While most people go to Amazon to spend their money, a lot of people learned how to make money from Amazon. Yes. Amazon has turned many people into successful entrepreneurs.
In 2020, Amazon accounted for 37.9% of all online retail sales in North America (Statista).
Clearly, Amazon is the future.
There are a plethora of ways to make money on Amazon. Here’s everything you need to know about it.
Here’s what we are going to cover in this post:
If you want to be an entrepreneur and sell goods without worrying about packaging, customer service, and shipping, then Amazon FBA is your answer. FBA stands for “fulfillment by Amazon.”
Here’s how it works:
That’s it! Once you are a part of Amazon’s FBA network, the retail behemoth will deliver the products to customers for you. You could always ship the products yourself using FBM (fulfillment by merchant) to avoid extra Amazon fees.
Depending on your product, niche, Amazon profit margin, and business model, Amazon FBA could be a better choice to sell products at scale.
To begin, register to start selling on Amazon. Then you can sign up for Amazon FBA.
Tip: Looking to find a new product? Start with product research here.
The best way to make money on Amazon in 2021 is to start your own private label business and sell the products using Amazon FBA. Around 71% of sellers run their private label business on Amazon.
So what is a private label business?
In this method, you will manufacture a generic product (preferably, with some improvements) and put your brand and logos on it, and sell it to customers on Amazon.
Sometimes, this is referred to as white-labeling.
This process has been around for quite some time. Even Amazon has its own line of private label products including Whole Foods, AmazonBasics, etc.
Besides, There are quite a few benefits of selling privateproducts using Amazon FBA.
Similar to private labels, selling wholesale items involves purchasing items in bulk and selling using Amazon’s FBA network.
However, you are selling products from other companies. So this process doesn’t include branding and manufacturing the items. Also, you’ll face a lot more competition as you are not the only person selling the particular item.
For most sellers, this is a popular way to make money on Amazon. For years now, wholesaling on Amazon has become notoriously difficult. Though it doesn’t have much potential to scale like the private label, it is still a great way to earn money.
Keep in mind, if you can’t buy items for a low enough price, it can be hard to reap profits.
Earn money by leveraging your existing blog or website with the Amazon Associates program.
You saw a cool product on Amazon. Let your friends know about it. If they buy it, you earn a commission on it. It’s that simple.
All you need is to have a blog or website or social media pages, or as simple as email/WhatsApp groups. Pick a product that aligns with your blog, website, or social media page.
This is a good way to make money on Amazon without actually selling anything. You can earn up to 10% in advertising fees from qualified purchases.
The idea is to promote products that align with your blog content or website niche. So if you have a blog or channel on health and lifestyle, you can promote yoga mats, gym supplies, etc.
Here’s a peek into how Amazon commissions work.
| Product Category | Commission rates |
| Luxury beauty, Amazon coins, etc. | 10% |
| Digital music, physical music, handmade, digital videos | 5% |
| Physical Books, Kitchen, Automotive | 4.50% |
| Amazon Fire Tablet devices, Kindle, Amazon Fashion, Luxury Stores Fashion, Apparel, Amazon Fire TV Devices, Amazon Echo Devices, Ring Devices, Watches, Jewelry, Luggage, Shoes, and Handbags & Accessories, etc. | 4% |
You can find more details about the commission interest rates here.
Along with products, you can also promote services like Amazon Prime, Amazon Audible, Amazon Prime, etc.
Are you a good writer?
Gone are the days when you needed a major publisher to sell your books and make money. With Amazon, it’s easy to publish your first ebook and make money.
You can choose to write fiction or nonfiction. If you can produce quality content and market it the right way, then there’s a huge potential in this method.
Anyone can do it. You can publish digital books through Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). It takes less than five minutes to publish your book. Once you publish, it will be available on Kindle stores across the globe in 24-48 hours. In addition to digital format, you can also opt for paperback and hardcover versions of the book.
Leverage Amazon’s powerful marketing tools and global distribution to sell your ebooks worldwide. You can enroll in KDP select to reap the promotional benefits that Amazon has to offer.
Amazon lets you set your own prices for self-published books. You’ll earn up to 70% of royalties on Kindle sales. You can also make changes to your content at any time.
Have no time to write?
You can also outsource your content and book design. However, you need to have the ability to market your product. Learn about your niche and use the right keywords to get the book right in front of your customers.
You might have known that Amazon is becoming one of the largest employers in the world. And, not all of them will work from the company’s office. Few of them work remotely in the comfort of their own home.
Though virtual opportunities are not available everywhere, you may be able to apply for Amazon’s ‘work from home positions, given that you are the right fit for the position.
You could find positions such as customer service rep positions for those who speak a second language, other than English, along with a few non-customer service ones like the technical trainer, cloud tech account managers, etc.
You might be already aware that Amazon has its own delivery service. Perhaps, Amazon’s same-day delivery option for customers has spiked the need for delivery help in various metropolitan cities. This means you can join Amazon’s delivery fleet as a driver. This program is called Amazon Flex. It’s simple. All you have to do is to have a smartphone and use your own vehicle to deliver packages for Amazon.
According to the flex program, Amazon pays drivers between $18 – $25 per hour, and the shifts are typically five-hour-long, you need to download their app, and answer a quick questionnaire. If you are accepted, you start making money.
Find more details on the Amazon Flex program here.
Have you got a design that would work for custom t-shirts, or coffee mugs and don’t want to spend money to create hundreds and thousands of them?
Then Merch by Amazon is your answer.
Merch by Amazon is a print-on-demand service that will help your ideas to turn into reality.
All you have to do is upload the design to the Amazon database, and select the product type and color. Amazon will take care of the production, packaging, shipping, and customer service. You will earn royalties for a product sold that you designed.
There are no upfront costs. However, you need to fill out the application form and the program is invite-only at the moment.
There is a high demand for handcrafted goods. If you’re crafty and have a passion for making things at home, you can join Amazon Handmade.
Sellers from more than 80 different countries are selling handcrafted products via Amazon.
Amazon has an artisan-only application and audit process. This ensures that the products are genuinely handcrafted.
The pricing for handmade sellers is very straightforward. There are no hidden fees or listing fees at all. You’ll just pay a 15% referral fee to Amazon for each sale made.
Recommended Guide: How to Use Amazon.
Amazon Trade-in will pay you with an Amazon gift card if you sell your used books, games, and gadgets. So technically, you won’t earn any money directly.
Selling used items individually requires hard work which includes taking photos, measurements, and writing the description for the product.
However, things would run smoothly with Amazon Trade-in. With Trade-in, you will gather your used items, and get an estimate of how much you will earn for them from Amazon. It’s more comfortable if you’re a regular Amazon shopper since you get Amazon gift cards to purchase everyday items like groceries, toilet paper, etc.
This is yet another example where you don’t earn any cash directly but receive free goodies in exchange for a review.
Amazon Vine program is only offered to people who consistently leave reviews for products on Amazon. The purpose of this program is to encourage people to write honest, unbiased, and helpful reviews.
The best way to get invited to be a part of this program is to leave clear and helpful reviews on the products you purchased earlier.
Mechanical Turk or MTurk in short is Amazon’s crowdsourcing marketplace. It allows businesses and individuals to outsource tasks to a virtual workforce including data validation, research, survey, and data entry.
If you can perform microtasks, then you can consider joining MTurk. You can earn anywhere between $0.10 and $1. Since the activities are easy to complete, you can complete as many tasks as you can. Sometimes, the tasks can be tedious and boring. However, it’s up to you if you want to spend some time and get paid for it.
The Amazon CamperForce program brings together a force of full-time RVers to handle seasonal rushes.
As a CamperForce associate, based on your availability, you can choose from a list of assignments. All you have to do is drive around the country, work for the job in an Amazon warehouse, get paid, and head to the next RV vacation destination.
Your responsibilities include picking, packing, stowing, and receiving.
Amazon Influencers is another affiliate program. However, it is different from the Amazon Associates program we mentioned earlier.
This program is designed to promote products via social media channels like YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. This would be a great opportunity if you have a good social media following.
Once you are approved, Amazon will share a unique URL to your own Amazon page. This page will showcase products that you choose to recommend to your audience. Similar to Amazon Associates, you’ll earn a commission from qualifying purchases.
Most people don’t realize that Amazon is more than just a marketplace for tangible products. One can also sell professional services through Amazon Services.
There are no upfront costs or fees to join this program. However, you will have to pay a portion of your revenue share for completed jobs based on the services offered.
These are a few popular service categories that you can find:
Both freelancers and registered businesses can be a part of Amazon Services. If you think this program is for you, you can check out the link for more information.
There you have it. We hope these ideas will help you make money on Amazon.
Whether it’s selling a product, offering a service, or more, people can make use of Amazon for more than just shopping for their needs. It’s a great way to earn some extra cash or turn your side hustle into your main hustle.
Whatever you choose to do to earn income, make sure to do enough research, and NOW is the time to start!
Good luck!
Additional Read:
Boost Amazon Sales with SellerApp Insights!
View Comments
You no more need a major publisher to sell your books and make money. With Amazon being available on such a wide range, it’s easy for anyone to publish their first e-book and make money.
You can publish digital books through Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). It takes less than five minutes to publish your book. Once you publish, it will be available on Kindle stores across the globe in 24-48 hours.
I am always on the lookout for new ways to make money on Amazon and this post definitely delivers. The tips in the post are especially valuable. Thank you for sharing
I appreciate the detailed information in this post on ways to make money on Amazon. I've been a seller for a while now and I'm always looking for new strategies to increase my profits.
Your comment is very helpful, thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts.