Let’s be real: There is no doubt that you know how to spend your money on Amazon. But do you know how to make money with Amazon? Do you know how to use the world’s most popular online marketplace to your own advantage?
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Like you, I do almost all my shopping on Amazon. And like you, I’ve researched countless ways to save money on Amazon.
The good news is:
Selling on Amazon can make you a lot of money. I am not talking a few dollars per month. I am talking hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars a month. The selling behemoth attracts an insane amount of traffic on a daily basis.
Here are some ways you can take advantage of that immense traffic and make money with Amazon.
10 Ways to Make Money with Amazon
1. Sell Products through Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA)
Amazon’s FBA program is one of the best ways you can make money with Amazon. The program is huge and one of the most surefire ways you can make hundreds to thousands of dollars per month on Amazon.
The program is easy to learn as well. Basically, all you do is find private label products to sell, and Amazon handles everything else. That includes sales, storage, customer support, and shipping.
You’re practically selling to millions of consumers who already trust Amazon instead of having to launch your own e-commerce blog or page.
So what are the steps you need to take?
- Figure out what you want to sell at first. There are 33 selling categories on Amazon, and the first thing you need to do is to figure out what type of product you want to sell.
- Make it unique. Don’t be the kind of person who chooses to sell mugs yet again. Make sure your products are useful, unique, and high-quality. This way, you get to eliminate competition and focus on your products.
- Choose a selling plan. There are two plans you can choose from: the $39.99-per month Professional plan (if you’re planning to sell over 40 products) and the Individual plan (no monthly fee, but you pay $0.99 over every time sold.)
- Start selling. Yes. It’s that simple. List your goods, let Amazon handle the shipping, and watch the money flow in.
Some things to note:
- It’s not enough for a product to just be unique. Ensure that your product will actually sell by doing intensive product research beforehand.
- Sell low. At first, you’ll need to sell your product at the lowest possible price. This is a great way to accumulate as many positive reviews as possible that’ll make an increase in your price later on justifiable.
- Make sure your pricing strategy is competitive.
- Always prepare for returned/damaged items.
Before you get started, read our full guide on how to become an FBA Amazon seller.
2. Deliver for Amazon Flex
If you don’t want to spend a lot of effort to make money on Amazon, then Amazon Flex is a great way to get paid by Amazon.
There are countless orders being processed by Amazon on a daily basis, and you can make money by capitalizing on that.
You can sign up as an Amazon Flex delivery partner where you’ll be able to deliver goods to consumers. The website states that you can make anything from $18 to $25 per hour.
Simply download the Amazon Flex app, set up your account, look for delivery blocks in your area, and select one. On the day of your block, go to the designated Amazon location, pick up your packages, and deliver them. You’ll get paid after two weeks via direct deposit.
You can also mark yourself available in the app to receive instant bookings, for which you can pick up orders from Prime Now, AmazonFresh, Whole Foods, or other Store locations.
This works a little bit like Uber. You set your own schedule, you decide when and where you can work and you’ll earn competitive pay. This flexible income stream is the perfect side hustle for you to make money with Amazon.
A few notes:
- You can use whichever car you have if you’re delivering Prime Now orders.
- Amazon.com orders require a four-door car or larger.
- You’re not allowed to use motorcycles or scooters.
- There will be a background check conducted.
- There will be no reimbursement for mileage or parking.
3. Work for Amazon from Home
Many people think landing a job with Amazon is harder than it actually is.
If you’re looking for some extra cash or a part-time job, then you can apply for a work-from-home position and get paid by Amazon.
Customer service jobs are a great way to make money from home, and you can easily make $12 per hour or more from the comfort of your own home.
All you need is a high school diploma, some customer service experience, and computer and phone skills.
Check out all the open remote job positions Amazon has open.
4. Become an Affiliate Marketer for Amazon
If you have your own website with a blog and a large following on social media, then you can monetize it using Amazon.
One of the most effective ways to make money with Amazon is to tap into the potential of the Amazon Associates Program. All you have to do is add Amazon affiliate links to certain products that you advertise.
For example:
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You can write a product review blog post on one of Amazon’s products, add the affiliate link, and earn a commission of up to 10% every time someone clicks the affiliate link and purchases the item.
You can get paid for any purchase the reader makes. The trick here is to actually choose high ticket items. This means that your commission can reach $100/day for only 3 to 4 items.
Top tips:
- Focus on both expensive products and high commission categories.
- Clicks earn you nothing. You only get commissions out of clicks that lead to actual purchases. This is why you need to use the right buyer keywords.
- Research your niche, and choose a profitable one.
- Always have a link-building strategy.
Starting an affiliate blog or turning your blog into one is a relatively simple process.
It’s a great way to make good money in the long term and can open up plenty of other opportunities.
5. Join the Amazon Influencers Program
If you don’t have a website or a blog, but you have a big following on your social media accounts, OR you’re already an Amazon Associate and you also have a huge social media audience, sign up for the Amazon Influencer Program.
Being an Amazon Influencer allows you to tap into your social media following, instead of or aside from your blog or website.
Submit your YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook account for review. Once you’re qualified, you can make a storefront on Amazon, use your custom URL to guide your followers to your recommended products, and get rewarded every time your followers purchase through your links.
6. Self-publish a book through Kindle Direct Publishing
If you want a source of passive income, then self-publishing a book is one of your best options. It requires a one-time (but massive) effort of writing the book or hiring someone to write it and you can earn passive income from the published book.
Kindle Direct Publishing is the most popular self-publishing company because it is completely free, your book can instantly be available to millions of readers worldwide, and you will be earning up to 70% royalty. Sounds like a triple-win situation to me!
Amazon also doesn’t “own” your book; you set your price, you have the rights to your book and you can also publish to print for free.
Tips:
- Always try to prepare a follow-up book. The more books you write, the more profit you make.
- Enroll your book in KDP Select and leverage verified reviews (that is, book reviews from people who actually bought your book from Amazon.
- Set up a smart pricing strategy.
7. Complete tasks on Amazon Mechanical Turk
It’s quite easy to sign up to Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and start to make money on Amazon instantly.
MTurk is a crowdsourcing website where businesses and individuals can outsource simple and repetitive tasks to a virtual workforce so that time and resources are freed for activities that are move valuable to the business.
At the same time, MTurk provides opportunities to gigworkers to earn income online.
Once you’ve completed at least 100 jobs, you can start getting higher-paying gigs and tasks.
8. Apply to Amazon Handmade
If you are more of an artist and crafter than you are an author or a gigworker, perhaps Amazon Handmade has room for you.
Amazon Handmade is an invitation-only, artisan community where creative artists and crafters can sell their unique products to the world.
So it’s basically Etsy but on a much bigger scale.
You do have to apply to be an Artisan, and Amazon takes 15% from the sale of each item. But your selling fees are waived, and you get to put your products in front of millions of potential buyers.
Everything sold on Amazon Handmade must be handmade, hand-altered, or hand-assembled. No mass-produced items are allowed.
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Here are some of the categories available to sell under in Amazon Handmade.
- Accessories
- Artwork
- Baby
- Beauty & Personal Care
- Clothing
- Shoes & Handbags
- Home
- Outdoor & Home Care
- Jewelry & Watches
- Kitchen & Dining
- Pet Supplies
- Sporting Goods
- Stationery & Party Supplies
- Toys & Games
9. Sell Merch on Amazon
Have a clever idea for a shirt, phone case, or PopSocket but can’t afford an industrial printer?
Merch by Amazon may be another good way for you to make money with Amazon!
Merch by Amazon is a print-on-demand service that allows you to sell your designs on a variety of products to reach millions of Amazon customers worldwide without an initial investment or cost to you.
You do have to apply for a Merch by Amazon account. When approved, you can upload your artwork, set a price, and publish it on Amazon, which then takes care of the printing, shipping, and payment of your royalties.
The products available may change, but currently, the products that are available to print on include t-shirts (standard, v-neck, long-sleeved, raglan baseball), hoodies (pullover, zip), sweatshirts, tank tops, PopSockets, phone cases (iPhone and Samsung), tote bags, and throw pillows.
10. Create apps and games for Amazon products
If you want to or already know how to create apps and games, you can make money by publishing your apps on the Amazon Appstore for download on Amazon devices such as Fire TV and Fire Tablets.
How does it work? Simply register a developer account, publish your apps, and start generating revenue.
You can earn through in-app purchases, charging a one-time fee to have access to full app functionality, or displaying ads in your apps.
Start Making Money With Amazon Today!
Amazon is the biggest online marketplace—Amazon made $386.1 billion in 2020—and it’s showing no signs of stopping.
The best thing about making money on Amazon is that you get to actually utilize their reach and users and capitalize on the many different opportunities.
If Amazon isn’t up your alley, there are many more ways you can make quick money.
Which one of these will you try first? Are there other ways to make money with Amazon that I missed? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!
