Can you make money blogging? Apparently so, as these top bloggers can attest!
These days, when I bump into other mothers on play dates, or when I see people I haven’t seen for sometime, I get asked how and what I’ve been doing lately. I pause, then tell them that I “blog”. That of course, inspires a lengthy discussion about the subject of “blogging”; I tell them why I do it and why I’ve traded my almost 20 year old career in technology and software development for this new-fangled activity.
Blogging is one of those “cheap hobbies” that turned me into an accidental entrepreneur. It’s work that I find enjoyable, that is sufficiently challenging, that allows me to keep learning and expanding my knowledge in so many ways (and not just in the area of finance). It’s something that I can actually earn money from while affording me the ability to set my own hours and work on my own terms. What more can you ask for in a “job”?
Then again, it may not be for everyone: it can make you fat (I believe) and for some people, it’s even a health hazard! But if you’re interested in giving it a go, here are the basic steps to get started:
How To Start Blogging
1. Learn the basics using a free blogging platform such as Wordpress.com or Blogger.com. Now there may be limitations with how you can monetize a site if you use these platforms. More serious bloggers actually decide to get their own domains and self-host their blogs to have full control of their web properties.
2. Register your own domain and sign up with a hosting plan. As I mentioned, serious bloggers who want to monetize their sites fully will benefit from hooking up with a solid and cheap hosting provider. I initially used Dreamhost and Web Hosting Pad but then they gave me too much downtime and poor service, so I switched to Hostmonster, which has been awesome! Some other great and cheap choices are: Bluehost, Lunarpages, and 1 & 1 Hosting. As for domain registration, I’ve been using GoDaddy.
3. Download and set up the Wordpress application in your hosted environment. Your web host provider may be able to assist you with this.
4. Be patient as you learn the ropes. There’s a lot to learn, but the best way to get inspired is to see how others have done it!
Here are a few enthralling details about successful bloggers that I sourced from BusinessWeek. These profiles can inspire you to pursue your online aspirations:
Top Bloggers and The Money They Earn
These bloggers did not count on making big money; they sound like they all became unexpected successes in the world of content publishing. Note that these statistics and earnings were taken sometime in the past — as a snapshot in time — so I suspect much higher traffic and MUCH healthier revenues for these bloggers today. In fact, I know very well that smaller blogs in some great niches make pretty good money along these lines.
BoingBoing.Net
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All I can say is WOW! Although I’m still trying to grasp what it is they write about.
I Can Has Cheezburger?
Launched: January, 2007
Stats: 500,000 to 1.5 million page views a day
Advertising Rates:
- $500 to $5,400 a week through BlogAds
- Unknown earnings from Google AdSense and Adbrite
Revenue: $5,600 per month
Behind this site is Eric Nakagawa, another software developer turned accidental entrepreneur. The blog allows you to submit cute pictures of furry animals and other critters, with fun captions. For the number of page views this site has, I believe their earnings are vastly understated. Plus, according to the Wikipedia, some investors “acquired” this site for a cool $2 million around a year ago. Is that for real? Just ask their nine salaried employees.
ShoeMoney
Launched: October, 2005
Stats: 20,000 unique visitors a day
Revenue: $12,000 a month
Okay, Shoemoney’s blog revenue accounts for 3% of his company’s total revenue, given that he does a lot of other online ventures. How we all want to be this guy! Being such a big name in the internet realm, he’s worked on a program to help others in their quest for online success. You may be interested in checking out his ShoeMoney Internet Marketing Tools to give your internet business an edge.
Kottke.org
Launched: March, 1998
Stats: 250,000 to 300,000 unique visitors a month
Revenue: $5,300 a month from a single, exclusive ad
Jason Kottke hasn’t monetized his site much but I read that he’s also receiving donations from “micropatrons” in order to devote himself full-time to his site. Like a few of us financial bloggers, he’s quit his real job to do the online thing.
Perez Hilton
Launched: September, 2004
Stats: 4 million unique visitors a day
Post Frequency: 24 posts on an average day, 40 posts on a very active day
Revenue: $111,000 a month based on ad rates
Perez Hilton aka Mario Lavandeira is a celebrity in his own right — I’ve seen him featured in a number of shows (Janice Dickinson, anyone?). Some confessions: I’m attracted to the salaciousness of his site, like I am of any train wreck. I also occasionally fight the passing urge to revive my old pseudo-celebrity style blog that I shelved in favor of this PF blog. 
.
TechCrunch
Launched: June, 2005
Stats: 5 million page views a month
Ad Rates:
- $300 per week, for a small text ad
- “Thousands” for banner ads
Revenue: $200,000 to $240,000 a month
In our very own backyard is this premiere Silicon Valley blog that introduces us to new startups 24/7. When there’s a digerati party, you may find Michael Arrington making the rounds.
“When I started the blog, it was just a hobby,” says Arrington. But, after a while, “It was pretty clear that I could make more money blogging than from anything else.”
Go Fug Yourself
Launched: July, 2004
Stats: 3.5 million unique visitors a monthAd Rates:
- $60 for a simple text ad
- $3,000 for fancier banners
Revenue: $6,240 a month
These lovely ladies are making great money with their blog, but with their traffic, they can probably make a lot more!
Problogger.Net
Launched: November, 2004
Revenue: Over $100,000 a year
The original problogger. Out of the entire list, Darren Rowse’s blog is the one I keep coming back to….for good reason. 
As you can see, there’s a lot of opportunity in blogging… It’s the perfect type of work for creative types who can wear many hats. If you’re a jack of all trades who enjoys spending some amount of time in front of the computer, then this could be a great way to increase your income, to pick up extra income or to diversify your income streams. For more on just how profitable blogs can get, check this out!
Image Credit: Valleywag, Adpulp, SFGate, The Sydney Morning Herald
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- Cash bonus: Discover More [$50], American Express [$25], Lending Club [$25]
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Nice writeup of successful bloggers. I hadn’t even heard of some of these, which gives me hope because nearly nobody has heard of mine!
Care to share what you make on this blog? All the above seem pretty big, but I wonder if a smaller venture such as this could still be worthwhile?
It is really amazing what people can do with the internet, and how many people don’t know about it.
@Kevin,
It really all depends, and I haven’t really divulged the details of my earnings yet, but I may…down the road. All I can say is that I currently earn 50% of what I used to earn as a salaried engineer in Silicon Valley through web (ad)ventures including this blog.
I earn a bit more by doing contract work such as technical projects and writing as a freelancer. So though my income still falls short of what I used to earn as an engineer in my day job, I can see the potential to meet (or as in the case of the bloggers profiled above, surpass) my past corporate income. It will probably take a long time though!
@theWild1,
Count me as one of those people who had no idea what can be done through the internet. It was all “learn as you go” for me. Two years later, I’m still amazed about what people can do on the web! Ironically, I was a “web application engineer” in IT, but all the work we do for companies have a completely different flavor since they’re all behind the firewall and we used a lot of third party application frameworks.
Kevin, you’ll never know unless you try.
UNREAL….I can’t believe how much opportunity there is in blogging…I love it!!!
Digerati,
Thank you very much for sharing this list with us. These success stories definitely inspire a lot of people in the blogosphere.
I don’t think it is complete however- John Chow is missing.
Best Regards,
Online Dividends
@Online Dividends,
You are right, how could I have missed John Chow? I was thinking about it but I did not have his earnings numbers available. I’ll try to check his info out and see if I can add him to this list…. we’ll see…
It’s a long long road to problogging, it’s not something that happens easily or quickly.
There are millions of blogs created every day (I just made up that stat but the reality is very close) and how many pull in big numbers?
Every time I read success stories like this, a part of me wants to shout “Now start improving your blog so that you could quit your 9 your job!”.
Nothing brings more satisfaction than spending more time with people you care and still earn LOTS of money for a few hours of work.
Sam
Fix My Personal Finance
http://fixmypersonalfinance.com/
Blogging is definitely intriguing to me, but honestly I have a pretty great job right now (CPA) that is very flexible and has good potential for future earnings growth – slated to become a partner in a couple years. I’ve put in 10 years to this career and I still enjoy going to work most days.
Obviously blogging can be successful, as we’ve seen with this list, but I wonder about the “middle class” bloggers and how much they really make versus the time spent. I guess it’s like starting any other business, it takes some time to get up and running.
Suppose I was to start a blog – I’m thinking start off with a free service and if I stick with it then possibly upgrade – what service would you recommend and how long is a good test period to see if it actually gets any hits?
Thanks for sharing this list…now I’m officially depressed! No, seriously, it is inspiring to know that the opportunities are out there. I was most intrigued by Kottke.org, who has managed to grab a full-time income without heavy monetization with affiliates, etc. That’s a refreshing approach.
Making gobs of money from blogging is great but let me tell you from an upstart blogger like myself, it is a TON of work. Especially if you know very little about the inner workings of the interweb and blogging.
Luckily, most bloggers I’ve come in contact with in the personal finance arena have been more than helpful in answering questions. Special thanks to Jim at Blueprint.
Plan on creating a blog and then only later focus on generating money from it.
Thank you for sharing this list of bloggers with us. I think it can be both motivating and a bit overwhelming to many new bloggers. Shoemoney and Problogger have been a huge success, but how realistic is it for the average blogger? Did they both grow through organic traffic alone or did they have some investment capital? I really enjoy reading about blogs that started as a hobby and transformed into something bigger and grew as a community. That is very motivating for me.
Great post. Note to self: get millions of people to come to my site each month.
Wow it seems like the sky is the limit for the potential to do things with these blogs. I never could have fathomed the revenue potential from something like this! What I really need is someone with experience and willing to mentor me! Please apply within! Money does motivate people but the true passion must be in engaging readers and inspiring them to reach their goals!
There’s a lot of potential, but it’s also a lot of hard work, and it takes a loooong time to see any sort of rate of return on your efforts.
Jim is right, that the blogging landscape is littered with a lot of dead and abandoned blogs (I don’t want to be morbid, but a few bloggers have had health episodes due to the stress of blogging). I notice that there is a 6 month, then a 1 year burn out point for many bloggers.
In a way, it’s a fulfilling activity, especially if you’re creative. But I have stated before that it isn’t any easier than any other company or day job out there. It may actually be even more challenging because you aren’t compensated for a long time. But if you’re fine with that, and you’re willing to pour in the effort and be patient about the earnings, it is a very viable income source.
Amazing to see how much some of these people make! If I can make even a fraction of that – even if I can just match what I make in my day job, I will be happy. I’ve just recently started actively working to monetize my blog, and just wrote up my progress so far.
No doubt it’s a long road and dead end if you don’t invest the time to learn. SVB mentioned the value of the information over at ProBlogger and I couldn’t agree more. I’d reference some other excellent sources but don’t want to turn this into an advertising campaign.
If you want to expedite the process and have a fair chunk of money to throw around, you could consider some of the mentoring programs offered by these pros to fasttrack your blogging career. They probably won’t teach you anything you won’t learn over a couple years of reading, research, trial and error but they’ll help you dramatically shorten the time it takes to start seeing legitimate earnings (and traffic). It’s an option I’m considering but I’m content to learn on my own for now.
Finally, everybody keeps pointing out that it takes time and hard work. If you come to blogging thinking you’ll strike it rich in a month or two, you’ll be quickly schooled. Successful (wealthy) blogging is the exception rather than the norm. I wouldn’t be surprised to find that the upper, middle and lower level success stories match closely with the upper, middle and lower class statistics in traditional jobs.
Bottom line, if you’re motivated, a go-getter, have staying power or have a fresh or unique idea, you can succeed. Slackers need not apply. It’s hard work, folks.
@Sam
I think “…a few hours of work” may be a misconception. Once you’re big enough, you may be able to hire enough people to get down to a few hours a day, but in order to get there, you may have to spend 12 hours a day, researching, writing, marketing, seeking advertisers, etc.
@Self Employed,
Great comment there! You took the words out of my mouth
. Another cliche here, but I found that even after almost 2 years of doing this, that I’m constantly learning. I was surprised by the amount of learning I’ve done over the last few months after I started doing this more on a full time basis. This activity can occupy your life if you let it! Well, much like any business or real job would, depending on how seriously you take it.
@DayOfTheDeal,
Just want to add that even if you hire people, the first few months can be an adjustment as well, since managing them and even perhaps mentoring or training them takes time to do. Finding the right type of people also matters and that can take time. I really believe the “few hours a day” concept is a myth — or maybe it isn’t but only for a few people? Is it the exception rather than the rule?
The consensus seems to be that the longevity requirement is a bad thing. I actually don’t mind it. If I can stick it out (and continue to enjoy blogging), then the odds start working in my favor. Once a distance runner, always a distance runner, I guess…
I do like reading about people who are making money online and especially learning how much they make. It just shows the potential – it’s almost unlimited.
SVB,
John Chow is making about 30K a month now. He always post is monthly income at the beginning of every month.
I still can’t believe that he is making money by telling people how much he makes
Making money online has become harder than it was a few years ago I think. Do all feel so?
I just encountered this very interesting post at the Fraud Files, about Dooce, one of the most successful (controversial?) mommy bloggers (if not the MOST successful) around.
In has been rumored that she makes $40,000 a month on her blog, but the question is, at what expense?
@Chandra,
I believe it’s always challenging to make money online. It takes blood, sweat and tears, and some luck, just like in any venture. It’s a tougher “job” than what most think: I had to give up my real job for it to maintain some semblance of a balanced life. The nice thing about it is that online work HAS afforded me a balanced life, but it’s definitely *not* easy money.
It’s interesting to see what the big boys make – but I wonder how much the average blogger brings in?
I’ve been blogging professionally for over a year now, and while I’m not making enough money to get out of debt I am making double what I made at my previous job of 8 years.
I don’t make much money off of my own blog, rather I get paid per post writing for other blogs which is extremely time consuming- over 10 hours a day, seven days a week.
At least I’m able to stay home with my kids (which are the main culprits in stretching out my hours).
Wow–I had no idea–thanks for the interesting post!
I think one of the best approaches may be to build while you have a good job. I have a great job and I really enjoy it. Part of it is maintaining and expanding the company’s website for which I earn part of the revenue that it generates. It of course offers me the opportunity to learn and apply that knowledge on my own.
I think the main thing with any job, career, or business is you must have passion for it. You must have a passion that will get you through the tough times.
It does take hard work, but if you put in the time, I believe you will be will rewarded.
I’ve totally had that conversation you describe with people! No one seems to understand how I can possibly make not just a living, but a good living, by working online. People I know and love keep asking me “when are you going to get a job?” as if I don’t work… I’ll have to print this list out and give them some idea of the kind of profits available from working online.
Here’s to hope! Advertising revenue really goes a long way.
What about StevePavlina.com
I’m sure that he fits right in with the top bloggers.
Good list. Problogger is always number one in my eyes, maybe not for earnings but for blogging quality. Can’t help but like the guy.
Very cool post about the big earners out there. Didn’t know all those people, only the most famous ones lol.
So amazing, how people have awesome earnings.
Still wondering how they achieve thousand or million visitors a day
@Ramalan,
I’ll venture some guesses how they achieve many thousands or millions of visitors a day:
talent? skill? hard work? and finally, smarts?
They got it all.
Some real incentive here for the MMO fans. Certainly more out there, like someone already mentioned John Chow. Also I’ll add The University Kid(TUK) and Yaro. It is a crowded niche, but seems people can still make something out of it.
Cool list. A lot of those guys on the top are stale and played out. Some one is in my seat and I’m coming in strong. See you on your next list.
Excellent post!
thanks
That is amazing! I really should start blogging.
Fugyourself should be making a hell of a lot more than that with their uniques and pageviews. They should hire a consultant to take a look at maximizing and diversifying their revenue opportunities.
Or just keep making peanuts. JohnChow does better than that, and he has very little to say.
Pretty impressive. There does seem to be a theme that to “break through”, you need some sort of product association. Just selling ads seems to have limited potential, unless you have an unusually high internet reach.
==
Save Money, tips and more
For me, the traffic numbers here are pretty interesting and pretty impressive. Since I don’t have ads, I am looking more to increase readership.
Its amazing how much some are making online, I am a little surprised however based on the number of visitors they get, I am averaging around $0.15/visitor for my sites, just think how much that would be for these sites! Most of them are well under this mark, but I guess it depends on their income methods and niche
Unbelieveable! I have been blogging for three years now, but make an av of $400 a month on mostly blogAds and adsense. Its mind-blowing to see such stats,but I guess the average blogger won’t be anything close to that.It just shows how one can actually make money from lazing about all day at home.lol
Thanks
Monica
Astonishing figures, but yes, it does take your full energy to earn that amount. At least we can try!!
Now everyone can create passive income even at home. You can make your own website and then earn money from that. Real Estate is albo good way to making money. Just slow down with your day job and concentrate on your small business. Even 100$/month passive income is better than nothing at the beginning.
ahem!!! makes me wonder how much I would make this year?
Oh man! That’s quite some bucks via blogging… Let me think…I would be happy if my blog makes $2500 a month by the end of next six months.
You should have added John Chow ($40K per month) to the list… Though he’s a pathetic blogger, he is the best when it comes to monetization tricks.
Cheers,
Ajith
@Ajith,
I actually find John Chow quite amusing… he has some personality. You made me chuckle when you called him a “pathetic blogger”. Oh dear, I hope he doesn’t read that, but you’ve given him some accolades and mentions so it’s all good I guess?
That guy is a master promoter alright!
I was unable to add John Chow because I didn’t know what his earnings were at the time I wrote this post. So it wasn’t from oversight that I couldn’t include him…
i keep hearing how much money people are making on their blogs, how the hell do they do that lol
i just want to say that blogging for money is not so easy as it seems
There are so many methods to blogging, I think people have no idea that there are bloggers that make more than the guys on this list that want to be anonymous. The reason for this is that they make so much money off of things they don’t want others to know about. Everyone seems to always start a make money online blog when the truth is they will usually never make it with that type of blog. Money made through blogging can be made fast, but you have to know what you are doing. In my case, I am able to make over a thousand dollars a month from a blog I started just 2 months ago, and thousands more off of other blogs that have been created in the last year. If people followed the things I teach them they would be so much better off than reading some of the top bloggers that offer nothing in the way of truly teaching how its done.
Great statistics, but I wonder how they can manage posting 20 to 40 posts on an average day.
These people I think have a pile of ideas with them.
Hi SVB,
First off, I want to say thanks for commenting on my site. I do appreciate the visit. I surfed over to this page after reading your interview with Wisebread. Its really good stuff. I like the accidental entrepreneur reference. It is really cool when it happens that way. Catch ya later.
Cheers,
Jeremy
@ aniroy,
You are absolutely right! Blogging has been a full time job for me and many people do treat it like they would a business. It can get downright stressful too, especially if you encounter “writer’s block”!
@Justin,
Congrats on your success! To be successful at blogging takes a combination of many factors, including marketing savvy, monetization tricks and technical know-how, beyond just having some writing skills and creativity. On top of that, it may not pay as well as some jobs, and it takes a lot of patience and hard work for sure!
@x10,
20 to 40 posts a day is incredible. I’m sure they do it as a group effort. Even a once-a-day posting schedule can be hard to keep up with (depending on your usual routine).
@Jeremy,
Thanks for the visit! I’ve been enjoying your blog as well and see that you’re interested in the “business” of blogging. I also quite appreciate your personal messages via comments
. Hope to keep seeing you here… I’ll be checking your site often.
I thing there are just a very few bloggers who really earns big sums… It’s a hard job, and have to be on every social network pages with a lot of friends at the beginning. Good post, and keep posting quality like this!
Great overview of some really cool people in online marketing. I think shoemoney seems like a big jerk, but the others are nice people =) .
Wow, blogging for some serious money fulltime. I wish I could be in there shoes. I recently looked at what some pf bloggers are making and sure some make a lot, but do really make it work full time, you need to be getting a few thousand visitors a day. A long way to go for me.
Great post. FWIW, I also make six figures yearly. Made $140K last year as a full-time blogger. It is hard work, but a lot of fun and I try to do what I can to teach people how they can do it. Especially with the economy as it is.
Some tips:
(1) Get help. You’ll get burned out trying to post several times daily by yourself.
(2) Get social on social media sites. It is an important part of blogging.
(3) Use the blog to SELL. Depending on ads alone is the slowest way to blogging income.
Thanks for the post. I am new to blogging and I am yet to get my site up. Reading and looking the images makes me wonder if I can do the same thing as the bloggers you mentioned. I know making the kind of money that these guys are making is a lot of hard work and effort. How can I attract 2.2 Million people to my blog….lol
Your post is awesome for me…
I’m new to blogging and still confused about that…what and how well can I do for my blog?
This site has really given me inspiration and spirit to learn about making money from blogging.
Thanks a lot
Can you believe it is the first time I’m hearing about 5 of them? There is indeed hope for me. Sorry I never started blogging years ago!
i love writing articles especially about Life and Living. How can my articles be submitted and get paid? I would sincerely accept writing jobs. I need help. Thanks.
@Thea,
This article from The Smarter Wallet should be able to answer your question. It mentions sites you can submit your articles to, such as eLance, iFreelance, Dot Com Mommies. There are also sites like Helium and Associated Content that will take your content for cash.
What a handsome income! I wish one day I can be like them!
Great list. Some of those guys are generating huge amounts of income – very inspiring!
Please leave some room for my picture and stats. I am just starting out but i’m starting to make some extra income. Blogging is awesome especially getting paid to blog. Thanks for posting these stats, it really pulls something out of me because I know it’s in me to prosper through blogging. Again thanks for the post.
Wow people really make that much blogging!!
I probably make about 2,000 a month with all my online ventures.
By the way this is a great and informative blog!!
Wow! That’s a great insight about blogging your way to riches. There is no doubt that all these bloggers you mention here are pro bloggers. And I believe I can get ever to the top very soon as they are right now. Anyway, thanks for sharing this timeless insight here. Catch you again for your next post…
Wow! Those are some incredible numbers.
Impressive numbers. I know ShoeMoney, he makes way more than $12,000 per month
@Joshua,
I’m sure all these bloggers make way more than the numbers stated here. These were old numbers that represent a snapshot in time. I know many small bloggers who already make this kind of money….
Great post here! These tips are for beginners and experts. I can always learn something new. Thank you!
I too think the amounts are probably underestimated, but I wonder how they have been affected by the economic crisis we are going through. Television has certainly been feeling the pinch and the drop in ad. revenue – even Google’s revenue is down I believe, I wonder how the big bloggers are doing.
These guys must be using some voodoo to be making that much! (:0)
This is a very great thing to see how so many people have really taken advantage of the unbelievable opportunities in this great world of the internet. Thanks for the knowledge
Man, I was wondering why there was so much to learn & if it was just me.
All it takes is that one great idea and of course, a lot of hard work!
Where do you get this kind of information?
Impressed.
Well, is great what we can do it with blogs, but how we can learn about it?.
I have read a lot of e-books about how to make money and now I want to recommend you a book.
If you are a beginner I recommend you to read the book Blogging to the bank by Rob Benwell, he describe step by step how to win money with your blog.
Now, if your goal is to learn how to create your own e-business, you can look into clubs that give you all the information necessary to do it. There are clubs that provide you a full range of videos that explain everything you need to do to develop your websites and earn money with them. But the best is its support. They give you support 24/7 for all your questions!
Regards.
Engineer
The statistics are very achievable, best thing to do is to write GOOD content. If your blog is worth reading, the word will get out.
Problogger is by far my most favorite blog. Darren Rowse really puts a lot of time and effort into his blog posts. He even launched “31 Days to Build a Better Blog Challenge,” which I happily joined right away. Day #1 was today and his topic was “Write an Elevator Pitch for Your Blog.” Quality and consistency are a recurring theme in Problogger’s tips for a successful blog. It’s no surprise that Darren is able to capitalize off of his writing.
Haven’t read an article with this many comments in a while. I love these kinds of posts. It is worrisome, though, regarding those health problems you mentioned. Thats’ no way to live! And if you’re already doing other work at your computer anyway, it’s really important to make sure you get up and get some real exercise. Sometimes blogging is stressful in a really mild way, but I can’t imagine letting it get to the point where you become injured as a result. I’ve only been blogging 11 months now, but I’m starting to see the income take off a bit. At least, getting closer to my original goal. Where I thought “well, let’s see if I can make ___”/month; then we’ll go from there.
MoneyEnergy,
Would love to hear more about details on your monetization plans. Do you post that on your blog? Do you reveal your earnings numbers? I find it extremely fascinating when bloggers reveal their earnings and income from their pursuits. This just cements the potential of blogging as a way to replace your day job. In my case, I’ve already gone ahead and done it: I’ve quit my day job over a year ago. I treat blogging as my real job — it’s a business which requires me to follow a structured schedule and set goals, and it’s proven to be very fruitful thus far.
Some of the revenue numbers are suspect at the very least. The power of the Internet. Making money by blogging is more than just the revenue. You really should have something important and new to say – not just regurgitate information. Too many blogs out there just repeat the same things over and over, just changing a few words.
Definitely great motivation, though the blogosphere is getting more and more crowded each day and carving a niche is ever more challenging. However, if you can find a good fresh idea and get the traffic coming the sky really is the limit.
Great Post! I think it is important to note that all of these successful bloggers have one thing in common, a brand. Branding will play an important role in my strategy, I think that is one of the most important distinctions to make in this crowded blogosphere… a brand gives you the opportunity to create more than a just a blog, and more opportunities equals more money.
I also want to make money blogging, but my blog is not performing well enough; I haven’t earned much yet, unfortunately.
Awesome, awesome information dude.
Starting out blogging myself now, I’m looking at a pretty hard road to hit the big time, but I’ll keep trying. I think the biggest reason people fail at earning from blogs is a lack of discipline to create backlinks and content, and a lack of patience.
If you give up, you won’t succeed. Simple simple stuff.
One of the best ways for beginners to start making a little extra money blogging is to use Hubpages. It’s a great place to start because it doesn’t require any setup or a hosting plan which makes it a good choice for those who don’t have a ton of technical know how. They let you insert your own Google Adsense, eBay, and Amazon account trackers and you can start earning money right away. It also allows rookie bloggers to take advantage of a seasoned domain name which is great for generating search engine traffic to your blog posts. The only drawback is that they do not allow you to post purely personal ramblings, you actually have to choose a topic that would be of interest to the general public. All in all though, a very good way to get started.
Shelly,
Hubpages sound fine, but I still consider blogs as my internet vehicle of choice. As you say, there is more flexibility when building blogs; I also feel that I have more of an investment in the blogs I develop and maintain by owning them in every respect (including my own domain and environment). I also have full control over what I can publish in my sites.
If you are willing to work with some limitations, you can certainly use hubpages or even blogs that run with free support and a built in community such as Blogger and Wordpress.com. I started out this way, then found out that over time, the growth of my sites were hampered in this kind of environment, so I went ahead and switched my blogs to my personal domains. This change came with a cost since it is a huge pain to port stuff over from one environment to another. But it was well worth it and allowed my sites to grow unhampered.
Lesson learned? If you are blogging for money or for business, think of the future (and the potential for long term growth) and consider a standalone environment for your blogs right off the bat in order to avoid any need to change your set up down the road. More serious internet entrepreneurs go this route also to build their brand more successfully.
I feel that I’ve been able to grow the value of my business and web properties more so by owning all the elements of my sites completely.
wow great article I’m getting really excited about blogging the more I read about it I really hope I can become a pro Yaro Starak, Shoemoney, and all those guys up there really got me pumped about it I am really trying to find my passion I think like the old saying going “do what you love” and you’ll be successful, well I hope that it works out. Wish everyone who is just getting in this business Good Luck and thanks for this article really really motivating
Yet another article on how great and profitable blogging is. I have been blogging for ages, doing what all the “experts” reckon and I have a blog with PR3 7000 visitors a month and sweet F. all in revenue! I can get my site to number one on Google for my search terms…yet zero income!! I have tried text ads, banner ads, affiliates all in my niche of natural health and zippo! I am actually unlike some, a genuine expert in my field. I actually work on real people daily and know what I am doing and have something to offer people in the way of a genuine method of helping you, yet this is worth zero??? Like SEO, all the real secrets are kept to the lucky few…I stumbled on one by accident that all the SEO experts reckon doesn’t work!! Liars! Ever since I have been doing it I have had great search results. I suspect blogging and earning money from them is much the same…I challenge anyone one of you to make my blog profitable..show me how! Bet you can’t…more truthfully, bet you WON’T!
Believe it only when i see it!
Craig
Craig,
You won’t make much money with low traffic. If you have 7,000 visitors a month, you won’t get much out of Adsense or affiliate sales. You’ll have to have 10 times that traffic to make a dent on your online income. Now if your niche isn’t so profitable, you can always try other niches. The fact is, not all blogging niches will generate a high level of income or will be well trafficked.
I also checked your site. It seems like you only have 100 or so articles there. You’ll need a lot more than that to generate traffic and subsequent income, IMO. With 100 articles, you’re probably making at most $10 a day in Adsense if at all. That’s not very much obviously. But over time, if you develop your site to increase the content, you’ll get the proportional traffic and Adsense income.
Quick question where do you find the site that puts words in your blog as advertising links?
can a person blog about anything? I have a friend who is interested and she thought about opening a blog site based on wicca, witchcraft, folklore and legends and such.
does she just write about what she knows and can she do a repeat of information from various authors as long as she tells where she got her information. (so as not to plagiarize)
some help please?
I haven’t been blogging very long. I started in April. I’m a retired Software Engineer and enjoy the web work and SEO. I have also started 4 other sites that are affiliate marketing sites. My traffic sucks, because I have been busy trying to develop the sites. I have done some articles for Ezine and other sites and registered with directories. I also have traded for backlinks but that is slow going. This is definitely an investment in time if you want to make money. I tried buying traffic with AdWords, but that cost more than it earns.
WOW! I wish we all could earn as much as what they earn …SOON… happy blogging to all
I havent been blogging for long only for about a month or two but ive got a blog within a similiar niche as yours and ive taken advice from your website and many others. Hopefully with your insight and the advice from other websites I too can be successful. Hopefully earning as much as some of the “Pro” bloggers out there.
Check out my website (check the url above) and leave a comment if you would please; I welcome all kinds of advice good or bad.
It’s very inspiring. I will continue with my newly born blog.
I look back on this article every time I need help on my blog site I just created. Very informative and detailed. I hope one day to be on that list of greatest bloggers. =]
Those are some big names. But you know, they started somewhere just like the rest of us. It’s possible for any of us to earn just as much money as them. It’s all about consistency and making sure your blogs are setup properly.
This article is so inspiring. Thank you!!!
Suddenly my 20 visitors a day look slightly outdone by people who are in the millions. What is the key to getting that many unique visitors a day?
I’ve tried all sorts of SEO and backlinking but so far none of it has really improved my traffic.
I found this article pretty helpful. You can find more on this topic by checking out my site.
Hey thank you so much!!! Thanks for giving us all a little inspiration and good advice. I am going to give it a try and see what happens; who knows maybe I can be a great blogger to. So from one blogger to another: where’s the best place to blog for free???
thanks so much… I have been considering beginnning a blog site and incorporating some paid ads… all new to me… need to start making some cash asap… this motivates me to continue my research and find a way to begin blogging… thanks for motivation… good luck to everyone chasing a dream and making it happen…
I was fortunate enough to come across your blog and thank you for all the wonderful advice contained in it.
II’m disabled, only living on $200 per month (awaiting Social Security hearing). I formerly worked at home as a medical transcriptionist but can no longer do transcription work (which is a lot different from writing).
I’m sick and tired (literally) of trying to stomach daytime TV, and I love to write. Certainly, earning money from it would be a big PLUS at this time in my life, especially if I could tell Social Security (in my best Tony Soprano voice) to “forget about it.”
You mentioned both blogger.com and wordpress.com. I looked at both sites and am inclined to go with Wordpress. Being basically backwards in my life, I’d like to know which of these sites you find to be better.
Thanks again for such an informative piece on blogging from home.
Very interesting list, thanks for posting. As I read and do more and more research about them, I see that most successful bloggers tend to post very frequently.
To say this blog post is inspiring is an understatement. Kudos on a very inspiring post. I look forward to learning more in the future.
I stumbled on this post through my Google Alerts for ” blogging for money” and am intrigued that this thread of comments started just over a year ago! So Digerati, you are now in three years of blogging … curious, how has your income grown? By now it must be more than 50% of your previous corporate income. Another thought … would your blogging not fall under “home based business” category and as such qualify you for tax deductions that were not available under the corporate employment … so is it safe to assume lower gross, higher take home?
best………….valentina
Valentina,
Thanks for stopping by. I have to say that you just asked some very interesting questions — questions that will fill up an entire book. Maybe one day, I’ll write a book (or e-book) about making a living this way?
At 3 years of blogging, I can’t complain. I’m not at liberty to reveal what it is I earn, but suffice it to say, it is above and beyond what I expected I would earn doing something like this. I can tell you that just by going around the web, you’ll find that a lot of the numbers that are quoted in this article are actually way too low and are grossly underestimated. If done right, you could be pleasantly surprised that online entrepreneurship can indeed become a worthwhile endeavor and be the answer to a life outside of the nine to five.
I will say that making money through online activities CAN be done. Like any other endeavor, you want to ask yourself: Do you have the passion? Have you got the right temperament and interests for this kind of work? It’s also important to know if you have certain skills to make it work — I know people who would love to blog but aren’t willing to put in the time to develop skills to see it through for the long term.
And to answer your question — yes, I run a home based business, but I am very conservative with how I deal with taxes. I do get tax benefits, yes, so it does help compared to being a salaried employee.
I think it’s so cool that these guys can actually make that much money. I think Darren Rowse is the best. He deserves to earn way more than he does right now from Problogger.net. You guys might be interested in checking out my new website (click on my name please).
This is inspirational. I’m trying to break in with a solid idea on what to write about. I’m reading a lot more on the subject and will be trying a few ideas just to see what kind of traffice I get. I do have a few subjects I’m passionate about. But, will try a little harder to find that niche. Wish me luck.
traffic. . . . .
It is quite informative and everyone should know what Internet gives to them. Many people who are sitting idle with great ideas should see such things and can achieve milestones.
That’s a result of working hard, time and experience. But more interestingly, there are still open positions for everyone, any time, and any day.
amazing. how can they do it? i need only $1000 per month but it seems very difficult.
real tuff job to start earning money from a blog: the hardest part is to optimize your blog to get better SEO and SERP.
Interesting stuff. I only got a small amount from net.
I think a lot of people underestimate the amount of work required to make money blogging. It is a full time job and the learning curve is steep. It is all to easy to get sucked into non productive pursuits (like checking your visitor stats every 5 minutes).
I make a living doing this and earn 6 figures – any one can with some hard work and by looking carefully at who is giving you advice before taking it.
My main issue is I am getting fat sitting at a computer all day long.
Just curious SVB, with all the earnings posted for the highly successful, all the earnings posted throughout this blog, yet you state on Sept. 5 “I am not at liberty to disclose”? If you really wanted to inspire those contemplating blogging, or the new up and coming bloggers, why would you do us all such a disservice as to not let us know what YOU have accomplished in three years?
What an inspiration.
I realized that if you look at the dates they’ve launched, most of them have been on them market for over two-three years. I can only guess that if you actively and regularly work on your blog every single day, you can get at least to five-figure
You’re right when you said that blogging isn’t for everyone. In the short term, you can probably make more money delivering pizza then blogging, but as bloggers we are building a passive residual income that will pay us for years to come. That to me is worth working for!
I didn’t see how old this post was when I first started reading it but I think that it is amazing how well people have done from a fairly simply idea that has developed into something that they probably never thought it would turn into. I wonder if the list would be different this year.
Makes me want to make my own. Would be awesome becoming rich from this, even making just a few extra bucks would be pretty neat
WOW! They all really know how to make money blogging that’s for sure!! It’s nice to see that there are successful people in the blogging world that can verify their earnings from blogging. It’s no wonder all bloggers are subjected to disclosing their earnings now.
Do you need a license or registration to earn money by blogging? how does this figure when you file for taxes?
There is definitely a lot of opportunity to make a lot of money online. This is not only limited to blogging, but blogging is an avenue that has opened up the Internet Marketing field to whole new market of individuals that did not necessarily have the technical resources, nor the know-how to do so before.
There are many resources for starting a blog for free. This allows one to start to build a following and hone their blogging skills (writing, advertising, marketing, promotion, etc).
There are many of these such Free Resources for starting a blog: wordpress.com, blogger.com, myfreeblogonline.com, and so many more….
There are also some paid resources that bring forth more options for the technically impaired folks that are not able to host their own blogs can have the option for more plugins/space/etc. that is not available on the free blogging hosts. My site impush.info is one such site… We provide 5GB storage space and a plethora of plugins geared for the Internet Marketing blogger.
There are no licenses needed to make money from blogging. As for filing your taxes… it’s just like any other home based business. (In Canada) if you make under $30,000 there is no need to register your business, but there are certain tax benefits to registering or incorporating your online business.
THANK YOU for re-inspiring me. For some reason I only happened to see articles vehemently dissuading potential bloggers from venturing down this path saying that there was absolutely no money to be made for simple people like ourselves. I started my own blogging website a few months ago. So far so good. Traffic is more than I expected it to be, and it has been a HUGE learning curve. But I’m happy and have hope – which is important!
Actually, after reading all the naysayers today I felt compelled to embark on my very own experiment “Is it Really Possible to Make Money Blogging”? I am going to blog about my success (or failure) in the blogging world right here.
Thought you may be interested – I already linked to this article as an “inspiration” on my blogging journey. Thanks!
@Lara Jane,
So glad I’m able to share with you a positive message about blogging. Yes, we must be realistic about what blogging can do for us, but I wholeheartedly believe that with hard work, dedication, passion and more experience doing this, you can do well.
As of this writing, I am finally doing much much better than I thought I ever could. I can’t be more thrilled about stumbling upon this activity and picking up on this “job”. I hope the joy in this work continues!
Also, as of this moment… this blog has celebrated its 3rd birthday. And progress….. much progress…. has been made. What have I gotten out of this experience? Beyond anything financial, there are many priceless things I’ve received: entrepreneurial experience, discovery of things I did not know I could do and the realization that work can be fun, wonderful and fulfilling, plus of course, awesome friends.
I have made many new friends online who have also become my friends in real life, and this has been one of the most worthwhile outcomes of this journey/exercise/experience.
Best of luck to all bloggers!
Hello buddy,
This article is Stunning!
Other than the usual information about few top money makers, this list is amazing.
Keep blogging and Thanks for the information.
Wow thanks, this article is super informative and I definitely learned a lot!
Thank you for this info, I’m new to blogging And I was curious to know how you are doing now with your ventures. These comment dates are older, so if this is current info I was just curious.
@Thomas,
Yes, this post was written when a lot of the bloggers I featured were still nurturing their fledgling businesses. These days, these very same bloggers are surely making much much more. I’m certain that some of them have made or are making multiple millions a year. I’ll soon do updates on these bloggers if I can get the data.
I also know that blogging as a business can be quite fruitful. In my particular case, I am currently earning about 3x to 4x more than what I was making last year (then again, I wasn’t making all that much last year). So I have been extremely surprised by the growth one can attain by maintaining an online business. It of course has its ups and downs — there is always tough competition and seasonality involved with your earnings, but overall, if you are willing to work hard and be dedicated to your craft, you stand some chance of earning something.
On the other hand, people should also be realistic about this. Not everyone can make a million by blogging. The statistics show that only a very small percentage of bloggers are earning a good living on this — but that is the case with any type of work anyway. I do believe though, that it’s quite possible to make part time income by blogging after a few years (if you do things right).