10 Creative Ways To Make Money On Pinterest

Let’s be real Pinterest is no longer just a pretty place to pin dreamy home decor or that banana bread recipe you might try someday. Nope Pinterest has quietly grown into a money making powerhouse. And the best part? You don’t need to be an influencer with a million followers or a marketing guru to cash in. With the right strategy and a little creativity Pinterest can turn into a solid income stream. Yes even from your couch in yoga pants.

So if you’re ready to start monetizing your pins like a pro here are 10 creative ways to make money on Pinterest that actually work.

1. Affiliate Marketing with a Twist

Affiliate marketing is a classic Pinterest money maker but let’s talk about how to make it creative. Instead of just pinning random Amazon products with your link build themed boards around a niche. Think: “Cozy Fall Finds” or “Minimalist Kitchen Must Haves.”

Each pin should be aesthetically pleasing, keyword-optimized and lead to a blog post or landing page with your affiliate links. OR if the platform allows it link the pin directly to the affiliate product.

Pro Tip: Use tools like Canva to create branded pin graphics. Make them pop, match your aesthetic and make people want to click.

2. Sell Digital Products (Even If You’re Not “Techy”)

Digital products are the holy grail of passive income and Pinterest is the perfect platform to promote them. Think: printables, planners, digital journals, social media templates or even eBooks.

Not a designer? No problem. Tools like Canva and Creative Market make it super easy to create beautiful useful digital goodies with no design degree required.

Create a few pins per product with different titles and visuals to test what gets the most traction. A single pin can drive traffic to your Etsy shop or Gumroad listing for months.

3. Offer Pinterest Management Services

Are you low key obsessed with making boards look beautiful? Do you know your way around keywords and pin schedulers like Tailwind? Then you might have a side hustle in Pinterest management.

Many bloggers, small business owners and brands are dying for help growing on Pinterest. You can offer services like:

• Account setup and optimization

• Monthly pin creation and scheduling

• Pinterest audits

• Tailwind management

Start with a portfolio or even manage your own Pinterest account as a case study. Then market your services on Upwork or your own website.

4. Drive Traffic to Your Blog (Then Monetize That Blog Like Crazy)

This one is a long game but it works. Pinterest is basically a visual search engine so when done right it can send serious traffic to your blog. From there you can monetize with:

• Display ads (Mediavine or Raptive)

• Affiliate links

• Sponsored content

• Selling your own products

The key? Write Pinterest friendly blog posts with juicy keywords like “how to,” “easy ways,” “top 10,” and “free printable.” Then create 3–5 different pin graphics per post to increase your chances of going viral.

5. Create and Sell Pinterest Templates

If you’re a whiz with Canva or Adobe Illustrator you can sell Pinterest templates to bloggers, VA’s and business owners who don’t want to make pins from scratch. This is a genius way to make money passively.

You can sell bundles of templates for different niches like fashion bloggers, recipe bloggers, coaches, Etsy sellers, you name it.

List your templates on:

• Etsy

• Creative Market

• Your own website

• Or even through Gumroad or Stan Store

  

Make a few Pinterest pins (how meta right?) to promote your Pinterest templates.

6. Start a Niche Pinterest Account and Monetize It

You don’t have to be a blogger or business owner to make money on Pinterest. You can create a niche themed account say, “Boho Home Decor” or “Healthy Vegan Recipes” and grow it into a content hub.

Once you have a decent following and steady traffic you can monetize with:

• Affiliate links in Idea Pins or on boards

• Collaborations or sponsored pins

• Selling digital downloads or templates

• Linking out to your YouTube channel, Etsy shop or email list

People follow Pinterest accounts for inspiration so become a curator in a niche you genuinely enjoy.

7. Use Pinterest to Promote an Etsy Shop

Pinterest and Etsy go together like peanut butter and jelly. If you’re selling physical or digital products on etsy then Pinterest can help you drive massive traffic without spending money on ads.

Make sure your pins link directly to your Etsy listings and optimize your pin titles and descriptions with keywords shoppers are searching for.

Even better? Make lifestyle pins that show your product in real life like a mug in a cozy morning scene or a printable in a styled desk setup. People buy with their eyes on Pinterest.

8. Teach Pinterest Skills (Because People Will Pay for That)

If you’ve cracked the Pinterest code and know how to grow traffic, increase engagement or design stunning pins why not teach others how to do the same?

You could create:

• A paid workshop or mini course

• A Pinterest strategy eBook

• A Pinterest coaching offer

• A Skillshare or Udemy class

There are tons of business owners, VAs and content creators who want to use Pinterest but don’t have the time or clue to learn it. Be the one who teaches them and boom instant income stream.

9. Promote Freelance Services or Digital Offerings

Pinterest doesn’t have to be all about products. If you’re a freelance writer, photographer, virtual assistant or coach you can use Pinterest to lead people to your services.

Here’s how:

1. Create blog content that showcases your expertise like “5 Ways to Improve Your Website Copy” if you’re a writer.

2. Design pins for those blog posts that link back to your website or booking page.

3. Use Idea Pins to give mini value packed tips that lead to a CTA “Click the link in my profile to work with me”.

Pinterest is great for slow burn marketing your pins work for you over time.

10. Curate Viral Content for a Commission (Yes, It’s a Thing!)

Here’s one not many people talk about you can make money by curating viral content using affiliate programs that pay you per click or sale even if the product isn’t yours.

One example is Reward Style (LTK) or Shop Style Collective where you can pin trending fashion or home items and earn when people click through or buy.

You can create seasonal or themed boards like “Spring Capsule Wardrobe” or “Dorm Room Decor Essentials.” Each pin links to a product you’re promoting and you earn while people scroll and shop.

It’s like being a personal shopper but all digital. 

Bonus: Tips to Boost Your Pinterest Success

Okay before you dive in here are some quick fire tips to really set yourself up for Pinterest profits:

• Use keywords everywhere: In your pin title, pin description, board name and board description.

• Pin consistently: Use a scheduler like Tailwind or the native Pinterest scheduler to stay active without burning out.

• Create multiple pins per post/product: Different designs appeal to different people.

• Keep branding consistent: So your content is instantly recognizable.

• Test, tweak, repeat: Pinterest is always evolving so stay flexible and keep trying new things.

Conclusion

Pinterest is one of the most underrated ways to make money online. Whether you’re a creative soul, a content creator, a business owner or just someone who loves pinning pretty things there’s a path for you.

It doesn’t matter if you’re starting from scratch. What matters is showing up consistently, leaning into what you enjoy and giving people real value whether that’s through a gorgeous template, a helpful blog post or a product they didn’t know they needed. So which idea are you going to try first? Let me know in the comments below or better yet pin this post so you can come back to it when you’re ready to make Pinterest your new side hustle BFF.