Top 16 Great Business Ideas for Women in 2024
Did you take a break from a promising career to care for your child? Or perhaps you’ve left an unfulfilling career and are looking for a fresh start. Either way, there are plenty of exciting opportunities out there for you to pursue in 2023.
So, whether you’re a stay-at-home mom looking for an additional source of income or a budding entrepreneur ready to start the next big thing, here’s a helpful list of some of the top business ideas for women.
Below, we’ll cover 16 great ideas and help you decide how to settle on the path that’s right for you.
Do you want to start trading Stocks? Open an account on Interactive Brokers!
Event Planning
If you’re detail-oriented, able to multi-task, and love making other people happy on their big days, then event planning might be for you. In this role, you’ll be behind the scenes and making sure everything runs according to plan. It’s a challenging job, but one that allows you the flexibility to choose your own schedule and earn a considerable income once you work your way up to larger events.
Benefits:
Flexible schedule
Potential for travel to beautiful locations
Interesting new events all the time
Making people happy
Responsibility:
Organizing important events and making sure everything happens on schedule
Problem-solving and adapting to unforeseen, last-minute changes
Communicating with clients, guests, and vendors to make sure everyone is happy
Applying creativity and thoughtful design choices
Potential Earnings:
This heavily depends on your location, clientele, and event type. However, most event planners make around $16/hr and between $34k to $74k per year
Trading and Investing - Best Idea for Women at Home
Did you think that financial trading wasn’t for women or that it’s just all gambling and speculation? Think again. If you take trading and investing seriously, it can become a profitable business.
Trading stocks, foreign currencies, cryptocurrencies, or other financial assets is quickly becoming one of the best ways for women to earn extra income on their own schedule. In addition, it doesn’t require you to go through the complications of setting up a business, and you don’t need a lot of capital to get started.
We may be biased, but we genuinely believe that trading and investing is the best business idea for women at home.
Active Trading
Active trading is buying or selling financial assets within a short time frame to profit from price movements. This strategy requires keeping a close eye on the markets to determine the best entry and exit points. While it can be risky because of volatile price activity, it can also be highly profitable if you make well-informed decisions.
If you’d like to learn the ins and outs of active trading, you need to set up an account with a trustworthy broker. Interactive Brokers is the best service for trading and passively investing in stocks and other assets. Their platform features industry-leading technical analysis tools and educational materials to help professional and novice traders alike have the best possible trading experience.
Copy Trading
Consider setting up a copy trading account if you’d like to start trading but aren’t sure how to get started. Copy trading is where you select a professional trader with a proven track record of making profitable trades. Once you decide which trader to follow, your account will automatically copy their trades.
This is an entirely legal, educational way to get your feet wet in the world of trading. Please note that copy trading doesn’t guarantee profits. If your chosen trader makes an unprofitable trade, you’ll lose money. However, copy trading makes it possible to earn a significant amount of money even if you know next to nothing about financial markets.
If copy trading interests you, consider opening an account with eToro if you’re in the US or RoboForex if you’re based outside the US. eToro and RoboForex are industry leaders in facilitating copy trading, and both feature intuitive, easy-to-use platforms suitable for beginner traders.
Benefits:
Trading and investing is one of the best ways to earn both active and passive income on any kind of schedule
It doesn’t require much start-up capital or infrastructure
You can get started today
There is an endless amount of free educational information online to help you learn about financial markets and how to develop a successful trading strategy
Responsibility:
Educating yourself on how to make sound investing decisions
Selecting a trustworthy, licensed broker to manage your portfolio
Developing a risk tolerance strategy so that you don’t invest beyond your budget
Potential Earnings:
There’s no limit to earning through trading and investing. While there is no such thing as guaranteed profit, many people have proven that it can be an extremely profitable activity given you develop a well-informed strategy
Graphic Design
Are you skilled with digital creative tools and spend all your free time making artistic designs? Then consider monetizing your existing skills by becoming a freelance graphic designer. Nowadays, there are plenty of sites like Fiverr or Upwork to market your skills. Even an Instagram account will go a long way to attracting new clients.
Benefits:
Completely flexible schedule
Showcase your talent to the world
Low startup costs
Easy to market
Responsibility:
Meeting client deadlines
Keeping work to a high standard every time
Managing social media to attract new clients
Potential Earnings:
The average graphic designer makes around $47k per year, though creative directors and product designers can bring in over $100k per year
Writing and Editing
If your talent lies in communication, then there are plenty of writing and editing jobs to be found. You can join a ghostwriting platform or market your services on different freelancing marketplaces. Writing and editing jobs are flexible but still require a significant time commitment to earn enough to make a living.
Benefits:
Work from anywhere in the world on a flexible schedule
Write about a variety of topics or focus on your desired niche
Responsibility:
Manage tight deadlines
Work closely with clients on revisions
Market your skills actively across multiple platforms
Potential Earnings:
It’s difficult to estimate the average freelance writing salary, but the average writer reports making around $23/hr
Social Media Management
Everyone is on social media, but it takes dedication and hard work to turn it into a successful business opportunity. Social media management can be done for companies of any size in any niche, but it takes some technical savvy and insightful cultural engagement to beat the competition.
Benefits:
Work with a variety of exciting brands
If you love social media, this will keep you engaged
Responsibility:
Consistent maintenance of social accounts
New client outreach
Copywriting and graphic design tasks
Potential Earnings:
The average social media manager earns a base pay of $18 per hour
Educational Services
There are many in-demand educational services that freelancers can offer to supplement their income or become a full-time job. Consider tutoring in-person or online, teaching English as a second language, or teaching a hobby like an instrument or sport.
Benefits:
Share your knowledge and passion with others and get paid for it
Teaching others is a fulfilling activity that makes a difference in people’s lives
Responsibility:
Maintain a high level of quality
Attract new students and create fresh material for existing ones
Potential Earnings:
There are many different types of teaching jobs, but the average tutor makes around $54k per year
Animal Care
If you love animals, there are few better jobs than caring for cute, furry friends for extra income. You can be a pet sitter, dog walker, or animal groomer. Or, you can offer a combination of different services.
Benefits:
Be around animals every day
Work whenever you want
Responsibility:
Keeping the animals safe and in good health is your top priority
Potential Earnings:
Pet sitters often work part-time and earn around $12 per hour
Home Services
There are several different home services you could provide to make extra money. For example, you could offer to clean homes, be an interior designer, or do lawn and garden care. Another home service that is rising in popularity is home organization.
Benefits:
Monetize your existing interests and skillsets
Requires low to zero startup costs
Work in a variety of environments
Responsibility:
Maintain a high degree of quality for each client
Constantly find new gigs and clients
Potential Earnings:
House cleaners earn an average of $15/hr, while interior designers can make an average of $57k/year.
Personal Assistant
Being a personal assistant requires meticulous attention to detail. There are many different types of personal assistants, from personal shoppers to more secretarial roles. Some clients may require more work in the office, while others might need more help in their personal lives. In all cases, it requires flexibility and excellent communication skills.
Benefits:
An excellent job for learning more about an industry if you’re an assistant to an executive
Flexible schedule (but must be on call during specific hours)
Responsibility:
Manage a variety of detail-oriented tasks
Communicate efficiently to save clients’ time and effort
Potential Earnings:
Most personal assistants earn around $13 per hour.
Fitness Trainer
If you already spend a lot of your free time in the gym, why not monetize your hobby and turn it into a part-time or full-time career? You can become a personal trainer for practically any sport, from rock climbing to yoga.
Benefits:
Get paid for staying fit and doing the hobbies you love
Work closely with individuals who share your passions
Responsibility:
Maintain your own physical health and fitness
Educate clients on safe, effective training techniques
Potential Earnings:
Fitness trainers have an average base salary of $22/hr
Accounting and Bookkeeping
Perhaps you’re already trained as an accountant and want to freelance in your free time. Or maybe you’re good with numbers and enjoy organizing data. In that case, you could consider bookkeeping services for small businesses. In either case, most companies are looking for accounting and bookkeeping services; it’s just a matter of marketing your skills effectively.
Benefits:
Freelance accountants and bookkeepers can set their own schedule
Since it’s considered a higher-skilled job, you can charge more for your services
Responsibility:
Close attention to detail
Keep sensitive documents organized and filed properly
Potential Earnings:
The average accountant earns around $55k per year, while a bookkeeper makes a base salary of $39k
Arts and Crafts
Are you an artist or craftsperson? Do you have a lot of people constantly asking if they can buy your art? If so, you could open up an online store or social media account to sell your paintings, ceramics, jewelry, or other art pieces. Nowadays, there’s an infinite number of ways to market your art effectively online.
Benefits:
Share your creations with the world
Work as much or as little as you want
Responsibility:
Deliver results according to client’s expectations
Manage packaging, shipping, and customer aftercare
Potential Earnings:
It all depends on your individual output and demand
Coding and Development
Coders, web developers, and app developers are in higher demand than ever. Most businesses require these services, so there’s no shortage of clients out there. However, if you’re just starting, you should establish an online portfolio showcasing your work.
Benefits:
Work from home for global clients
It can be a lucrative career as you gain more experience
Responsibility:
Manage client expectations in a technical field
Deliver high-quality, bug-free work
Potential Earnings:
Coders and web developers earn an average salary between $50-60k per year.
Photography
Do you love taking photos of events, weddings, pets, children, or portraits? Then you might be able to pursue a career as a freelance photographer. While it requires patience to continually find new clients and work with their demands, working as a photographer can fulfill your desire for creativity and flexibility.
Benefits:
Get paid for creating work that you love
Attend weddings, exciting events, and meet lots of new people
Responsibility:
Manage client expectations and deliver high-quality work every time
Manage your own scheduling and invoicing
Requires excellent people and communication skills
Potential Earnings:
The average freelance photographer makes around $25/hour
Food and Catering
Where there are parties and events, there is food. Everyone loves good food, so working as a part-time or full-time private chef, baker, or caterer can be a great way to share your passion for cooking with your community. So whether you want to sell cakes from your home over social media or open up a full-fledged bakery, there’s a niche you can target in your area.
Benefits:
If you love cooking or baking, this is a no-brainer
You get to delight your customers with your creations
Flexible schedule
Responsibility:
Maintain strict food safety and hygiene measures
Deliver consistency across all your results
Potential Earnings:
It’s hard to estimate your earnings – it depends on what product you deliver
E-Commerce
E-commerce is the present and future of shopping. An ever-increasing amount of our shopping is done online, and the trend is unlikely to stop. You can open an e-commerce store in minutes on today’s most popular platforms, so what’s stopping you?
Benefits:
If you find the right product and marketing strategy, e-commerce can be highly profitable
You set your own schedule and work as hard as you want
Responsibility:
Handle all aspects of a small business, from inventory to purchasing, packaging, shipping, marketing, social media, and customer support
Potential Earnings:
It ultimately depends on your product and demand, but e-commerce can be very lucrative
How Do You Come Up With a Business Idea?
The best place to start when it comes to creating a new business is within yourself. What are you passionate about? What are your interests? What are your skills, and what are you best at doing?
Here are some other questions you can ask yourself to help get the wheels turning:
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What are the pain points in your daily life, and how can they be solved?
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How can I provide value to the people in my life?
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What am I good at that people are willing to pay for?
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What do I see that could be changed in an existing business I admire?
Write down the answers to these questions. You may find that some of your answers overlap. If they do, then you’re on your way to developing a business idea. The next step is to determine a plan of action for making it financially feasible.
For example, if you’re passionate about food and you’re a fantastic cook in a specific type of cuisine that is hard to find in your area, you might have just found your niche. Of course, it’s usually not this simple, but you may find that a good business idea was sitting in front of you all along.
What Are the First Steps to Starting Your Business?
Starting your own business can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. Follow these simple steps, and you’ll be well on your way.
Settle on a business idea. Make sure to identify your advantages, disadvantages, competitors, and opportunity size.
Pick a name. Choose something memorable, simple, and easy to spell.
Validate your product or service. Before officially launching, test out your idea on friends, family, or try to sell it in your community.
Write a business plan. Plan as thoroughly and carefully as possible. This will save you time, effort, and money further down the line.
Figure out your finances. How much will you need to get started? Will you need to raise money first? What’s your runway before you run out of money?
Determine your business structure. What kind of business will you be running? This has important implications for registration and tax purposes.
Register your business. Register with the appropriate authorities. You don’t want to run the risk of legal or financial scrutiny down the line.
Launch your business. Market your business and begin your journey toward financial independence!
Do I Need a lot of Money to Start My Business?
Not every business requires a lot of investment to get started. For many of the ideas listed above, all you need is a free social media account to promote your services.
For example, if you’re a wedding photographer, an attractive Instagram account is likely all you’ll need to attract clients. On the other hand, if you’re a dog walker or trainer, you can start by working with dogs of friends or family for free. Word will quickly spread about your services, and you’re likely even to gain customers in person while you’re out in the dog park.
When it comes to financial trading and investing, all the money you put in goes directly toward your profit-making strategy. There’s no expensive infrastructure to purchase and no registration fees. That’s why we recommend it as one of the best strategies for maximizing both passive and active income streams.
But if you settle on another idea, it can be helpful to ask yourself some of the following questions.
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Will this be my primary source of income, or will it be supplementary?
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How much do I need to make for it to be worth the effort?
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What will my startup costs be?
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How much time do I need to invest in this business?
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Can I monetize my existing skill set, or do I need to learn an entirely new set of skills?
Business for Women - Top 5 Tips for Beginners
Here are five tips to help boost your confidence as you embark on this exciting journey.
Connect with other female entrepreneurs and find a mentor.
Get started even if you don’t feel ready.
Be patient – success takes time to achieve.
Don’t be held back by a lack of self-confidence.
Look for women-oriented business loans or grants.
Summary
As you can see, there is no shortage of options for women interested in starting their own businesses in 2023. Each of the opportunities presented in this article takes a lot of hard work to achieve success. But each one also offers the possibility of becoming a fulfilling, profitable career.
Always remember to pursue something that you’re passionate about and that genuinely interests you. Otherwise, you’ll find it hard to overcome any obstacles that come your way. Hopefully, you’re filled with anticipation about what the future holds. So grab your notebook and start planning!
FAQs
Can anyone start their own business?
Yes! Starting a business is not easy, but there are more opportunities and tools to help you achieve your goals than ever. If you think you’ve found a good business idea, start researching how others have approached this type of business in the past. Learn from their example and develop your own competitive edge.
Can you make trading and investing a business?
Yes. Trading is no longer seen as just a male-dominated industry. An increasing number of women are becoming professional traders and investors. If you treat it as a business, you too can make it a profitable part-time or full-time activity. There are also strategies like copy trading and PAMM accounts for generating passive income.
How many women start new businesses?
Every day, there are over 1,000 new businesses started by women. If you want to launch your own idea, then you’re in good company. There’s a growing community of women online who support each other and give advice to others who are just starting out. Search the web for forums or blogs related to the industry niche you’re interested in.
How do you choose a business idea?
Always start by identifying your interests and your skills. Then, if they overlap on a specific topic, such as photography, strategize to determine whether you can turn your skills and interests into a business.
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Team that worked on the article
Alamin Morshed is a contributor at Traders Union. He specializes in writing articles for businesses who want to improve their Google search rankings to compete with their competition.
Over the past four years, Alamin has been working independently and through online employment platforms such as Upwork and Fiverr, and also contributing to some reputable blogs. His goal is to balance informative content and provide an entertaining read to his readers.
His motto is: I can dream or I can do—I choose action.
Bruce Powers is an expert trader and technical analyst with over 20 years of experience in Forex, commodities, ETFs, cryptocurrencies and other assets. He is an active trader, technical and fundamental analyst, media commentator, educator and a writer. As an author for Traders Union, he contributes his deep analytical skills, expertise and understanding of the global economy and financial markets to provide market analysis and insights. Powers is also a frequent guest on business TV news shows.
Mirjan Hipolito is a journalist and news editor at Traders Union. She is an expert crypto writer with five years of experience in the financial markets. Her specialties are daily market news, price predictions, and Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). Mirjan is a cryptocurrency and stock trader. This deep understanding of the finance sector allows her to create informative and engaging content that helps readers easily navigate the complexities of the crypto world.