Businesses You Can Start for Under $25,000, page 14

Empathetic, organized people with an eye for valuing secondhand goods who can earn families' trust during emotional transitions

Startup cost

$2,000 – $15,000

Monthly earnings

$2,000 – $10,000 / mo

First income

1 to 3 months

Organized, people-driven operators who can recruit reliable staff and juggle weekend logistics

Startup cost

$2,000 – $15,000

Monthly earnings

$1,500 – $14,000 / mo

First income

3 to 8 weeks

Community-minded organizers who can rally farmers, navigate local government, and run a recurring weekly event

Startup cost

$2,000 – $30,000

Monthly earnings

$1,000 – $9,000 / mo

First income

3 to 6 months

Persistent B2B salespeople who want to build a recurring residual income from fleets and don't mind a long sales cycle

Startup cost

$2,000 – $20,000

Monthly earnings

$1,000 – $12,000 / mo

First income

2 to 4 months

Creative, detail-oriented people who can handle perishable inventory, tight deadlines, and physically demanding weekend event work

Startup cost

$2,000 – $25,000

Monthly earnings

$1,500 – $10,000 / mo

First income

1 to 3 months

Detail-oriented, handy people who like clean install work and selling a visible, high-want home upgrade

Startup cost

$2,000 – $15,000

Monthly earnings

$2,000 – $12,000 / mo

First income

2 to 6 weeks

Licensed cosmetologists who are good with people and want to build a loyal, repeat clientele either renting a chair or running their own space

Startup cost

$2,000 – $120,000

Monthly earnings

$2,500 – $15,000 / mo

First income

2 to 6 weeks

People with strong visual taste and sales sense who can build relationships with real estate agents and manage logistics and physical work

Startup cost

$2,000 – $40,000

Monthly earnings

$1,500 – $12,000 / mo

First income

1 to 3 months

Relationship-driven salespeople with IT knowledge who can win business accounts and live comfortably on thin per-deal margins and volume

Startup cost

$2,000 – $30,000

Monthly earnings

$2,000 – $20,000 / mo

First income

1 to 3 months

Nurses, midwives, or experienced peer counselors who want clinical, relationship-based work helping new families

Startup cost

$2,000 – $12,000

Monthly earnings

$1,000 – $8,000 / mo

First income

1 to 3 months after credentialing

People with sales ability and real estate finance literacy who can tolerate irregular, deal-dependent income

Startup cost

$2,000 – $25,000

Monthly earnings

$0 – $7,000 / mo

First income

3 to 8 months

Detail-oriented people with healthcare, coding, or billing experience who want recurring revenue and can endure a long sales cycle

Startup cost

$2,000 – $15,000

Monthly earnings

$1,500 – $12,000 / mo

First income

3 to 6 months

Reliable, detail-oriented drivers who want recurring B2B routes and can pass compliance and background checks

Startup cost

$2,000 – $12,000

Monthly earnings

$2,500 – $9,000 / mo

First income

1 to 3 months

Patient, mechanically inclined people willing to spend months learning a genuine craft trade with little competition

Startup cost

$2,000 – $25,000

Monthly earnings

$1,500 – $7,000 / mo

First income

1 to 4 months

Physically strong, reliable people who want a high-demand service with per-job pricing and a clear path to crews

Startup cost

$2,000 – $20,000

Monthly earnings

$3,000 – $14,000 / mo

First income

2 to 4 weeks

People with strong style sense and selling instincts who enjoy curating trends and engaging an audience online

Startup cost

$2,000 – $20,000

Monthly earnings

$0 – $10,000 / mo

First income

1 to 3 months

Media-minded operators who can build audiences and sell advertising, and can fund a long, uncertain growth period before ad revenue arrives

Startup cost

$2,000 – $25,000

Monthly earnings

$0 – $12,000 / mo

First income

6 to 18 months

Hands-on people who enjoy product-making and selling at markets, events, and online, and want a high-margin food business with low ingredient cost

Startup cost

$2,000 – $20,000

Monthly earnings

$800 – $7,000 / mo

First income

1 to 3 months

Skilled makers who love fabrication across many materials and want project-based creative work with film, theater, events, and retail clients

Startup cost

$2,000 – $20,000

Monthly earnings

$0 – $8,000 / mo

First income

1 to 4 months

Self-directed people with savings, a strong local network, and the patience to work months before commissions arrive

Startup cost

$2,000 – $8,000

Monthly earnings

$0 – $9,000 / mo

First income

3 to 6 months

Organized, social people who can secure fields, fill teams, and keep adult players happy season after season

Startup cost

$2,000 – $20,000

Monthly earnings

$0 – $8,000 / mo

First income

2 to 5 months

Hands-on, people-oriented practitioners who want a low-cost wellness practice and are comfortable staying within an honest scope of practice

Startup cost

$2,000 – $30,000

Monthly earnings

$800 – $6,000 / mo

First income

2 to 5 months

Hard-working, resourceful people who like physical hauling work and are comfortable with income that rises and falls with commodity prices

Startup cost

$2,000 – $30,000

Monthly earnings

$1,500 – $10,000 / mo

First income

1 to 3 weeks

Experienced dog trainers with the patience, ethics, and stamina for long, high-stakes programs that change someone's daily life

Startup cost

$2,000 – $20,000

Monthly earnings

$1,500 – $9,000 / mo

First income

1 to 3 months