Social media, creativity, connection, and commerce, Instagram has now become a platform where several niches collide. Now, people can even turn their posts into profits as the platform has become a source of income for many. Whether you’re hoping to boost your income or start a side hustle, knowing the 10 best ways to make money on Instagram in 2025 can give you a head start. So, without wasting much time, let’s jump right in!
10 Ways to Make Money on Instagram in 2025
From collaborating with brands to selling your own products, you can use Instagram in various ways to turn your profile into the next paycheck.
1. Sponsored Posts / Brand Partnerships
One of the easiest ways to make money on Instagram is through sponsored posts. Brands are always looking for influencers to promote their products, and if you have an engaged following, you can get paid for it. But you don’t need to have a massive following, even if you are a micro-influencer with a targeted audience then brands will approach you to sell their products. You can either get paid to make reels or get their product for free. The bigger your influence, the higher your rates can be. Just remember to tag sponsored posts with #ad or #sponsored to keep things transparent with your audience.
2. Selling Products & Services
Instagram is a great place to sell your own products or services. Having a platform with a billion users gives you a massive platform to start your own business. You can become a small business, artist, or freelancer. If your product and service are great, you will receive a good response. Many people sell handmade crafts, clothing, prints, or even services like photography or design that go for a huge price. Use Instagram Shopping to tag products in posts or link to your website in the bio. With the right visuals and captions, you can turn followers into buyers without needing a big offline shop.
3. Affiliate Marketing
Another popular way to get paid on Instagram is by taking up affiliate marketing. You recommend products you love and get paid a commission every time someone buys through your unique link or code. Amazon Associates, Shopify, and other affiliate programs work well on Instagram. Although affiliate marketing takes some time to kickstart but this is an easy way to make money without creating your own products or services. Make sure you share honest reviews, tutorials, and the items match your followers’ interests.
4. Instagram Shops/e-commerce integration
If you have an online store, then Instagram Shops lets you sell directly from your profile. With this feature, you can tag products directly in your posts, stories, and reels, making it easy for followers to shop without leaving the app. Usually, businesses selling products like clothes, accessories, or home décor often use it to get more engagement. You can also link your Shopify, Etsy, DePop, or other platform to tag products in posts and Stories. This makes shopping seamless for followers, and they can browse and buy without leaving
5. Creating & Selling Digital Products
No inventory? No problem. Digital products are a great way to earn money if you’re creative or have skills to share. For example, e-books, Lightroom presets, online courses, or templates can be sold repeatedly without extra effort. You can also use stories to share tips or previews that make people curious to buy. Once someone’s interested, you can send them to a link in your bio or directly message them the product. Since digital products require no shipping, they’re a low-maintenance way to earn.
6. User-generated content (UGC) collaborations
Nowadays, UGC has become the new rage all over Instagram Reels. Brands are always looking for authentic, relatable content that doesn’t look like an ad. So, they pay everyday users to create authentic content using their products. This means you don’t need to have a wide following or even post collaborations on your own page. If you’re good at creating beautiful or engaging visuals, you can get paid just for providing your photos or videos on their pages or ads. This is one of the top proven ways to make money on Instagram.
7. Driving Traffic to Monetized Blog or YouTube Channel
You don’t have to always focus on earning money only from Instagram. You can also make it a funnel for people to engage with you on other social media platforms. For example, if you have a monetized blog post, you can share snippets from it and ask users to visit your website to read more. You can post previews, behind-the-scenes clips, or interesting highlights to make followers curious to click the link to your YouTube channel. This way, the more visitors you get, the more you earn through ads.
8. Monetize Content Through Instagram Live
Many users don’t know, but Instagram Live can be a money-maker if you know its perks. The platform has Live badges that viewers can buy during your live streams to support you. These badges come in various price ranges, giving you more money if someone sends an expensive badge. You could use Lives to host Q&As, tutorials, or fun interactive sessions. The more engaging your livestream, the more badges people may buy. However, this works for established pages that have garnered an authentic following throughout the years, so this strategy can take time. In the meantime, you can promote products, courses, or coaching services and get more engagement.
9. Offering Paid Promotions/Ads
If you’ve built up a good following, offering paid promotions or ads for other accounts is an easy way to make extra money. Businesses often pay influencers for shoutouts or promotional posts about a product, service, or Instagram page to help them reach your audience. Depending upon the contract, you can shout out in your story, a post on your feed, or a mention in a reel. You can set your prices depending on how many followers and engagement you have. Charge based on your engagement rate or follower count.
10. Using Paid Subscriptions
Instagram also has a Paid Subscriptions feature, which lets followers pay for exclusive content. This could include bonus behind-the-scenes posts, private stories, subscriber-only live streams, special badges, or early access to products. If you have an audience willing to pay you to see extra content, then this is a great way to earn passive income from Instagram.
Also Read: How to Remove or Delete Comment on Instagram
Now you will no longer have a difficult time figuring out what the 10 best ways to make money on Instagram in 2025 are after following this guide. For more helpful tips and tricks, stay tuned, and feel free to share your suggestions in the comments below.
