My First Blog Income Report – $61.83
I am so excited to share my very first blog income report! This is so exciting and shocking.
I didn’t make much, but it doesn’t matter to me. This blog is an outlet and a way to connect to other bloggers, so having actual blog income is stunning.
If you are thinking about starting a blog, this tutorial will help you start a blog today. I wrote a ‘how to start a blog’ post that will help you:
- Decide what to write about! I am sharing over 50+ ideas for you to blog about.
- Show you how to set up your blog online (it’s like a 15-minute process)
- Get a FREE domain name for a year! (this usually costs around $15)
My blog income strategy
In January 2015, I bought my blog and decided to get serious and treat it more like a business.
I really wanted to make blogging a side hustle that earned me money!
While I loved the idea of blogging as a hobby, I really wanted to earn income from it!
I finally got confident enough to comment on other bloggers’ posts (shy, introvert personality here), joined Twitter, and signed up with Pinterest.
At the start of 2015, I committed to writing 2-3 times a week, improving my photos and making my website more user-friendly.
Using Bluehost, I paid for a domain and a WordPress website, used a free theme and had no idea what I was doing.
This was my only expense for my first several months of blogging. Talk about a cheap, low cost to start an online blog/business!
Ad income
I knew I wanted to monetize my blog and earn blog income at some point, so I added Google Adsense onto my website.
What is Google Adsense?
It’s a free, entry-level of ads you put on your website to help your blog make money.
It is one of the harder ways to earn income, so don’t expect to get rich overnight!
Ad income comes from traffic to your website. So in the early stages, you will still be growing and won’t have a lot of traffic. Thus, low income from ads.
As time goes on, you will get more traffic and start earning income from ads!
I read over and over again that blog income from Adsense would take time to build and that is definitely true when just starting out.
All in all, it took ten months of blogging to get my first $100 paycheck from Google.
This was the hardest way for me to earn income as a new blogger with low traffic.
Affiliate Income
Next, I added a few affiliate links to my blog based on the products I was currently using.
I was comfortable telling my audience about a book I read, a blog theme I installed myself, and a product I used on the blog or in real life in some of my blog posts.
I chose to only add affiliate links that I could 100% recommend to others.
By adding a couple of products that I recommended, some of my readers ended up purchasing them.
This was a win-win!
First, I was able to share my experience and give an honest review of something I was using.
Second, a reader trusted my opinion and used my link to make a purchase.
The reader was able to get the item for the standard price (there’s no extra pricing added) and I was able to earn a commission.
How exciting!
So drum roll please…
My first blog income breakdown
Here are my earnings from my first monthly blog income report.
Ad Income
I have set up Google AdSense but did not earn any paid income.
I made around $15 from ads on my blog.
Because I have not met the $100 threshold for payout, I am counting this as $0 in paid income.
Affiliate Income
I actually earned more than $80, but some of the affiliate sales are not paid out until the following month.
Because of this, I have decided to only report income when I actually receive payment.
My affiliate sources are small but pretty diversified.
As a new blogger, I am starting off slow with affiliate links.
I am still learning how to use them, how I can write about them in my blog posts, and how to make sure my recommendations help other people!
Products I recommended and personally use
The affiliate sales from my first income report come from four different sources.
Right now I am recommending:
Rakuten – This is where you get free cashback when you shop online! You literally get cash back when you make an online purchase. The cash is deposited into your PayPal account.
If you want to try Rakuten, use my exclusive link to get $10 off your first $25 purchase AND earn cash back.
Ibotta – This is a free cell phone app. You use it after you go grocery shopping and use your receipt.
It’s basically a rebate app, so you can earn anywhere from 50 cents to $5 off everything you buy.
If you want to grab the Ibotta app and start making money off your grocery receipts, click here to get started.
You will receive a cash bonus of $10 when you scan your first item!
Restored 316 Designs – I picked this company to pick a pretty theme and style for my blog.
There are a ton of themes to choose from depending on your blogging niche, what colors you like, and layout.
How to select affiliate products in order to earn blog income
I think it’s really important to be a part of different affiliates as I don’t want to depend on just one source.
I actually had two more affiliate sales from different sources from the previous month, but as I mentioned above, they do not pay out until this month so I am not including them in my March blog income report.
As I am only counting income received, I had $61.83 that was deposited into my PayPal and bank accounts!
Expenses from my first blog income report
My only expense was paying for a professional email for $5 per month.
I did not include my expenses from Bluehost, as I paid for my domain name and hosting a year in advance.
I did not have any other blog expenses.
Starting a blog is one of the cheapest start-up side hustles you can start compared to other businesses. Yippee!
Blog income motivation
I have no idea what my blog income report will be next month.
Part of me thinks this is a fluke and can’t be real and the other part of me is in total disbelief and shock!
I’ve been reading so many other blog income reports from bloggers I admire, so to finally have my own monthly income report is so exciting and amazing!
Clearly I can’t quit my day job yet, but I am still excited that I have proven I can make money online from blogging.
What’s happened since I published my first income report
Although I published this income report in 2015, I wanted to update this blog post and share that I have now been blogging for more than five years.
I’m excited to report that blogging changed my life.
I quit my job in October 2015 to blog full time! You can read about my big announcement here.
In under a year, I was able to:
- Grow my blog from 1K to 200,000+ monthly page views
- Quit my day job in 10 months to work for myself
- Started freelancing online as a Pinterest virtual assistant
Additional Monthly Income Reports
After writing this first income report, I decided I would continue to write monthly blog income reports.
I like being transparent and share what works, how much money I make, what I need to work on, and more!
My monthly income reports are a great way for me to reflect where I am with my blog and see my progression over the years.
Since writing my first income report, I have gone on to publish more than 50+ monthly income reports over more than four years.
Here is just a small example of some of my income reports from my first twelve months of blogging.
As you can see, each month I started to make more and more money online.
- June 2015 online income report $66.10
- July 2015 online income report $515
- September 2015 online income report $1530.94
- October 2015 online income report $3634.28
- December 2015 online income report $4238.99
- March 2016 online income report $5041.85
I also wrote a recap on how I increased my blog income over a 16 month period that can be read here.
I share very specific information month by month that helped increase my income.
Don’t let any fear of blogging hold you back
One of the biggest lessons I learned was that fear was holding me back from believing in myself and my blog.
I was scared to share my feelings, scared I would fail and that no one would read my blog.
I bet you might have some of the same fears if you have been nervous to start a blog. You can read the post here.
How to start a blog
If you are ready to start yourself, read this tutorial on how to start a blog.
In the tutorial, I share over 50+ blogging ideas, walk you step-by-step on how to set your blog and what to do after you launch your blog.
You will also learn how to pick a blog name and get it for free!
I am stalking your blog currently because I am about to start my own blog and I am soaking in all the tips you are giving out!
Thank you for helping others!
Glad to help!
I’m pretty sure you are making a lot more now! It took me 6 months to earn my first dollar online.
Thank you! It did take a few months but it DOES start to snowball! Congrats – the first $1 and first $100 seem the hardest, but it let’s you know this really works. Good luck!
What specific challenges did you encounter as a new blogger when trying to monetize your blog, and how did you overcome them to generate your first blog income?
This is so helpful. Thank you for being so transparent. I’m a new blogger, unemployed and hopeful.
Thank you Farrah!
This blog makes me want to switch my career. Just 1 question, are there any hidden charges in blogging?
The first month I made around $1 and some cents, and the Second month I made $142 with my blog, Now I have a plan to write more and more content on my blog thanks for sharing!
Your income report is really motivating me, and am glad to have found it online Kristin. Thanks a bunch my dear.
Congratulations on your first income. I’m also a blogger but I’m still struggling but your success inspires me to continue…
Thank you so much for posting this! I just started a personal finance blog and am really looking for some motivation to keep going. I love reading other personal finance blogger’s first income report because it keeps me motivated knowing that one of these days I will start to earn money.
I love your affiliates!
You’re an inspiration!! Thank you for sharing your experiences!
Hey Kristin,
Thanks for sharing your blogging income. This really inspires me and other bloggers. Could you say something about to start blogging now? Is it good or not?
It’s always a good time to start a blog. Your voice is unique!
Wow, this post really inspired me. Thank you for sharing.
Fear is holding me back, but I’m going to read your post about it when you felt it too.
Glad to help!
Hands down the most relatable and inspiring blog income report I and “come-up” story I have read! I am so happy I stumbled upon your page! Can’t wait to binge-read all your posts today haha. Thank you so much for being so open and honest Kristin! <3
Thank you so much!
Glad for you, Kristen. This was encouraging. If you don’t mind, how often were you posting new articles at the start?
For my first year as a new blogger, I wrote and published a post 3x per week for an entire year! This helped me stay accountable and grow fast. =
It’s nice to finally see a realistic blog report (in fact I found this page googling ‘realistic blog income report’).
Don’t get me wrong, I love reading about blogs that pick up $40,000 in the space of a week, but it’s not actionable for a small blog, and can lead to a lot of misunderstandings and mistakes.
Also great to see that your income has gotten almost 100x bigger since then – well done!
Ha yes, I started sharing income reports from the very beginning. It’s definitely a long game, no quick overnight success for me! 🙂
First, thanks for being so transparent and sharing this. It’s inspirational, truly. Although, I was confused about a comment you made. How does commenting on others blog post help? I’m a newbie blogger and a new mom. I have a daughter with a disability so I’m home with her unable to work right now so I REALLY need to make my blog profitable ASAP. In it for the long game, so slow and steady is fine, though, not ideal. I’m trying EVERYTHING I can to make my first $1. Just started trying to earn this month (a few days ago actually). My blog is almost 2 months old and I’ve been trying to use affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, and ad clicks as a means to see revenue but no such luck. If you get a chance pop by my page. I’ve worked soooo hard on it. LenasLitLife.com
I personally like commenting on other blogs that I read because I like them! It’s a great way to build a relationship with other bloggers.
Hi Kristin!
Your post was really helpful as I’m just getting started with my blog mommyunmasked.com
I appreciate the goal setting workbook, so thank you for including that. Now I need to get to work finding some affiliates!
YAY, glad to help!
I’m so new to all of this. I’ve always just really wanted to start a blog and never knew where to start. Until I stumbled across your blog. If I’m half as successful as you I’ll be content! Thanks for sharing such personal information and being awesome!
Thanks so much for stopping by, I appreciate you!
That’s amazing to read your income report, I am so confident about blogging now. From 61.83$ to $5+ within a year is amazing.
I was little confused about blogging earning but your report it’s truly motivational for me.
Yay, great!
Congratulations! You are doing great and you are an inspiration to many. Thanks
Thanks so much for stopping by!
hi I am a 19 year old boy and I want to start my blogging career in technology related blogs so what should I do to start the blog and also how to get more page views as I want to be a full time blogger
Hi there! I would check out this post first on how to start a blog and get everything setup. The best way that I started getting traffic was to start using Pinterest. Here is a case study I wrote about how I went from no traffic to 200,000+ monthly page views quickly. Good luck!
So inspiring! I’m curious, what’s the one thing you did in those early days that made the biggest impact on your traffic and thus your income?
Keep up the great work!
This is a good post to read – I break it all down month by month and my strategies 🙂
Wow, this is so inspiring to see how great you are doing from beginning to now. To see that the little bit of money I am making on my blogging has the possibility to increase like yours did. Thank you for sharing this!!
Thanks! It was super exciting and I’m so glad I’ve stuck with blogging as it’s crazy how much the income can increase over time! Good luck with your blog!
Hey Kristin,
Thanks for sharing your experience. It’s definitely getting the wheels turning in my head. I can relate to the whole introvert thing for sure. For me, writing seems to flow a lot easier than other avenues of communication. I was bouncing off ideas with my wife on how I could supplement our income while using my gift of writing. Army family, two kids and a dog. Maybe I can make a family blog aimed at those who are considering military life. I’m still in the planning and research phase, but you definitely helped me along the way. Thanks.
You can definitely freelance or start a blog if you enjoy writing 🙂 There’s a lot of great military-based blogs out there as well, so that’s a great niche! Good luck!
HI did you leav your full time job to take on blogging full time ?
I did! I left my job roughly ten months after starting my blog. You can read more here: https://www.believeinabudget.com/seven-signs-it-was-time-to-quit-your-job/
This is really motivating. I started my blog 2 months ago, but still have almost no monthly viewers (less than 1K). Am I doing something wrong? Or everything wrong? Thanks for the inspiration to keep going.
It’s totally normal for your blog to take time to grow – no one is an overnight success. Keep at it!
This is so inspiring !
Thanks!!
This is motivation! Thank you so much for sharing your experience and providing helpful links for people like me who just started their blog
Oh YAY, glad to help 🙂
Thanks for the great tips! I’m starting my own blog healthyruffliving.com and hoping to begin making some money by utilizing some of your advice. I’m looking forward to reading more of your work!
Thanks! It’s been a crazy, amazing 3 year journey so far – GOOD LUCK to you!!
Awesome! A start is a great start! I’m on the cliff of overcoming that fear and go for it! I just feel uneasy about how and where to start.
It’s crazy right?! I do still get nervous about things that are new to me, which I’m still discovering when it comes to blogging! GOOD LUCK!
This one is real Inspirational .
So glad you liked it!
I came across this on Pinterest as I have been trying for awhile now to really get into my blogging and I am 150% in. I did a quick update post on my blog (even though I have no readers & cant figure out how to get any). I plan on really taking the time on my new blog posts and make this a business. Any help would be great !
Hi, my name is asraf and I`m a new blogger. I really like this article because it`s really increase my zest to be a fulltime blogger.
Hopefully, I can have support from you all. Thank you..
https://niknurasraf.blogspot.com
🙂
Kristin!
I absolutely love your blogging tips. I’m new to the blogging community and am curious if you’d have any advise for someone just starting out? How do I go about finding my way into the blogging community? Any help would be much appreciated!
Thanks! When I first started out, I read other blogs that were similar as mine in terms of being ‘new’ It was a great way to bond and connect to fellow bloggers, as well as a way to ask each other for questions. I STILL talk to those same ‘new bloggers’ 2.5 years later – 99% of us are still blogging and we have all grown a TON! People are pretty nice, so don’t be scared to email someone and say hi!
I am just now reaching the 3 month mark for my blog. I love the way we can help others through our blogs and inspire. It is such a great feeling seeing your pageviews increase every month.
Any who I just wanted to say your income report is expiring and I only hope by 6 months to have made something. As it stands now with my 200 pageviews I have earned about a $1.00, but I am proud of that dollar.
Amazing we also just completed our first $100
Loved your post– truly inspiring and gave me the push I needed to really persue affiliate relationships.
It’s so refreshing to see someone write about the times that they were making only $60 per month, since most links I find are about how to make thousands. That seems pretty out of reach when you’re just starting out.
Keep up the good work and congrats on quitting your job!
I hope you are making progress. Keep it up and turn your dreams into reality.
Thanks so much!
Thanks for the great info. I am very interested in becoming a blogger. Just trying to do all the research I can before I start.
Thanks Kelly! Blogging has changed my life – I’m SO excited you are going to get started!
Wow! I love that even though you didn’t make a lot of money, you still wrote about what you did make. It gives us newbie bloggers hope, especially after seeing the updates you’ve added about your more recent incomes. Thanks for the bit of reassurance.
Thanks! It’s been crazy documenting the whole process 🙂
I love that you shared to us your income report and the income you’ve earned when u were starting. I’ve read a lot of this kind of posts and most of them fronts how much money (like thousands) they made the first time and what made yours special is because it made me feel not so pressured and more hopeful because yours didn’t reach hundred bucks right away. I don’t posts seems more relatable and achievable. So thank u so much.
Thanks for the info, now I know what a blog can actually monetize about, introvert too :3
YAY for introverts!! 🙂
Inspirational blog income report. I’ve been bugging for a year now and still have not earned anything off my blog. OK well maybe $3.00 off of Google ad sense. I need to study more on affiliate marketing. But great post it’s inspiring me to keep trying.
Thanks! Yup, ads are like the hardest way to make money because it’s all based on page views. Focusing on affiliate income and products is one of the smartest things to do!
Thank you so very much for all the helpful advice! I’m getting ready to start my own blog and I’m a little intimated! I’m hoping to start posting and getting my domain and all that jazz within the next few months! I enjoy your posts and all the helpful tips!!!
Wow we’re in 2017 now. I found this recommended through pintrest and thought it was inspirational and helpful. I always appreciate people who share their first month income from blogging.
I’m trying to get into blogging now and convince my husband that someday it might let me work anywhere in the world, we love to travel. I bought a domain, installed a free theme, have five posts ready, and now I just need to launch my blog.
My question is if I should launch with already several posts on my blog, or just put up one and then add new posts every other day? I plan to share/launch it to friends and family with a special pregnancy announcement, so I’m hoping it’ll get a few hits/views right away.
I have been doing a lot of research on starting a personal finance blog, but I’m still nervous to take the plunge! Any advice for a newbie blogger?
Kristin,
Love all of the info you have available here! I wanted to clear something up, I am kinda confused!! I just launched my website with Bluehost. When you mention having WordPress. org in order to use adsense, do you mean that you have to purchase a wordpress.org theme? (as in graphics and format)
Thank you
Hi Tara! You can use a free or paid theme for wordpress. org. I started with a free theme, but switched over to a paid theme.
A real inspiring post for newbie bloggers thinking to monetize their blog. Thanks for the great info.
Thanks so much!
Hey can you help me? I am all new to this and is very interested in becoming a blogger. I mainly want to write about life in Hawai’i. I have been searching and watching videos all day. Im just stuck on where to start? and how to get things going? i really would like your help please
Congrats on wanting to start a blog! This post teaches you how to start a blog and give you tips. You can also join my private Facebook group, which helps bloggers get started!
Hi! just started a blog 3 days ago and hope to be where you are right now 🙂
Oh yay, congrats! You will do great – let me know if you have questions!
Hey this is an awesome post! But I’m really curious how you started and what you did to those page views?? Would really love to pick your brain a bit. Thanks again for the post.
You mean when my traffic started to increase? If so, I did this post on how I went from 5K to 40K+ pageviews in a few months – this was what totally changed my blog life all due to Pinterest!
Congrats on the paycheck! I’ve had my blog for about a month now. Growing enough followers to get Adsense to work for me has been a chore. Nice to know that others have a similar story, that it is work, that it didn’t come easy, but that the work paid off.
Hey Matt, that first $100 check from Google AdSense is amazing though! Look into Media.net too – it’s similar to AdSense, and I didn’t find out about it until months after. But I made more with Media than Adsense – no reason you can’t have both company ads on your site 🙂
Wow, this is so inspiring to see how great you are doing from beginning to now. To see that the little bit of money I am making on my blogging has the possibility to increase like yours did. Thank you for sharing this!!
You can totally do it. A year ago I was working at my full time job and think I had just put in my (60 day) notice. It’s crazy how much things change!
I think I will start reporting my monthly income as well, thanks for sharing.
Great Luciana!! They are such an inspiration for so many people!
Kristin,
Your information is wonderful, congratulations on your success! I’m so new at blogging that I am still writing content. I haven’t published yet, and really need some guidance on what the next steps should be. I’m nervous about it all, but am confident that I have a winning idea. I have my theme, domain name, and just feel like I need more help. Do you have time to answer some questions or can you direct me in terms of getting more help on this? I work a full-time job and only have limited time on weekends to get my blog going. Like you, I want to earn enough to be able to quit my job! Thanks very much for your information and for your help!!!!
Hey Dena! Just hit publish!! I was scared like you too when I first started this blog. But the more you publish and write, the easier it gets and the more comfortable you will be finding your voice. What are your goals for starting a blog? Mine was to share my journey, help others and monetize. You could read this post too – it’s how I worked full time but was a part time blogger and outlines my schedule (warning – it was a little crazy!)
Thanks for sharing! I’ve recently started my own blog and I’ve really enjoyed learning the ins and outs of blogging from reading how others started out. Right now I’m just trying to build up my content and make my page visually appealing, but hopefully I can try to implement some of these methods later down the road!
Definitely start with content first! The more content you can have, the easier it will be to move onto the next steps!
Could you explain how you monetized your blog? I currently use Word Press (the free verison) and I just started blogging. So I have no idea how to do the Adsense thing. Any direcitons would be really helpful! 🙂
Hi Samantha, I believe you need WordPress.org to monetize your blog if you want to be able to earn ad income. You can’t do that with the free version!
Congratulations on earning money from you blog. Keep at it. I was interested in your comment about Ebates. I have seen the commercials, but was not sure if it was legit. Thank you for posting it.
Yes, I’ve seen the commercials too. It’s definitely legit!
Excellent post, and very encouraging! My coworker knows I love to write and was toying with the idea of starting a blog, so for Christmas he offered to go halvsies on my hosting and domain. That was definitely the push I needed, and I did a ton a of research before finally taking the leap, but I still feel like there is so much I need to get a good handle on!
I was under the impression that I should probably build up a little content before I started putting myself out there via social media and seeking affiliate income, ads, etc, but the more I read, it seems like many successful bloggers try those things out of the gate because (as you said) it all takes a while to build up. What do you think?
Hey Sumalee! It doesn’t hurt to start early – just make sure you have some great content published first so readers who are coming from social media sites can see what you have to offer and will want to come back and read more 🙂 And if you want to monetize – go for it! It took me some time to build up – mostly because I had no clue what I was doing – so the earlier you can get started, the better!
Hi Kristin!
I am a newbie blogger who has no idea where to start with monetizing my blog:( how do you get started with affiliates? I see they seem to provide the most income and while I will certainly ad adsense, I do not want to overload my blog with ads since i want to keep it simple:)
Hey Sara! Since publishing this post I am now on (I think) my 13th blog income report? Today I am probably 50/50 in terms of income – like 50% from freelancing and 50% from affiliate income, courses and my book and ads! For affiliate income, try to find products that you use personally and see if they have a program. I use the Shareasale platform (that’s like the middle man that links you to brands) as well as focus on what my readers tent to want, which are products that save them money or make them money. Then I seek out products that fit them best, like Ibotta, Ebates, etc. You could always poll your audience in a newsletter or blog post and ask THEM what they want. Then figure out what product you can help to solve their problem, educate them about the product or course, etc. while monetizing at the same time. That seems like a fair trade off!
Thanks for sharing. I am only one month into blogging. Overwhelming amount of information to learn. Hope to eventually make income from my blog.
Hey Charlotte! Totally agree – there’s a ton to learn and I am still learning new things all the time ha! You should see how many bookmarks I have on my laptop of websites that I have marked for later reading 🙂
Congratulations Kristin! You have a lot of guts to put yourself out there and I applaud you for your honesty and candor. I have just started exploring the idea of a blog. I love to write and feel I have something to say but am just concerned no one will really want to hear it. Reading your blog have given me some optimism and maybe the encouragement I need to give it a try! Thank you for that! I wish you all the luck in the world! Sounds like you are well on your way!
Hi Pamm! When I started blogging, I didn’t worry too much about people reading it lol. It took me some time to figure out my style of writing and what I want to write about – and I’m not a writer! Trust me, write about what YOU want to write about and your audience will come.
Great post. I am launching a blog as well and already excited about the first dollars I’m gonna make. Wish me luck!
Hi Dalal, you will do great! I really think as long as you put the time in, it will pay off.
Way to go Kristin, your story is so inspiring. I have not started blogging yet, but have started to research the in’s and out’s of it. I have a very busy life with 2 kiddos and a full time job. I want to start a blog about my hobby, but not sure how great of a writer I am, and much time I need to commit!
Hey Lori. You can read my post here on how I blog part time while working a full time job. It was a little bit crazy for sure, but it’s paid off. And don’t worry – I am not a writer either and you definitely don’t have to be 🙂
I stumbled upon your blog post through Pinterest and am so glad that I did! You seem like a blogger I would love to read and learn from! As a newbie, it’s so exciting to see other newer bloggers that are still in the earlier (but still very successful) stages of their careers because you seem so down to Earth and real! I can’t wait to hear more from you and to learn more about you and your blog!
Hey Kenzie!! Aww, you’re so nice! If you’re ever in the Nashville area, let me know 🙂 Blogging has totally changed my life, but it took some work to get where I am now (I’m on maybe my 12th income report?) But I am totally open and share the good and the bad when it comes to blogging, so hopefully others find it useful. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment 🙂
Thank you so much for this! I definitely took some notes! Sometimes I feel like its all just a pipe dream to make that kind of money from blogging! But I’m committed and anything worth doing is worth doing well! Thank you for the inspiration!
I just launched my blog a week ago, UnderstandingIsLoving.com. I get like no views a day hahaha but after reading this and a couple other pro-blog tips, I have my marching orders. I hope you’ll stop by and tell me what you think! As soon as I can afford to I’ll change the theme.
Thanks Amber! It definitely takes a little bit of time to get going, but the payout is worth it. Make sure you look at my other income reports so you can see the increase each month 🙂
Thank you very much for posting an honest post about your first earnings with the blog. It took me a long time and I don’t earn monthly income on my blog. I earn so much from Adsense per month (not alot) and the odd referral. I guess if I added some affiliate marketing I could maybe make more. Either way I enjoyed reading this and I know its an old post but it is nice to see people giving positive and honest insights.
Hi LeeAnn! I am totally transparent, good or bad haha. I wish I had learned about affiliate marketing earlier and how to really do it – but it’s something I’m STILL working on!
Congratulations. We seem to be on the same timeline so I’m hoping I will have the same success as you. Wishing you continued success.
Thanks so much! You will do GREAT!
Kristen,
I started blogging in November of 2015 and have been wanting to start earning income but had no idea where to start.
Thanks so much for your insight!
Jannelle Sanchez
Oh yay! Jannelle, you totally got this. There are so many things you can do and you can go in so many directions, which makes blogging so awesome!
I’m new at an online website and want to simultaneously pour into a blog as well. Not necessarily looking for income at this point, just so much I want to share but I have no idea of where to start and how to connect with am audience or other bloggers for that matter! Any tips would be super helpful! Thanks and congratulations!
Hi LaToya! When I started out, I literally just started writing. I wasn’t too worried about an audience – I just focused on writing consistently, figuring out my style, etc. If you need help with getting a blog, I have a free ebook you can download!
That is great to know, I have just started a blog and want to monetize at some point.
Thank you,
Judy’s Rules
Good luck Judy!
Hi Kristin, Its nice that you have started income from your blogs. You would be feeling great fot this and you ll go forward in future for certainly sure.
By the way I too have a blog but still a lot of work pending to be done and then finally bring it upfront among all bloggers. Hoping my dream come true!
When i see anyone actually making income from blogs,rays of hope for me also becomes brighter.
By the way its good that you shared your blog income.
Thank you
Thanks so much! It’s really exciting when hard work pays off! Good luck!
Kristen, great job on your post! I have to admit when I scrolled down and read the numbers I laughed to myself. I am in the same boat now..I have few dollars and cents from various places but nothing to actually show on my bank statement. Thank you so much for posting this! It’s uplifting to know that my heard work will pay off like your hard work has done for you. Keep posting as I will keep reading!
Thanks Mimi! You have to start somewhere, right?! The best part is once you get started, your income will increase! I also had no problem showing how little I learned and documenting everything 🙂
Wow! Trying to learn all the ins and outs and do content, I never knew it was so much work! Been trying to keep up on learning the affiliates and the networks and Google Adsense and social media. Just keep pushing forward. Love to here your earning congrats to you! So awesome! Gives me hope for all my sleepless nights of hard work lol
Thanks! It was a long process for me to start earning income – and I’m still learning new things daily!
You deducted $5 for Google as a blog expense. But didn’t you mention in your article that you also pay for your domain and a wordpress website? Do you still pay for those, and if so, how much per month? I was wanting to start blogging, but the whole decision on going with a free site or paying for one still has me in limbo. Also, do you have a domain or website you recommend? Thanks.
Great question! I paid for my domain name and hosting up front in a 1 year package with Bluehost when I started my blog, which only cost me $55! Since I decided to continue blogging, I renewed with Bluehost for another 3 years!
I actually have a niche site that I just started and I use GoDaddy for the domain and hosting. I paid $25 for 1 year!
Basically, I wanted to try out both companies and see how they compare 🙂
Since I count income in and out for a specific month, I don’t count this as it was an upfront cost.
Have you figured out which you like best? GoDaddy or Bluehost? I haven’t figured out what i should even look for in a domain. Any tips for new bloggers when it comes to the domain?
Hey Brandy! I have been using Bluehost since I launched my blog – so almost 2.5 years now! I’m happy with them!
Thank you for being transparent with your monthly income report ! Very inspiring and motivated even though I have not yet put any affiliates on my blog I don’t even know where to begin lol Congrats !
Thanks so much!
I think this post is great. I am just starting my own blog and am crossing my fingers (and trying to work really hard) that I will one day make some money from it. Your blog is beautiful.
Thanks for your kind words! You will do great – you are always welcome to email me if you have Q’s 🙂 Good luck!
I like how you used the word “furkids” to describe your pets! I will use that, too. It’s a perfect one-word description of our family members!
Hahaha 🙂
Thank you for sharing. I am very new to blogging, but I’ve got a lot to say and my family is tired of listening. Hopefully, I can build my blog as you have and some day look at monetization. You are an inspiration ?
Blogging has been an AMAZING outlet. I never dreamed it would bring in any income at all. Good luck with your blog, you will do GREAT!
I’m looking to start a life blog of ups and downs, finance and life choices so knowing you are now making a dime more they you pay out is so helpful to me!
Now I just need to figure out how to get started
Thanks Stacey! What do you need help with?
Hello, I just ran across your blogging article. It’s hard to get started. I will set up a wordpress domain very soon to familiarize myself with it. Do you recommend getting a copyright started on logos for my blog? Or any of my posts for that matter?
As long as you add the copyright to the bottom of your blog (like in the footer) you should be good to go for protecting your content on your site. With that being said, I know some businesses and bloggers do have tiny watermarks on their logos to protect them, so it’s up to you!
Loved reading this as a new blogger myself. I just started a few months ago so it’s nice to know to be patient and good things will come!
Annie
Great job starting a blog!
im a new blogger myself and I just wanted to say congrats! I know you will never forget the feeling you received upon that paycheck. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Kaitlyn! Getting the first paycheck is awesome, regardless of the amount!
Thanks for sharing! I thought I was the only one who felt this way lol I started getting serious about my blog this past January too (started in July 2013) it’s been an adventure since I started to monetize but I’m having fun and learning a lot. Best of luck to you and your blog 🙂
Xo,
Kara
http://www.fcnextdoor.com
Thanks Kara! It’s definitely been an adventure of learning and figuring things out!
Hi Kristin!
I really enjoyed your post! I just recently decided to enter the blogging world, and it is always so great to hear about others’ success! I, too, am an introvert and find it hard to sometimes share my content. This definitely gave me the motivation I needed, Thanks 🙂
-Lauren
Thanks Lauren! I think there are a lot of us introverts around 🙂
I think that is so awesome for you! Its hard to actually start doing what you love and to actually make money from it is such a great bonus!!I just started blogging, I joined twitter (which I never thought I would) & finally started a blog on wordpress. Good luck to you and your new adventure
Thanks Marci! Good luck blogging and with wordpress. Let me know if you need help or have questions!
Great job! So glad you finally started making money, hope you still are!
Thanks Crystal!
Awesome, way to count your blessings…many hopes that it will continue to grow…:)
Thanks!
Thanks for posting this. It is motivating to a newbie like myself to see someone’s very first payout after less than a year. I hope I’m able to do the same!
Thanks! I’m still in the newbie phase too. Slow and steady seems to be the way for me!
I commented on your other page too. Sorry! How and what do you mean to do the affiliate links. I took the Blogelina class and she mentioned them too. I do the Google Ads but would love to start making more money wise. Would you comment more on how to do the affiliate part? Thanks!
There are so many options for affiliate links, but I feel like I am just skimming the service and there is so much I don’t know. I started by looking into products and services I use and then find out if they have an affiliate program I could join! Some of the companies offer programs in their own; some are part of a big network. I think I am going to break this down in a blog post this week. Thank you for asking!
Congrats on a great first month! It definitely feels to good to be true the first time your blog starts earning money, but it’s usually it’s not fluke. I hope April is going well too 🙂
Thanks Casandra! I’m super excited 🙂
Found your website on wordpress.org, you did a great job, with they way you used your sugar and spice theme, your motivating…..great job!!
Thanks! I started with the Sugar & Spice Theme, but recently transitioned over to the Genesis theme!
Thank you for sharing this income report. I am excited for you, and am hopeful I will be posting a first income report soon too. I appreciate the breakdown of how you received your $56.83 (are you going to frame your first dollar? :-)).
Thanks Charissa! Haha great idea :))
Congrats, you’re off to a great start!!
It’s definitely important to diversify when it comes to affiliates – both the programs themselves as well as the products / companies you promote within each program. Most of them have some sort of minimum payout, so it can take a lot of little drops in the bucket before a payout.
Keep up the great work, and best of luck with your future endeavors!
Thanks Mallory! I really think diversification is important, even if just starting out. It’s really helped me get a grasp on what is working and what isn’t!
Woo hoo!! Congrats on the income!! Affiliate sales for me is the hardest – so this is very impressive!! Keep up the great work 🙂
Thanks Sarah!!
Congrats on making some money! I’m terrible about affiliate stuff, so the money I make is often from cash back site referrals. (Mr. Rebates gives you an amount equal to 20% of your referrals’ rebates. No time limit.)
My AdSense is finally kicking up a bit, but I’ll never get to the point of a payout each month.
Thanks! My AdSense is still far from reaching the $100 threshold too, I can’t even imagine making that monthly!
I love reading income reports so I’m glad you started doing them as well. They are just such a great motivator to keep on improving!
Thanks Michelle! I get so motivated reading income reports too!
I think it’s great that you started doing income reports. We all have to start somewhere. I haven’t even started monetizing yet but I’m getting there. I’m looking forward to seeing your blog income grow and thanks for sharing!
Thanks Chonce!
Now we’re in 2016 and I started blogging in Decemeber and I’m in the same boat as you (well when you posted this lol) how is it going ?
Great post on monetizing your blog. I look forward to the day I can provide an income report for my blog.
Geneva, you can totally do this!