According to the latest research, Brits work more from home than any other nationality. In fact, 44% work from home in some capacity, while 16% of the UK now work fully remote. Remote work brings many benefits, from a better work-life balance to less money spent on commuting.
Running your own business from home is one of the best ways to enjoy the freedom of remote work. As an entrepreneur working online, you get to enjoy the freedom and independence that comes with being your own boss.
Another draw for starting a business online is that you can typically work from wherever you want. From Mexico to Costa Rica, more and more countries are now offering Digital Nomad visas, allowing digital business owners to combine travel and work.
If you are ready to start a business but unsure which avenue to pursue, here are nine of the best online business ideas.
Why Run an Online Business?
An online business is any business that uses the internet to build its presence, sell goods and manage its operations. Online business owners can sell a range of products and services, from freelance creative offerings to physical or digital products.
There are a number of pros to running an online business including:
1. Access to customers — Unlike a traditional brick-and-mortar business that’s limited to advertising within a local radius, online businesses can potentially reach millions of customers around the world.
2. Work from anywhere — If you’re selling a digital product or service then the ability to work from anywhere can be one of the biggest pulls to running your own online business. Currently, there are over 35 million digital nomads worldwide.
3. Lower start-up costs can mean higher revenue — Without the need to cover the cost of an office or commercial space, many people can cut costs by starting an online business.
In addition, by digitalising processes, improving operational efficiency, and helping you reach a global customer base — an online business can typically help increase your profits.
Before we run through our best online business ideas, don’t forget you must register your business with HMRC before the first tax year ends.
As soon as your income surpasses £1000, you must inform HMRC that you are trading and sign up for Self Assessment to submit a tax return and pay the tax you owe. This is a legal requirement for every business in the UK.
1. Create an Online Course
In the UK, 21% of individuals use online learning of some variety, with 28% of people claiming “watching videos online,” is their preferred method of learning. With so much demand, creating an online course is a great way to monetise your existing knowledge and turn it into a potentially lucrative business.
Whether you studied a subject at Masters level or have extensive experience working in an industry, you likely have unique knowledge and insights that people would likely pay to learn.
How to Get Started
To create your own course, invest in high-quality camera and audio equipment to film your video and audio teachings. Once you have your equipment covered, research platforms built for course creators such as Teachable and Coursify.me.
2. Get into Content Writing
If you’re a good writer, content writing may be an area to consider. While many feel that content writing is on the way out with the rise of AI, it is still a popular career for people looking to work online. As a content writer, you’ll spend your days crafting deliverables like articles, case studies and white papers.
How to Get Started
To get started as a freelance content writer, focus on developing your writing and related skills. Many companies will be looking to hire writers who also understand SEO. Google is an excellent resource for SEO courses.
Often, editors will share calls for pitches on platforms like X or Linkedin. To find opportunities, simply search for them using terms like “looking for pitches” and “call for freelance pitches.”
Alongside looking for potential clients that are asking for writers, it can also help to build your online presence on platforms like X and LinkedIn. To get noticed, offer advice relevant to clients on how they can improve their writing and content strategy.
3. Become a Virtual Assistant
Virtual assistants are becoming increasingly popular in the UK. A survey by Deloitte found that 35% of UK businesses currently use VAs and an additional 37% plan to hire VAs within the next two years.
Much like an in-person assistant, VAs take on a range of tasks to help free up their clients’ schedules. From filling in spreadsheets with business data to making phone calls, VAs perform a number of different tasks throughout the workday.
How to Get Started
If you have past experience in an admin role or use these kinds of skills in your day-to-day life, then you may not need much additional training to find online work as a VA.
However, if you’d like to brush up your skills, you can look into several online courses. One of the most popular ones is the one offered by The VA Training Academy.
Once you feel ready to start work, consider trying to land clients by contacting companies directly to offer your services. To pitch your services, email general company emails (never with the first name, e.g. sarah@companyx.com, as this goes against GDPR) with a brief presentation of your services and a link to your website.
You can also work with an agency that hires virtual assistants. If you’re looking for a “middle man” to help you find and manage clients, applying to VA agencies could be a great option.
4. Open an Ecommerce Store
The UK is home to one of the largest ecommerce markets in Europe. Ecommerce stores are an appealing option if you’ve always wanted to run your own shop but haven’t had the money to spend on business premises.
Ecommerce stores typically boast low startup costs of under £100 for hosting, a domain name, and a subscription with an ecommerce platform.
From open-source solutions that you can use to fully customise your store to out-of-the-box platforms that offer hosting and management, there are a number of great ecommerce platforms, such as Shopify, that you can use to sell your own product lines.
If you’re also looking for a provider to handle storage, packing, and postage then you can look into dropshipping. This option lets you send products directly from a supplier to your customers.
How to Get Started
To set up your ecommerce store, it’s important to research which products will perform well. While having an interest in the products you’re selling can make running a store more fun and help motivate you to step up your marketing, it’s essential that there’s a demand for your products and that they can help you turn a solid profit.
Not sure which product you’d like to sell? Here are some of the top ideas for dropshipping products.
Next, we recommend looking into the different ecommerce platforms you can use to host and manage your store. These include factors like features, cost, whether they offer hosting and domain names, and customer support options.
5. Sell Homemade Crafts
Whether you’re a talented pottery maker or love whipping up scented candles, selling your homemade crafts can be one of the most rewarding business ideas. If you’ve always been artistic or create arts and crafts in your spare time, monetising your talents and using your skills to start an online business can seem like an intuitive leap.
In addition, starting a creative business online could also be an excellent move for your mental health. According to the latest research, people in creative jobs are happier than those in non-creative fields. According to one study, the average happiness rating in creative jobs sits between 7.32 and 7.67 — while the average happiness level for people in non-artistic jobs fell to 7.06.
How to Get Started
Ecommerce websites like Etsy, Folksy, or ASOS Marketplace were built with independent designers and creators in mind. Depending on the kinds of goods you offer, you can set up a store on one or more platforms.
If you sell a particular good, it’s also worth researching platforms tailored to your specific offering. For example, if you sell art prints or canvases, a site like Printful could be a great platform to get your art out there.
6. Write a Book
Many people dream of writing and publishing their own book — with 81% of people reporting that they’d love to write a book one day. From detective mysteries to non-fiction guides, you may already have an idea for a book.
With so many avenues for self-publishing, publishing and selling copies of your own book can be a viable business option. In particular, platforms like Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing give you an avenue for self-publishing and full creative control over the book content, cover design, and pricing.
How to Get Started
Writing a book isn’t easy, and publishing and turning a profit can be even harder. In fact, only 10% of all first drafts actually make it to be a final product. But getting a book out there can be one of the most rewarding things you do in your life.
To keep yourself on track, we recommend setting aside a set amount of hours each week to work on your book. Once you’re happy with your basic first draft, get feedback and input from others. While family and friends can give you insight, writing groups of fellow writers can typically provide invaluable constructive creative feedback to help you refine your draft. To find one, Google “writing group” or “writers’ guild” and your location.
Once you’ve refined your draft, look into a self-publishing platform like Amazon Kindle Direct.
7. Sell Beauty Products
The beauty and cosmetics market is one of the biggest in the UK, with the industry growing 9.7% year-on-year. The UK ranks as the fourth highest country for average beauty spend with Brits spending an average of £184.06 each year on skincare, bathcare, haircare, and cosmetics.
From custom perfumes to organic bath products, this can be an excellent niche for an online business if you have an interest in self-care and an in-depth knowledge of different ingredients.
Here are some more words on wisdom from independent beauty brand owner at The Balm Shop & Co, Crystal Williams:
1). Don’t over buy. There’s nothing worse than being stuck with a lot of packaging that you no longer use, so leave room for your business to evolve.
2). Don’t be afraid to pivot away from what isn’t working. If a product isn’t resonating with a customer, consider rethinking your strategy, presentation and pitch.
3). Avoid trying to be all things to all people. This is virtually impossible! Your perfect customer is out there. You just need to find him or her.
How to Get Started
To run a successful beauty business, it’s important to source the best ingredients, while keeping profitability in mind. People will often pay more for high-quality and organic ingredients with interesting product and packaging designs.
As a beauty brand, you also need to follow UK Cosmetic Regulations:
1. You need to test your ingredients and products for safety — you must perform tests on all ingredients to see if they are safe for use — including in terms of purity and the concentration you wish to use them in. In addition, you also need to test to make sure your products are free from harmful microorganisms, bacteria, and fungi.
2. You should make sure that all of your cosmetics are labeled correctly — you must provide manufacturer information, directions for safe use, and a full list of ingredients.
3. You must follow advertising guidelines — claims must be truthful and you should avoid making any claims that may be interpreted as therapeutic or medical.
4. You must keep records to show you have complied with the UK Cosmetic Regulations outlined above. This includes keeping a Product Information File for up to ten years after a product launch, this file includes: a product description, product safety report, GMP certificate, and evidence for the cosmetic product’s effects.
Once you’ve got your ingredients down and have the right legal infrastructure in place, take a look into a website builder like Wix as well as online marketplaces like Etsy — where you can sell your products.
8. Create Apps
The Apple App Store and Google Play Store are home to more than 2.87 million apps, and that number continues to grow. With so many people using multiple apps throughout the day, if you have a creative idea and some tech-savviness, then app building could be a great potential avenue for an online business venture.
According to Will Swan, writer for The Startup, there are several essential questions every prospective app builder should ask themselves:
1. Will your app solve a problem?
2. How will your app solve the problem?
3. Are you building the app for yourself?
4. Who will your users be?
5. Are you doing it purely to make money?
6. Can you afford to build the app?
7. Do you trust people to work with you?
8. Will your app require support?
9. What platform will you choose?
10. Are you aware of the competition?
11. Are you ready for more research?
12. Do you understand the privacy and security implications?
13. Will your app be usable?
14. Are you prepared to receive honest feedback?
15. Are you willing to wait for organic growth?
How to Get Started
If you don’t yet have the skills you need to turn your software ideas into something tangible then look into training. From CodeBase to Girls Code First, there are a number of providers of affordable or free training on coding throughout the UK. Once you have your skills down, look into app creators like AppSheet, Appian, and Power Apps.
9. Curate Subscription Boxes
Brits love a subscription box — with 29% of Brits
having signed up for a subscription box and people in the UK spending over £2 billion each year on curated boxes.
If you love curating gift hampers for loved ones, then a subscription box can be an excellent choice for an online business. Here are some ideas to get you brainstorming:
1. Niche snack boxes — Such as specialist chocolate or healthy snacks.
2. Literature boxes — You could feature books of particular themes each month, such as “fantasy romance,” “meditation,” or “life transitions.”
3. Jewelry making boxes — Feature a selection of different gems, crafting directions, and beads.
4. Tea box — Sure to be a hit for Brits across the UK, build a box of curated teas paired biscuits.
How to Get Started
Once you’ve come up with a box idea, it’s time to look into suppliers. Research a number of independent and larger brands and order products and samples. Always try the products before you start building your boxes.
Next, work on your operations and pricing. Draw a plan that covers:
1. How often you’ll deliver your boxes
2. Your monthly or annual budget
3. How many and what type of products you’ll feature each month
4. Shipping, delivery, and manufacturing partners
