---
title: 'Laziest Ways to Make Money Online in 2026 (For Beginners)'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=_akeDc6-P-c'
video_id: '_akeDc6-P-c'
date: 2026-07-23
duration_sec: 970
channel: 'Mark Tilbury'
---

# Laziest Ways to Make Money Online in 2026 (For Beginners)

> Source: [Laziest Ways to Make Money Online in 2026 (For Beginners)](https://youtube.com/watch?v=_akeDc6-P-c)

## Summary

This video evaluates five online money-making methods for beginners, ranking them by laziness (low effort, high scalability). The methods covered are freelancing, Airbnb arbitrage, eBay selling, affiliate marketing, and AI-powered Shopify stores, with the latter presented as the laziest option.

### Key Points

- **Introduction to Laziest Money Methods** [00:00] — The host introduces a grid to evaluate methods based on learning curve, fulfillment difficulty, scalability, startup capital, and risk.
- **Method 1: Freelancing** [01:12] — Freelancing involves working directly with clients (e.g., video editing). Learning curve: 6 months. Fulfillment: hard due to client revisions. Scalability: limited (time-bound). Startup capital: near zero. Risk: low.
- **Method 2: Airbnb Arbitrage** [04:05] — Rent property long-term, sublet short-term on Airbnb. Learning curve: 1-3 months. Fulfillment: medium (customer issues, cleaning). Scalability: high. Startup capital: $5K-$15K. Risk: moderate.
- **Method 3: eBay Selling** [07:17] — Sell products (vintage, electronics, etc.) on eBay. Learning curve: 2 weeks. Fulfillment: medium (returns, inquiries). Scalability: high. Startup capital: $500. Risk: low-medium.
- **Method 4: Affiliate Marketing** [09:54] — Promote products via referral links. Learning curve: 1-2 days. Fulfillment: easy (no order handling). Scalability: very high. Startup capital: $250 (for ads). Risk: very low.
- **Method 5: AI Shopify Store** [12:30] — Use AI (buildyourstore.ai) to create a Shopify store with dropshipping via AutoDS. Learning curve: zero. Fulfillment: very easy (automated). Scalability: unlimited. Startup capital: $1.99 (Shopify trial). Risk: very low.

### Conclusion

The AI Shopify store method is the laziest due to zero learning curve, low startup cost, and high scalability, making it ideal for beginners seeking passive income.

## Transcript

That's one of the most common questions I get asked, with minimal effort, all while having the freedom So as a millionaire businessman, I'm gonna use my knowledge
As you can see, I've got this grid out in front of me. which online moneymaking method is truly the laziest First up, learning curve.
Ideally, we want this to be as short as possible is fulfillment. and we want this to be as simple as possible.
This measures how easy you can grow and make more money After that, we have startup capital to invest upfront to get going.
Higher risk usually means more stress, Today I am only gonna be covering money making methods
So, no online surveys or transcription sites. Method one, freelancing.
by working directly with clients. including video editing, social media management, This is great 'cause you get to choose your projects
and work schedule, which gives you a lot of flexibility, In my opinion, the best one to focus on is video editing, there's a real shortage of great editors at the moment.
But the real question is, how lazy is freelancing? For learning curve, I'm gonna say six months. at least this amount of time to learn and build a portfolio.
and copywriting have tons of tutorials on YouTube, For fulfillment, I'm gonna say this is pretty hard.
I remember when my son was freelancing as a video editor. who kept requesting changes It was so frustrating for him
play nice, and make those changes anyway. especially when you're passionate about a project I'm gonna say this one is pretty limited.
In freelancing, your income is tied directly to your time. or hire other people to do the work for you. as this will lead to steady work.
You can do this on freelance sites like Upwork and Fiverr. without needing to bid on jobs. but it often has higher paying projects.
It's practically zero. you're nearly set. for design or video editing, can be a great investment,
that you get started with. Finally, for risk, this is pretty low, and you're directly paid for each project.
so you might have to put in some effort initially So overall, this is definitely not the laziest method.
to start making money online, especially if you're willing Method two, Airbnb arbitrage. on a long-term lease, and then rent it out short-term
Essentially, you're acting as the middle man, between your long-term lease This could be a great way to generate passive income
You'll need to get permission from the owner, They either don't know how to operate an Airbnb So, how lazy is it?
This one has a one to three-month learning curve. Getting the hang of Airbnb arbitrage doesn't take too long. understanding local rental laws,
The bulk of this preparation time Look for places near tourist attractions, universities, Websites like AirDNA can give you insights
You'd also need to reach out to the landlords and let them know you plan to sublet the property on Airbnb. as you don't want 'em to find out later
getting it up and running on Airbnb. difficulty. you still have to deal with some customer issues
and you'll need to manage check-ins and cleaning. and forgetting about it, but it can be manageable That's why it's a good idea to use management software
communication, and check-ins. Now, here's where it gets really exciting, because scalability is very high.
is that it's highly scalable. and there's really no limit to how many you can manage.
to keep everything running smoothly. This is gonna require 5K to 15K of startup capital.
You'll need a decent amount of upfront cash and possibly pay for cleaning services. The main downside to this method is the upfront cash
However, if you take advantage of the management tools Saying that, I reckon we can find an even lazier option. This is a great way to make money
You can sell anything from vintage clothing and electronics to handmade items or even get rid of stuff you don't need. With millions of users, eBay offers a massive marketplace
to set up an actual shop in the street. Well, we're gonna find out. The learning curve for this is around about two weeks.
Before diving in, Are you into vintage clothing, collectibles, You can then use eBay's search function
Then you just need to create your eBay seller account As I mentioned before, you can start with things selling on eBay from DHgate.
For fulfillment, I'm gonna say this is a medium difficulty. and you might run into some customer issues from time-to-time, like returns or inquiries about products.
and in my experience, it's always better to send a replacement or issue a refund, It's simply better
used to stress me out something rotten. of selling items online and there's no getting away from it. The scalability of this one is very high.
and there's really no limit to how many items you can sell. onto other platforms like Etsy and Amazon. Alternatively, you could start various eBay shops
I'd say you need at least $500 of startup capital. you'll need to use this initial money for stock $500 can be a reasonable starting point.
or even wholesale suppliers like DHgate, I'd say this is into stock that might not sell right away.
and stay on top of trends, you can really reduce that risk. as it's a pretty lazy money making method.
so let's keep going. Method four, affiliate marketing. by promoting other people's products or services.
through your referral link. while earning a little something for yourself. So let's see how this stacks up against the other methods.
I'd say one to two days. to different affiliate programs. and my favorite, Impact.
and seeing what companies are offering the best commissions. to start using your links. Once you've shared your affiliate links,
You won't be responsible for fulfilling orders which makes this one a pretty stress-free way The scalability of this one is very high.
and keep racking up those sales passively. was paid ads on Facebook. on organic short-form content.
Just look at the way Andrew Tate skyrocketed in popularity. and posting them on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube Shorts,
to his online course. thousands of dollars a month doing this. that affiliate marketing has been around for ages
and is still going strong, so you can use similar tactics In terms of startup capital, I'd say you'll need at least You can definitely start for less, but that's assuming
With $250, you can get some solid short-form content edited Starting with organic content is a smart move. It sets a strong foundation without breaking the bank.
The risk with affiliate marketing is very low. and have minimal upfront costs. or customer service, which makes affiliate marketing
Saying this, I think the last method Method five, AI Shopify store. for anyone looking to start e-commerce
have winning products selected for you, all thanks to the power of AI. The learning curve is practically zero.
Had over to buildyourstore.ai, and click start your free store. beginning with a prompt for basic details
You'll then be asked to choose a niche, and pets available. can make the store easier to promote in the long run.
giving you the options for banners, layouts, Once you're ready, connect to Shopify you can access a three-day free trial,
This makes the process incredibly affordable to test out, you won't need any technical knowledge to get started.
very easy. Don't worry, the Build Your Store website from adding trending products to your store
to updating important details like prices and images. AutoDS ships the items straight to your customer. to make passive income, as it removes the need
to keep track of inventory or personally ship products. I reached out to see if they'd be interested So if you go through this process
with the link in the description, so you can experiment with the app While you'll need to enter a payment method
so this you some time to test it out pretty much risk-free. This one is unlimited. is practically unlimited in its potential to scale.
You can use AutoDS to continually add new winning products and since they handle shipping, you can grow the store Startup capital, just $1.99.
So this is $1 to activate your Shopify account The AI tool that builds your store is completely free. With such a minimal upfront investment,
Even if you decide this method isn't for you, So if you're looking for a low effort, highly scalable way
might be your best bet. without the need to be an influencer, If you wanna know what to do with your money
but don't click on it just yet. I'll see you over there.