Passive Income Ideas For Devops Engineers [2024]
Interested in earning passive income as a devops engineer in 2024?
We put together a few of the best passive income ideas you can start as a devops engineer today. These will help you increase your quality of life by bringing in more income for yourself or your business.
For each income idea, we’ll show you real-world examples, revenue expectations for each idea, plus some things you might need to know before you start your passive income journey as a devops engineer.
Here's the full list:
1. Make passive income with an ai based business solution ($55.8K/month)
As a DevOps engineer, you could leverage your technical skills to create and manage AI-based business solutions that automate and enhance various business processes. By integrating AI tools, you could help companies streamline operations, reduce repetitive tasks, and gain valuable insights from data analysis. For example, you could develop solutions that optimize customer service, manage inventory more effectively, or provide personalized marketing strategies.
The demand for AI solutions is on the rise, as businesses recognize the benefits of increased efficiency and cost savings. You don’t need extensive AI expertise to start; many platforms offer user-friendly interfaces and comprehensive support. By focusing on high-impact areas and providing a well-thought-out implementation plan, you could tap into this expanding market and create a profitable side business.
How much you can make: $4,000 — $120,000/month
How long does it take to build: 125 days (?)
Mikkelsen Twins grew an online education company from scratch with over 800 students, making over 6-figures in profit every month thanks to their successful program, Audiobook Income Academy 2.0.
2. Make passive income with an AI writing tool ($255K/month)
As a DevOps engineer, you could leverage your strong technical skills to create an AI writing tool that generates high-quality, engaging content automatically. This tool could help bloggers, businesses, and students save time and ensure their writing is error-free and polished. Given the current demand for continuous content creation, this could be a valuable asset in many domains.
By integrating AI at the core of the tool, you could make content creation more efficient and accessible. For those with a knack for innovation and entrepreneurship, this venture offers an exciting opportunity to make a significant impact on the digital landscape. You could be at the forefront of this transformative technology, simplifying the writing process for people around the world while earning a passive income.
How much you can make: $4,000 — $1,000,000/month
How long does it take to build: 52 days (?)
Rytr, a new AI writing assistant developed by a startup platform and business incubator, has become a market leader, serving over 300,000 customers across the world and doing seven figures in ARR.
3. Make passive income with a lead generation tool ($108K/month)
As a DevOps engineer, you could leverage your technical skills to create a lead generation tool that helps businesses find new customers more efficiently. This tool would automate the process of capturing potential customer's contact information, such as email addresses and phone numbers, from various digital touchpoints like websites and social media. By doing so, companies can focus more on converting these leads into customers, rather than spending time and resources on finding them.
Given the high demand for streamlined marketing efforts, a well-designed lead generation tool could be very appealing to a wide range of businesses. Your background in engineering and automation will be advantageous in building a reliable and effective product. If you want to venture into entrepreneurship and tap into this growing market, starting a lead generation tool could be a practical and profitable side hustle.
How much you can make: $1,000 — $400,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $600 (?)
How long does it take to build: 90 days (?)
Dux-Soup is a LinkedIn automation tool that helps business owners and sales & marketing professionals generate more leads, increase efficiency, and save time; with over 70,000 users and revenue of nearly $5 million, it offers automated top-of-the-funnel LinkedIn outreach activities, targeted LinkedIn campaigns and multi-touch & personalized LinkedIn drip campaigns for lead generation.
4. Make passive income with a social media automation business ($139K/month)
As a DevOps engineer, you could leverage your technical skills to start a social media automation business, effortlessly managing multiple social media accounts while driving engagement and growth. This involves creating tools and services to schedule posts, automate interactions, and analyze data across various platforms. With a deep understanding of automation, you could develop or integrate software solutions that save clients—from small businesses to influencers—time and enhance their social media presence.
The growing need for consistent and strategic social media engagement means there’s significant demand for such automation services. By staying updated on social media trends and building relationships with clients, you could tailor your services to meet their specific needs. For those with a knack for technology and marketing, this can become a lucrative and fulfilling side hustle.
How much you can make: $4,000 — $400,000/month
How long does it take to build: 50 days (?)
MeetEdgar, a bootstrapped social media automation tool founded in 2014 by Laura Roeder, has grown to $4 million in annual recurring revenue and more than 5,000 customers, with a team size of two dozen, achieved through content marketing, social media marketing, and organic search.
5. Make passive income with a wordpress plugin business ($33.4K/month)
Starting a WordPress plugin business could be a good fit for you as a DevOps engineer, especially if you've identified specific problems that can be solved with automation or improved processes. Leveraging your technical skills, you could develop plugins that address these pain points and provide valuable solutions to others. This approach not only creates a source of passive income but also allows you to utilize your expertise in a practical, customer-focused way.
For instance, by creating plugins that simplify deployment, ensure site reliability, or enhance security, you can offer tools that many website owners would find invaluable. You could sell these plugins through online platforms like CodeCanyon, your own blog, or a dedicated website, thus reaching a broad audience without needing heavy marketing efforts.
This side business not only supplements your income but could also establish you as an authority in the niche, potentially leading to more opportunities in the future. Plus, once your plugins are developed and marketed, they can bring in consistent revenue with minimal ongoing effort.
How much you can make: $120 — $120,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $5,000 (?)
How long does it take to build: 120 days (?)
Time commitment per week: Min. 5 hours/week
Wheely Sales CEO Josh created a lucky wheel popup that has grown revenue from $0 to $600/month in just 4 months since getting started and has attracted over 1.1 million users to his customers’ websites, all while proving that when it comes to creating a product, competition is validation.
6. Make passive income with a mobile app ($70.3K/month)
As a DevOps engineer, you're already adept at problem-solving and working with complex systems, skills that could translate well into mobile app development. If you have a bright idea, turning it into a mobile app is more feasible than you might think. By leveraging your technical background, you could create a software application for smartphones and tablets that meets user needs, whether that's productivity tools, utilities, or gaming apps.
Creating a mobile app business would involve planning the user experience, designing engaging interfaces, and testing for functionality and bugs. With the option to use your coding skills or to hire a skilled developer, you could focus on ensuring the app runs smoothly and meets high-quality standards. Additionally, marketing your app effectively is crucial to gaining downloads and attracting users.
The mobile app market offers immense opportunities for innovation, and with dedication and the right strategy, your app could generate significant revenue. If you have an idea that solves a problem or entertains, this could be an exciting way to supplement your income while leveraging your current profession. The possibilities are endless and starting a mobile app could be your next big entrepreneurial venture.
How much you can make: $1 — $500,000/month
How long does it take to build: 180 days (?)
BACH, an app that plans and books bachelorette parties, has grown from $0 to >$1M net revenue run rate in less than 6 months, gained over 100,000 users in their first 60 days, and has over 40,000 parties using the app this month.
7. Make passive income with a queue management software
As a DevOps engineer, starting your own queue management software could be a smart side hustle. You have the skills to build a robust, efficient platform that can help businesses manage customer flow more effectively by reducing wait times and enhancing service delivery.
This type of software is in high demand because it addresses a common problem: long waits for customers. By creating features like virtual tickets, real-time wait time updates, and automated notifications, you could help businesses across various industries improve their customer experience.
With your expertise, you could develop a user-friendly platform that not only solves a real pain point but also generates passive income. Marketing this software to companies in healthcare, retail, and other sectors could be a lucrative way to supplement your income.
How much you can make: $66,000/month
How long does it take to build: 60 days (?)
Singapore-based Qwaiting's cloud-based queue management software helps businesses manage customer queues, reduce wait times, increase productivity and improve visitor experience. With average monthly revenue of $66k, Qwaiting has attracted 500+ clients and specialises in data analytics reporting, customer feedback support and centralised management.
8. Make passive income with an email marketing tool ($992K/month)
As a DevOps engineer, you could leverage your technical skills to develop an email marketing tool that automates and optimizes email campaigns. By building a robust and user-friendly software application, you would help businesses reach more customers, foster leads, and increase sales through efficient email communication. Your familiarity with cloud services and backend systems would be an asset in ensuring the tool’s scalability and reliability.
The email marketing industry is growing rapidly, with an expected market size of $2.53 billion by 2028. This presents a lucrative opportunity to create a profitable side business. By focusing on creating features tailored to niche markets, such as entrepreneurs, startups, and real estate agents, you could attract a diverse customer base and generate passive income through subscription models or licensing fees.
How much you can make: $120 — $20,833,333/month
How much does it cost to start: $1,000 (?)
How long does it take to build: 180 days (?)
H-supertools founder Hasan developed a set of free SEO and digital marketing tools generating $2k per month in profit using Google Adsense, affiliate marketing, selling ad spaces, and email, plans to launch a membership option, and has attained over 80k registered users and 300k monthly visits in less than two years.
9. Make passive income with a niche newsletter ($38.1K/month)
As a DevOps engineer, you could leverage your unique insights and technical knowledge to start a niche newsletter. By focusing on specialized content such as automation best practices, containerization techniques, or cloud optimization strategies, you could deliver valuable information to a highly interested audience. Many people and companies are constantly seeking ways to streamline their operations and would value your expert perspective.
Starting this kind of newsletter requires some initial effort in terms of researching, writing, and growing a subscriber list. However, once established, you could integrate sponsorships or advertisements to generate passive income. This allows you to share your expertise while earning extra money in a rewarding and sustainable way.
How much you can make: $400 — $250,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $3,055 (?)
How long does it take to build: 30 days (?)
Sex blogger turns a free WordPress blog into a $2,000 a month part-time digital business by investing in education, self-hosting, and building relationships within the NSFW community.
10. Make passive income with an interstate commuting business
If you're a DevOps engineer looking to supplement your income, starting an interstate commuting business could be a great option. You could leverage your knowledge of automation and system optimization to streamline operations like scheduling, routing, and customer management. By using your tech skills, you could create efficiencies that lower costs and make your service more attractive to customers.
Additionally, you could use some of your free time to manage the business initially and then hire drivers to handle the daily operations, making it more passive over time. With the growing demand for affordable transportation options, this could be a lucrative side hustle that doesn’t detract from your main job.
11. Make passive income with a YouTube channel ($72.1K/month)
Starting a YouTube channel could be a great way for a DevOps engineer to supplement their income. You could create video content that shares your expertise, such as how-to guides on deploying applications, tutorials on using popular DevOps tools, or vlogs about your everyday experiences in the field. This kind of content can attract a wide audience of both beginners and seasoned professionals looking to learn new skills.
To make money from your channel, you could earn revenue through ads, sponsorships, and even selling branded merchandise. While it does require consistent effort to plan, shoot, and edit videos, as well as engage with viewers, the rewards can be substantial. With dedication and a good grasp of SEO and social media marketing, your YouTube channel could turn into both a creative outlet and a profitable side hustle.
How much you can make: $2,000 — $333,333/month
How much does it cost to start: $5,250 (?)
How long does it take to build: 30 days (?)
This case study follows the journey of a young entrepreneur from Nigeria who started a profitable blog generating a monthly revenue of $1,500+ through sales of advertising space, sponsored posts, and information products, and shares his strategies for success including a Twitter growth challenge and guest post pitches.
12. Make passive income with a niche website ($107K/month)
As a DevOps engineer, starting a niche website could be a strategic way to supplement your income and share your expertise with a wider audience. You could focus the website on specialized topics you know well, such as continuous integration, automation tools, or cloud infrastructure. This would allow you to create compelling content that attracts fellow engineers and tech enthusiasts seeking in-depth knowledge.
You could monetize the site through various methods, such as affiliate marketing for DevOps tools, ad placements, or even selling e-books and courses on best practices and industry trends. While it requires initial effort in creating content and optimizing the site for search engines, a well-maintained niche website can eventually provide a steady stream of passive income. By sharing your unique insights and solutions, you not only earn extra money but also contribute to the DevOps community.
How much you can make: $400 — $250,000/month
How long does it take to build: 60 days (?)
DPW (Digital Procurement World) is a fast-growing conference and community in procurement that has more than tripled in revenue since launching in 2019, capping out the year at €1.8 million, with 95% of their growth coming from inbound traffic leveraging LinkedIn and applying social selling techniques.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
