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February Blog Income Report – $49,607

Last Updated: BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 129 Comments

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you. Please read my disclosure for more info.

February Online Income Report - $49,607Welcome to February’s online income report where I show you how I made money online last month. It’s time to look at this month’s update and track how I did.

If you’re new here, you may be wondering why I would want to publish my income report each month. You can simply skip to the next section if you’re not new here.

This all started out as my extra income report because in the beginning it was all about the money I was earning from my side jobs. In my side income reports from the beginning, I included all of the income I made except for what I made at my day job.

However, I left my day job as a financial analyst in October of 2013 and now my monthly income reports consist of the many ways I earn a living.

Many have asked why I would ever want to publicly post my income each month. Some think I’m crazy, whereas some are glad I’m open about what I’m doing. Whatever you think, I enjoy publishing my monthly online income reports and I share them publicly for three main reasons:

  • Before I started blogging, I knew nothing about side hustling and making money online. I didn’t think side jobs were worth the effort and I thought the only way to significantly increase your income was through raises at your full-time job. If it weren’t for others publishing their monthly income reports, I don’t know if I would have ever tried side hustling. I want to help show others the positives in side hustling and how it can change a person’s life. There are many different ways to make money online, and I like to share my story each month to help motivate others to improve their financial situation by making more money.
  • Secondly, I like to publish my income reports because it’s a way for me to look back, learn from my mistakes and actually see what areas need improvement. I use my monthly income reports as a way to track how I’ve done and I treat it sort of like a journal.
  • Lastly, I like to show others that making side money is possible and that there are many legitimate ways to make money from your home. If you are looking for information on the many ways to make money online, I published the article Monthly Income Report Roundup – My Favorite Income Bloggers that showcases many successful bloggers who are kind enough to share their income with the public each month. I’ll be publishing an update to this post soon, so please send me an email (or leave a comment) if you would like me to include your income report.

I know I say this every month, but it’s the truth. Life is great now that I’m my own boss. I look forward to each and every day and it’s a wonderful feeling. I truly love waking up every morning.

Above are just a few of the reasons for why I enjoy publishing my monthly income reports. I like to show others that you don’t have to hate your job and hate your life. You can make changes to your life and make money in a way that allows you to truly enjoy the life you are living. I’m not saying that you have to LOVE your job, I’m just saying that your job should, at least, allow you to do what you like to do outside of work (whether that be spending time with loved ones, painting, hiking, etc.).

 

How was my blog income in February?

I wasn’t sure how February would go due to moving (we live in our RV full-time now!), but it went very well.

My business is growing, income is increasing significantly, I have tons of awesome ideas for the rest of the year, and I am just extremely excited about everything. I really love my business and I don’t know where I would be without it.

The business is doing well and I’m very happy with it. I’ve been catching myself saying “Life is really good” a LOT lately. And, I mean it – life is really good. 

Anyway, I earned $49,607 online in February, before expenses.

If you are interested in starting a blog of your own, I created a tutorial that will help you start a blog of your own for cheap, starting at only $3.49 per month (this low price is only through my link) for blog hosting. In addition to the low pricing, you will receive a free website domain (a $15 value) through my Bluehost link if you purchase at least 12 months of blog hosting. FYI, if you are asking yourself “can you make money blogging?” – my top tip is to be self-hosted. This is essential if you want to monetize your blog as you will appear more professional and this will help you monetize your blog tremendously. My blogging income did not take off until after I switched to self-hosted WordPress.

Related articles:

 

February Income

The number above is for the month of February and before any fees and expenses (some fees and expenses that lower the amount above total around $4,700 (rounded up), which include virtual assistants/staff writers for my other websites, technical assistance, Facebook advertising (I spent $3,000 on Facebook advertising alone in the month of February), newsletter expenses, PayPal fees, etc., however, this does not include taxes) being taken out. After expenses and fees, I made approximately $44,907. 

Below are some of my other monthly online income reports. I publish an online income update every month but only included some of them below as it would be a very long list. If you head on over to my income page you can find all of my monthly income reports from the past few years.

 

Blog news.

Making Sense of Cents is doing well and I’m very happy with everything.

One area I am working on right now is increasing the amount of traffic I receive to my website. I tried Facebook ads last month and spent a nice chunk of change on it, but I’m pausing that this month. I really like organic (free!) traffic and I’m going to continue doing that. With that being said, I’m going to try my hardest to improve the amount of traffic that I receive from Facebook because I did like seeing the traffic from there.

Pinterest is still one of the main ways I receive referral traffic each month. I’m still using Tailwind and it has saved me a ton of time. Plus, even though I am automating a lot of my Pinterest tasks, I am actually seeing an increase in traffic, which is great.

However, I’ve decided that I’m going to give BoardBooster a shot because it seems like many other bloggers are having great success with it. I’ll let you know in next month’s income report about whether I like it or not.

Also, I have received many questions recently about how I’m staying connected to the internet so that I can work and travel in my RV at the same time. I use a [easyazon_link identifier=”B00OPO5XO0″ locale=”US” tag=”maksenofcen0b-20″ link_id=”7533″ type=”link”]Verizon MiFi[/easyazon_link] and I am able to stay connected pretty much anywhere with it. It really comes in handy because you can’t always trust free wifi. Sometimes free wifi is slow, hard to find, or not safe. I don’t know what I would do without this device!

Overall, traffic increased in February and I received around 550,000 pageviews.

Top new posts on Making Sense of Cents last month:

 

February Online Income Report - $49,607Featured Question: Should my blog be self-hosted?

I feature one question from a reader in each monthly income report. Please leave a comment below if you have a question that you would like me to answer.

Yes!

If you want to make money blogging, the first thing you will need to do is make sure you have a self-hosted blog, such as through Bluehost.

I recommend you start on self-hosted WordPress (this tutorial will help you start your blog the correct way). I cannot say this enough, but I do not recommend Blogger or WordPress.com (you want the self-hosted version, which is WordPress.org – confusing, I know). Buying that $10 domain name from Blogger or GoDaddy does not mean you own it either.

Advertisers, companies, and readers will know you are still on Blogger or free WordPress, which can look unprofessional. Plus, your blog can be deleted at anytime and for no reason when on a free version, and it even happened to me. This can hurt your chances at earning your income online.

Seriously, just trust me. Go with self-hosted WordPress, and it will significantly increase your chances of monetizing your blog.

If you want further proof, take a look at my past income reports. You can tell that my income through blogging didn’t take off until just as I switched to WordPress. Right there is a lot of proof that being self-hosted on WordPress is the way to go!

So, to recap, the positives of being self-hosted on WordPress through Bluehost include:

  • You have a more professional website meaning you may be able to make more money on WordPress.
  • The ability to have complete control over your blog.
  • You own your blog, and it can’t be deleted for no reason.

Past questions:

 

My plans for my website and making money online.

Without plans and goals, it would be very hard to run a business. I believe that constantly working towards something can help keep a person motivated.

Below are some of the areas I am currently working on:

  • Promote more. I am doing much better at promoting my articles and I’m noticing a huge improvement. One area is still Pinterest, and it brought around 170,000 clicks to my blog just in the month of February. I would love to see this number triple or quadruple before the year ends.
  • Accept more interviews.  I only took part in a few interviews in February. February was a crazy month due to the move, so I’m fine with that.
  • Double my income. Yes, I said double. I would love to double 2015’s income and I think it’s possible considering how well 2015 ended. That means I will need to average around $53,000 a month. It won’t be easy, but it will be fun to attempt.
  • Diversify my affiliate income streams. My goal is to diversify my affiliate income and have more sources.
  • Create an ebook. I’m in the very beginning stages of creating an ebook to help others increase their affiliate income. What questions would you like me to answer in my ebook? Eventually, I plan on expanding this further into a course, but for now I’m starting with an ebook.
  • Increase my pageviews to 1,000,000 each month. Okay, I realize this is sort of a superficial goal, but it’s quantifiable and that’s what I like about it. I would like to hit one million pageviews a month before the year ends. Wish me luck!

 

Staff writing.

I only wrote two articles for clients in February. I have a few planned for March, but I’m taking it slow. This is because I’m trying to spend more time on creating the ebook I discussed above, as well as my improving my blog.

Related articles:

 

Affiliate income.

Overall, I generated around $55,000 in affiliate income in February.

It was a great month, and I still can’t believe how quickly my affiliate income has grown in just the past year. Affiliate income is something that I really love due to how passive it can feel. It makes full-time traveling much more enjoyable when I know I can bring in an income while having a ton of fun exploring new places.

Anyway, I won’t see the payments I earned in February until 60-90 days later for most of the affiliate programs I’m in. Due to this, you won’t see those amounts reflected in my monthly income reports until then.

I recommend checking out my online course for bloggers, Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing. I earn over $50,000 a month through affiliate marketing and I share my exact strategy and tips in this very informative online course. If you’re a blogger, then you NEED this course.

Annual income chart - February 2016

I started my income reports back in 2012. Please click here to find them all.

Breakout of the payments I received in February ($49,607):

Please keep in mind that I work for myself when you read my monthly income report. This means I have to cover taxes (which are over 30%), health insurance, and all other benefits/expenses that an employer may provide.

Check out How To Make Money Blogging for all of the different ways you can make money through a blog.

 

Comparisons and 2016 online income total (before taxes):

  • Total income in February of 2016: $49,607
  • Total income in January of 2016: $44,782
  • Difference: +4,825
  • Total in 2016: $94,389

How was February for you? Are you interested in earning income online?

If you are interested in starting a blog of your own, I created a tutorial that will help you start a blog of your own for cheap, starting at only $3.49 per month (this low price is only through my link) for blog hosting. In addition to the low pricing, you will receive a free blog domain (a $15 value) through my Bluehost link if you purchase at least 12 months of blog hosting. FYI, you want to be self-hosted. This is essential if you want to monetize your blog as you will appear more professional and this will help you monetize your blog tremendously. 

 

Related Posts

About Michelle Schroeder-Gardner

Michelle is the founder of Making Sense of Cents, a blog about personal finance and traveling. She discusses how her business has evolved in her side income series. She paid off $40,000 in student loans by the age of 24 mainly due to her freelancing side hustles. Click here to learn more about starting a blog!

Comments

  2. Suzi Whitford says

    Hey there! Fantastic report Michelle! My hubby recently started using MOTIF and he loves it, cool to see that you’re getting a good chuck of change from being an affiliate for them. How are your MOTIFs doing? 🙂

    Also, you talk about increasing your FB traffic. What are your tips? I put together an analysis of 31 Facebook Groups to plan out a promo schedule during the week, and my readers loved it. Do you use FB groups to promote your blog? Or do you just post it on your blog wall?

    Thanks for all the tips above! Enjoy RVing. <3

    Reply

  4. Sarah @ the frugal millionaire blog says

    Hi Michelle!! Congratulations on the income!! You are rocking it!! I can’t wait for your ebook 🙂 🙂 🙂

    Question – you said you were backing off of promoted pins and instead going to focus on FB ads. Do you find those to be more successful?! Do you do “boosted” posts or ads? I’ve tried a few boosted posts on FB and have ran some promoted pins, but haven’t really had much luck (though, I haven’t spent much and it doesn’t look like you can tell if sales came specifically from the ad…at least not that I’ve figured out!!)

    Thanks!! Hope you are enjoying your day!! 🙂

    Reply

  7. Monica says

    This is so inspiring and exciting! As a new blogger, I want to thank you for publishing these details. It is a great motivational tool!
    I made $0.24 in February! Woot! 😉
    I’m excited to keep moving along!

    Reply

  9. Latoya @ Life and a Budget says

    Congrats as always, Michelle! I still don’t know how you manage to do such a great job with your affiliate income. I’ve thought about doing it but I can’t lie, I’m intimidated by the work. I’ll just live vicarioulsy through your income reports for now;)

    Reply

  11. Aliyyah @RichAndHappyBlog says

    You are doing great with affiliate income! I am a new blogger and hope to start earning money from affiliate marketing within the next year. You also earn a lot of sponsorships. I am curious: how many page views did you have before you started receiving sponsorships?

    Reply

  12. fehmeen says

    Those are some very impressive affiliate income figures. I’m glad you shared them because as I read the title of your post, the first question that popped into my head was, ‘how?!’

    I do have a question for you though. You said you were pausing the Facebook ads service and wanted to focus on organic traffic instead. How do you achieve that?

    Reply

  13. Abigail @ipickuppennies says

    I’m trying to get into the affiliate game and do some sponsorships, but I’m having to go slowly as I balance so many other things. I’m also trying to finally write my own e-book, though I have no idea where, exactly, I’ll find the time.

    I’m sure people will find your affiliate information helpful, given how well you do with it.

    Reply

  14. Josh says

    Ebates is an awesome service. My wife & I use it for just about every online purchase, plus referring our family during Christmas helped us get a nice “Big Fat Check” this time around too!

    Reply

  16. Natalie @ Financegirl says

    I think one of the great lessons in looking at your chart of your business income over time is that it was really steady for a while (about a year in 2014) then it shot up and grew exponentially. I think it’s a critical point to realize that if you put in the smart work and planning over time, your business should grow exponentially in the future if you’re doing it right. Way to go!!! 🙂

    Reply

  17. Melanie says

    I look forward to your monthly income reports and hope you continue to share them. It is truly inspirational and I congratulate you on your success! Thank you for the tips 🙂

    Reply

  18. cece says

    You are such a rock star! And it’s funny because even though you are so detailed about how you do it, I still cant’ figure out how you do it! Or else I’d probably do it. LOL.

    Reply

  20. Jack says

    Wow, that’s some amazing progress.

    Never ceases to amaze me how lucrative BlueHost affiliatizing is. Might be time to write an article on getting started with your own blog.

    Reply

  24. Kristina Mercado says

    You Blog is extremely motivating. Ive been thinking about starting my own blog for months and always come back to yours for inspiration. hopefully ill finally start the major stuff soon.

    Reply

  25. Tyler @ Oddball Wealth says

    Great job! It seems as though your income steadily increases every month, I’m sure you’ll easily reach and surpass your goal!

    Reply

  26. Colin Ashby says

    Wow, awesome job. Your affiliate income looks to be diversifying more and more, which is what I know you said you wanted. I can’t wait for your ebook on affiliate income!

    Reply

  31. Yok says

    These are staggering figures and every time I check-in to review your income reports, I am left speechless and gasping for air as I try and stand back up.

    Could you share how much of your labor is outsourced to virtual assistants?

    Reply

  32. Linda says

    Wow! Your income report is really impressive!

    Do you have a blog post showing how you find and create your images? They always look beautiful.

    Reply

  33. Daundra Becker says

    So awesome!!
    There is definitely so much potential in blogging. I didn’t expect to make anything, but I made $65 not even a full month in. I’m actually putting together my first income report. 🙂 I want to keep track from the beginning so I can see exactly how far I’ve come!

    Reply

  37. Michael says

    Congratulations Michelle! Thank you so much for sharing this level of detail on your income streams through various affiliate programs.

    Reply

  38. Vanessa Jencks says

    I saw you mentioned Facebook traffic. Do you follow Neil Patel? I absolutely love his brilliant work in marketing! You should check out his work.

    Reply

  39. Jackie says

    Wow thissite is mind blowing!!! I just want to say good on you!
    I have just started a blog to keep me accountable for my budget and spending, never even thought of it as a “side Hassle” Thank you so much for sharing Michelle, I have spent many many hours reading and learning from you.

    Reply

  41. Ali Raza says

    Michelle great job! another month with record numbers. I’m looking forward to seeing you crossing $50+k per month.

    My best wishes with you, keep up the good work.

    Reply

  43. Dominic @ Gen Y Finance Guy says

    Hi Michelle,

    First, GREAT month! It’s been a while since I checked in on you and you have grown like crazy in a few short months.

    I was wondering if you could let me know what plugin you use for your comments that defaults to “Send Email Notification ONLY if Someone Replies To My Comment(s)?”

    Thanks,

    Dom

    Reply

  44. Lloyd says

    It’s always a joy to read your monthly reports. I’ve just posted my second month. I’m not onto getting any income yet, but life has been a bit intense this month and I reckon I’ve done pretty well considering. Thanks for being an inspiration. I’m keen to learn more from you about sponsorship as per my reply further up.

    Reply

  47. Jenn says

    This is so incredible!! I would love to earn even more money from side hustles. I cannot believe just a few short years ago, we swapped holiday goodies! If you ever run a mini course or do sessions, let me know! I would love to learn more.

    Reply

  50. Tomeka S says

    Awesome Job Michelle! I’ve started a blog last month and still trying to get a hang of pulling everything together. There are so many areas to research starting out. I seen before that you had an article about your favorite income bloggers. Would you be opposed to updating your list to some current favorites and/or favorite personal financial bloggers?

    Reply

  54. Kylie says

    Michelle this is incredible! I am so happy for you and all of your success, you completely deserve it! Thanks for posting these, it really helps me with all my planning and accounting! Keep killing it in the blogging world, you rock!

    Reply

  55. Nate Matherson says

    So impressive! Great job Michelle. You are an inspiration for all personal finance bloggers. The progress you’ve made over the last year is unbelievable. Congrats! Congrats!

    Safe travels in the RV!

    Reply

  56. Maggie says

    I’m a little curious how you made so much money in the “Survey’s” category. I’m a part of a couple of survey sites and always do a couple surveys a day… But that’s A LOT of money to make. Any secrets?

    Reply

  57. Cam says

    Michelle, thanks so much for posting your income reports. They are inspirational, and a pick-me-up each time I read one! Your posts are a source of constant encouragement, and a go-to for how to do blogging right :-).

    Reply

  59. Danielle Smith says

    WOW MICHELLE!!!

    Your blog has been simply inspiring!! You were the one that opened my eyes to a world I knew nothing about with all this side income talk!! How did you make over $5,000 from Survey Companies?!? Is that largely from like referrals?

    Reply

  60. Investment Hunting says

    First off, congrats on killing the Bluehost affiliate revenue. Nice job. Question, I see you have an Investing Channel ads on your sidebar, do you know how many monthly pageviews a publisher needs to work with them?

    Reply

  61. Dragos says

    Hello Michelle,

    You have a nice blog and an very nice montly income every month. Making more then 40K a month is a very good and you are one off the top earning blogers. Can you please tell how much visitors is this site getting monthly?

    Thanks,
    Dragos

    Reply

  62. Sebastian says

    WOW!
    Great figures and a pleassure to read. I really enjoy your site and i haven’t thought that earning such a big amout of money by running a blog …

    Great job!

    Reply

  63. Yok says

    This is simply incredible! Your income is growing exponentially! Every time I check in to see how your site is doing I have to sit down and take a breath because you are rockin it!

    Reply

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