There are a few websites today that offer unlimited potential to earn money online. Amazon is one such site. Whether you are looking for a little extra to spend or to replace your full-time gig, here are some of the best ways to make money on Amazon.
(Besides using Amazon’s website to make extra money, you can get an actual job with the company — and even keep working from home! Check out my ultimate guide to Amazon jobs from home.)
1.Amazon Associates
As a blogger, I love the Amazon affiliate program. As an affiliate, aka Associate, you earn a commission on most sales you refer to the site. Depending on the product category, you can earn from 0% to 10%. Amazon also has several “Bounty” opportunities where you can earn a set fee of $3 to $25 for referring people to sign up for Prime, Amazon Student, Audible, Baby & Wedding Registries and more.
Chris Guthrie, Pot Pie Girl and Tiffany Dow are three people who really turned me on to the potential of the Amazon Associates program, where I’ve learned to increase my earnings year after year.
2.Amazon FBA
In the past, I have interviewed Cynthia Stine who has been able to create a $40,000+ per year business in just ten hours per week selling things on Amazon. This seller opportunity eliminates the need to deal with shipping and returns. You send the stuff you want to sell to the Amazon warehouse, and they take care of the sales process.
That being said, product selection is key. Send in a bunch of stuff that never sells and you may end up paying storage fees. Luckily, The Selling Family has some really great courses that deal with every aspect of the FBA process including special holidays and category ungating.
3.Amazon Merch
This is a new vertical from Amazon that allows brands and creatives to upload their designs to the site to be sold as t-shirts. There is very little risk involved with this type of sales model as no upfront payment is required, but competition can be high and you will likely need to invest some money into advertising if you don’t have a large following of your own. This opportunity has been so popular that you will need to request an invitation at this time.
4.Amazon Handmade
This new vertical was touted as an alternative to Etsy. As a seller, Amazon allows you to sell your handmade wares on the site. In some instances, you can even have them listed as Prime and FBA items. The reviews on Handmade are mixed. Apparently “handmade” items don’t need to meet the stringent requirements of Etsy. There also isn’t the one-on-one customer support aspect that comes with Etsy. Amazon is largely a mass retailer connecting individual buyers and sellers that may never cross paths again. That isn’t going away with Handmade.
5.Amazon Mechanical Turk
Mechanical Turk, or mTurk, isn’t necessarily what I would consider one of the best ways to make money on Amazon, but it is a way nonetheless. This crowdsourcing site has been around since before I started working from home in 2007 and allows workers to earn money completing small tasks. The majority of the things I did here back in the day were transcription, data entry, categorizing. It’s often mindless work that takes only a few minutes to complete. The pay reflects that. You aren’t going to make a livable wage on mTurk, but it can be a fun way to pass the time if nothing good is on television.
6.Amazon Kindle
For so very long, Amazon Kindle was the way to go if you wanted to self-publish an ebook. There are no upfront fees involved. Amazon simply takes a cut of each sale; you get 35% to 70% depending on the listing. Since Amazon owns CreateSpace, you can make printed copies available as well.
Self-publishing isn’t as difficult as it sounds. You can handle much of the process yourself and outsource editing and design on Fiverr.
7.Amazon Trade-In
The Amazon Trade-In program doesn’t offer cash, but they do pay you in gift cards for select used books, video games and electronics. One thing I really like as an Amazon customer is that they will let me know when something I have bought on Amazon has a trade-in value. On the day I wrote this post, I was able to trade-in one of my books for $6.04. And I did! I was done with the book. It wasn’t one I took notes in. I shop on Amazon a lot. I can use that store credit.
8.Amazon Flex
Same-day delivery is hot right now. We don’t want to wait for anything these days! 😉 Amazon is just starting to roll out same-day delivery inselect metropolitan areas. Flex will allow them to take advantage of the availability of people just like you to make those deliveries.
You will need a car, smartphone and Amazon account to make Flex deliveries. The company is currently stating pay of $18 to $25 per hour with a big emphasis on flexibility and availability of hours.
Also see: Is Amazon Flex worth it and Jobs like Amazon Flex
9.Amazon At-Home Customer Service
Amazon is one of the many online retailers that employs a virtual workforce. As an Amazon Work-from-Home Customer Service Associate you will earn a base pay of $10 per hour. Full-time and part-time opportunities are available in Arizona, Kentucky, Texas, West Virginia, Delaware, Minnesota, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, Wisconsin, and Virginia. These positions are largely seasonal with the potential to become permanent.
10. CamperForce
If you’re an avid RV’er with a mobile lifestyle, Amazon CamperForce could be a great opportunity for you to make some money! Amazon will pay your campsite fees (plus most utilities) if you travel to their designated campground to work for the holiday season – from early Fall through December 23. As a member of Amazon’s CamperForce, you will spend three or four months picking, packing, stowing, and receiving orders and merchandise. They don’t advertise their pay, but do state that they’re “good wages” and you receive a shift differential depending on which shift you work. If you work overtime, you’ll be paid time and a half; you can also earn a completion bonus by working the full season through to December 23. That’s all in addition to having most of your living costs paid! And you can earn referral bonuses as well.
11. Amazon Vine
This one isn’t an actual exchange of cash but rather goods. Amazon’s most trusted reviewers are invited to Vine Voices program and have the opportunity to receive free product in exchange for leaving a review on the site. This is an invite-only program offered to those who leave frequent reviews that are found most helpful by the Amazon community.
Also see: How to become an Amazon Vine reviewer
12. Amazon Services
Amazon has their hand in every pie these days including the local service market! If you offer professional services like handyman, housecleaning and more, you may be able to get an invite to the exclusive Amazon Services community. There are no upfront fees. Instead, Amazon takes a 15-20% cut when they refer customers to you.
13. Amazon Influencers
I’m a big fan of the new Amazon Influencers program. You don’t need a blog or website for this affiliate opportunity, only an engaged following on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and or Instagram. Once approved, you will be provided with a virtual storefront in which you can add your favorite products from Amazon. Then, you can easily share your Influencer Page on social media with your new vanity URL. (Ex. Mine ishttps://www.amazon.com/shop/angienelson.) You can then earn commission on qualified product sales once someone clicks visits your store.
The commission rates are said to be similar to Amazon Associates. And if you have an Associates account, this two can link up for easy reporting. There are some great features with Influencers that aren’t available through the Associates program:
- You can share your Page URL within emails (Yay!)
- Fashion Influencers may be able to get productgifts, sponsorships and more.
- You can share Amazon coupon codes on social media
- and more
This program isn’t available to everyone, but if you have a strong social media following it’s worth a shot! Apply here.
Those are a few of my favorite ways to make money on Amazon. I’d love to hear how you have profited from the site.
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