7 Ways To Make Money On Instagram
There are many paths to monetizing your Instagram; here’s what you need to know.
#1: Instagram Creator Monetization Tools
Instagram’s official monetization program provides multiple ways creators and small businesses can make money, similar to YouTube’s Partner Program.
Instagram Shop
This is Instagram’s social commerce platform where you can sell products directly through Posts, Reels, and Stories.
Subscriptions
Instagram subscriptions allow your followers to pay for a premium subscription to access exclusive content.
Receive Gifts On Reels
Fans can give you gifts as a thank-you for making Reels they love.
Receive Badges On Instagram Live
Viewers can buy badges from you as appreciation when you go Live on the platform—it’s similar to Gifts but for Lives rather than Reels.
#2: Brand Collaborations
As you build up your audience on Instagram, collaborating with brands can be a great source of income.
Here’s an example of how realistic lifestyle influencer Rosie Piper incorporates brand collabs onto her feed:
Depending on the deal, you might:
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Share a feed post or Reel of you using a product;
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Create user-generated content that is posted on the brand’s page; or
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Do a brand takeover, where you post from the brand’s account.
One key part of getting brand collabs is sourcing potential partners. We’ll get into that more later in this blog, but one key tip is joining an influencer database.
For example, the Influencer Index makes it easy to find meaningful partnerships with the thousands of brands already using ’s influencer marketing platform.
Sign up for the influencer index and start getting brand collabs today.
3. Let Followers Become Patrons Or Contributors
If your followers want more, you can monetize through premium content.
This is exclusively for your subscribers and patrons, offering them content other followers can’t get.
You may also add other benefits, such as in-real-life (IRL) meetups, exclusive merch or shoutouts in your content.
4. Create Courses
If you’ve achieved success, either directly on Instagram or in another skill, teach others your secret!
Look for the intersection between your passion, your skills, and what your followers want from you.
If your followers are always asking for insights on your niche, it’s a sign that courses could be the right choice for you.
Creator and business coach Caley Dimmock has built her career in running courses and masterclasses, sharing her marketing expertise with like-minded people.
5. Sell Freelance Services
If you provide a service that can be delivered online, you can sell it through Instagram.
The key is regularly producing and posting high-quality educational content on your Instagram page. This is where a tool like Social is crucial; you can automate scheduling and use ’s visual planner to ensure your aesthetic is top-notch.
6. Paid Media
Another way to monetize influencer marketing and brand partnerships is by letting brands use your content in paid media advertising.
You benefit in two key ways:
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You can charge a fee for letting the brand post ads, which means more direct revenue.
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The brand pays for the ad costs, but your account reaps the benefits of impressions, reach, and engagement.
This is usually in conjunction with a sponsored post, so consider this part of influencer marketing rather than a solo revenue stream.
7. Affiliate Marketing
Rather than a one-on-one partnership with a brand, you can promote any product through affiliate marketing.
You post content with a custom link or coupon code; if someone buys that product from your link, you get a commission.
Creators can sign up for a ton of different affiliate networks, such as:
Just like influencer marketing, you want to ensure content-product fit and only recommend products that make sense for your content and your audience.
