How to Earn Passive Income in Tech: Tips for Beginners
Updated September 28, 2023
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The tech field offers many opportunities for generating passive income. Tech professionals can make extra money with minimal routine work by developing an app, writing an e-book, or creating a technology course.
This guide explores these and other easy ways to create passive income in tech. We provide helpful tips for beginners, give a detailed definition of passive income, and answer frequently asked questions.
What is Passive Income?
The IRS defines passive income as rental income or money someone makes from a venture in which they do not take an active part. In popular culture, passive income refers to "easy money" that requires little work. Passive income is different from either a full-time job or a side gig.
Some examples of passive income include rental property profits, book royalties, and stock dividends. Passive income opportunities can let people make income without needing to put in regular labor. Still, they demand some upfront work and periodic maintenance.
This extra source of income may not demand much time or money after the upfront work. As such, passive income can provide extra financial security. However, managing and maintaining passive income can take time, work, and money, and the upfront costs can be risky.
For example, you might spend a lot of time and money developing an app only to see few sales. Or, your rental property might sit empty for months at a time or require expensive repairs.
Beginner Tips for Passive Income
Figuring out how to pursue passive income in tech (or any other field) can be difficult for people without previous experience. Read on for our tips on passive income for beginners.
Focus on Existing Skills: What are your areas of expertise? It makes sense to find passive income opportunities that build on your existing skills. For example, if you have professional experience building mobile applications, consider developing a new app. Don't Try to Reinvent the Wheel: You can make finding a passive income idea easier and less risky by looking at and learning from what other people have done to find success. Ask colleagues, friends, and family about their experiences with passive income. Diversify Income Streams: After you start one type of passive income, think about adding other sources. For example, if you write an e-book, you could also create a course or blog on the same topic. Diversifying income streams helps lessen and distribute your overall risk. Avoid Going into Debt: Look for passive income opportunities that you can pursue without taking on debt. Set a budget for how much you can afford to spend on any passive income venture and make a plan for getting out if it doesn't pay off. Avoid Get-Rich-Quick Schemes: Everyone wants to make money fast without any work required. Unfortunately, get-rich-quick-schemes are usually too good to be true. Expect to spend time, money, and labor upfront, and keep your expectations low in the beginning.
Easy Ways to Create Passive Income
Opportunities for creating passive income in tech are almost endless. However, these are some of the most popular easy ways to create passive income in tech.
Developing a technology course is an approachable opportunity for beginners seeking passive income in tech. Create an online class on topics like introductory coding, how to build a website, or another area of your technical expertise. Creators make money when students pay to take their course.
Upfront work includes creating videos, writing content, and setting up other class elements. Once finished, your technology course can generate passive income for years. To get paying students you need to promote your class. You may also choose to update or refresh your curriculum periodically.
Do you have an area of expertise that people can benefit from? Do you have an interesting story from the tech industry to share? Consider writing an e-book to earn passive income. An e-book generates passive income through royalties from book purchases.
The upfront work of an e-book includes researching, writing, editing, and promoting your book. After you publish your e-book, you make money every time someone buys it without any other work required.
Starting a technology blog can be an easy way to create passive income for tech beginners and experienced professionals. Blog creators can earn commissions through affiliate sales, which occur when someone makes a purchase after clicking a link or using a referral code they find on your blog.
Affiliate marketing is popular but competitive. Blog producers need to keep posting new entries and updating content to keep their affiliate sales going. Starting a technology blog does not necessarily require a lot of upfront work, but it can take time to gain a following.
Tech professionals with significant programming experience can create mobile apps to generate passive income. Creating a mobile app takes a lot of time and technical skills upfront. But, after the product is complete, you can sell the same thing over and over again.
Mobile app developers make money when people buy the apps and make in-app purchases. Advertisers may pay developers to put ads in the app. App developers sometimes perform maintenance work to make updates and fix bugs in their apps.
Developers and other tech professionals with WordPress experience can create WordPress themes or plugins and sell them to make passive income. When people buy the plugins and themes, the creator gets paid.
This requires the upfront work of developing WordPress themes and plugins. After that, you can make money for as long as people keep buying your creations. Most people sell their WordPress plugins and themes either on their own website or through a third-party website.
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Questions About Passive Tech Income
What does it mean to earn passive income?
Passive income is money people earn regularly with minimal effort. Popular types of passive income include investing in stocks and real estate, creating and selling digital products, and renting your car or home to other people.
What are some easy ways to earn passive income for beginners?
There are many easy ways to create passive income in tech for beginners. Opportunities include starting a tech blog, writing an e-book, and creating a technology course.
How can technology professionals earn passive income?
Technology professionals can earn passive income by selling WordPress themes and plugins and developing mobile apps.
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