How Much Does a Blogger Make?

You’ve heard blogging can be profitable. Maybe you’ve even read a few articles about how to make money blogging.

But you’re still wondering, how much does a blogger make? 

Do people actually earn a living from blogging? The answer is yes!

There are several ways to make money blogging, and the amount of money you can earn will depend on your niche, skills, and experience. 

Let’s take a look at some of the most common ways to make a living blogging.

Google Adsense

One of the simplest ways bloggers make money is through Google Adsense.

Adsense is an advertising program run by Google that allows website owners to place ads on their websites. The website owner earns money when a reader clicks on one of the ads. The amount of money earned per click will vary depending on the topic of the website and the advertiser.

For example, a website about video games will likely have higher-paying ads than a personal blog because businesses know people searching for information about video games are more likely to make a purchase than someone reading a personal blog. 

Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is another popular way to make money blogging. Affiliate marketing is when a blogger promotes another company’s products or services on their blog and earns a commission from any sales made as a result of their promotion.

For example, if you have a blog about hiking, you could promote hiking gear from REI and earn a commission on any sales made through your affiliate link. 

Affiliate marketing is often done through banner ads, product reviews, or both. It’s important to note that affiliate programs only work if you have an engaged audience who trusts your recommendations. Otherwise, your readers won’t click on your affiliate links, and you won’t make much money.

Selling Products or Services

Another way bloggers make money is by selling products or services directly to their audience. This could be done in the form of an online course teaching readers how to do something related to your niche (e.g., start their own blog), digital products like e-books or printables, or physical products like t-shirts or coffee mugs.

If you have an engaged audience who trusts your recommendations, selling products and services is a great way to monetize your blog posts and earn extra income. 

Sponsored Posts

Sponsored posts are when a company pays you to write blog posts about their product or service on your blog. These posts are usually clearly marked as sponsored content and include a disclosure that the post is sponsored. Sponsored posts are a great way to monetize your blog if you have a large enough audience to make them worthwhile for businesses.

How Much do Bloggers Make?

Income reports from successful bloggers show that it is possible to make a healthy income from blogging—but it takes time, hard work, and dedication to build a successful blog.

For example, in 2018, Melyssa Griffin published an annual report of her blog earnings and showed that she made over $100,000 in one year from her blog and online courses. 

Of course, not every blogger is going to make six figures in their first year blogging—or even their first few years. It takes time to build an audience, create compelling content, and establish yourself as an expert in your niche. But if you are patient and consistent with your blogging efforts, it is possible to make a decent income from your blog.

For example, Kristin Larsen of Believe in a Budget reports earning between $3,000-$5,000 per month from her blog after only two years of consistent effort. This may not be enough to quit your job—but it could easily cover your monthly expenses or help you reach financial goals like debt payoff or saving for a down payment on a house. 

How Much Time Does It Take To Make Money Blogging?

The answer to this question varies depending on who you ask—but most experts will tell you that it takes at least 6 months (and often up to a year) of consistent effort before you start seeing any real results or earning any significant income from your blog. This is because it takes time to build an audience, create high-quality content, and establish yourself as an expert in your niche. 

And even once you start seeing results, it takes continued effort to maintain those results and grow your blog even further. So if you’re looking for a get-rich-quick scheme, then blogging probably isn’t for you. But if you’re willing to put in the time and effort required upfront, then there’s no reason why you can’t join the ranks of successful bloggers who are making money from their blogs. 

Tips on How to be a 9-5 Solopreneur and Start a Blog That Makes Money

You have the best of both worlds as a 9-5 solopreneur. The stability of a 9-5 job and the creative freedom to start your own blog on the side. But how do you make sure your blog is successful? These tips will help set you up for blogging success so you can make money doing what you love.

Choose Your Niche Wisely 

Before you start your blog, you need to choose your niche. Your niche is the topic or area that you will be writing about. When choosing your niche, consider what you are passionate about and what you know well.

It’s essential to choose a niche that you are knowledgeable in because you will be able to produce high-quality content that resonates with your audience. High-quality content is key to keeping readers engaged and coming back for more.

There are two main types of blogs—those that focus on providing information and those that focus on promoting products or services. For example, a food blogger may provide recipes and cooking tips while also promoting KitchenAid appliances and other cooking-related products. If you’re not sure which route to take, don’t worry! You can always change course later on down the road. 

Get Organized

The first step to starting any side hustle is to get organized. This means setting aside time each week to work on your blog. Put it in your calendar and treat it like any other meeting or engagement. This will help you stay on track and make consistent progress.

Set Some Goals

Now that you have some dedicated time set aside for your blog, it's time to set some goals.

What do you want to achieve with your blog?

Do you want to make money?

Drive traffic to your website?

Grow your email list?

Once you know what you want to achieve, you can start planning your content and strategies accordingly.

Do Your Research

The next step is to do your research and figure out what you want your blog to be about. What are you passionate about? What do you have knowledge in that you could share with others?

Once you've decided on a topic or niche, it's time to start creating content. But beware: just because you're passionate about a topic doesn't mean there's an audience for it. Do some market research to ensure there are people out there who want to read your blog.

Pick a catchy name and purchase your domain 

Choosing a name for your blog is almost as important as choosing your niche. Your blog name should be reflective of your brand and easy to remember.

Once you have settled on a name, it’s time to buy your domain. A domain is essentially your blog’s address on the internet. Domain names can be purchased through websites like A2 Webhosting or Builderall. 

Pro tip: If possible, try to get a .com domain, as they are more recognizable and tend to rank higher in search results.

Create Killer Content 

Now that you have chosen your niche and purchased your domain, it’s time to start cranking out some content! Your content should be high quality, helpful, informative, and engaging.

If you want people to keep coming back for more, you need to give them something worth reading—and something they can’t find anywhere else.

Consistency is also key when it comes to producing content. Try to post new articles or videos at least once a week, if not more often.

Leverage Technology & Tools 

There are tons of great tools out there these days that can help make running a blog easier (and more fun). Finding the right tools for YOU will depend on what kind of blog you're running and what tasks take up the most time/energy for you personally.

A few of our favorite tools include Jasper, SurferSEO, and CovertKit.

Experiment with different tools until you find a combination that works best for you and helps you save time so that you can focus on creating great content! 

Promote Your Content Everywhere 

Now that you have some great content created, it's time to get it out there! Remember those social media accounts we talked about earlier? Time to put them to good use. Share every new post on all your social media channels and encourage your friends and followers to share.

You should also try guest posting on other blogs in your niche and promote your posts through email marketing lists and online communities related to your topic. The more places people see your content, the better!

So how much does a blogger make? It depends! A blogger’s earnings will vary depending on their niche, skillset, experience, and engagement levels with their audience. However, it is possible for bloggers to make a significant income—some even six figures or more—by monetizing their blogs in one or more of the ways described above.