Once I discovered I could make money writing, a whole new world opened up to me, but just as quickly as I discovered the opportunity, my hopes came tumbling down. I was charging between $10-$20 USD for a blog post. To make anything close to what it would take to run a sustainable freelance writing business, I’d have to write and edit 5,000+ words every single day.
That didn’t sound so bad, at first, but doing that day after day is no easy feat. Especially when you consider that as a freelance writer, you wear multiple hats and are typically responsible for researching and editing too. It took me longer than I would like to admit to discover freelance writing gigs that pay well—and even longer to start making good money.
You don’t have to struggle the same way. Use this post to find websites that will compensate you fairly for your time and your talent as a writer.
Note: My goal is to make this post a go-to resource for people who want to make money writing. The post will be updated monthly to ensure that all the sites on the list are currently accepting submissions. If you notice that a site is down or isn’t currently accepting new posts, please leave a comment.
Table of Contents
Make money writing: Earn $100+ from these websites (Updated in February 2022)
This is the list of 30 sites that pay $100 or more for articles. All of these websites are currently accepting submissions as of February 2022. There are a variety of niches and topics here, so you can find something you feel comfortable writing about.
Now, let’s get into the sites that can help you make money writing.
Websites that pay you to write about parenting, kids, and teens
National Research Center for Parents with Disabilities
Parents with disabilities are encouraged to provide personal essays for the National Research Center for Parents with Disabilities website. They choose a topic for each quarter. $100 will be given to the author of the chosen blog entry.
Go to the submission page
Family Story
Throughout your life, have you and your family had to deal with any forms of discrimination based on race, gender, sexual orientation, or class? Family Story is the website for you if you have a compelling story to tell and want to let the world know about it. Articles they publish will earn you $100.
PTO Today
With the help of school administrators, PTO Today serves as a source of support. It works to enhance children’s educational experiences. Parents who are members of the Parents-Teacher Organization can use your writing skills article about your experiences and suggestions to improve educational opportunities. The website pays between $125 and $500 per piece.
Go to the submission page
Yummy Mummy Club
Yummy Mummy Club acts as the lens through which Canadian women with kids find inclusive, intelligent, and unfiltered stories and opinions. They accept original, unpublished content and previously published content for syndication.
Freelance Mom
Entrepreneurship and the ability to work from home are two of the themes points of this website. Payouts up to $100 will be sent through PayPal if the team publishes your article.
Her View From Home
This website inspires and assists women in motherhood, marriage, relationships, faith, and mourning journeys. If your piece is published, you’ll be paid based on the number of page views it receives. Payouts of up to $100 will be made for posts that get 4,000 or more views.
Go to the submission page
Websites that pay you to write personal stories
Eureka Street
This website accepts unsolicited submissions of up to 800. Additionally, creative non-fiction and short stories of up to 1000 words are also eligible for $200 first publishing rights.
Go to the submission page
Long Reads
Longreads is interested in your true story, essays, and features. They ask for a minimum of 2500 words and a maximum of 10,000 words. They pay $500 for each personal essay.
Go to the submission page
Chicken Soup for the Soul
Submit your stories and you will be paid $200 on publication. Stories that are a good fit for this site are inspirational, true, and feature ordinary people having extraordinary experiences. They’re looking for posts to open the heart and rekindle the spirit.
Go to the submission page
The Sun Magazine
For fiction, non-fiction, and poetry, this magazine pays anything from $300 to $2000. They prefer personal stories. This is an ad-free reader-supported publication, so this is one place you can expect to reach many people with your work.
Go to the submission page
Reader’s Digest
Reader’s Digest is a prominent non-fiction magazine. It’s also known for its short non-fiction submissions. They have several opportunities for you to get paid to write, and you can earn up to $250, depending on which type of work you choose to submit.
Go to the submission page
Bitch Media
This site offers a unique opportunity for writers to make extra money by providing a feminist analysis of culture through the lens of their own personal experiences. They’re always open to pitches, but also put out calls for specific content types. They pay up to $1,000.
Go to the submission page
Websites that pay you to write about business and money
Elite Personal Finance
Want to get paid to write 1,000 to 3,000-word entries on topics like marketing, methods to make money online, credit reports, loans, and identity theft? Check out this site. The payment for the guest post is $300.
Go to the submission page
Income Diary
If you know about creating awesome websites, SEO, driving traffic, content creation, entrepreneurship, or making money online, this is a site that you’ll be a perfect fit for. They have a budget of $150-$300 per article.
B. Michelle Pippin
On this site, you can share your knowledge about business, marketing, and profit. They pay up to $150 for each article, but you must pay close attention to the submission guidelines and ensure that your work is error-free.
Go to the submission page
SmartBusinessTrends
This blog shares the latest trends in online marketing, including email marketing, WordPress, and Amazon FBA. Writers can earn up to $500 for accepted posts.
Go to the submission page
Make A Living Writing
This site is all about the craft of writing, content marketing, and business of being a freelance writer. Submit your ideas here and you can earn up to $150.
Go to the submission page
Copyhackers
This is one of the go-to websites for copywriters and if you have something to share with their audience, they’ll pay $300-$1,000. They only accept 1 in 30 pitches, so pay close attention to their terms if you plan to submit.
Websites that pay you to write about news and entertainment
Polygon
Do you enjoy reporting, personal essays, open editorials, reviews, entertainment, and features? The Polygon website is a great place to get paid to write. You’ll earn $100 per post.
Cracked
If you’re good at coming up with original and amusing ideas for articles, this is the spot for you. You’ll be paid up to $250. Tip: They encourage writers to include media like images or infographics to support their content.
Club House
Club House is primarily a family-oriented magazine that offers both fiction and non-fiction reads. They pay between $0.15 to $0.25 per word.
Bustle
Bustle is looking for timely first-person pieces and personal essays, experiments and trials, and interviews and profiles. They’ll also consider conversation-worthy features and they pay 0.25 cents per word.
Fanbyte
Fanbyte is looking for gaming-related pitches. Essays, articles, op-eds, reviews, interviews, and more are what they’re searching for. They offer between $150 and $250 in exchange for each piece.
Listverse
ListVerse is looking for (you guessed it) list posts. It’s approved, they’ll give you $100 for it. For those of you who want to make money writing in the entertainment space, this is an opportunity worth checking out.
Websites that pay you to write articles about travel and outdoors
Road and Travel Magazine
The Road and Travel website focuses on automobiles, travel writing, and personal safety topics, as well as material appealing to women business travelers. The magazine will pay you up to $100 for each piece.
Wanderlust
Wanderlust is a website that provides articles on various topics, including travel locations, hobbies, and adventures. They pay $90 per page.
Transitions Abroad
Transitions Abroad is a travel blog that provides advice for students who want to go abroad. If you’ve been to a variety of countries, share your knowledge and experiences. You’ll be paid up to $150 for each article.
Go to the submission page
Great Escape Publishing
If you have a travel tale to tell, take your story idea to Great Escape Publishing. They pay up to $150 for the articles they accept.
Outside Magazine
Outside Magazine is one of the best-known outdoor publications. They cover a wide variety of topics, including destinations, sports, people, discoveries, health, fitness, gear, clothes, events, and trends. You’ll earn 0.50 cents per word for your work.
World Nomads
Write about love, fear, exploration, connections, and change for World Nomads. If you’ve had a life-altering encounter, share it here. Submissions between 600 and 800 words are paid 0.50 cents per word.
Go to the submission page
Websites that pay you to write fiction and short stories
Fantasy and Science Fiction
Are you a fan of fantasy and science fiction stories, looking to get paid to write about them? submissions for Fantasy and Science Fiction are open. The compensation ranges from 8 to 12 cents per word on approval.
Go to the submission page
Analog’s Science Fiction and Fact
As the name suggests, this website also publishes science fiction content. They pay 8-10 cents per word for short fiction, 6 cents per word for serials, 9 cents per word for fact articles, and $1 per line for poetry.
Cricket Magazine
Cricket Magazine is a children’s magazine aimed at 9-14-year-old readers. Published articles are paid $0.25 per word.
Go to the submission page
Clarkes World
Clarkes World is a science fiction and fantasy magazine that has received several awards, including the Hugo, World Fantasy, and British Fantasy Awards. They are open to short stories, interviews, essays, and audio fiction submissions. They pay 0.12 cents per word.
Uncharted Genre
Those who like crime, mystery, science fiction, fantasy, horror, and thriller short stories should submit their work to this website. They pay up to $200 per post.
The Dark Magazine
If you want to make money writing fictional stories with an edge, try submitting them to this online magazine. They publish fantasy and horror stories each month and they pay 0.6 cents per word.
Go to the submission page
Ready to make money writing? Here’s what to do next
Pick 1-2 categories or industries
If you don’t know what you want your freelance writing niche to be, you don’t have to decide yet. But as you begin pitching your submission ideas, it will be easier to focus on no more than a couple of categories at a time.
According to data from John Media’s book Brain Rules, switching between various tasks can make projects take up to 50% longer to complete. It’s best to focus on a single batch of similar tasks.
Check out the websites
Now, look at the websites you want to write for. Look at the posts they publish and read through them. This will help you confirm that you like their style and it will help you get familiar with topics they cover. Review the submission guidelines
You’ll find the submission page for each website in this list. Study the guidelines and follow them carefully. These editors get a lot of pitches, so if you don’t meet their expectations, they won’t work with you. They’ll move on to the next writer.
Find the right contact for submissions
To have your submission accepted, you have to make sure it gets to the right place. Check the links to the submission pages above for contact information and instructions.
Write and send your pitch
Finally, you have everything you need to craft a pitch Don’t forget to check out How to Write a Pitch That Wins Clients in 7 Steps if you need help with this part of the process.
If you take all of these steps are regularly send your submissions to sites on this list, you’ll be well on your way to earning the income you want and building a freelance portfolio full of writing samples you can be proud of.
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