Looking for smart ways to earn on the side while at home or travelling Australia? This guide covers how to generate passive income in Australia, with 9 practical ideas you can start today.

Are you a homebody, someone working hard to make a living, or travelling Australia and wish you had a little extra money each month? Well, you’re not alone. It’s why many people, including myself are looking for flexible ways to earn extra income. This is where passive income comes in. 

Having passive income is a great way to earn money without having to work hard for it every day. If this sounds like something you are interested in doing, and who wouldn’t be. I’ve done some research and put together this post with ideas to help you (and me) to start earning a passive income in Australia – for when I’m home or travelling Australia.

 

What is Passive Income?

 

What exactly is passive income I hear you ask? Well, passive income is money earned from different things, like assets, that require minimal ongoing effort. There is some initial effort, but once set up, effort should be minimal. And as they say ‘you will be earning money in your sleep!’.

 

How Do You Make Passive Income?

 

Income is not from ‘get rich quick programs’ but rather creating assets that work for you. In a nut shell, passive income is generated from assets like dividend paying shares, rental properties, digital products, joining affiliate programs on websites, high earning investments or drop shipping, to name a few.

I classify them into roughly two types. The first type is the more traditional type that has been around a long time: shares, rental properties, high interest earning investments. Then there are the new type of passive income options: affiliate income on websites, selling digital products and services and being a content creator or influencer generating income on social media platforms.

 

Top Passive Income Ideas in Australia for Home or Travel

 

1. Dividend-paying Shares

 

One way people have been making passive income is by investing in dividend-paying shares. If you are ready to put your savings to work, this is a good option. Basically, you invest in shares of a business that pay dividends. The price does go up and down depending on the markets, but there is passive income here to be made. You can get yourself a broker to buy and sell the shares for you or do it yourself on an on-line platform such as CommSec.

If you like to buy and sell shares as a day trader read this first

 

2. ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds)

 

Don’t want the pressure of picking out individual stocks? No worries. ETFs bundle together a bunch of companies so you can invest in a whole market or industry at once. Many pay regular dividends and will tick along happily in the background.

Where do you find ETFs to invest in? You can buy and sell ETFs in Australia through online stockbrokers like CommSec, CMC Invest or SelfWealth. There are other smaller platforms such as Betashares Direct, Stockpot or CommSec Pocket. EFTs are listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).

 

3. Rental properties

 

This is an old-school favourite, and for good reason. Whether you are retirees renting out your home or a young couple doing the same while you travel, renting out your property can give you a consistent income, especially if the rent covers your mortgage and then some. Same if you have worked hard and bought an investment property or two that generates decent rental income. 

 

4. Caravan rental

 

And speaking of renting our properties, why not rent out your assets. Yep, your camper van or caravan is considered an asset and when you aren’t using it, you could rent it out. What a great way to make some passive income.

There are platforms that let you rent out your camper van or caravan. Check out Camplify if this is of interest.

 

5. REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts)

 

Still on property and asses, if you like the idea of rental income but can’t afford to buy a house or don’t want to deal with property management, Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) are an option. REITs let you invest in big property portfolios. This could be office buildings, shopping centres or warehouses. The investment earns you a share of the rental income, without having to do any of the hands-on work.

 

6. High-interest savings accounts

 

When I was growing up, having a high-interest saving accounts was a great way to earn money. Since the banks were always taking my money with charges having the bank pay me high interest on my money was a good feeling!

Nowadays, this options may not be the most exciting, particularly as you usually need to put money away for an agreed period or must put money in each month. But, having a high-interest savings account can add up. So while you are enjoying being home or travelling Australia, you money could be in a high-interest savings account earning your passive income. And with rates higher than they have been in the last few years, the right savings account could be quietly earning your some cash in the background.

Start by seeing what your current savings account interest rate is. Then check out other accounts to find the right high-interest savings account.

 

7. Selling digital products

 

The internet was not invented in a single day, but rather evolved over decades. It was in the 1980s when it began communicating with other computers. As it has evolved into what we know today, it offers people different opportunities to make passive income on-line.

One way to make passive income on-line to support you at home or while you are travelling around Australia is to sell digital products. What are digital products I hear you ask? Digital products are intangible, non-physical things created, sold and delivered on-line. They are delivered usually as a downloadable file, streaming media or web-based access. 

What digital products can you sell on-line? Digital products sold on-line include items such as e-books, on-line courses, templates, software and digital art. 

The idea for selling digital products is that you make it once, then sell it forever. You can sell your e-products on websites and platforms such as Amazon KDP, Shopify and Etsy.

 

8. Print-on-demand Merchandise (Merch)

 

You don’t need to be a designer to design and sell merchandise on the internet. Whether you have an idea for your merchandise, or prefer to have someone else design it, there are print-on-demand companies who will take care of your orders by printing and posting your products. Very similar to dropshipping, where you sell other companies or individual’s products.

Print-on-demand passive income is great for t-shirts, mugs, tote bags.

 

9. Affiliate marketing

 

Get paid to recommend things you already use by joining their affiliate program. Basically, being an affiliate means for every product or item you sell you will earn a commission. So if you have a blog, newsletter or social media page you can share your affiliate link and when people buy through your links, voila, you earn commission. 

READ MORE: How to Start a Blog and Make Money About Your Aussie Travels.

 

Passive Income Considerations 

 

Before getting started on passive income ideas consider a few things:

 

Time vs. Money

 

Some passive income ideas cost more upfront so consider how much you are willing to invest to get the idea off the ground. Also, some passive income ideas aren’t instant money earners and take time to build into profitable income. 

 

Risk tolerance

 

Be prepared there can be a high risk tolerance with passive incomes. Can you handle volatility and ups and downs with markets? Some income streams carry more risk than others and you need to be prepared to loose as well as win.

 

Diversify

 

Have you heard the saying ‘don’t put all your eggs in one basket’. Very true, so try to have a few different investments so you aren’t relying on one passive income sources.

 

Think long-term

 

Most passive income options take a while to build up so they are providing a decent income. Be prepared to wait for results.

Not able to wait – Get a job as you travel Australia to make money to fund your travels.

 

Are You Ready to Make Some Passive Income

 

I hope the passive income ideas in this post prove fruitful for you to help you travel Australia. Or just add some extra cash into your pocket.