15 True Passive Income Ideas for Stay at Home Moms

1. Trying Local Lead Generation

Local lead generation is basically acquiring leads for local businesses. While local lead generation is a learned skill set, once you rank your website, you can generate passive income. Local lead generation is the most profitable passive income idea on this list, since leads continue to come in after the site is ranked, and the site will require very little maintenance.

The business model of local lead generation involves ranking a website on Google and gaining traffic. Your website will produce leads which you will sell to small business owners. The primary income of local lead generation comes from your individual agreement with the small businesses you partner with. In this business model, there’s no need to have inventory or sell anything to earn income. You act as the middleman between the potential leads and the business owners. Each site can make anywhere from $500 to $2000 per month net profit and it can take anywhere from 6 weeks to 6 months to build and rank a lead gen site.

Though the logic of local lead generation seems simple, it may take time to create and organically rank your site.

2. Putting Up a YouTube Automation Channel

Perhaps the next best passive income idea, setting up a YouTube automation channel, can guarantee your profits if you're persistent in uploading quality videos and growing your channel. YouTube automation takes advantage of tools that help you automate your channel, like video content upload scheduling, hiring a freelancer, and social media integrations. The primary income of a YouTube automation channel comes from monetizing your channel by applying through the YouTube Partner Program.

To be accepted into the YouTube Partner Program, you have to be qualified based on having 1,000 subscribers and either:

• 4,000 valid public watch hours in the last 12 months
• 10,000,000 valid public Shorts views in the last 90 days

But, you shouldn't wait until you're accepted to make videos. Instead, create content and invest in some advertising to boost your eligibility for the program. That means you still have to upload and publish videos before getting monetized. But fret not because that doesn’t mean you can’t start your automation channel while waiting for being eligible for the YPP. You can shell out a few dollars to start your automation channel as it can also help in reaching eligibility faster. It is also crucial to choose the right YouTube automation channel if you’re wanting to start.

The average RPM, or Revenue Per Mille (revenue per 1,000 views), is around $5 - $10. Meaning, if your videos garner around 10,000 views, you can earn $50 - $100.

3. Investing in Digital Real Estate

If it’s something new to you, digital real estate is pretty much the same as the physical real estate you know. Digital real estates are virtual properties that can be purchased, sold, or rented. Like the first two, this is a great passive income idea and a great way to make money online.

Like the usual real estate, digital real estate also experiences rise and fall in its prices. Depending on popularity, demand, and location, digital real estate prices can increase as much as 10 times in 1 year. You can really make money online with digital real estate and can generate a steady cash flow and passive income stream.

However, unlike conventional real estate, digital real estate is more volatile because there is still a lack of predictability in the market. And since it’s not a physical asset, there are risks of security breaches and cyber attacks.

Depending on the type of digital property you're investing in, you're guaranteed to earn hundreds of bucks, or even thousands, if you do all the work right.

4. Investing in the Stock Market and Foreign Exchange

The stock and foreign exchange market has been one of the popular passive income streams for so many investors over the years. It’s a good passive income source since the markets of these two are more stable than other markets (like cryptocurrency). Thankfully, too, investing in these markets is easier than before since you can now do it online.

Like any other investing and trading opportunities, this would require you to shell out capital in order to invest. Global status also affects these markets, so you have to be updated with current economic news as negative effects on a global scale will affect these markets. Alternatively, these markets will also grow when the economy grows.

It helps to be updated with what’s happening in the world, especially on topics wherein your shares are involved with. It’s also important to research the businesses your shares are involved with. This would help you determine what kind of news you should be looking into.

5. Investing in Cryptocurrency

Everybody knows that a lot were able to make money out of bitcoin when it rose years ago. The same can be done by anyone who would want to invest in cryptocurrency. A lot of enthusiasts have been investing in cryptocurrency for years now and could generate passive income out of it. Some even have already created courses out of crypto investing and sold it for additional profit.

However, unlike stocks and foreign exchange, the crypto market is very volatile and may end up losing a lot. Though investing in cryptocurrency is riskier, gaining a lot of profit is also possible. Getting familiarized with how the crypto market works may also take some time, but is not impossible. Thorough research about the market is what you will need to do if you’ll be diving into this idea.

What’s good with cryptocurrency is that there are already lots of communities you can get yourself involved in. These communities can give you information about the crypto coins you’re trying to invest in and can give you signals on when to buy or sell, depending on the market charts.

6. Freelancing

Working remotely is another passive income idea for stay at home moms. Freelancing is basically working for someone or a company without having to go to the office and just staying at home. If you’re a mom with extra free time, then freelancing might be for you.

As a freelancer, you have to know that some companies do not offer full compensation for benefits to freelancers. Some companies may have a higher salary pay, but without the benefits. But then again, having the freedom to work from home certainly compensates for the loss.

Freelancing is a good way to earn money from your home in your free time. There are a lot of remote jobs available online, like content writing, SEO, call center agents, and even manager positions. Since the pandemic, people have been looking for freelancing and it has been proven to have helped many people financially ever since.

Is freelancing a passive income idea? It definitely can be a source of passive income stream. Whenever you have free time at home, you can accept project-based freelancing jobs wherein your time is flexible as long as you deliver on time. Freelancing doesn’t mean that you have to accept full-time jobs all the time.

According to Upwork in 2020, freelancers make an average of $20/hour. Definitely a good way to earn extra.

7. Set Up a Dropshipping Store

Setting up a dropshipping store means that you don’t have to store any inventory or products. Dropshipping mainly relies on a third-party for supplies, packaging, and deliveries. That means you don’t need to disburse money in order to start this type of passive income idea. This business idea has become popular all throughout the years and has had a dramatic increase in the global market.

So how does it work? Having a dropshipping store means you take orders from your customers, then forward the orders to a third-party for them to supply, package, and deliver to that customer. With this, there’s no need to focus on inventory and products, but only on your store’s branding and marketing online.

However, there are reasons dropshipping is also a bad idea. It's the advantages of this business model that makes it have its disadvantages, too. Having to rely on third-parties for your products would mean you’re missing out on the key aspects of quality a business should have and those are supplying, packing, and delivering. These are very critical areas of having a business and losing control over these may put your dropshipping store at risk.

If you’re wanting to venture into the dropshipping business, a piece of advice is to be familiar with the third-party you’re going to have business with. Make sure they’re reliable and that you expect suppliers to be up to par because it’s your store on the line.

8. Establish an Online Outsourcing Agency

Outsourcing is one of the go-to’s of companies and businesses because of cost-efficiency. Establishing an online outsourcing agency is great for earning passive income. You can look for clients and have the tasks outsourced to other people. Unlike the idea of freelancing, the main idea here is to look for freelancers rather than being the freelancer.

Looking for foreign countries like in the Philippines would definitely be more cost-efficient since the average cost-per-hour of foreign freelancers is lower than in the United States. Of course, your hiring process should be on par with your standards in order to ensure quality of work.

There are a lot of websites wherein you can look for freelancers like Upwork and Fiverr. What’s good with these websites is that you can see the rates and work experiences of the freelancers before hiring them.

Like other businesses, this one is actually a great opportunity once you find good clients. After landing your first client, you can earn hundreds of dollars from this one.

9. Blogging

Blogging is another passive income idea for stay at home moms which can earn you extra profits from ads and sponsors. Blogging requires minimal effort and can be something you enjoy by sharing information through a blog post. This idea is also great if you’re wanting to start a small business at home since it can help boost your business, and is even a passive income idea for artists, too.

However, blogging requires some time before getting monetized, as your blog needs to acquire traffic in order to earn conversions. And since the primary income of blogging comes from ads and sponsors, it is crucial to pique the interests of readers to increase your blog’s traffic. Blog updates by uploading a blog post regularly will also help your blog remain updated.

Once you've gotten a certain following off of your blogging, you can expect an ROI. Some bloggers earn around $35,000 - $55,000, which already is a good passive income.

10. Sell Photos Online

If you’re a fan of photography and think your pictures are worthy to other people, then you can sell them online for extra profit. Though the profit is not as much as the other ideas on this list, it still is something you can earn from. Additionally, you can research more on what niche stock photos are selling more online, which you can use as a basis for your photographs.

If you’re wanting to try this out, sites like Shutterstock and Getty Images can help you sell your photos out. This is something easy to start but given you have the right equipment and skills. It can be a source of passive income since your photos will remain on photo websites and people will simply pay for your photos once they want to use it.

Shutterstock, for example, sells images at around $0.26 - $$9.80. Owners of that image earn between 15% - 40% commission, so it's great for extra bucks.

11. Sell Designs or Printable Products Online

If you’ve got graphic designing experience, you can definitely put it to use by selling your designs online. You can design logos, shirt designs, planners, journals, and a lot more. A lot of businesses are always looking for a graphic designer online that can bring them fresh ideas. Graphic designers are also one of the most looked for online, so you may want to consider that.

You can also try out this business and enhance your graphic designing skills by using Adobe Photoshop or Canva. Additionally, there are a lot of graphic design courses available online you can take up to be a better graphic designer. 

12. Having a Garage Sale

Having a garage sale helps you declutter your home and earn extra profits at the same time. You won’t also need to worry about shipping your products since customers will be coming to you, unless you’re going to market them on social media. This also makes having a garage sale a great passive income for small towns.

However, having a garage sale isn’t a passive income in the long-run. When your items run out, it’s pretty much over for the garage sale. Another thing to note is that you have to make sure that your location is accessible to your customers and that your garage sale has proper ads so others would know you’ve set-up one.

13. Rent Out Your Extra Room

You can always seek renters if you have an extra room in your home. This is great, especially if you have an external room on your lot, or if you have a room with a door with access to the outside. If not, you can shell out a few dollars for repairs and renovations to have a room for rent.

You can expect an ROI after a few months, but this business is risky to get good tenants. Chances are, you might incur more expenses if you get an irresponsible tenant. Get a renter who you already know, like a family member or a friend needing some place to live. You can also have it rented out via Airbnb per night.

14. Offer Babysitting or Pet Sitting Services

You can offer home daycare services as a stay at home mom. This is a good extra income idea since you already have experience in looking out for children. Alternatively, if you’re a pet lover and have extra space at home, or in your backyard, you can also offer pet sitting services. This is a great home job you might also enjoy. 

While great for extra income, home daycare services and pet sitting might not be your ideal passive income in the long-run. Plus, there are other things you have to take into consideration when diving into this home job. Food, accommodation, keeping the kids or pets out of harm’s way, these are some things you have to be aware of.

15. Take Student and Writing Assignments

Taking up assignments is another source of extra cash income whenever you have free time. Each assignment can give you extra cash, which can also help you save money for future passive income idea capitals. It’s also a good way of enhancing your knowledge since you’ll be having to research along the way.

Though good for a starter, this might be exhausting in the long-run since you are not generating enough passive income. Moreover, you might need more of your time completing some assignments depending on the topic you might get. Though a great idea for extra cash, it’s not really ideal as a long-term passive income stream.

1. What is the easiest passive income to start?

The easiest passive income to start would definitely be freelancing since you need minimal effort, capital (if you don’t have any computer), and can be done in your free time. Though not much of a passive income source in the long-run, you can have freelancing to save capital for a better passive income idea.

2. What are your best suggestions for how to make money as a stay at home mom?

For maximum profit, I suggest local lead generation if you’re patient enough and have extra money for capital. Local lead generation's premise is simple and once you get the hang of it, it will be the best passive income source since it generates the most profit out of all the ideas on this list.

For newbies with minimal capital and want to try out generating passive income during their free time, then freelancing would be ideal for you. Though not much of a passive income source after some time, it can certainly be done to save enough capital for a better idea, like local lead generation or establishing a YouTube automation channel.

3. Can a stay at home mom have a passive income business?

Yes. There are passive income businesses on this list you can try, like local lead generation and setting up an online outsourcing agency. Make sure you’re patient with your investment and can wait until your passive income source grows. Moms who work as full-time online teachers can also try other passive income streams designed for your profession.  

4. What is the best passive income business for stay at home moms?

The best passive income business for stay at home moms would be local lead generation since it generates the most income with minimal efforts in the long-run. Though a capital is needed to start, it will surely be worth it once you’ve got the hang of local lead generation. You’ll certainly be able to experience ROI in less than a year if everything is done right.

5. Can a single mom do these passive income ideas?

Yes, these ideas can certainly be done by a single mom. Single moms can definitely do these ideas during their free time. If you think you have very limited time, you can try to take on small freelancing tasks in your free time and maybe save up capital for the bigger ideas. Or if ever you already have capital, you can certainly try trading and investing.