers are ads, affiliate products, sponsored product reviews, their own products, and online courses.

Blogging can be part of your marketing strategy and an additional source of revenue regardless of your niche, though.

How to turn blogging into business:

• Start a blog about a popular topic you know well. Follow SEO best practices to increase traffic.
• Create an online course to teach others how to blog. Online blogging courses should include both video lessons with tips and written assignments. Offering direct feedback and working together is also important, so schedule real-time sessions with your students.

3. Starting a YouTube Channel

Starting a YouTube channel allows you to make money in different ways. Like blogging, YouTube enables you to connect with your audience via it and explore topics you love. Anything goes on YouTube, and it’s free to start, so what’s stopping you?

If you’ve repeatedly been told that you know how to tell a good story, then get that camera rolling! Like blogging, a YouTube channel can boost your marketing efforts and increase your reach, regardless of your main business.

Don’t feel camera-ready yet? Check out these tips from Matthiew Pierce and other successful YouTube creators.

4. Podcasting

So we’ve got blogging, YouTube channels, and social media to promote your business. Add podcasting to the list if you want something with less time investment. Podcasts are fairly popular, and if you don’t already have an audience, you can reach out to established professionals in your niche to enrich it.

5. DIY & Crafts

If you’re good at crafts, you’re golden. Apart from being a relaxing, creative, and practical hobby at the same time, crafting is also one of the most profitable hobbies that can easily become a side gig.

People love handmade stuff. Craft & supplies and handmade are the best-selling categories on the popular online store Etsy. Be it jewelry, clothing, shoes, or home furniture and decorations – say it’s handmade, and it sells like hot bread. Hobbies like candle making, woodworking, pottery, knitting, and sewing also fall under this category.

Apart from Etsy, you can also sell your stuff through huge online retailers like Amazon, Craigslist, and eBay. Or, you can start small (and more safely) by selling through local stores.

How to turn DIY & crafts into a business:

• Set up your own online store using Shopify or Instagram Shopping (more cost-effective than brick-and-mortar, although you will have to invest big in marketing)
• Create social media pages with how-to tutorials (YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok)
• Teach! Craft courses attract tons of people who seek more than a hobby. People who want to perfect their skills, create their own businesses, and earn extra cash. Plus, they can be really enjoyable as you can set up live workshops and connect with your audience.

6. Health & Fitness

Personal trainers and nutritionists are in high demand. People have long realized the value of maintaining a healthy weight and a good physique. We’re all looking for meal preparation ideas and nutrition & fitness hacks to help us develop good habits and integrate exercise and healthy eating into our busy lives.

How to turn health & fitness into a business:

• Start a blog, YouTube channel, or a podcast
• Become an influencer on social media
• Become a health & fitness coach
• Build a membership site
• Launch a fitness app.

Since health is a serious matter, we strongly advise that you have received some professional training yourself and are absolutely confident that you’re not spreading misinformation or dangerous practices.

7. Makeup Art & Beauty

Do you know how to make your own all-natural beauty products? Do you have family secrets for glowing and ever-young skin? Are you a great makeup artist? Then you can make it both online and offline. Makeup tutorials are huge in popularity on social media, which means you can attract a large audience and profit from affiliate marketing and sponsored content.

How to turn makeup & art into a business:

• Start a YouTube channel with makeup tutorials
• Build a business page on Instagram, TikTok, or Pinterest. Hold competitions and invite people to share your page, rewarding them with freebies and discounts.
• Teach other people makeup art and how to make their own beauty products. Create videos and quick how-to guides with text and images, and build a blog.

8. Shopping & Fashion

If you’re an avid shopper and fashion connoisseur, trust us, there is a huge business opportunity here. Fashion and shopping advice are always welcome by women and men alike, with fashion influencers making a great deal from affiliates and sponsored content.

How to turn shopping & fashion into a business:

• Start a fashion blog
• Become an influencer on TikTok or Instagram. Start competitions with freebies to increase engagement.
• Share your expertise through live events and Q&As.

9. Traveling

Talking about a fun hobby, right?! It sounds expensive, but it doesn’t need to be. You don’t have to be a serial traveler to share your experiences. Nor do you need to quit your job to start traveling around (although, how cool would it be?)

How to turn traveling into business:

• Start a travel blog
• Start a YouTube channel with documentaries
• Create online courses. If you’re knowledgeable about specific countries, share travel information with cultural and historical facts.

10. Cooking

You can always count on a cooking website or channel to attract a large and diverse audience. Your income here will come mostly from sponsorships and affiliate marketing, but if you manage to grow a large following, you can start charging for extras like digital downloads and workshops and make money from ads.

Cooking is a particularly popular category, be it for blogging or vlogging, which is both good and bad news for you. Obviously, there’s potential for profit. But since there are too many options already in the market, you’ll have to be smart about how you promote yourself. A good option is specializing in a specific niche, like vegan cooking. Although you’re narrowing down your target audience, you’re also narrowing down the competition.

• Start a food blog
• Start a YouTube channel
• Build your following on TikTok and Instagram
• Start a membership site with exclusive recipes and discounts on merchandise
• Give cooking classes. Do them online to allow for a larger audience and to save big on money.

11. Dog Walking

It may sound like a teenager’s hobby to make some extra money, but pet sitting, and dog walking in particular, can make you some good money while doing some light physical exercise.

Consider offering pet insurance for the dogs you walk. It provides peace of mind for pet owners and sets your dog walking business apart. A small investment that yields significant trust and loyalty.

How to turn dog walking into a business:

If you’re an experienced dog walker, help newbies out with dog walking lessons. They don’t even need to be in person. Create an online course to teach new dog owners how to handle their dogs in public. An online course is a flexible solution for busy people who may not have the luxury of time to go to a trainer.

12. Interior Design

Who doesn’t love a beautiful, functional home? If you have a good eye and receive compliments for your taste in home decoration, then consider monetizing this skill. If you want to showcase your work, you need photos and videos, so your go-to platforms should be Instagram and Pinterest (Home is one of the most popular categories on Pinterest).

Interior design courses are popular because they’re fun. People can get something out of them right away, change their home environment, and create something they can enjoy every day.

How to turn interior design into a business:

• Grow a following on Instagram and Pinterest
• Create checklists & infographics with quick tips
• Hold live workshops

13. Gardening & Flower Arrangement

Plants bring calm and peacefulness, so people want to put them in their lives and homes. Apart from growing and selling your produce at farmer’s markets and flea markets, you can also create a business.

How to turn gardening into a business:

• Create social media accounts to attract a following
• Teach gardening, flower arrangement, and landscape design
• Create a membership site. As seasons change, new plants and flowers blossom, so this creates the perfect opportunity to release new content along the way.
• Host live workshops to create at the same time with your audience beautiful bouquets and arrangements.

14. Drawing

Drawing is a relaxing hobby for everyone; all it takes is some talent and a small investment in drawing tools. Apart from turning your art into printables and selling them, there are other ways to monetize this wonderful skill.

How to turn drawing into a business:

• Start a YouTube channel
• Build a following on Instagram
• Teach drawing techniques with online courses. Don’t forget that drawing is also a popular creative activity for children. Create separate classes for your little friends to expand your audience.

15. Photography

Photography is not only fun, but as you decide to pick it up more seriously, it will motivate you to start moving more, explore, and notice the world around you. And how cool would it be if you could inspire others to do the same?

How to turn photography into a business:

• Sell your work on social media, especially Pinterest and Instagram. Professional photography accounts attract a huge following and are very well rewarded for sponsored posts.
• Sell your work as stock photos or printables.
• Teaching photography is another lucrative option, and pretty fun too! Get together with your audience in interactive workshops where each one will present their work.

16. Music

If you play an instrument or produce/remix music, why not teach others to do the same? Lots of people are seriously interested in deepening their musical knowledge and skills, or refreshing it if they played an instrument younger.

How to turn music into a business:

• Start a blog sharing tips and facts
• Start a YouTube channel with tutorials
• Create a music academy online with courses of different levels, sharing playing techniques and exercises.

17. Graphic Design

Do you enjoy designing logos, graphics, and all sorts of visuals? If colors, shapes, and images fascinate you, then know that this hobby can easily become your new full-time job, provided you have the necessary software and good computer skills.

How to turn graphic design into a business:

• Create digital products and printables and sell them. Creativebloq recommends the top 17 places to sell designs online.
• Work as a freelance graphic designer. Toptal, 99designs, Dribbble, Behance, Design Hill, and DesignCrowd are some of the top options specifically for graphic designers and artists.
• Additionally, if you have a passion for illustration, you can explore the world of visual storytelling and expand your career by creating captivating illustrations that bring ideas to life.
• Build a course to teach your skills to others. There’s a large audience that wants to learn graphic design as a hobby or to shift careers.

18. Writing & Proofreading

Now that’s a part-time job with a full-time income! Freelance writers make good money once they manage to establish themselves. Build your portfolio by guest posting for free, and start freelance writing on platforms like Upwork and Fiverr.

Copywriting, content writing, technical writing, business writing, and narrative writing are subcategories that can bring you good money. If you’re familiar with SEO, even better. Content writing and copywriting jobs often require basic SEO knowledge for better results.

If you have a vivid imagination, you can also get involved with creative writing and self-publish on Amazon.

How to turn writing into a business:

• Offer your services as a writer by building your own website and marketing your business
• Teach. Writing is a popular topic, as many aspiring or existing writers out there seek advice and guidance to perfect their skills. A writing course can be enriched with live sessions, guest speakers, assignments, and blogging.

19. Cryptocurrency Trading

The popularity of cryptocurrency trading comes and goes. That said, many people still want to learn how crypto works and when it’s the right time to invest and trade.

How to turn cryptocurrency trading into a business:

• Become a crypto influencer.
• Teach what you’ve learned through an online course. Crypto is a complex topic, so add live sessions or engage with your audience via social media to answer questions your pre-recorded videos didn’t cover.

20. Sales

People with a sales gene in their DNA seem to instinctively know how to make money. They can identify opportunities, understand their client’s emotional state, and effectively handle their objections. If you have a knack for sales, start practicing your skills because they can get you really far in terms of income:

• sell your own stuff in the Facebook marketplace and other online marketplaces
• buy stuff from flea markets, garage sales, and thrift stores and resell them
• up your game by becoming a real estate agent.

How to turn your sales skills into business:

• Become a sales coach. Once you’ve gained solid experience, consider passing that knowledge on to others. People outside the sales sector seek sales coaching to boost their confidence and communication/negotiation skills, which means your reach is significantly wide. In the US, the average sales coach makes a good $47,175 per year.

Tip: Build an online coaching academy – let’s not forget that you’ll address busy professionals who may not have the time for in-person coaching. Hold 1:1 and group sessions and bring in other experts to talk. Sales is an extroverted occupation, and it helps to have more voices and opinions heard.

How to Turn Profitable Hobbies Into an Online Business

These were 20 of the most popular hobbies you can make money from. But if you want to set up an online business, there are some steps you need to take to get it right:

1. Identify Your Audience

The first step to building a successful business is figuring out who your best customers are – those who will:

• convert the fastest
• spend the most, and
• buy more often.

You need to know what these customers look like:

• demographics
• interests,
• aspirations & pain points, and
• alternative options they might be considering.

Knowing your target audience will help you build a product they need and create messaging that resonates with them.

2. Build Your Brand

Target audience and branding are linked. You must get the first one right to get the second one too. You should build a brand that is original and honest but at the same time resonates with your best customers.

Your branding consists of elements like logos and colors, that you must use consistently across your website, social media, ads, and emails. On a second level, branding also reflects who you are – what you stand for, your tone of voice, and your mission. People should clearly connect you to an image and personality they find appealing.

3. Create Your Own Website

If you want to appear professional, you must have your own website. A professional website includes a bio, a portfolio of your work, products & pricing, contact information, and testimonials. Needless to say, your branding must be evident throughout.

4. Choose a Business Model

Next, let’s 5 business models that work well for monetizing knowledge. You don’t have to choose just one, and you can always experiment and pivot until you find what works best. But no matter what you decide to do, you’ll have to learn how to accept online payments to ensure that you get paid for your products or services.

Digital products

Turn your expertise into digital products you will promote through social media, your website, or as part of an online course or membership. Some you can sell, and others you can offer for free as lead magnets.

Examples of knowledge-packed digital products:

• eBooks
• Checklists and templates
• Video tutorials
• On-demand webinars
• Printables

Online coaching

Coaching has transformative power in people’s lives. Selling coaching is a great option for professionals, like salespeople, fitness instructors, and nutritionists, who want to transfer their knowledge and inspire others.

Offer 1:1 or group coaching sessions online for maximum reach. To have the best possible impact, check in with your clients regularly and offer plenty of additional material.

👉Assessments & quizzes, discovery questions, self-reflection journals, and workbooks are particularly popular in the coaching niche. These tools provide clients with small assignments/milestones that signify their progress and help them stay on the right track.

Membership site

Membership sites require members to pay a recurring subscription, so they gain access to gated content and exclusive events and offers. They enhance the sense of community and build engagement through frequent live events that include interaction with the audience.

This is a great option when you must demonstrate tasks, especially if you want the audience to follow along or showcase their work. Try to feature podcast episodes and a blog to offer more variety in content.

Online courses

Building an online course is one of the most comprehensive approaches to turning money-making hobbies into a business. An online course includes the typical learning material, like eBooks and video lessons, but it can also feature some live sessions and community features, such as discussion forums and a blog. Depending on the topic, online courses often include several types of quizzes and assessments and award learners with a certificate.

Launch a mobile app

A mobile app is a game-changer in terms of engagement and ease of access. That’s because nowadays, learning mostly happens on mobile devices and “informally,” i.e., via platforms like YouTube or when casually browsing social media. A mobile app imitates the experience of informal learning and provides learners anytime-anywhere access to your content.

5. Build an Online Community

Building a vibrant online community will help you sustain and expand your customer base even as new competitors keep making their appearance. While most of the community building happens through social media with frequent posting and live streaming events, don’t forget that a built-in community within your academy will also play a tremendous part in connecting with your audience.

Take the Leap Now

These were some of the best hobbies to build a profitable business on. Before you go, we have a few last pieces of advice for you:

• Be sincere. Practice, get professional training, and gain real-life experience so that you really conquer your topic. No one will stick with you if you’re still at an amateur level.
• Start humbly. Before you start positioning yourself as an expert, work for others if possible.
• Be patient. Success won’t come overnight. Prepare to spend a good part of your time promoting your work. The more competitive your niche, the longer it may take for you to stand out.

LearnWorlds can help you build a successful online business around your hobby. Sell digital products and online courses, build a membership site, sell coaching, launch your mobile app, or create your online academy with our platform. LearnWorlds features everything you need to create interactive learning experiences and sell them any way you like.

Try LearnWorlds with a 30-day free trial and start building amazing content today!