1. Online Reselling
Online reselling is a fantastic low-investment business where you buy products at a discount—often from thrift stores, clearance sales, or wholesalers—and sell them at a profit on platforms like eBay, Poshmark, or Mercari.
It requires minimal upfront costs and no need for a physical store, making it easy to start from home.
With a keen eye for trending items and good product photos, reselling can turn into a steady income stream without heavy investment.
2. Online Typing and Transcription Services
If you have fast, accurate typing skills, offering online typing or transcription services is a practical business with almost zero startup costs.
Businesses, podcasters, and content creators often need transcripts of audio or video files.
Platforms like Rev, TranscribeMe, and Fiverr connect you with clients. You can work from anywhere and scale your earnings by improving speed and taking on more projects.
3. Microtasking and Crowdsourcing Jobs
Microtasking involves completing small online tasks such as data entry, image tagging, or survey participation on platforms like Amazon Mechanical Turk or Clickworker.
These jobs require minimal investment and no specialized skills, making them accessible to almost anyone.
While the pay per task is small, doing them efficiently can add up to a meaningful side income without needing to commit to a full-time schedule.
4. Digital Product Flipping
Digital product flipping is a creative, low-cost business where you buy undervalued digital assets—like domain names, websites, or social media accounts—and resell them at a profit.
This model requires some knowledge of market trends and digital platforms but little upfront capital.
With the right strategy, flipping digital assets can yield significant returns faster than traditional businesses.
5. Niche Subscription Boxes
Starting a niche subscription box business can be surprisingly low-investment if you focus on curation rather than inventory.
You curate unique items from small suppliers or handmade creators around a specific theme—like eco-friendly products or pet accessories—and deliver them to subscribers monthly.
Platforms like Cratejoy help you manage subscriptions and logistics, making it easier to run this business from home without large upfront inventory costs.
