Business ideas for students. College and university students need the cash, but regular part-time jobs often get in the way of classes and study sessions. This gives you flexibility, real world experience AND a shot at building something meaningful.
This guide is for students who are interested in learning how to make money on their own and gain experience copying the habits of successful entrepreneurs. We will discover cheap online business ideas that you can start at a minimal cost, campus-based services that connect with your local market and artistic endeavours that use the Internet to tell an income generating story. You’ll also find a range of tech-focused ways to earn that are ideal for students who know their way around technology, as well as physical businesses that can easily accommodate your academic schedule.
Low-Cost Online Business Opportunities
Launch successful drop shipping store with the least investment
Drop shipping allows you to own an e-commerce company without inventory or shipping. You just partner with suppliers who do the fulfilment while you take care of marketing and customer service. Whether you are using a popular platform such as Shopify, Woo Commerce or Big Commerce to set up your store in a more simple way, the cost monthly is typically less than $30.
Search on Google Trends, AliExpress bestsellers or social channels for trending products. Concentrate on niches you know about — fitness gear, pet accessories or tech gadgets are good starting points for beginners. Start-up costs will likely be primarily you website and domain name subscriptions plus some initial marketing cash.
The success also relies on selecting good suppliers and winning the trust of customers based on a great service. “We started with one category of product so that it’s not too overwhelming,” said Ms. Robinson, who added new merchandise based on what sold well.
Start Freelancing with What You Already Know
You are already learning skills that businesses want from your college coursework. Writing students can provide you with content creation, marketing students manage your social media accounts and design students make logos and graphics. There is open ended possibilities for programming students to do in web development or app creation.
Marketplaces like Upwork, Fiverr and Freelancer connect you to clients around the world. Begin by building polished profiles of your work and competitive rates. Work your way up on smaller jobs and charge more when you can build a reputation.
It is really important to manage your time when freelancing and studying. Leverage scheduling tools and establish boundaries about when you’re there for work. A lot of freelancers can expect to make between $15 to 50 an hour, gain real-world professional experience and start making contacts for post grad careers.
How to generate content online and get paid doing it!(business ideas for students)
Blogging is a process of making money out of what you know and love. Select subjects you enjoy – from personal finance tips for students, study hacks or hobby content. Word press and Ghost provide easy-to-use platforms to begin with.
You can monetize via affiliate marketing, sponsored content, selling digital products or advertising. You can make a commission promoting products you use with Amazon Associates. AdSense National income after you get some stable traffic.
Consistency matters more than perfection. Posting something at the same time every week is also important, as you’ll gain an audience with whom to share your content. Comment on, interact with and support readers when they comment or engage via social media to build a community around your blog. Some student bloggers make $500 – $2000 per month in the first year.
Create mobile apps using free app development tools
Even computer science majors are no longer the only ones developing apps. Tools such as MIT App Inventor, Appy Pie and Flutter have made the development of functional apps attainable for those new to coding. Begin with simple utility apps — calculators, planners or campus-specific tools that solve real problems.
The revenue source from paid downloads, in-app purchases, and advertising is true for both the Android and iOS app stores. Research your target audience first – What apps do other students wish existed? Campus food delivery, study group organizers or textbook marketplaces can do very well if they are specific to a local area.
Free resources such as YouTube tutorials, Code academy and the docs from Apple and Google have fantastic learning content. PARTICIPATE IN REDDIT and DISCORD You can join our developer communities for support and engagement. Even the simplest of apps can pay you good money while teaching your valuable technical skills for other, more complex app development tasks.
Campus-Based Service Businesses
Tutor classmates to help make yourself better at the same time
What do you have to offer your fellow students? Beginning a tutoring business on campus is an excellent way for you to monetize studying. Choose subjects in which you’re always top of the class – be that in calculus or organic chemistry, foreign languages or your writing skills. Your classmates are desperate for help in these challenging classes, and they’re willing to pay top-dollar for quality instruction from someone who really “gets” the material.
Organize study-hours in public areas such as the library or student union. Set your rates competitively, so they will be lower than overpriced tutoring agencies while also setting a price that reflects the value of your time. Peer tutoring is a more widely appealing to most students, as you just recently learned the same material and understand where they are coming from far better than a grad student or professor who hasn’t seen an entry level class in years.
Make fliers with tear-off tabs and post them on billboards at your college. School-specific social media groups are also extremely effective, you can join class-specific Facebook groups and when students post that they need help with assignments or upcoming exams, you can offer your services.
You can maximize your earning by teaching multiple students at one time through group tutoring. Given that many people are unwilling to pay more than they have, the point is this: You can charge less per person and wind up making more per hour. In fact, a lot of students have even reported that they prefer group activities so that way can hear each other’s questions and not feel as nervous about asking for clarification.
Do laundry and cleaning for time-crunched fellow students
University students are always battling with laundry and maintaining the cleanliness of their abodes. With classes, work and socializing, it’s easy for everyday tasks to be put off until they’re huge issues. This presents a great opportunity for entrepreneurial students to fill this gap and offer these necessary services.
Begin with the laundry pickup and delivery service in dorms as well as from local apartments. Students stuff their dirty clothes in bags that you then pick up, wash, dry and fold before bringing the cleaned (and folded) goods back. Compete against the campus laundromat pricing, but add that convenience factor students are most concerned with.
Add room cleaning services to help students who need a hand with deep cleaning before parents visit or for the end of semesters. Most students live in close quarters that become cluttered and require professional cleaning. Provide variety: perhaps basic straightening, deep cleaning or move-out.
And college dorm room organization is yet another profitable angle. Students have a tough time making the most of what little space they’ve got. Aid them in designing functional storage solutions and structured systems to organize their small rooms and make them feel more open and usable. Work with local organizing shops for supplies, and take before and after pictures of your projects to display the transformation on social media.
Get caterers in the school premises
Campus food delivery is yet another category that fills in a large space overlooked by the major delivery apps because of complex campus access and parking restrictions. Students often desire food brought to them in their dorms — especially during finals week or bad weather —but can be stymied by few delivery options that reach their specific buildings.
Partner with popular local restaurants close to campus that do not already deliver. Many more modest establishments seek out student customers but do not have delivery infrastructure. You deliver type of and earn $ per order along with delivery fees from your customers.
Emphasize late-night delivery when campus dining halls have closed but students remain in need of sustenance. Prep on-the-go favourites, snacks and meals that can be served in a snap from your college dorm room or apartment. Cue energy drinks, instant noodles, frozen foods, and those study snacks that students just can’t do without during all-night cramming sessions.
Make your own easy text or rudimentary app order system for students to see everything you have available and request a delivery straight up to wherever they are on campus. Get connected with RAs (Residential Advisors) and student groups that can promote your service.
Build customer loyalty with dependable service and fair pricing. Campus networks are close, and good reports travel fast if you provide a solid service that helps out under some of students most stressful times.
Technology-Driven Business Ideas
Develop software to solve common student needs
There are specific hurdles that students confront that can be solved by a tech-savvy developer with straight forward software solutions. An app that displays real-time campus parking availability can save students precious hours of peering for spots. Work group coordination platforms enable grouping students as easy motivation for exams and getting together team studies. Apps with Grade Tracking and GPA Calculator, Course Planner Features An all-round app for your academic organization is one that has grade tracking apps, GPA calculators as well as course planning features.
Room service request systems simplify the process of students who initiate maintenance requests with housing departments. Textbook marketplaces provide local markets in which student can buy and sell course materials. Students can plan their semesters more wisely without class time overlap through our class schedule optimization tools.
The joy of student-facing software is knowing your users so well. That’s where you feel the pain of your potential customers and get a true sense of problems worth solving. First dabble in no-code tools like Bubble or Glide for web apps and mobile apps, respectively, before graduating to custom development.
Manage social media for local businesses
Local businesses are crying out for a social media presence, but are often time poor and have no idea how to manage their accounts properly. Student entrepreneurs can fill this gap by providing full-fledged social media management services. For coffee shops, restaurants, retail stores and service providers they all require regular posts, community engagement and brand awareness.
Start by designing content calendars, graphics, captions and scheduling out posts across platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. Local businesses often don’t think to use things like Instagram Stories, Facebook Events, or user-generated content, which students are more familiar with.
Put your services in to a monthly pricing model which might be as low as $300-500 per client. To cover content creation, posting schedules, monitoring of engagement and some rudimentary analytics reporting. As you grow, start dabbling in paid advertising management to optimise your influencer partnerships and digital marketing strategies holistically.
The recurring fees offer financial security and create some valuable marketing skills along the way. Demonstrate your results with before-and-after measurements and testimonials from clients and case studies on your site to draw in better-paying customers while gaining credibility as a digital marketer.
Develop digital courses around your expertise, college business ideas
Turn your expertise and experiences you already have into successful online courses that sell on their own while you sleep and helps people learn! Whether it’s your prowess with calculus, fluency in half a dozen languages, expertise in graphic design or proficiency in particular software packages, there are potential customers who will pay for guided learning.
With the likes of Udemy, Skill share, and Teachable it’s easier than ever to put together courses even if you don’t have technical skills. To get started, think about skills you’ve acquired in the classroom, through internships, hobbies or interests. If you can teach photography, coding, writing, music production, fitness coaching, or academic tutoring, it likely makes for a great online course.
Develop complete courses along with video lessons, downloadable materials, and quizzes using these checklist templates. Offer entry-level classes for $50-200 to get your first customers and collect reviews. Courses that are selling successfully can bring in hundreds, even thousands of dollars a month-as more students sign up.
Promote your courses on social media, through campus connections and to appropriate online communities. Provide free preview lessons or mini-courses and show value before asking for payment. Interact with students in course discussions and announcements to get good reviews and word of mouth referrals.
The ability to scale online education involves creating a single piece of content and serving it to an infinite number of students, which is ideal for long-term-minded student entrepreneurs.
The wall doesn’t have to break the bank, or be a deterrent to studying. Whether you want to launch an online tutoring service or create digital products, provide campus delivery services or build simple apps, there are so many ways to translate your skill sets and knowledge bases into real money. Even better, many of these can be scaled and turned into full-time projects post-graduation.
It’s not about waiting for the perfect time, or having everything figured out from day one. Choose one idea that bores you and that you are qualified for right now, start with a small step, then learn as you go. Your time as a student is an opportunity to get it wrong, figure some things out and start creating something valuable while you have the safety of school. The experience you’ll get and the money you’ll make will propel you far ahead in life, regardless of which direction your career takes.
