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A blog makes money when its readers bring in revenue: through ads on your pages, commissions on products you recommend, or things you sell yourself. If you’re wondering how to monetize a blog, this guide covers what a blog can earn and what that depends on, the main ways to make money blogging, and how to monetize a blog on Blogger or Blogspot.
There’s no typical number, because a blog’s income depends on how it’s monetized and who reads it. How much money you make from a blog comes down to a few factors:
Keep in mind that revenue isn’t profit. A blog that brings in money but spends most of it on hosting, tools, and paid traffic may earn less than a smaller blog with low costs.
If you earn from ads, you can make a rough estimate with this formula: estimated ad revenue = page views ÷ 1,000 × page RPM. Page RPM is your estimated earnings per 1,000 page views (AdSense Help: RPM, checked October 2026). Take both numbers from the same period. For example, if a blog had 20,000 page views last month at a page RPM of $3, the estimate is 20,000 ÷ 1,000 × $3 = $60. That’s a hypothetical example to show the math, not a forecast for your blog.
To see what works, track your results regularly. Tools like Google Analytics show who visits, where they come from, and which posts they read. Alongside traffic, measure revenue by method (ads, affiliate sales, product sales), page RPM for ads, and costs. Compare similar periods, for example one month with the same month a year earlier, and change one thing at a time so you know what made the difference.
The best way to monetize your blog depends on your content and readers. Before you pick a method, two things need to be in place. First, a clear niche: readers who come for a specific topic are easier to serve with relevant ads, products, or offers.
Second, regular, useful content: research what your audience searches for with keyword research tools, check your facts, and keep a steady publishing schedule. If you don’t have a blog yet, start with our guide on how to create a blog.
Here’s how the main blog monetization strategies compare:
| Method | How you earn | Best fit | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advertising | Ad networks pay for ad impressions or actions on your pages | Blogs with steady traffic | Earnings follow traffic, and too many ads make reading harder |
| Affiliate Marketing | A commission when a reader buys through your link, under the program’s terms | Reviews, comparisons, and how-to posts | You earn only on confirmed actions and need to disclose links |
| Courses and Workshops | Readers pay for structured lessons or live sessions | Expert blogs with an engaged audience | Takes time to create, update, and support |
| Merchandise and Ebooks | Readers buy physical goods or digital files | Blogs with a loyal audience or a recognizable brand | You handle production, payments, and, for physical goods, delivery |
| Paid Memberships | A recurring fee for exclusive content or access | Blogs with regular readers who want more | You have to keep delivering value every period |
| Sponsored Content | A brand pays for a post about its product | Blogs whose audience matches a brand’s customers | Needs a clear label and can crowd out your own content |
What you’re paid for: showing ads on your pages. Depending on the network and format, you earn for impressions, clicks, or actions readers take.
Best for: blogs with steady traffic, especially when readers come from search and read several pages.
How to start: pick an ad network, add its code to your blog, and test a few placements. A few common options:
If you plan to combine networks, check that their formats can run together. For example, AdSense doesn’t allow Google ads on sites that contain or trigger pop-unders (AdSense ad placement policies, checked October 2026). For WordPress setup, see how to monetize a WordPress website. For other site types, see our guide to website monetization. If you’re still choosing where to host your blog, compare the best blogging platforms.
Main limitation: ad revenue follows traffic, so a small blog earns little from ads. Too many ads also make your pages harder to read, so test placements and keep the content easy to follow.
What you’re paid for: a commission when a reader completes an action through your referral link, usually a purchase. The program’s terms define which actions count and how they’re confirmed.
Best for: reviews, comparisons, and how-to posts where recommending a product feels natural.
How to start: join a program that fits your niche and add links where they help the reader. Recommend only products you’ve tried or believe in, keep links natural, and use analytics to see which links bring clicks and sales.
Main limitation: you earn only on confirmed actions, so returns or canceled orders may not pay. You also need to tell readers clearly, close to the link, that you earn a commission.
What you’re paid for: structured lessons or live sessions that readers buy.
Best for: blogs where you’ve built real expertise and readers ask for more depth.
How to start: look at what your audience struggles with and build a short course around that problem. Use videos, quizzes, or assignments to keep it interactive, and promote it through your blog, email list, and social channels. A free webinar can work as a preview.
Main limitation: a course takes time to create and update, and students expect answers to their questions.
What you’re paid for: physical products or digital files that readers buy.
Best for: blogs with a loyal audience or a recognizable brand.
How to start: set up an online store, for example with Shopify, and link it from your blog. Choose products that fit your niche: a travel blog might sell planners or maps. For an ebook, you can collect and expand your best posts into one guide.
Main limitation: you handle production, payments, and refunds, and for physical goods, delivery too.
What you’re paid for: a recurring fee for exclusive content or access.
Best for: blogs with regular readers who want more than the free posts.
How to start: decide what members get, such as in-depth articles, live Q&A sessions, or private events, and how often. Tiered pricing with different benefits can suit different readers.
Main limitation: members pay every period, so you need to keep delivering every period. If the exclusive content dries up, members cancel.
What you’re paid for: a post about a brand’s product or service, written for your audience.
Best for: blogs whose readers match a brand’s customers.
How to start: work only with brands that fit your blog, and make sponsored posts as useful as your regular content.
Main limitation: sponsored posts need a clear label at the start, not a note at the end. Too many of them can make readers trust your recommendations less.
Yes, you can make money on Blogspot. Blogger is Google’s free blogging service, and blogs hosted there get a free address ending in blogspot.com unless you connect your own domain. That free address doesn’t stop you from monetizing.
You can show AdSense ads, ads from other networks, and affiliate links, as long as you follow Blogger’s content policy and the rules of the service you use. Blogger doesn’t allow ads on adult blogs (Blogger Help, checked October 2026).
AdSense is the built-in option on Blogger. To make money from Blogger with AdSense:
Approval isn’t automatic: your blog has to comply with AdSense policies. Once your account is active, you can place ads between posts (Layout, then Blog Posts, then Show Ads Between Posts) or in the sidebar (Layout, then Add a Gadget, then AdSense).
You can also earn money from Blogger without AdSense, through other ad networks or affiliate links.
To add another network’s ad code:
Before you start, check that the network accepts blogs on a free Blogspot address and which of its formats work there. Not every network or format supports them, and the network’s own rules apply on top of Blogger’s.
Affiliate links work on Blogger the same way as on any blog: add them to relevant posts and disclose clearly that you earn a commission.
Yes. A free Blogspot address doesn’t block monetization on its own. You can apply for AdSense through Blogger’s Earnings section, add code from other ad networks with the HTML/JavaScript gadget, or use affiliate links. Each tool has its own rules and approval process, so check whether it supports your blog before you rely on it. No service guarantees approval for every blog.
Technically, you can connect a monetization method like an ad network or affiliate program in a day, once your blog is approved. Earning meaningful income takes longer and depends on how much content you have, how many readers you attract, how long the service’s review takes, and which method you use. There’s no fixed number of days that applies to every blog.
There’s no single best way to monetize a blog. Most bloggers start with one method that fits their content, such as ads or affiliate links, and add others as their audience grows. Whatever you choose, track what each method brings in against what it costs you.
If you want to test ads on your blog, Monetag is an ad network with several formats you can compare on your own traffic. You can sign up for Monetag, add its tag to your site, and see which formats suit your readers.
