How to Actually Make Money on Pinterest (No Followers Required)

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If someone told you that scrolling Pinterest could pay your bills, you’d probably laugh.

I did too. Until I accidentally stumbled onto a side hustle that now makes me $2-3K every single month.

No followers. No showing my face. No creating content 24/7 or trying to “go viral.” Just me, my couch, and pins that work while I sleep.

If you’ve ever spent hours on Pinterest saving outfit ideas, home decor inspo, or recipes you’ll never actually cook, this is going to blow your mind. That exact habit can make you money. Real money.

Wait, You Can Actually Make Money on Pinterest?

Yes. And not in some sketchy pyramid scheme way.

Pinterest isn’t social media. It’s a visual search engine. When people search for “cozy living room ideas” or “best running shoes for beginners,” they’re using Pinterest the same way they’d use Google.

Your pins show up in those searches. And when someone clicks your pin and buys something, you earn a commission.

This is called affiliate marketing, and it’s how regular people (like me) make passive income without selling anything themselves.

How Does Affiliate Marketing on Pinterest Work?

Let me break this down super simply.

Step 1: You find products you love (or think other people would love). Could be anything: fashion, home decor, tech gadgets, books, beauty products.

Step 2: You join affiliate programs for those products. This gives you a unique tracking link.

Step 3: You create beautiful pins on Pinterest that showcase those products and include your affiliate link.

Step 4: Someone searches Pinterest, finds your pin, clicks it, and buys the product.

Step 5: You earn a commission. Sometimes $5, sometimes $50, depending on what they bought.

The best part? That pin you created once keeps working for you. It doesn’t disappear after 24 hours like an Instagram story. It sits in Pinterest search results for weeks, months, even years.

Do You Need Followers to Make Money?

Nope. This is what makes Pinterest different from every other platform.

On Instagram or TikTok, you need followers to see your content. On Pinterest, people find your pins through search, not because they follow you.

I made my first $847 with only 47 followers. Seriously.

Pinterest cares about keywords and quality pins, not how many people follow you. So if you’re starting from zero, you’re not behind.

What Can You Actually Earn?

Let’s be real. You’re not going to make $10K your first month. Anyone who promises that is lying.

But here’s what is realistic:

Months 1-2: $0-100 (as you learn and get your pins indexed)
Months 3-4: $100-500 (your older pins start gaining traction)
Months 5-6: $500-1,000 (momentum builds as your pin library grows)
Months 7+: $1,500-3,000+ (consistent effort = consistent income)

I’m currently making $2-3K per month from pins I created weeks or even months ago. Some of those pins still bring in sales while I’m at my day job, watching Netflix, or sleeping.

That’s the magic of Pinterest. Your content doesn’t expire.

Getting Started: The Basic Steps

If you want to try this yourself, here’s the simplified version:

1. Set up a Pinterest business account. It’s free and gives you access to analytics so you can see what’s working.

2. Pick a niche you actually like. Fashion, home decor, fitness, beauty, tech, travel. Whatever you already browse and save, that’s your niche. It’s way easier to stay consistent when you’re pinning about things you enjoy.

3. Join affiliate programs. Amazon Associates, ShareASale, Awin, Mavely (my favorite, gives you instant access to thousands of affiliate options), and individual brand programs are great places to start. You’ll get approved in 24-48 hours for most.

4. Create pins with affiliate links. Use Canva (it’s free) to design eye-catching pins. Add your affiliate link to the pin description.

5. Post consistently. Pinterest rewards regular activity. Aim for 3-5 pins per day. Sounds like a lot, but you can batch create them in one afternoon.

6. Optimize for search. Use keywords in your pin titles, descriptions, and board names. Think about what people are actually searching for.

The Part Nobody Tells You

Here’s what I wish someone had told me when I started:

Pinterest takes patience. Your first few weeks might feel slow. That’s normal. Pinterest needs time to index your pins and figure out who to show them to.

You will make mistakes. I wasted hours creating pins that flopped because I didn’t understand keywords or design basics.

Consistency matters more than perfection. A decent pin posted regularly beats a perfect pin posted once.

The learning curve is real. Between figuring out Canva, understanding affiliate programs, learning Pinterest SEO, and staying consistent, it can feel overwhelming.

The Shortcut I Wish I Had

When I started, I spent months Googling everything. Watching random YouTube videos. Joining Facebook groups where people gave conflicting advice. Trial and error was exhausting.

After finally figuring out what works, I kept getting messages from friends asking how I was doing it. That’s when I realized this needed to be an actual system.

So I created Pinterest Wealth Academy. It’s everything I learned condensed into a beginner-friendly blueprint that skips all the trial and error.

What’s Inside Pinterest Wealth Academy

This isn’t some massive overwhelming course. It’s designed for people who are starting from zero and don’t want to waste time.

30-Minute Audio Course: Learn the Pinterest basics while doing laundry, commuting, or lying in bed. Zero time wasted.

Pinterest Profits eBook: The exact formula that got me my first $500 commission check with only 47 followers.

Affiliate Mastery eBook: How to find high-paying products and get approved for affiliate programs in under 24 hours.

50+ Done For You Canva Pin Templates: Customize them in 5 minutes. No design skills required.

Pinterest Planner: Track your pins, schedule content, and watch your income grow.

It’s the system I used to go from $0 to consistent $2-3K months. No fluff. No theory. Just what actually works.

Check out Pinterest Wealth Academy here

Is This Actually Beginner-Friendly?

Yes. You don’t need tech skills, design experience, or a marketing background.

You need a phone, a Pinterest account, and a few hours on the weekend to batch create pins. That’s it.

Over 350 students have gone through Pinterest Wealth Academy, and most of them had never made a dollar online before starting. They’re now earning anywhere from $300 to $1,500+ per month.

Why Pinterest Works Better Than Other Side Hustles

I’ve tried a lot of side hustles. Survey apps, freelancing, selling printables, building Instagram accounts. Most of them felt like second jobs.

Pinterest is different because:

You can stay completely anonymous. No camera, no building a personal brand, no showing your face.

Your content lasts forever. Pins don’t expire. They work 24/7 like tiny salespeople you never have to manage.

You don’t need followers. People find your pins through search, not because they know you.

You can do it in your pajamas. Create a month’s worth of pins in one Sunday afternoon, then coast.

Common Questions I Get

Do I need a website? Nope. You can link directly to affiliate products, or you can link everything using Mavely (my personal favorite) because Mavely gives you instant access to become an affiliate for thousands of brands too.

How long until I see results? Most people see their first sale within 3-8 weeks. Consistent income usually kicks in around month 3-4.

What if I’m not creative? That’s what the Canva templates are for. Just swap out the text and images.

Is this still working in 2026? Yes. Pinterest is growing, not shrinking. More people are using it to shop every year.

Start Turning Your Pinterest Habit Into Income

If you’re tired of scrolling Pinterest for free while other people make money doing the exact same thing, this is your sign.

You don’t need to be an expert. You don’t need followers. You don’t need to figure it out alone through months of Googling and guessing.

You just need a strategy that works.

Pinterest Wealth Academy gives you the exact blueprint I used to go from pinning during lunch breaks to earning $2-3K per month. It’s currently $27 (normally $97), and the price goes up soon.

The only question is: are you ready to stop scrolling for free?

Get instant access to Pinterest Wealth Academy here

Your pins are waiting to work for you. Let’s make it happen.