Working From Home For Beginners: Summary List of Stay at Home Job Ideas

Working from home is the dream, right? Especially if you’re a mom or the primary family caregiver. No commute, no dress code, no punching the clock. However, this is a luxury most people cannot afford. If you are dreading going back to the office, or even if you’re looking to make a little extra on the side, there are some solid options out there that you will love! Don’t miss out on these great stay-at-home job ideas! The list is updated and added every few times a year so check-up and send me any ideas with a comment below.

If you play your cards right, maybe you’ll even end up making more than you did at your corporate gig while working in the comfort of your own home. Here is a list of some stay-at-home job options plus multiple links to get you started. Peruse away!

1. Customer Service

When I think of customer service, I envision call centers with rows upon rows of headset donning employees preparing to be hung upon. The reality is you are supporting a lot of people and helping them solve questions. It’s an important part of companies. Because of this, working as a customer service rep from home is becoming more common. These companies allow you to work remotely and most of them allow you to make your own schedule!

• Enterprise– Let’s you work remotely while you help customers book rental vehicles. No commute for you!
• Sykes– This company was ranked number 15 out of 100 on the 2018 list of top 100 Companies with Remote Jobs. This company frequently has openings, and you won’t need to drive to a call center.
• Working Solutions– Another FlexJobs top 100 company, Working Solutions will train you on how to be a customer service representative in fields such as health care, retail, and financial services.
• Amazon– Work for Amazon from a virtual location (AKA your kitchen table). Virtual job opportunities aren’t available in all areas, so check it out to see if you qualify! Starting pay around $10 per hour.
• Alorica At Home– Home to many at-home customer service job opportunities. Also, many of their corporate roles can be conducted from home. Includes medical and dental benefits! Average wages range from minimum wage to $10 per hour.

2. Chat Agent

If talking on the phone doesn’t appeal to you, being a chat agent might be more in your wheelhouse. Competition for these positions is a little higher because it can be done without a headset or telephone. Because you are communicating to customers via chat, it’s important that you have decent typing skills. The pay for these types of jobs averages between minimum wage and $10 per hour. Here are a few places to start looking:

• SiteStaff– The company states that they only employ the best, so it’s crucial for applicants to be able to multitask, type at least 65 words per minute without punctuation, spelling, or grammar errors, and to be dependable. Pay starts around $10 per hour. Bilingual applicants are preferred!
• AppleCare– Work for Apple! You will go through a paid training process to get familiar with the work. As an At Home Advisor, you will be the friendly voice on the other side of the computer, helping customers with their needs, questions, and concerns. Career growth is possible here, with at home jobs such as Team Manager and Area Manager available.
• Concentrix– Jobs available for online chat agents who provide basic feedback and offer technical support to the customer. This job pays $10-$12 per hour.

3. Search Engine Evaluator

This job is exactly as it sounds. You rate the results from a search engine and can make between $10-$15 per hour. People want the most accurate and relevant results from their Google searches, and search engines need your help!

• Lionbridge– The jobs here are titled Ads Assessor, Multimedia Judge, Rater, and Internet Search Reviewer; basically all the same thing.
• Appen– Often has job openings for web search evaluators and social media evaluators. Unlike some companies, this one requires you to be able to dedicate at least 20 hours per week.
• RaterLabs– You must have excellent web research skills, comprehension, and written communication skills, and be at least 18 years old.

4. Data Entry Employee

Data entry is simply inputting information into a spreadsheet or format of your employer’s choosing. As long as you have a relatively strong internet connection and you can type well, you will be successful at this job. Depending on what company hires you, you may be paid by job, per word, or per hour. Starting pay is usually low, but many companies give you opportunities to grow. Check out these companies:

• Xerox– Get a job in their virtual office program. They offer many at home job options other than data entry, too!
• Data Plus– Here you may be completing data entry services for law enforcement reports, warranty cards, mailing list development, and more.
• Axion– This company prefers employees with 2-3 years of experience with data entry, and all of their employees work from home as independent contractors.

5. Virtual Assistant

Help professionals and business owners handle a variety of online assignments. Just like a regular, personal assistant, you will help with booking appointments, making travel arrangements, making phone calls, scheduling, writing, and even working with social media. The average wage of a virtual assistant is between $10-$18 per hour. It is recommended to find your own clients in order to make a higher wage, but if you want some practice first, try one of these companies:

• Contemporary Virtual Assistance– Need to be available for at least four hours each weekday. You must also have experience using Google apps, Microsoft Office programs, and a variety of social media platforms.
• Zirtual– At this time the company is hiring remote virtual assistants who are available between 9am-6pm. You will be part of a team of virtual assistants all working together, relying on, and communicating with each other.
• Fancy Hands– Hires virtual assistants for thousands of users. Reiterates the need to be professional and reliable.

6. Blogger

In order to make money, this one is going to take more time. However, of all the at-home jobs, this will be among the most rewarding. What do you enjoy? Food? Fashion? Travel? Creating a blog and diligently writing content to entice readers can earn you a solid side hustle. WordPress is the most well-known platform, but you can also try Wix, Blogger, or Tumblr to name a few.

7. Bookkeeper/Accountant

This job will require you to keep track of money coming and going on a daily basis for your client. Depending on your client’s work, this could mean creating financial reports, updating records, data entry, reimbursement, tracking receipts, organize financial records, examine financial statements, suggest ways to save money, file taxes, and more. I couldn’t find any job openings that accepted applicants with no experience, but there are numerous online training sessions you can complete first in order to get that job!

• AccountingDepartment– Open to any applicant in the U.S. Jobs are full time with benefits.
• Acuity– This company prides itself on being of assistance to small businesses and innovative companies. Remote jobs are open to applicants across the U.S.
• Robert Half– Must have a bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance. Expected to review general ledger accounts, perform account analysis and reconciliation, post monthly, quarterly, and yearly, accruals, among other tasks.

8. Crafter

Do you have a hobby that you would love to turn into money? Online shops such as Etsy allow you to set up your own virtual store, no matter what you’re selling. Whether it be candles, jewelry, or paintings, you can find your audience!

9. Product Tester

Free stuff for my opinion? Count me in. Many companies will share content or products with you to hear your feedback. Companies also like to hear consumers’ thoughts on products so that they can make improvements before they hit the shelves. Your feedback can be anything from virtual interviews with a client to emailing your reaction. There are a lot of websites out there promising freebies, but these ones are legit:

• JJ Friends & Neighbors– Owned by Johnson & Johnson, the site lets you test products for free and you get to keep them. It also includes surveys you can do for cash.
• American Consumer Panel– Become an In-Home Usage Tester making up to $45 an hour. You also need to be able to dedicate at least 15 hours per week to this gig, and no experience is required!
• Toluna– One of the largest and most extensive sites where you can test products and also earn points/money for taking surveys.

10. Proofreader

Calling all grammar police! Proofreaders check for mistakes in spelling, grammar, and punctuation. If you are meticulous and love to read, this might be a great job for you! Look for freelance proofreading jobs here:

• FlexJobs-List of freelance proofreading jobs
• Proofreading Services– Full-time and part-time remote proofreading jobs available. When applying, you will need to take a 20-minute preliminary test. Pay ranges from $19-$46 per hour.
• Scribendi– Requires a degree in a relevant field, at least three years of experience, and you need to be a native English speaker. Not available to applicants residing in New York, California, Massachusetts, Illinois, Colorado, Wyoming, New Jersey, or New Hampshire.

11. Video Reviewer

Are you charismatic with a love of movies? Create your own YouTube channel and start creating content. You can earn up to $500 a month within your first year if you stick to it and create a following!

12. Instructor

Do you have a covetous talent? Great singer? Pianist? Chef? Share your talents online with others who want to learn from you. You can do this by creating a YouTube channel or listing your services on a site like Indeed.

13. Online Juror

Are you one of those rare specimen who enjoys jury duty and is passionate about the criminal justice system? I know I am. Attorneys create mock juries to practice their trials before the real thing, and you can be paid $5-$10 per case. Find more on eJury.com.

14. Consultant

What are you an expert on? Regardless, there is someone out there who wants to pick your brain. By using a site like Clarity, you can make your own profile where you post your skills and where others can book a time to speak to you. For this, you will be paid. Users make up to $200 per month.

15. Create a Dropshipping Business

What does this mean? Well, it means you are the person who gets the product from the manufacturer to the customer. But the best part is that you don’t ever actually touch these products. You just set up an online store, and it takes care of itself. Shopify is the most commonly known website to do this with.

16. Sell Your Lesson Plans

This one is for my teacher friends. Websites like TeachersPayTeachers let you upload your lesson plans for other educators to purchase. Upload lesson plans you already have and create more to profit from!

17. Write Greeting Cards

Do you fancy yourself a poet? Blue Mountain Arts is always looking for writers with original content. You can make up to $300 for creating your very own greeting card!