I Tried Every Money-Making Idea I Saw on TikTok — Here’s What Worked

If you spend even 15 minutes scrolling through TikTok, you’ll probably land on at least one person yelling “Side hustle alert!” or promising that you can make $500 a day from your phone, your couch, or your car.

Naturally, I got curious.

Could TikTok really be the secret to making money in 2025?

So I did something slightly unhinged: I decided to try every money-making idea I saw on TikTok — or at least the most popular and doable ones — and report back on what actually works, what kind of works, and what should stay in TikTok’s recycling bin.

Here’s what happened when I went down the rabbit hole of “money-making TikTok.”

1. Selling Notion Templates

Claim: Make $300 a day selling productivity planners.
Tested: I created a Student Planner and a Side Hustle Tracker. Uploaded to Etsy and Gumroad.
Result:

• First week: Crickets.
• After making a TikTok showcasing my planner? Boom — 4 sales in 48 hours.
  Money made: $52
  Verdict: Works, but needs smart marketing. TikTok + Pinterest combo is gold.

2. Dropshipping from AliExpress

Claim: Build a Shopify store, run TikTok ads, and you’re rich.
Tested: Followed a viral video and picked a trendy pet hair remover.
Result:

• Spent $58 on ads. Got 3 orders. One customer asked for a refund because delivery was slow.
  Money made: -$12
  Verdict: Looks good on TikTok, but it’s not plug-and-play. You need customer service, fast shipping, and ad skills. High risk.

3. Flipping Facebook Marketplace Finds

Claim: Buy cheap furniture, clean it, resell it = easy cash.
Tested: Bought a dusty coffee table for $10. Painted it white and resold it for $45.
Result:

• Took 2 hours total.
  Money made: $35 profit
  Verdict: Totally works. Super local-friendly. Just don’t mind getting paint on your clothes.

4. User-Generated Content (UGC) Creator

Claim: Brands will pay you to make videos reviewing their products — no influencer status needed.
Tested: Made a demo video using a skincare product I already owned. Signed up on Fiverr and UGC platforms.
Result:

• Got my first gig ($40) after 6 days. Easy to scale with a portfolio.
  Money made: $40
  Verdict: Legit. TikTok UGC is booming. If you’re good on camera, this is your lane.

5. AI Side Hustles

Claim: Use ChatGPT and Canva to make money creating digital products, scripts, resumes, etc.
Tested: I used ChatGPT to write affirmations, and designed a digital journal in Canva. Listed it on Etsy.
Result:

• 3 sales in one week after posting a TikTok showing how I made it.
  Money made: $27
  Verdict: Smart and scalable. A solid passive income builder if you niche down.

6. Affiliate Marketing with TikTok

Claim: Make money by recommending products in your TikToks and earning commissions.
Tested: Signed up for Amazon Associates and made a “TikTok Made Me Buy It” video.
Result:

• 1,000 views = 7 clicks = 2 purchases.
  Money made: $4.12
  Verdict: Works if your videos go viral. But very slow start without an audience.

7. Online Surveys and GPT Apps

Claim: Get paid to answer surveys and complete tasks online.
Tested: Tried Swagbucks, InboxDollars, and Freecash.
Result:

• Spent 2 hours answering painfully boring questions.
  Money made: $5.20
  Verdict: It’s real. But it’s painfully slow. Only useful if you’re bored with a charged phone.

8. Renting Out Stuff You Own

Claim: Rent out camera gear, tools, or even your driveway.
Tested: Listed my camera on a local gear rental site.
Result:

• Got a 2-day rental for $40.
  Money made: $40
  Verdict: Super underrated. If you have gear just sitting there — rent it!

9. Digital Stickers & Printables on Etsy

Claim: Design cute stickers or planners and sell them digitally.
Tested: Designed 20 aesthetic stickers using Canva. Uploaded them to Etsy with SEO-friendly titles.
Result:

• Made $14 in my first week.
  Money made: $14
  Verdict: Passive income potential is strong. TikTok + Etsy is a winning combo.

10. Becoming a “TikTok Side Hustle Guru”

Claim: Make videos about side hustles to grow your audience… and monetize later.
Tested: Started a fresh TikTok account and posted 1 money-making tip daily.
Result:

• 3K followers in 1 month. Got a brand offer to review a finance app.
  Money made: $70
  Verdict: This meta-strategy actually works. Teach what you learn.

What DIDN’T Work?

Let’s be honest. Not everything was a win.

Crypto trading bots — Lost $18 in 24 hours.
“Just copy and paste this script” job listings — 100% scams.
Reselling Kindle eBooks written by AI — Account got flagged. Not worth the risk.
“Cash flipping” TikTokers — If it sounds like a scam, it probably is.

What Actually Worked?

Here are the top 5 TikTok money-making ideas that worked best for me:

| Idea                       | Time Spent | ROI    | Ease                    |
| -------------------------- | ---------- | ------ | ----------------------- |
| UGC Creator                | Medium     | High   | Easy to start           |
| Notion Templates           | Low        | Medium | Passive income          |
| Flipping Furniture         | High       | High   | Requires effort         |
| Digital Stickers on Etsy   | Medium     | Medium | Creative-friendly       |
| TikTok Side Hustle Content | Medium     | High   | Scales with consistency |

Final Thoughts

TikTok is not a money tree…
But if you treat it like a business school with bad music, it’s kind of amazing what you can learn — and earn.

👉🏽 Most people never take action.
I did.
Some things flopped. Some things worked better than expected.
And I came out of it with a few legit income streams — and a whole lot of funny stories.

➡️Subscribe Me here ➡️ https://medium.com/@cosmoskay1/subscribe

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