Bigfollow•04. Juli 2025•

Turn your hobby into a side job

You love scrolling through Instagram, posting beautiful pictures and sharing your Stories to share with friends? Great! But have you ever wondered: How do you earn money with Instagram? Perhaps you have heard of big Influencers who get rich with posts and think this is out of reach for you. The good news: that's not true!

Nowadays, anyone with the right strategy can start working on Social Media earn a small side income or even a full salary. You don't have to be a superstar with millions of Subscribers be. It's more about being clever and authentic.

In this guide, we'll explain step by step how you can use your Instagram account to Earn money can. We don't use complicated words and show you different ways that really work - even for beginners. Let's find out together how you can turn your hobby into cash.

The most important foundation: Find your topic and build a real community

Before we talk about money, we need to talk about the foundation. Imagine you're building a house. You don't start with the roof, do you? With Instagram, your topic and your community are the foundation.

Find your niche: What are you passionate about?

A "niche" is simply your specific topic. Something you like to talk about and know a lot about. It can be anything:

• Cooking or baking (e.g. only vegan recipes)
• Read and rate books
• Hiking in the Swiss Alps
• Gaming tips for a specific game
• Fashion for small budgets
• Tips for your own garden

Why is that so important? If you have a clear topic, you attract people who are interested in exactly that. These are your loyal followers.

Real followers are worth their weight in gold

It's not about having as many followers as possible. It's much better to have 1,000 real Subscribers who like, comment on and trust your posts than 10,000 purchased followers who are just a silent number. Companies that want to work with you look closely at this interaction. An active community is the key to Monetization.

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The 5 easiest ways to make money with Instagram

Okay, your foundation is in place. You have a topic and are slowly building up a loyal community. What's the next step in earning money? Here are the 5 most common and easiest methods.

Way 1: Affiliate Marketing - Recommend products you love

It sounds complicated, but it's super simple. This is how it works: Imagine it like this: You recommend a blender that you think is really great. You receive a special link to this blender from the company. You put this link in your bio or your Stories. If one of your followers clicks on your link and buys the blender, you will receive a small commission from the company as a thank you. The great thing about this is that the product does not become more expensive for the buyer!

How to get started:

• Find programs: The best known program is Amazon PartnerNet. Almost anyone can register there. But there are also many other companies that offer such programs.
• Place affiliate links: You can use the Affiliate links in your Instagram bio (using a tool like Linktree to collect multiple links) or in your Stories with the link sticker. Always be honest and write that it is an advertising link.

Path 2: Paid partnerships - become an influencer

This is the classic route that most people take with Influencer marketing connect. This is how it works: Companies pay you to show and talk about their products in your posts or stories. So you're basically advertising for them.

How to get started:

• Be found: As your profile grows and you have an active community, small companies may approach you on their own.
• Inquire yourself: Don't be afraid to write directly to brands that you really like and that match your topic and suggest a cooperation.
• Create media kit: It's like a little CV for your Instagram profile. It tells you who you are, what your topic is, how many followers you have and how active your community is.

Anna and her passion for baking: a real-life example

Anna loves baking cakes and posts her creations on Instagram. She only has 800 followers at the beginning, but they love her recipes. She starts with Affiliate Marketing and links her favorite baking pan from Amazon. She only earns a little per sale, but it adds up. When she had 2,000 followers, she wrote to a small, local flour mill and asked if she could introduce their flour. The company is delighted and not only sends her free flour, but also pays her for two posts. Anna is now a microInfluencer!

Path 3: Sell your own products - your own online store

This is the most direct way to Earn money. You are not dependent on other companies. This is how it works: You sell your own items directly to your followers.

What you can sell:

• Physical products: Handmade jewelry, home-knitted hats, painted pictures.
• Digital products: This is great for beginners! You create it once and can sell it an infinite number of times. Examples are e-books (e.g. Anna's recipe book), photo filters (presets) or fitness plans.
• Print on Demand: You create a design (e.g. a funny slogan) and a company only prints it on a T-shirt, mug or bag when someone orders it. So you don't have to pre-produce anything.

To sell your products, you can use a simple Online Shop with providers such as Shopify or Etsy and place the link in your Instagram bio.

Way 4: Use Instagram's own tools for monetization

Instagram itself also offers you options to directly earn money via the app. These functions are constantly being expanded.

• Badges on Instagram Live: When you go live, your viewers can buy you "badges" to support you. It's like a little tip for your work.
• Subscriptions: With this feature, your most loyal fans can pay a monthly fee to see exclusive content from you that others won't see.
• Bonus programs: Sometimes Instagram Creator invites you to participate in bonus programs where you get money for reaching certain goals (e.g. many views on reels).

Path 5: Offer services - Use your skills

This way works great, even without advertising for products. This is how it works: You offer your own skills as a service. Your Instagram profile is your business card.

Examples:

• Are you a good photographer? Offer photo shoots.
• Do you know your way around social media? Offer to manage the channels of small companies.
• Are you a fitness trainer? Offer online coaching.

You use your posts and stories to show what you can do. A good Call to Action (call to action) at the end of your posts, such as "Write me a DM for your personal coaching", can work wonders.

A controversial topic: buying Instagram followers

Some people choose to start with Buy Instagram followersto make their profile look bigger and more important. This rapid increase in numbers is intended to generate "social proof" - in other words, to show others that the account is popular.

But you should be aware of the disadvantages: These purchased followers are usually not real people, but bots. They won't like your posts, they won't comment on them and they certainly won't buy anything. For companies that work for Influencer marketing such a profile is worthless, as there is no interaction. It also violates Instagram's guidelines. In the long term, it is always better to have real and loyal Subscribers to win, even if it takes longer.

FAQ: Frequently asked questions

How many followers earn you money on Instagram?

That is the most frequently asked question! There is no magic number. You can get by with just 1,000 loyal followers. Affiliate Marketing earn your first euros. For paid partnerships, companies are often interested in accounts with around 2,000-5,000 followers or more (so-called micro-influencers) if the community is very active. Engagement is more important than just the number of followers!

How much money do you earn with Instagram per 1000 views?

Unlike YouTube, Instagram does not pay you directly per 1000 views on a normal post or reel. As described above, the money comes from cooperations, sales or affiliate commissions. Your earnings therefore depend on how well you can convert your reach into sales or paid deals.

Do I have to register a business if I earn money with Instagram?

In most cases, yes. As soon as you intend to generate regular income, this is considered a commercial activity. The exact rules vary from country to country. It is very important that you find out about this, for example from a tax advisor or the local trade office. This is an important step to get everything right.

Conclusion: Your path to earning money with Instagram

So you see, the answer to the question "how to earn money with instagram" is multifaceted. It is not a "get rich quick" scheme, but requires time, passion and a bit of strategic thinking.

The most important points summarized:

1. Find your topic and build a real community.
2. Start with simple methods like Affiliate Marketing.
3. Be open to cooperationas your account grows.
4. Think about offering your own products or services.
5. Be authentic and honest to your followers.

The best part is that you can earn money with something you already enjoy. Try out what suits you, be patient and above all: have fun!

There are several ways to earn money with Instagram. Affiliate marketing, where you receive a commission by recommending products via special links, is popular for beginners. Other methods include paid partnerships with companies (influencer marketing), selling your own products (e.g. via an online store) or offering services.

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