23 Best Ways to Make Money on Amazon (in 2023)

As of June 2021, Statista reported that Amazon.com was the most-visited e-commerce site in the United States with 2.45 billion visits per month. Second place went to eBay, with more than 885 million visits per month, followed by Walmart with 410 million visits. Anyone who wants to make money on Amazon can make a lot if we consider Amazon’s popularity.

Apart from the main website which is Amazon.com which you’re probably aware of, Amazon has several other services sitting on top of different domains and subdomains, and most of these are smart ways to make money on Amazon. In this post, we’ll help you get started with making money on Amazon. Of course, that requires taking action on your part.

Are you ready now? Let’s get started. Here are some ways you can start making money on Amazon right away!

#1. Sell on Amazon KDP

My first experience with Amazon KDP as an author is publishing a simple productivity and gratitude journal titled Rewired. This journal is based on a simple routine that I follow every day. I created it with a tool called Canva, and it was that simple! These types of books are called low-content books, and we’ll talk more about how you can publish your books later on.
Amazon has its publishing arm called Amazon KDP which helps independent authors publish and distribute their books through Amazon and its partners’ network. As an author, publishing your book with Amazon KDP is very flexible and free. Amazon prints and ships your book(s) out to buyers at no cost to you at all while you get paid commissions on every sale you make, so if you’re an aspiring author and you are having trouble getting published, you might want to have a second look at Amazon KDP. Amazon KDP might just be exactly what you need to get started.

What Can You Publish with Amazon KDP

Some examples of the kind of books you can publish with Amazon KDP:

a. Low-content Books
I already mentioned before that I created a productivity and gratitude journal, but that’s not all you can do. You can choose to publish, drawing books, college notebooks, workout planners, meal planners, etc.

My next experiment would be to create a series of ruled notebooks to target different niches. For example, one such is a floral-themed notebook with different variations, and another is a lined notebook for science students.

If you are wondering how  I was able to do all this, it’s because the tool I used already has tons of templates for creating these manuscripts. The tool is called BookBolt, and I used Canva for designing the covers.

b. Non-fiction
I’m not going to insult your intelligence by telling you what nonfiction is, however, I’d like to point out that it’s not as difficult as some would think it is to publish a non-fiction book. You don’t even have to write one yourself. You can just purchase a quality PLR book, hire a ghostwriter to rewrite it to your taste if there’s a need for that, create a new cover design with a tool like Canva, or hire a professional to design one for you if you want something exquisite, and you’re good to go.

c. Children’s Books
Another type of book you can write and publish with Amazon KDP is a children’s book. A children’s book is easy to create, and as I mentioned before, you don’t have to write one by yourself. You can simply hire a writer on Fiverr; try using the Fiverr search box below to search for “children’s book writer”. It’s a good start!

Of course, these are not the only types of books that you can publish with Amazon KDP, your choices are almost limitless. Just remember, if it’s a book, then Amazon will most likely sell it!

How to Start:

a. Create an Amazon account.
b. Go to kdp.amazon.com and sign in to your Amazon account.
c. If you don’t have an Amazon account, you can register for a new KDP account 

For more information about Amazon Kindle Publishing, please refer to these documents.

How Much Can You Make with Amazon KDP?
It depends on your marketing skills and how lucky you are. If your book becomes really popular and you sell over a million copies then you are already a millionaire. On the other hand, if you can’t make a sale (which is unlikely), you don’t make anything. It all depends on how many copies you can sell at any given time.

#2. Sell Private Label Products

You may wonder “what are private label products?”

Private-label products are products that are specifically manufactured for you and carry your branding. To get started with private-label products, the first thing that you have to do is to identify products that are already selling well on Amazon.

Look for ways to make these products better by reading reviews and looking at the complaints that users have about these products then try to make something that is way better and improved than this product so you can compete and have an edge on the Amazon marketplace.

Once you can make something that people appreciate and want then you might be on your way to making your first million bucks on Amazon.

If you think that this will cost you some money to start,  you are right, because you need some start-up capital to fund this. These are the steps to follow to get started with private-label products selling on Amazon.

Find products that are already selling on Amazon using apps like AMZ Scout & Jungle Scout.

Look for ways to improve the product and make it the best that it can be.

Find a manufacturer to manufacture the product for you from somewhere like China using websites like Alibaba or Tradekey.

Brand the product to make it unique and your own.

List the product on Amazon and market it extensively to bring in your first sale.

If you have the time to put in the effort to find a winning product and you have the startup capital, then private-label products might just be what you need to get started with merchandising on Amazon.

#3. Become an Amazon Wholesaler

Wholesaling is buying products directly from wholesale companies or sourcing from factories where these products are being manufactured.

Wholesale has some things in common with private-label retailing, but where the similarities end is that you require a lot less upfront capital to start with wholesaling. Instead of buying products and putting your brand labels on the products you just buy from the manufacturers and resell on Amazon, it has none of your brandings on it and there’s not much of a need for an intensive marketing effort to get your business off the ground.

How to start

Get a resale certificate issued by your state.
Start reaching out to brands that don’t have much of a presence on Amazon explaining to them how you can give their products more exposure by creating more brand awareness for them.

#4. Design for Merch by Amazon

Merch by Amazon is just a fancy way of talking about print on demand. Print-on-demand has been around for a very long time and you’ve probably heard about it, maybe you’ve even bought some print-on-demand items before.

How this works is that you upload your designs to Amazon and when there is an order Amazon prints and ships the order to the buyer and you earn a commission on every sale that you make. Please read this Amazon content policy if you intend to get started with Amazon Associates.

About creating designs, you’ll find that simple text-based designs tend to sell better, however, here are some ideas for your designs:

Abstract arts

Have you ever seen a piece of art that you wonder what the heck it means? Something that had your head spinning as you tried to figure out what the artist was driving at exactly? That’s abstract art! If you’re a naturally gifted artist, you can create your own masterpieces too, and sell them on Merch by Amazon.

Realistic Arts & Text-based Design

It’s simple! These are designs that are based on things that you can see and experience in the real world. This can be based on 

Evergreen Niches 

These are based on things like hobbies, professions, sports, academics, religion, etc.

Seasonal Events

Think about holidays like Christmas, New Year, Halloween, Labor Day, Easter, etc. This can also apply to the various seasons in a year like spring, autumn, winter, and summer.

Trends

Is there something that is currently on everybody’s lips? Something that everybody is busy talking about all over the internet? A new slang that is going viral? A meme? You might want to get creative and quickly cash in on that by creating designs around that trending topic.

There are apps like Productor and Chrome extensions like Merch Advanced Analytics that you can use to ace your Merch by Amazon business.

To get started with merch by Amazon go to merch.amazon.com to sign up.

#5. Try Amazon Trade-In

In case you just learned about the Trade-in program for the first time, the program is officially run by Amazon itself, and it’s open to anyone to take advantage of.

Amazon’s Trade-In program pays you in Amazon gift credits for your merchandise and they give you a free prepaid USPS or UPS shipping label for you to get your merchandise across to Amazon.
You’re not going to pay anything for shipping this way, so all you have to do is just pack up your merchandise and send it to Amazon.

If you’re thinking about what you can send to Amazon in exchange for gift credits, some examples are DVDs, electronics, video games, books, etc.

Of course, don’t expect to get rich or make serious money from Amazon Trade-In, but if you want to try, it’s something that you can do especially if you have a lot of items lying around your house that you have no use for anymore.

#6. Do Retail Arbitrage

Retail arbitrage on Amazon is the retail arbitrage you know with the working principle of buying items for cheaper prices and reselling at higher prices for profits. You just have to be great at finding products with great reductions in prices, and once you’ve discovered one like that, list it on Amazon, and once you make a sale, ship it to the buyer.

If you don’t want to go through the hassle of shipping it yourself, you can use Amazon FBA for the fulfillment, and Amazon will handle shipping for you. To save even more, when you shop at participating local stores and pay with your eligible linked card, you will automatically earn cash back on qualifying purchases with an app like Swagbucks.

How to start
a. Create an Amazon Seller Central account. The free account is enough for beginners, but once you’re selling around 50 items per month, you should consider upgrading to a pro seller account.
b. Have some money saved up to buy the items that you’ll be reselling on Amazon.
c. Download and install the Amazon Seller App on your device. You can download the Android version here and the iOS version here.

Once you’ve installed the Seller App, you can start scanning items you see at your local malls to find out how much they are selling on Amazon and the sales rank. You can use the sales rank as a yardstick to measure how fast or slow the item is likely to sell on Amazon and the lower the sales rank, the better. You should aim for items with a sales rank under 100,000 because those are likely to sell out fast.

#7. Try Online Arbitrage

items to resell at your local stores, your source online instead. You find items that cost a lot less on other websites and buy and resell them on Amazon for profit.

As mentioned previously, there is a simple hack you can use to make the most of this process, and that is throwing cashback sites like Swagbucks in the mix to earn rewards on your purchases before you resell.

How to Start?
Follow the same steps as you would for retail arbitrage and use web apps like Jungle Scout and AMZ Scout to find these items and online retailers for them.

#8. Create Alexa Skills

Although Alexa skills are primarily targeted at developers to create, you don’t need to be a developer to create one. All you need is to understand how to use the Alexa Skills Kit, and you can learn about it here.

Alexa Skills are voice-driven apps or capabilities that you can add to your Echo device, and Fire TV in the same way you install apps on your smartphone or add extensions to your browser.

Those who own a Fire TV Cube or the included Alexa Voice Remote that comes with the Fire TV Stick or Fire TV Stick 4K can already take advantage of a lot of Alexa functions right out of the box. The Alexa app allows you to view available skills and enable or disable them.

So, how do you make money with Alexa skills? You can try any of the following:
Alexa Developer Rewards

Amazon rewards developers in countries where Amazon skills are eligible for rewards. For you to be eligible as an Alexa Skill developer, your skill has to be in select categories. 

Amazon Pay for selling physical goods and services

By creating a custom skill for your company, you can allow users to buy your products right from within the Alexa app. AmazonPay for Alexa skills allows users to use the payment method associated with their AmazonPay account to make purchases from within the Alexa app without exiting the skill they are currently using.

In-Skill Purchases

In-skill purchases are similar to in-app purchases where a user pays to gain access to additional features otherwise known as premium features. While access to the basic features of any skill is free, you can have users subscribe to access additional premium capabilities of your skill and make money from that.

How to Start?

Here’s how to begin your Alexa skill development journey.

#9. Join Amazon Handmade

If you are good with handmade crafts or are an artisan who makes these things to sell, then you might want to consider giving Amazon handmade a second thought. With Amazon handmade, you can sell your hearts and crafts like accessories, household products, shoes, knittings, carvings, toys, etc.

Amazon keeps a 15% commission on every sale you make and that may be something to keep in mind.

How to Start

Simply go to Amazon Seller Central and apply as an Amazon handmade seller.

#10. Create Audio Books on ACX

The Audiobook Creation Exchange, or ACX for short is Amazon’s own platform meant to make the process of creating audio books as easy and straightforward as possible. This tool lets you create and publish audio versions of your eBooks and paperbacks from scratch without much hassle.

If you want to narrate the manuscript of your book by yourself, all you have to do is record the audio files with audio production software like Audacity which is unrestricted, or Reaper which is very cheap.

After you finish recording, you edit and clean the sound up with further processing and you’re ready to have your audiobook distributed through Audible, Amazon, and iTunes which are all proven, industry leaders.
Please visit the ACX website and sign up to get started with ACX.

#11. Become an Amazon Associate

You’ve probably seen ads on this blog from Amazon; what that means is that we partner with Amazon to promote their products as an associate. 

Can you be an Amazon associate too? Yes, the heck, you can!

Associates are Amazon’s own affiliate program. Most eCommerce stores run their own in-house affiliate programs, and Amazon is no exception. All you have to do as an Amazon associate is to send traffic to Amazon and if the traffic converts, you make some commissions.

Every lead you send to Amazon is ‘cookied’ for 24 hours and if they make a purchase within that duration, you’re credited for it.
Amazon Associates might be a cool way to make some passive income if you’re an influencer, a blogger, a vlogger, or anybody with some kind of followership or audience on the internet.

Some ways you can promote Amazon are through product reviews, tools recommendations (e.g. in a blog post), product comparisons, top 10 lists, etc. 
You should note that Amazon has some of the strictest rules when it comes to ways you can or can’t promote their brand. It’s advised that you absolutely understand the terms of the contract.

How to Start
You can join the Amazon Associates program by going here to apply.

#12. Make Money on Amazon Mechanical Turk

Using Amazon Mechanical Turk, businesses can hire remotely located “crowd workers” to complete discrete on-demand tasks that computers cannot perform currently. Amazon owns and operates the service.

If you are familiar with GPT sites, then you’ll understand what Amazon MTurk is all about. Amazon Mturk is Amazon’s own GPT site that lets workers get paid for doing microtasks. If you have the time and skill (they’re pretty easy) to do these microtasks, then it’s worth giving Amazon Mturk a try.

How to Start
Visit the Mturk site and register here.

#13. Deliver Packages on Amazon Flex

Amazon Flex Deliveries allows everyday people to drop off Amazon packages to buyers. If you are a regular Amazon shopper, chances are you’ve come across these folks before dropping off deliveries that you ordered from Amazon.  If you have a car or any other means of transportation, then you can apply to Amazon Flex.

How to Start
If you are at least 21 years old and currently residing in a city that is supported, you can go here to apply. You’ll find all the relevant information you need on the page I linked to.

#14. Build a Logistics Company with Amazon’s Support (Amazon Delivery Partner)

Amazon is looking for hands-on leaders who are passionate about hiring and coaching great teams. 
With low startup costs, built-in demand, and access to Amazon’s technology and logistics experience,

Amazon gives you an opportunity to build and grow a successful package delivery business. If you’d like to join the Amazon Delivery Service Partners and make some money, here’s how to start.

#15. Get a Paid Job with Amazon Jobs

Irrespective of where you are from, you can work for Amazon. Just in case you didn’t know, Amazon has thousands of jobs right now that they require competent hands for, and a bonus fact is that Amazon currently ranks #4 on Forbes World’s Best Employers list.

Some of the jobs you will find on Amazon are remote jobs, while some require you to be available in person at the various Amazon offices and warehouses. Whichever option you prefer to go with, you can rest assured that you will find something that suits you.

Some of the job categories that you will readily find open positions for on Amazon are fulfillment and operations management, editorial, writing, content management, operations, IT support, and engineering. The list goes on.

Please note that for each of these categories, you can filter and narrow the results down to remote jobs only.

How to Start
Apply to the roles you’re interested in on Amazon’s jobs portal.

#16. Amazon Black Business Accelerator Program

Amazon’s Black Business Accelerator is dedicated to empowering Black entrepreneurs to grow and succeed as Amazon’s store sellers. As a participant, you can access financial support, strategic guidance, and mentorship, as well as marketing and promotional services to help you grow your business.

This is Amazon’s way of giving back to the black community in the United States.
If you’re a black entrepreneur, you might want to take advantage of the Black Business Accelerator program to hit the ground running and become an Amazon seller.

Some of the benefits of signing up for the Black Business Accelerator Program:

Financial assistance
Gain access to services and grants to jumpstart your business growth. Among the opportunities are:
For eligible newly-launched sellers, a $500 credit is offered to help with start-up and operational costs and $400 in Sponsored Products advertising credits to increase exposure for your business.

FREE imaging services for up to 50 products to help showcase your products.
Cash grant opportunities for select sellers are offered in partnership with Hello Alice, an organization dedicated to helping entrepreneurs launch and grow their businesses. Sign up here.

#17. Publish Apps on the Amazon App Store

Another way to make money on Amazon is to publish apps on the Amazon App Store if you are a developer. The first thing you have is to create an  Amazon Developer account to get started.  After this, you Submit and get to publish your apps across millions of devices in over 236 countries and territories where Amazon is present.

The most important part is to earn money and start generating revenue from your app using Amazon’s monetization services and tools.

In case you’re wondering what kind of apps you can publish on Amazon App Store, you can develop apps for Fire TV and Fire Tablet.

#18. Distribute Movies and Shows on Prime Video Direct

Amazon Prime Video Direct is majorly for Filmmakers. If you are a studio, distributor, or independent filmmaker you can release your films on Amazon Prime Video Direct.

According to Amazon, you can choose to earn royalties based on hours streamed by Prime members, a revenue share for rentals, purchases, monthly channels, or ad impressions—or any combination of these options. 

Another vital benefit of Prime Video Direct is that you can make your titles available through Prime Video in the U.S. and other locations—on all supported devices—Fire TV, phones, tablets, game consoles, Smart TVs, and from the Web. 

With performance metrics such as minutes streamed, the number of subscribers’ projected revenue, and payment history, you can optimize the way you offer and promote your titles.

#19. Stream Your Gameplay on Twitch

If you are a gamer, I suppose you should love this bit. It’s a cool thing that you can enjoy your gameplay or fun time and still make money from it. That’s like a  dream come through for many gamers. With Twitch, you can stream your games as you play them to a worldwide audience and make money while doing so.

All you need to do is install one of the recommended streaming applications by Amazon either on your smartphone or computer and you are ready to start making money by streaming on Twitch. Here’s how to get started with Twitch.

#20. Sell Software on Amazon AWS Marketplace

If you are a software developer or SAAS provider, you can now focus on building your product while AWS Marketplace manages metering, billing, collections, payment disbursements, and every other detail on your behalf.

AWS Marketplace supports numerous pricing options for your software including bringing your own license (BYOL), pay-as-you-go, and long-term commitment plans. It’s entirely up to you however you want it to be.

Grow demand for your listed solution in AWS Marketplace by reaching, engaging, and converting your prospective buyers with solutions provided by Amazon.

#21. Become an Amazon Influencer

Amazon Influencers are content creators who provide recommendations on social media to inspire their audiences. You should apply to the Amazon Associates Program instead if you are a media company or brand looking to drive traffic to Amazon.

You can earn money in a variety of ways. Share your storefront URL or affiliate links on social media to monetize your content. Your storefront content may also be surfaced to Amazon shoppers, allowing you to grow your followers and earn revenue.

If you have a YouTube, Instagram, or Facebook account, you can apply. Among other engagement metrics, we consider your number of followers when reviewing your application. 

When your followers click on your affiliate links and make qualified purchases, you will earn a commission. Your earnings are based on the number of products you sell. The commission rates can be found here as well as in your reports. You can learn more about the Amazon Influencer Program by visiting the Education Hub.

#22. Sell on Amazon Business to Business (B2B Marketplace)

You can start selling on Amazon B2B Marketplace by registering for a Professional Selling Account on Amazon.com. Seller Central makes it easy for existing sellers to add Amazon Business features. Make your profile unique by using the Profile Editor.

Credentials such as quality certifications and diversity credentials can be added for discerning business customers.

To display additional product information to your customers, use Amazon’s Enhanced Content feature in conjunction with the simple listing tools. You can reach millions of business customers who already shop on Amazon.

#23. Set up an Amazon Hub

Amazon Hub is a program for partners with physical locations to host Lockers or Counters, allowing Amazon customers to pick up and return their Amazon packages. The program is free to qualified hosts.
There are two programs and modes of earning here: Amazon Hub Locker Secure and Amazon Hub Counter.

Amazon Hub Locker Secure is a self-service kiosk where customers can pick up and return their Amazon packages. Amazon Hub Counter is the newest way for Amazon customers to pick up their packages in-store and shop at a partner location. Please go here to learn more about these programs.

#24. Advertise Your Products and Services on Amazon

In case you didn’t know, you can advertise your products and brand on Amazon! Some of Amazon’s Ad Products include:
Sponsored Products
Sponsored Brands
Sponsored Display
Amazon DSP
Video ads
Audio ads
Custom advertising solutions
Feel free to choose any one of these that suits your business and advertising needs.

And it’s a wrap for this post! These are very useful tips and ways to make money on Amazon. If you put these to use and are consistent with them, then you are definitely going to find success, We’ve presented over 21 ideas on how to make money on Amazon. One should work for you, but you’re not limited to any.

Till next  time,

Always,

Ralph Esan