Passive Income Ideas: 39 Ways To Make Money While You Sleep In 2024 (2024)

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Getting up and dragging yourself to your office job or your next shift can be exhausting, but we all need to pay for that roof over our heads. What you may not know, however, is that there are totally legit strategies to literally make money while you sleep. So take a look at these passive income ideas to see some of the best examples of how you can have another income stream – while doing nothing at all!

We all know it’s not only the job itself that can make it seem like it’s all too much.

Perhaps your commute is way too long. Or your boss is a nightmare.

Or you’re just starting to feel that there must be a better way to make money.

This is especially the case if you’re struggling to pay off debt or start to set yourself up for retirement.

After all, having a passive income stream can be a great way to supplement your main source of income.

But the absolute dream is to get to a point where you can live solely off your passive income sources.

All those stories you hear of people sipping a co*cktail on a beach in Thailand as their bank account continues to grow?

I can guarantee that they’ve taken advantage of some of these passive income ideas.

And there’s absolutely no reason why you couldn’t do the same one day!

What is passive income?

To use a more technical definition: Passive income is money you earn from assets that you’ve either purchased or created.

Out of the three types of income that exist, it’s one of the best for making sure you have an ongoing source of income as it’s not dependent on you actively having to work.

The main reason for this is, ideally, you’ll keep earning money from your passive income sources once you’ve done the work to create it or after you’ve bought it.

This is why you can use these passive income ideas to make money while you sleep – as you don’t actually have to do anything (almost) to keep earning money!

Why “almost”? Well, because there’s likely to be some small upkeep needed to keep your passive income stream going.

For example, I started a blog as a side hustle. It’s one of the best passive income examples out there as even when I’m not actively working on it, people are still visiting my blog.

It’s pretty clear how you can make money while you sleep using this strategy – after all, people continue to visit your site 24 hours a day, which lets you earn money from things like advertising and affiliate marketing.

But this is far from the only example, as the passive income ideas below will show you!

Is passive income real?

Absolutely!

For many people, they think the only way to make money is by working (also known as “active income” or “earned income”).

And while that certainly has its benefits, you can make serious money from passive income too – or instead!

In fact, there are a bunch of passive income sources that you’ve probably heard of but didn’t even consider that they count as being passive income.

You can see more passive income ideas below, but they generally include things you buy that earn you money (like rental properties) or things you create that you then earn money from, including if you sell them (like books and online courses).

So take a look at the list of passive income examples below to see how you too can start to make money while you sleep!

The best passive income ideas to make money while you sleep

Passive income examples that pay you for what you’re already doing

Some of the best passive income sources out there are when you earn money from doing something you’d be doing anyway.

So take a look at this list to see how you could be making some extra cash with zero extra effort.

1. Get cash back for shopping

No matter how frugal we are, we all have to spend some money from time to time.

So why not take the opportunity to get some cash back on all your purchases?

Swagbucks is easily one of the best free money making apps in the world, having paid out over $330 million to its users – and it’s super easy to use.

Here’s how you do it:

• Sign up for free here – don’t forget to verify your email address to get a$10 signup bonus!
• Go to the Swagbucks website and select from one of the 1,500 stores available that you want to buy something from – including stores you definitely already uselike Amazon, Walmart and Target.
• Go and buy what you need –and that’s it! You’ll automatically get a percentage of your spending back.

And once you earn enough points (known as SBs), you can use them to get almost any gift card you can think of, including for Amazon, Starbucks, Target or even PayPal, which is pretty much the same as getting cash in hand!

RELATED ARTICLE: 12 EFFORTLESS WAYS FOR YOU TO MAKE MONEY WHILE SHOPPING

2. Get paid to use the internet

You may have heard of Nielsen from their reporting on TV ratings, but did you know that they do other things too – like pay you to use the internet?

Simply sign up here to install the app on your computer or phone and Nielsen will pay you $50 per year to track your internet usage for data collection purposes.

Information is collected anonymously, so they can’t link it to you, and the app is super small so won’t slow your device down.

Better yet, simply by signing up and installing the app, you’ll be entered into a draw to win $10,000 each month.

Not bad for doing something that you’d be doing anyway! And definitely a great answer to the question of how can I make passive income with no money.

3. Drive to make money

Now, driving in itself certainly isn’t passive – but it’s one of the best passive income sources if you do a very simple trick.

This only works if you already drive a regular route, like if you commute to work.

What you do is make yourself available as an Uber driver during your journey.

That way, you can drive someone along approximately the same route you’d be doing anyway to get to work, making it one of the trickiest passive income examples!

This also works great if you’re driving to an event near you as there would definitely be other people needing a ride there too.

Sign up to be an Uber driver here to get started.

(And if you’re not currently an Uber user, click here to get $20 credit towards your first trips.)

4. Make money from searching the internet

Now, this is slightly different from getting paid to use the internet – and is another great passive income stream offered by Swagbucks.

Instead of searching directly in Google for whatever question you have, all you have to do is go into Swagbucks and search through there.

Their search function is powered by Google, so the results you get are identical to those you’d have if you did it directly with the search engine. Except that this one lets you can earn money!

Given that you’re going to be searching for things anyway, why not make some extra cash from your searches.

(And don’t forget your $10 sign-up bonus here!)

5. Use cashback credit cards

Don’t forget that you can even double up the money you get back from your shopping by using a cash back credit card while also using Swagbucks.

That said, this only work if you pay the balance off on your card before any interest is charged. Otherwise, the amount you’ll pay will far outweigh any benefits earned.

But if you trust yourself to do that, then using a cashback credit card for all your expenses can be a great way to make money from something you’d be doing anyway!

Online passive income sources

Using the internet to make money from passive income ideas isn’t just for tech experts.

So if you’re wondering how do I generate passive income online, keep reading to see if one of these possible income streams is what you need to make money while you sleep.

6. Create a blog

As mentioned earlier, blogging is one of the best online passive income sources as you can literally use it to make money 24 hours per day.

It’s pretty amazing to wake up in the morning and check your website’s stats to see the hundreds, if not thousands, of people who’ve stopped by while you’ve been asleep!

Like most passive income sources, it does take a bit of work to set up, so don’t expect to write a couple of posts and start making money from day 1.

But if you’re willing to put in some time to create great content, you’ll see that creating a blog is one of the best passive income ideas out there!

7. Create and sell an online course

If you have a certain area of expertise or some information that you love sharing with others, then why not use that knowledge to make a new passive income stream!

You can create an online course on just about anything and the best part is that once you’ve done the initial work to set it up, you can sit back and let the money roll in.

There are various sites that let you create an online course with them, but I personally prefer Teachable.

It’s totally free to create a course and you can upload things like videos, presentations, downloadables, audio and more.

They also let you promote your course as freely as you like and give you more control over the pricing.

To help you get started, Teachable has free live training to help you launch your own money-making online course. Grab your free spot by clicking here!

8. Sell an e-book

If you love writing, one of the best passive income ideas is to write and sell an e-book.

It can be about literally anything you want and it’s super easy to publish it through the Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing platform, which lets you earn up to 70% in royalties.

So do you have a great idea for a fantasy novel? Or how about a “how to” guide on your favorite subject? Or just your general thoughts on life or poems or jokes or recipes or…

RELATED ARTICLE: 30 CREATIVE WAYS TO MAKE $100 EVERY DAY

9. Affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing is a great way to make money while you sleep.

It’s when you earn a commission from someone buying a product or signing up for something that you’ve recommended.

It helps if you’re knowledgeable about a particular area so that you can make sure that you’re providing your audience with truly informed recommendations.

But once you’ve started to do affiliate marketing properly, it can be one of the best passive income strategies out there.

HINT: Don’t do what I did and spend far too long trying to figure out affiliate marketing yourself.
Instead, to make sure you’re starting out the right way, take a look at this
FREE 5-day affiliate marketing bootcamp
from Dare to Conquer, a site run by a blogger who earns six figures per month!

10. Sell printables on Etsy

You may think of Etsy as a place to buy physical products, but did you know you can use it to sell digital products too?

Selling printables is super easy – all you have to do it create them, add them to your Etsy store and then your customers can download them whenever you want.

No postage hassle (or costs!), no printing trouble – just create and sell!

There are tons of great ideas for printables out there, including things like organizers, posters, invitations, flash cards, recipe planners and more.

So time to get designing!

11. Develop an e-commerce site

You can also sell a range of products through your very own e-commerce site.

This could be a better option for you if you want to link to this through your blog or if you prefer your store to be accessible through www.yourstorename.com.

This includes things like:

Selling physical products

This may not be purely passive income, as you’ll have to arrange for these to be shipped as well as purchasing or making your products in the first place. But once you build up an inventory it will be mostly a passive income stream (especially if you get to a point where you can outsource the packing and shipping part).

Selling digital products

If Etsy isn’t your thing, like if you’d rather have your own separate site to sell your creations, then establishing your own e-commerce site to do this is definitely the way to go.

The absolute best site to use for this is Shopify.

Setting up your store is super simple with them and you can make your site look beautiful with barely any effort.

And they give you a 14-day free trial to see if it’s for you!

12. Sell through Amazon

You might be surprised to hear this is on our list of passive income examples, given that selling physical products requires some ongoing activity on your part.

But it absolutely can be passive income. And it doesn’t even require you to have piles of stuff stored at your house.

Instead, you’ll be relying on Amazon FBA – or “fulfilled by Amazon”.

Using this passive income strategy, one woman made over $300,000 in sales the very first year that she started her Amazon business.

The best part is that she says that you only need around $500 to start out!

She’s also now created a course to show you how to do the same, with former students that now do more than $1 million in turnover annually.

Making it one of the best passive income examples out there!

Find out exactly how you can do the same through her FREE 7-day online course.

13. Sell photos online

If you have a flair for photography, then you can absolutely use that to earn some great money.

People always need photos to really get their message across online or in printed materials and most of us don’t have the time or the skill to take them ourselves.

That’s why selling your photos on a website like Alamy can be a great way to make money while you sleep.

All you have to do is upload the photos and then people can buy them whenever they want, without any more work from you being needed.

And when someone buys one of your photos on there, you get to keep 50% of the sale price. This is way better than most photo websites where the photo owner keeps an average of only 30% of the price.

(And by the way, if you sign up as a student, you’ll receive100% of the sale price for two years!)

RELATED ARTICLE: 24 CREATIVE HOBBIES TO MAKE MONEY ONLINE AND AT HOME

14. License your music

If you’re musically inclined, you can definitely use that to make money while you sleep.

By licensing your music out, people can pay you to use it in their own work.

And much like making passive income from selling photos, all you have to do is create your music, upload it and then let people find it.

(Easy, right?)

This site gives a good explanation on the full process, including some companies that will help you to do this and how much you can earn.

15. Use your graphic design skills

If you love doing graphic design, then this is one of the passive income ideas made for you.

With Merch by Amazon, you can sell your designs on shirts – with almost no work required from you (once you’ve created the design, of course)

Simply upload your artwork, choose a product type and color, and add a product description.

Then, when customers buy your product, Amazon handles all the production, shipping, and customer service — all with no upfront costs from you. And they’ll pay you a commission for it!

16. Develop an app (or have it developed for you)

This may be one of the more difficult passive income strategies, depending on how technical you are.

But to be honest, the hardest part of this is finding a new idea that works – or someone else’s idea that you think could be improved.

Once you think you’ve identified an opportunity, you can either try to build an app yourself or hire someone to make it for you.

And while not every app makes serious amounts of money, remember the simple-but-not-really mobile game, Flappy Bird?

Its owner made $50,000 per day through in-app ads at the height of its popularity.

Who would have thought that a Super Mario ripoff would be one of the more lucrative passive income sources out there!

17. Buy a site that’s already making money

If creating a blog from the ground up isn’t for you, then consider buying a site that’s already making money.

Without going into too much technical detail, this can be a great way to give your blog an early boost as Google recognizes when a site is more established compared to when it’s brand new.

It’s also really easy to do, as people often sell sites that they get bored of working on before they reach real passive income success.

Check out Flippa for a huge range of options for this. While some sites are in the six-figure range, bidding starts at $1 so you definitely could grab yourself a bargain!

18. Flip domains

This involves buying domain names that someone else may want in future, then reselling them for a much higher amount.

There’s some skill involved and you’ll need around $100 to get started, as you can see from this step-by-step guide on domain flipping.

But once you get the hang of it and with a bit of luck, you can make great money from it.

19. Start a podcast

Starting a podcast can be a great passive income stream, especially if you can rely on an audience you’ve already built, such as through a blog.

Podcasts make money through a variety of ways, such as with advertising, subscription fees or for using the podcast to increase sales of other products.

And given that some of the more popular podcasts earn tens of thousands of dollars from people downloading them all throughout the day, this is definitely a way to make money while you sleep.

20. Start a YouTube channel

While YouTube now has some rules regarding who can use the site to earn money, it’s definitely still a way to make passive income.

The cut off now is that you have to have 4,000 hours of watchtime within a 12-month period and at least 1,000 subscribers.

That can be tough to do if you’re just starting out, so another great way to make money with YouTube is through affiliate marketing.

For more information on that, scroll up and check out number 9 on this list – and don’t forget to take a look at this FREE 5-day affiliate marketing bootcamp from Dare to Conquer, a site run by a blogger who earns six figures per month!

Investing as a passive income stream

Knowinghow do I make my money work for me is one of the keys to securing your wealth.

And the best way to do this is through investing, making it one of the best passive income ideas out there.

To be fair, if you want to be really technical, investing is actually considered portfolio income, which is slightly different from passive income.

But as your investments grow even when you’re not actively managing them, it’s definitely a way to make money while you sleep.

In fact, see here for how to turn $500 into $1 million through some simple investment strategies.

21. Invest in index funds

Low-cost index funds are taking the financial world by storm. In fact, nearly one-third of all investments in the US, or almost $6 trillion, are in index funds.

And it’s easy to see why when you consider that index funds consistently beat more than 90% of managed funds in terms of returns.

The best part is that it’s very simple to get started with investing in index funds – you absolutely don’t have to be a Wall Street-type to do so.

To find out more, grab our free e-book!

22. Keep your savings in a high-yield account

While most of your money should be invested or kept in accounts like your 401(k), it’s important to keep any leftover savings in an account that is earning you more than a couple of cents per year.

Savings accounts at ‘normal’ banks usually fall into that category, with most of their accounts offering interest rates of around 0.01%.

So the best thing you can do is to take a look at some of the online banks which have much better deals for your savings account!

For example, did you know that you can earn 2.45% with CIT Bank? And that the account is totally fee-free and all you need to do is deposit at least $100 per month to earn that interest rate?

And if you think that’s not enough to get rich, check out this article on compound interest to show you how this is EXACTLY what you need to do to build your wealth.

So if you’re wondering how can a beginner make passive income, this is a great place to start.

23. Invest in peer-to-peer lending

Peer-to-peer lending involves you contributing money to loans that are then given to other people. The interest that these people pay on their loans is then given back to you as investment returns.

Lending Club was the first major player in this field and reports historical returns of 3% to 8% per year, with 99% of investors having positive returns.

You’ll need $1,000 to get started, but that amount can then be divided up into different loans with as little as $25 for each one.

Essentially, it lets you spread your eggs over many, many baskets – or put it all into one loan if you prefer!

If you’d rather get started with less money, Prosper is also a great option. You only need $25 to start investing with them and they report average historical returns of between 3.4% and 9.1%.

Both of them let you choose the amount of risk you’re willing to take on (the lower the risk, the lower the potential reward – and vice-versa), so you definitely have some control over how your money is used. That said, it’s best to read up on what they both offer to see which one’s right for you.

Check out Lending Club here and Prosper here to find out more.

24. Invest using a robo-advisor

A robo-advisor will automatically select investments and build a diversified portfolio for you. Once your funds are invested, on an ongoing basis, the software automatically makes changes to the investments to align your portfolio back to a target allocation.

By essentially putting your investments on autopilot, it can be a great way to dip your toes in the investing pool if you’re not really sure what you’re doing.

This is because it makes all the decisions for you based on a few settings that you choose, like how much risk you want to take and whether you want your portfolio to focus on a certain area, like only ethical investments.

One of my favorites is Wealthsimple, which has a range of investment options done automatically including the following features:

• No minimum investment amount
• Free financial planning – great for helping you to see the steps you need to take to afford your plans
• 0.5% fees for all accounts up to $100,000

Click here to find out more information.

25. Invest in dividend-paying shares

Investing in shares can seem a bit scary at first if you don’t know what you’re doing.

However, it’s definitely worth figuring out how to make money from the stock market, especially as it’s historically been the best-performing investment over time.

And while you often hear stories of people becoming millionaires when a stock they bought for $1 is then worth $1,000+ several years later (hello, early Apple investors), another way to make money through shares is from dividends.

A dividend is simply a portion of a company’s earnings that are paid to shareholders, usually as cash.

This is because, as a shareholder, you’re a part-owner of the company and so you’re then entitled to receive some of the benefits of the fact that the company has made a profit.

Not every company pays dividends and it’s definitely worth doing your homework to make sure that a company appears to be successful enough to continue paying dividends.

But once you figure out what you’re doing, this is a great way to generate some extra cash from doing nothing.

26. Invest in certificates of deposit (CDs)

Investing in CDs involves buying a savings certificate from a bank with a fixed end date (or “maturity date”) and a set interest rate, making it essentially like a savings account wiih some catches.

Returns are often lower than other investment options, like index funds, but this is because they’re very low-risk. So it’s a good way to make money while you sleep if you want to make sure you’re sleeping soundly!

Usually, CD’s restrict access to your funds until the end date, meaning you normally can’t touch your money until months or years into owning your CDs.

However, CIT Bank offers a great exception to this, with the following features:

• For a $1,000 minimum deposit, you can get an 11-month CD with interest of 2.05%
• Better yet, you can access your money at any time for no penalty. So if you need to access your funds before the 11 months are up, you’ll be able to withdraw your money – including any interest earned.
• No opening or ongoing maintenance fees

Click here to find out more.

27. Invest in startups

We’ve all heard the stories of people who invested in startups like Facebook and are now literal billionaires.

So this has the potential to be one of the most lucrative passive income examples out there.

Of course, there’s no guarantee that your chosen startups will become the next Facebook, as there’s always a risk that it could go bankrupt.

AngelList is a good place to start if you’re thinking about pursuing this, as you only need $1,000 to invest in startups through them.

Just make sure you do your research and, as always, don’t invest money that you can’t afford to lose.

Passive income ideas in real estate

Real estate is one of those classic ways to invest your money that we’re always told growing up that we need to get into – but it can be a lot easier said than done, especially with property prices exploding in many markets.

So if you’re wondering what are some examples of passive income in real estate, you’ve come to the right place!

28. Rent out a room (or your entire house)

Do you have a spare room or know that you’ll be out of your home for a little while so it’ll be empty? Why not try listing it on Airbnb.

If you’re interested in real estate-related passive income strategies, this is probably one of the easiest – and it helps that Airbnb hosts make an average of $924 per month!

It’s often better than having a roommate as you don’t need to have someone there the whole time to make seriously good money.

And given that you can pre-screen guests as well as the fact that Airbnb has all sorts of protections in place makes it an excellent way to take advantage of any available space you have..

Find out more here.

(And if you want to try out Airbnb as a guest before signing up as a host, click here for a $35 bonus credit.)

29. Invest in crowdfunded properties

Investing in real estate is one of those things that we’re always told is a great idea but can be really hard to do in today’s market of skyrocketing housing prices.

(Although if you’re still looking to buy your own place, these first home buyer tips are also great for helping you to buy your first investment property.)

So one way to get a foot on the property ladder if you don’t have the money to buy one on your own is through crowdfunded real estate investing.

(This also avoids any hassle of having to manage tenants and the other fun aspects of owning your own investment property)

It essentially involves putting your money in a pool along with other investors, which is then used to buy and renovate properties, and the money from that is then returned to you.

One of the biggest players in this field is PeerStreet, which report annual returns of 6% – 9% for investors.

While you should always consider whether this, like any of these passive income strategies, is right for you, it’s a great way to get access to a type of investing that you wouldn’t be able to afford on your own.

Sign up for free with them here to find out more.

30. Buy an investment property

Owning your own piece of land as an investment strategy is also a great way to earn passive income.

While there’s some ongoing management required, such as through finding and managing tenants, it can be a great way to generate passive income over a long period – at the same time as your property (hopefully!) goes up in value.

Tenants are, however, the biggest hassle for owners of investment properties. Not only can finding them be an issue, but you also have to be prepared to make mortgage payments even during periods where there are no tenants and, consequently, no rent being paid.

So Roofstock is a great option if you don’t want to deal with all of that.

For only a 20% down payment, they let you buy a property that already has tenants in there, meaning you’ll be earning rent money from day one.

You don’t even have to physically go to the property, meaning you can get into the property market anywhere in the country.

And, once you’ve bought a place, they’ll hook you up with a property manager to handle all the day-to-day jobs like handling maintenance requests and collecting rent.

Sign up for free here and get a $500 credit towards your first property (hey, everything counts, right?)

31. Invest in a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT)

An REIT is a way for investors to buy shares in commercial real estate portfolios that earn income from a range of properties, such as apartment and office blocks, healthcare facilities, hotels and infrastructure, like cell towers.

Investors then earn money through dividends, as REITs are required to distribute a minimum of 90% of their income to shareholders in the form of dividends.

So if you’re looking for passive income ideas that let you get into real estate but don’t have the money to buy your own apartments, this is an excellent way to make money from the property market.

The most common way to invest in this way is to do it through an equity REIT or essentially through buying shares of the REIT.

Take a look at number 28 on this list for how to do this or check out this site to find out whether investing in REITs is right for you.

Passive income strategies using your finances

32. Refinance your student loans

Did you know that refinancing your student loans can save you literally thousands of dollars over the life of your loan with only a few minutes of effort?

By reducing the overall amount you owe through getting better loan terms, each repayment will be less than what you otherwise would have had to pay – meaning you’re essentially earning passive income on each repayment.

I always recommend Credible for this as:

• The application process is amazingly fast (and free!)
• Taking a look at what they can offer you won’t involve any hit to your credit
• The average saving per person who refinances their student loan is $18,668
• If you sign-up here, you’ll receive a $100 bonus if your loan is less than $30,000 and a $200 bonus if your loan is $30,000 or higher

Check out our in-depth Credible review here to find out more.

33. Pay off your debt

News flash: if you pay off your debt quicker, it will generally cost you less over time due to lower interest payments over the life of your debt.

This means that you can save thousands of dollars paying off your debt in full as quickly as possible.

And much like number 31 above, this essentially makes paying off your debt a passive income source.

To find out the most effective way to do this, check out: THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO GETTING OUT OF DEBT

34. Cut your bills (or have a robot do it for you)

Another way to save money on ongoing expenses – meaning more cash in your pocket for doing absolutely nothing – is to take a look at what these repeated payments actually are.

This is especially the case if you’re struggling to make it to the next paycheck or can’t pay off your debt, meaning that you should really think if you need things like cable subscriptions or Netflix.

And a great app which can actually do this for you is Trim.

It looks at your recurring subscriptions and finds out just how you can cut back on them.

For example, it can renegotiate your internet and cable bills, find you better car insurance and more – all automatically.

And it’s totally free to try!

Another thing you should look at is, if you have a gym membership, whether you really need it.

There are a ton of great ways to exercise for free that could save you hundreds – if not thousands – of dollars on gym fees each year.

Other passive income sources

35. Make money while you sleep (literally)

This is probably the most passive out of the entire list of passive income ideas.

Clinical studies offer thousands of dollars to participants. You generally have to fit certain criteria, such as being within a certain age range, but they’re always closely monitored and subject to strict regulations that mean you’re not at any health risk.

And you can even be part of sleep studies to literally make money while you sleep!

They usually require you to be monitored while you sleep and you often have to be cut off from the world for a certain period of time, but the pay can be excellent.

Search on ClinicalTrials.gov to see what’s on offer in your area.

36. Loan out your car

During periods where you’re not driving your car, you can absolutely use it as a passive income stream.

For example, with Getaround, you can earn thousands of dollars by letting others pay to drive it.

Some features are:

• You can choose exactly when to rent your car – so if you need to drive it, it’s yours to use
• Listing your car is free
• Getaround offers a $1,000,000 insurance policy per trip and 24/7 roadside assistance
• Drivers are screened to ensure they have a safe driving record

Click here to find out more.

37. Rent out your parking space

If you have a spare parking space or an empty driveway, you can rent it out for free on JustPark – making it one of the easiest passive income examples.

You can even choose to make your spare space available only during certain times, like during the day when you and your car are at work.

This is great if you live near a commuter hub (such as if people need to drive and park close to a train station to get to work), in a city where parking is hard to find or near a major venue where people may need to park during events.

38. Rent out storage space

If you’ve got some spare storage space in your home (especially if you’ve decluttered to make money), then that extra room can be your new passive income stream!

With Neighbor, you can rent out that space to other people who need to store things, requiring you to do absolutely nothing at all to make money with this.

Everyone you’ll rent to is a verified user and the company offers a $2,000,000 guarantee in the event of damage to your home caused by stored goods.

And you’ll even get a $50 sign-up bonus!

Click here to find out more about this passive income opportunity.

39. Invest in vending machines

Yes, it sounds odd, but these machines can absolutely help you make money while you sleep.

After all, with more than five million machines in the US alone, this industry generates billions of dollars in annual revenue. And you can definitely be a part of it.

The initial investment is around $2,000. But with the right location and product selection, a vending machine can easily make between $600 to $800 in monthly revenue.

Find out more here.

What it takes to earn passive income

As you may have seen, what it takes to earn passive income depends on the passive income source.

Most of them need some initial work to get started, although the amount of this can vary, as well as money to cover start up costs.

But the beauty of this is that the amount of work – and the amount of money – that’s needed to sustain your passive income stream should remain pretty low compared to other different types of income.

That said, you’ll probably need a more stable income source, like from a job, when starting out as it’s very rare for a passive income source to start earning good money from day 1.

The other thing that you might need to earn passive income is willingness to take some risk.

Having a job is more or less guaranteed income. Of course, you could be fired or get sick or your employer could go bankrupt.

But generally speaking, when you work, you’ll get paid.

Passive income, on the other hand, won’t have that immediate pay off.

Sure, it definitely can over time and there are plenty of passive income examples on this list where people completely replace their income from their job.

However, it takes time. And during that time, your income may not be as stable as it’s been in the past, which can definitely be stressful.

So make sure that you have your emergency fund in place as well as some other income when looking into ways to earn money passively, just to make sure you’re not stretched too far financially when starting out.

How to pick the best passive income stream for you

There’s no set answer to figuring out how to pick the best passive income stream for you.

The answer to what is the best way to make money while you sleep depends on a range of things – how much money you want to spend initially, how much risk you can stomach, how much work you want to do from the outset and more.

So make sure you read up on just what each of these passive income ideas entail, including less exciting things like any possible risks and tax implications.

But safe to say that if you’re sick of the 9 to 5, establishing one – or more! – of these passive income sources is absolutely the way to go to secure your financial freedom.

Which of these passive income ideas are you planning on trying? Or if you already have a passive income stream, what’s worked for you?