Work at Home Mom Jobs that Don't Suck

Are work at home mom jobs that don’t suck actually a thing?

How can I find a work at home job that actually allows me to pay bills and feel good about my career?

When you’re thinking about making the switch to working from home permanently, it’s definitely overwhelming.

When you search for “work at home mom jobs” you’ll come up with a lot of junky results and some of them might seem like good ideas for a split second. Taking surveys, money-making apps, micro-tasks that you can earn 0.05 doing... the list goes on.

None of these work for long-term, stable income, though.

How to make (actual) money as a stay at home mom

There are actually tons of career paths or businesses you can start as a stay at home mom. But I have to be honest with you upfront - you will have to put in some work to be able to see results from any of these options.

The best work at home mom jobs that provide regular income are these two situations:

1. You offer services as a freelancer/independent contractor
2. You work remotely for a company as an employee

There are a couple of other viable paths as well - but they take a while longer to earn a consistent income. Things like starting an online shop, blogging, or creating a social media following that allows you to earn from sponsored posts and affiliate opportunities.

If you need to make money now or within the next few months, my recommendation to you is to start with whichever of the first 2 options (freelancing or getting a remote job) appeals to you the most. You can easily start making considerable money within your first 30 days as a freelancer if you commit to doing the work.

If you can wait 1+ years before making a stable income, then you can start with the shop, blog, or social media route, if that's what you want to do. Realistically, you’re looking at 1-2 years before you start seeing a full-time income from those things.

Set specific goals for yourself in terms of your work and income.

Once you’ve hit them each month, set aside some time to build up that blog or whatever it is you want to do. If you’re able to pull that off, that’s awesome - your blog, shop, or social media will already have some momentum going once you’re ready to focus more on it.

What to look for in a remote job as a work from home mom

As parents or caretakers, we’re in a unique position as work from home employees or contractors. A lot of times, we can’t always answer the phone, for example. So that makes certain jobs more difficult for us to excel at.

This places things like customer service off of the table for most work at home moms. As a mom, you need a job that doesn’t have unrealistic expectations - you probably can’t or don’t want to run around with a headset on all day. You probably don’t want to be on-call all day, either.

So we need to focus on freelance careers that are a bit more flexible in terms of communication and deadlines. These are some freelance jobs that are perfect for moms in that way.

1.) Web design

This is what I do! You don’t actually need a ton of coding skills to be a web designer, though it’s great to have some CSS and Javascript under your belt as you're leveling up.

If you’re a reasonably technical person and you think you’d enjoy putting together layouts, selecting color palettes, and organizing information on websites, this might be something for you to look into.

A lot of moms become web designers because of the earning potential, the long project timelines that allow for flexibility, and the way this job exercises your technical and creative skills at the same time.

You set your rate as a freelancer and web design is a service that varies widely in price.

Web design beginners can charge between $300-$2000 for full sites depending on the scope and deliverables. As an intermediate-advanced web designer, you can charge anywhere between $1000-$10000+ per site and this depends on the complexity of the site (what features are needed, etc.) and the scope of the project.

A website is a powerful marketing tool when created with a strategy in mind, so it’s important to not undercharge for this work if you’re crafting sites mindfully and with the purpose of helping your clients’ businesses grow.

You can also choose to work with a web developer for any more technical aspects of the job that you’re not able to complete, so if you're interested but afraid of coding, this is the way to go. Aside from web developers, web designers often collaborate with project managers and copywriters to complete the full website build.

2.) Content/blog post writing

Blogs and company websites around the world all have one thing in common. They need content! Blog posts are a powerful inbound marketing tool - meaning they help companies reach new customers.

And a lot of the time, companies don’t have the time or the staff to write all of that content for them. That’s where you can swoop in and solve their problems.

A solid content writer has a portfolio of work within the industry (or industries) they specialize in. To build this up, you can write some example pieces, do some guest posting, or do some cheap work for media outlets in your target industry.

As a content writer, you might seek out and form partnerships with blog owners, business owners, or course creators in your industry. You can find business owners in need of writers a few different ways, but here are a few examples for how you might connect with some:

• Business-related Facebook groups
• LinkedIn, Twitter, or Instagram
• Local networking
• Connecting with marketing agencies - many of these agencies build websites for their clients and are open to connecting with new writers for their client’s content

You could also pitch article ideas to media outlets that pay up to $700 for a blog post. You can also check out freelance job boards like ProBlogger and Blogging Pro for writing gigs that look promising - these are updated daily and there’s a surprising number of opportunities out there.

As a content writer, you set a base rate and you might be open to getting paid more or less than that depending on what different clients or media outlets pay per word or per article.

Per word, beginners can make $0.03-$0.20 while more advanced content writers can make $0.10-$0.60+ per word. Take a look at this list of freelance writing rates by The Balance for a breakdown of different types of writing and what you can expect to make from them.

When I was a freelance writer, I preferred to offer a package of 2-4 blog posts per month that were 1-1.5k words each and offered it at a set price. (I offered 2 posts for $600 or 4 posts plus some post graphics and extra bits for $1200) Don’t be afraid to ask for more or decline a job if you don’t feel like the rate is fair.

Related reading: How to Get Started with Freelance Writing

3.) Proofreading or editing

These are two separate crafts, but I’m lumping them in together because of their similarities.

Proofreading is a lighter version of editing - you’re looking for grammatical issues and misspellings - things like that.

Editing can mean all of that, plus rearranging entire sentences, deleting words and sentences, and improving the quality of a piece of writing overall.

And there are TONS of people and businesses online who need proofreading or editing services. The amount of content that gets put out online is huge - and a lot of it is mission-critical for those businesses.

Blog posts, social media posts, email newsletters, press releases, whitepapers, ads… the list goes on.

All of this stuff needs to be looked over and if they don’t have someone on-hand to do that, they will hire it out. You can also proofread or edit entire books if you’re into working on bigger projects.

Editors and proofreaders typically charge a per-word rate or an hourly rate of around $20-$60+/hr. Check out the current rates over at the Editorial Freelance Association.

4.) Graphic design or brand design

Most companies have graphic design needs and a lot of them are recurring. For example, we’ve already talked about how a lot of brands and blogs need recurring content for their blogs. Most of the time, those blog posts need accompanying graphics - either within the posts or for social media.

And that’s just one example of regular graphics that businesses need. On top of that, you might design email newsletters, social media graphics, website graphics, logos and brands, patterns, ads, or do some illustration.

Graphic designers usually set a package rate based on what they’re creating for the business. Some designers set an hourly rate, as well. I’d say an average hourly rate for a graphic designer is $25-$250 depending on your experience and portfolio. For a brand design package, brand designers can make anywhere from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand.

Graphic design is one of those industries where people will tell you that the industry is saturated, but I don’t agree with that at all. Sure, there are a lot of graphic designers out there, but there are more businesses, brands, and blogs who need design services. And people in nearly every industry say that their industry is saturated.

At the end of the day, graphic design is one of the most powerful ways for businesses to SOLVE that problem and differentiate themselves from other, competing brands in their industry.

5.) Podcast management

Podcasts are exploding. They have been for years, really. But they’re also a lot of work for the people who create podcasts.

You can alleviate most of that work by offering podcast management services.

As a podcast manager, you’ll usually set a flat, monthly fee to manage a podcast. You’ll decide what’s included in your package, but here are some examples of what you might do:

• Podcast episodes editing
• Submitting episodes to the podcast platforms
• Uploading and embedding podcast episodes on your client’s website
• Writing episode descriptions
• Managing a podcast-related Facebook group
• Creating social media posts and graphics related to the podcast
• Promoting the podcast
• Sourcing guests for the podcast
• Scheduling guest interviews
• Publishing show notes
• Securing advertisements for the podcast

I’m sure I’m missing some stuff here as well, but if you’re interested in helping with podcast management, I’d recommend getting started with audio editing so that you know your way around your main tool.

Also, take a look at some podcast manager websites to see what’s included in their packages. To get some hands-on experience, try landing a client at a reduced rate so that you can learn as you earn. Podcast management is such a hugely integral part of the success of any podcast, so once you’ve got experience under your belt, make sure you charge an adequate amount for your time.

I’ve seen podcast management packages go for between $500-$3k per month depending on what’s included.

6.) Copywriting

As a copywriter, you write words that are supposed to sell things. That sounds kinda vague, but essentially you’re writing words for website pages, sales pages and funnels, ads, email newsletters, or social media.

There’s a lot more to it than that, but businesses need experienced copywriters in order to make the most sales possible.

This is a skill that is highly-valued because good copywriting is directly correlated to more sales and profit. Similarly to content writing and general freelance writing, you’ll set a per word rate or a package-based rate.

If you feel intimidated by the idea of copywriting (because so much of a business’s success will depend on you) then start out with content writing! It’s a bit less complicated, though you’ll still want to keep your skills sharp.

Copywriters can make $40-$200 per hour depending on your expertise and the results you're able to achieve for your clients.

Let me set you up with some links to learn more about copywriting and how you can make it your job:

• Copybloggers: Copywriting 101
• HubSpot: How to Write Copy that People Notice, Read, and Trust
• Copyhackers: Ultimate List of Copywriting Dos and Don’ts

7.) Social media management

Social media management is a popular work from home mom job and I can see the draw. It’s not incredibly technical, but you’ll still need to do research for your clients to make sure they get results. You’ll use your brain every day for sure but there’s not a lot that you’ll need advanced training on.

As a social media manager, you’ll usually create packages that dictate which platforms you’ll manage for your clients, whether you create posts or they do, and how many posts you’ll create or schedule for them.

A lot of the time, you will also develop a custom social media strategy for each client. This is usually based on market research within the client’s niche. What’s working? What’s not landing right? You’ll run an analytics report weekly or monthly and adjust your strategy based on that data.

Some SMMs prefer to focus on one or two platforms, while others try to provide services for all of them. If I did social media management, I’d probably choose Instagram, Pinterest, and maybe Facebook. 

You'll likely develop a pricing strategy that is based off of a package-based rate. For example: $500 for 3 posts per week including content creation and scheduling for 2 platforms.

8.) Virtual Assistant

One of the most “entry-level” online jobs for moms is virtual assisting. Don’t get me wrong, though, there are plenty of opportunities for high-level VA’s, though, so it can absolutely be a lucrative career path that you stick to if you end up loving it.

A lot of new work at home moms choose virtual assisting because you can try out so many different things and get paid for doing them. Eventually, you’ll have a good idea of what types of virtual tasks you enjoy doing and what kind of tasks you want to avoid at all costs.

As a business owner, you call the shots! So you get to decide what services you offer. As a VA, you might offer some of these services:

• Social media content creation
• Social media scheduling
• Editing or proofreading blog posts
• Sourcing images for websites and blog posts
• Adding product descriptions to a website
• Calendar management
• Scheduling
• Travel booking
• Light graphic and/or web design

Check out this list of 60+ virtual assistant service ideas if you’re drawing a blank on what to offer your clients!

There are so many kinds of virtual assistants out there and a lot of them choose to stick to a few services rather than spreading themselves too thin by trying to offer anything and everything.

I think that being a virtual assistant is one of the best work at home mom jobs for moms who don't 100% know what they want to do yet.

Start here, make some money, do some networking, and I can almost guarantee you that one of three things will happen if you do decide to keep working from home.

• You'll get into your groove as a virtual assistant, get awesome results for your clients, and lock in those higher rates.
• You'll do virtual assisting for a while and then switch over to one of the other work at home mom jobs on this list.
• You could do some VA work for a while until your blog/YouTube channel/shop takes off!

Virtual assisting as a work at home mom job is honestly awesome because you can start off by doing something super basic, like email inbox management and you can teach yourself more skills and level up as you go, on your own schedule.

The average virtual assistant charges anywhere between $10-$40/hour and it's expected for you to raise your rates as you specialize and get better results for your clients.

9.) Online Business Manager

So this is one of the only work at home mom jobs on this list that I didn't know about before I started in the freelancing/online business world. An online business manager (abbreviated as OBM) is pretty much exactly what it sounds like it is.

As an OBM, you're managing the day to day operations of someone's business. You call a lot of the shots so that the business owner can go about their day-to-day life, go on vacation, or do whatever the heck it is they want to do. Because of all that responsibility, OBMs usually command a higher fee than a lot of the other work at home mom jobs on this list.

That being said, a lot of the time OBMs have already had experience working as a virtual assistant or a project manager of some sort in the digital world.

That's not necessarily true for all OBMs, though. I know of a lot of great OBMs who came straight from a corporate management position. I’m not a corporate gal, though, so if you’re like me, I’d recommend doing some virtual assistant work first.

The coolest thing about choosing online business management out of the zillion and a half work at home mom jobs available out there is that it's such a high-value skillset. You'll be providing tons of value to your clients and a lot of times, you'll be able to help them grow their businesses in a super-tangible way. Super fulfilling job for sure.

One of the best resources related to becoming an OBM is Sarah Noked’s website, blog, and course. You don’t need to be certified to become an online business manager, but a lot of OBMs choose to start off by getting certified or to go through the certification course as their carre ramps up.

As an OBM, your monthly retainer fee (what you’ll charge clients month-by-month) might be anywhere from 1k-10k to start. Most OBMs, even in the beginning, only have a few clients rather than taking on every project that comes their way.

10.) Ads Manager

Businesses run ads to get more customers to their site or store. Local businesses AND online businesses run ads.

You can become a social media ads consultant or start an ads agency that helps businesses start running and scale up profitable ads. As you can probably tell, this is a skill that businesses are willing to pay a decent chunk of change for.

And if you’re able to deliver the results they’re looking for as an ad manager, they are unlikely to let go of you. You might create and run ads for Facebook, Instagram, Google, YouTube, Snapchat, Pinterest, Tiktok, or another platform. Maybe you do ads for all of them!

I’d start by getting great with one platform and grow from there.

Usually, ads managers charge a flat ad management fee for a certain number of campaigns or ad sets. So, you might charge an ad management fee of $300 or $500 or $1500 to run ads for a certain amount of time.

On top of the management fee, the business pays for the ad budget. Many ad managers only accept clients who will spend a certain amount of money per month on their ads because this gives you more flexibility to test different ad sets and figure out what actually works the best for your clients.

A bigger budget paired with ads that have been tested and revised to be profitable just means more profit for your client, which is what you want at the end of the day.

11.) Fitness or health coach

If you love personal fitness or nutrition, explore the option of becoming an online health coach of some sort. There are so many different paths you could take here, so sorry if this is a bit vague.

Most health coaches that I know of online have a personal training certification or a nutrition certification of some sort. Some are registered dietitians. Some help clients with specific dietary restrictions.

There are a lot of busy people who have health and/or fitness goals they’re reaching for but haven’t been able to get there using free apps or their local gym.

As a health/fitness coach or trainer, you can provide a customized plan for each of your clients as well as regular accountability to help them reach their goals.

You might meet with them for an initial consultation and then once or twice a week for a virtual accountability check-in. Or you might choose to be on a video call with them for every workout!

It’s all up to you and what you think would work best for your business. Here’s an article that talks about what to look for in an online personal trainer so that you can start brainstorming what your online fitness or nutrition business might look like.

Wrapping up: How I picked a work at home mom job that actually worked for me and my family

When I started out working from home, I wasn’t a mom yet and I still had a full-time job. After having my daughter, we moved across the country and we decided we needed to get rid of one of our cars to save some money.

After that, I really didn’t have a choice! I needed to work from home. But I also needed to take care of my kid. So, I jumped into virtual assisting and freelance writing. I liked writing best because I felt a bit more in control of my schedule and writing came a lot more naturally to me.

After a while, I decided to pivot to web design. I’d been messing around with WordPress since it came out and I learned to code in middle school, so I brushed up on my skills and went for it. And it was totally my thing!

It’s totally normal if you end up trying a few things before you land on something that you don’t feel a lot of resistance toward. At the end of the day, you should enjoy your job (at least most of the time) so be open to learning new things and exploring different opportunities!

Networking with other business owners and finding clients online

One of the most helpful things I’ve learned as a work from home mom/person, in general, is that it’s pretty important to network with other business owners.

Networking will help you find clients, meet other business owners to share tips and ideas, and to collaborate and co-create mutually beneficial stuff with other business owners.

One of the best places I’ve found for networking online is in business/entrepreneurship-related Facebook groups.

Here's how to find them:

• Open Facebook and search for "business," "networking," "entrepreneurs," and "small business owners."
• At the top or side of the page, you should be able to specify that you're looking for groups only. Do that. Now, you should see a list of groups you can join.
• Join the groups that look like they might be helpful or relevant to what you do. Join groups that look like you could add value to.
• Search for more groups to join: Try out local keywords or get even more specific with your searches. Search for your industry or a specific platform or tool that you use. For example, Instagram, WordPress, Planoly, Knitting Patterns, Dog Treats, Candle Making, or Kajabi.

I’ve found about half of my clients in those kinds of groups and even made a few friends, so I’d definitely recommend joining a few!

Stay open to advice and try out new productivity tips and scheduling ideas

If you're a newer mom, it can be helpful to read about different peoples' work from home mom survival tips to help boost your productivity.

It's genuinely tricky to figure out working from home with kids when you get started, so read and try as many tips as you can. Not all of them will work for you, but you'll for sure find a golden tip or two that has a positive effect on your workday.