20 Businesses You Can Start With $30k [Updated for 2024]

Updated: February 22nd, 2024

If you're looking to start a business on a budget, you'll be pleased to know that there are plenty of options out there. You can start many businesses for under $30k.

So if you're ready to take the plunge, here are some great ideas to get you started.

Under $30K

1. Start a beauty franchise business

How much you can make: $100,000 — $40,480,000/month

How long does it take to build: 365 days (?)

2. Start a respite care service

Starting an in-home respite care service can give seniors the quality care they need, and allow families to get a break from the daily responsibility of providing around-the-clock care. Respite care is a different kind of senior care, but it provides valuable relief for family caregivers and retirees alike.

The USA care services market is expected to reach $748.5B by 2030. Care services for the elderly and other care recipients are relatively underserved at the moment, but this doesn't mean that there's no money to be made in the industry. In fact, it is a growing market.

3. Start an electronics repairing service

Electronics repair businesses repair damaged or malfunctioned equipment such as televisions, stereos, computers, phones, and gaming devices. If you love working with electronics and are interested in working as a repair technician, consider starting your own electronics repair business.

The electronics repair business can be profitable and fun if you love and enjoy keeping the devices working.

To start, hire electronics service technicians to keep your business growing. Find someone who will treat customers with trust, honesty, and the highest degree of courtesy while exhibiting the highest levels of technical competency.

4. Mobile pet grooming business

A mobile pet grooming business offers the convenience of professional grooming services right at the doorstep of pet owners.

With this service, your day-to-day activities involve traveling to clients' locations with a fully equipped mobile grooming van, providing personalized grooming services for their beloved pets.

How much you can make: $250,000/month

How long does it take to build: 60 days (?)

Time commitment per week: Min. 5 hours/week

5. Start a chatbot development business ($15K/month)

Businesses use conversational AI chatbots to take customer engagement to the next level. Typically, chatbots deliver consistent responses to customers, which helps the business avoid issuing irrelevant or misguiding details to the customers.

As more people focus on using the internet in shopping, education, and research, businesses are deploying chatbots to provide 24/7/365 support to their customers.

For example, online shoppers interact with businesses through chatbots, while students can use chatbots to help with their studies and research.

Therefore, starting a chatbot development business can be a lucrative venture.

How much you can make: $7,500 — $2,700,000/month

How long does it take to build: 22 days (?)

6. Start a the maids franchise business

How much you can make: $100,000/month

How much does it cost to start: $800 (?)

How long does it take to build: 60 days (?)

7. Start a health and wellness podcast

Do you have knowledge and passion for health that you'd love to share with others? Or perhaps you are a health blogger or content creator looking for ways to expand your revenue streams? If you match these criteria, starting a health and wellness podcast host could be the perfect opportunity.

In today's world, podcasts are the new radio. Podcasting is one of the fastest-growing mediums for online audio, and it's not expected to slow down any time soon. But unlike traditional radio, podcasts are driven by content creators passionate about sharing stories with their listeners.

One of the main benefits of starting a podcast is the minimal investment needed. All you need is a computer or phone with a microphone and a way to host it online. You can even create one on your website if you want.

How much you can make: $3,600/month

How much does it cost to start: $500 (?)

How long does it take to build: 90 days (?)

8. Start an online franchise and licensing opportunities business

How much you can make: $100,000/month

9. Start a white label marketing automation business

Businesses that do not want to own an internal marketing department are turning to market agencies that can help to deliver digital marketing services. To save time and resources and to deliver superior service, the marketing agencies engage a white label marketing platform, subscribe to their tool, rebrand it, and resell the marketing tool.

A white label marketing software eases the most time-consuming marketing tasks like data analytics, social media posts, email marketing, reports generation, etc.

The agencies add their branding to the software and sell the services as if they develop themselves. With the increased demand for digital marketing services and market analytics, starting a white label marketing tool can be a profitable business.

How much you can make: $10,000 — $11,000/month

How much does it cost to start: $7,000 (?)

How long does it take to build: 7 days (?)

10. Start a cybersecurity app business

How much you can make: $91,000/month

More business ideas

  • 11. Start a virtual assistant services

12. Start a garden cleaning business

If you want to start a gardening-related business, you may consider providing garden cleanups to residential and commercial customers. Your role will be to provide garden cleanups to prevent pests, weed seed, and diseases and prepares the garden for fun activities while providing a clean slate for perennial and vegetables to grow.

More business ideas

  • 13. Start a remote working business

14. Start a the ups-store franchise business

Starting a UPS Store franchise can be a fantastic business opportunity for anyone looking to be their own boss and take control of their career. At its core, the UPS Store is a retail shipping and printing center offering a wide range of services to individuals and businesses. These services can include shipping packages, printing documents, and providing mailbox and mail forwarding services.

One of the best things about starting a UPS Store franchise is that you will join a well-established and reputable brand already well-known to consumers. You will have a built-in customer base to tap into from day one, which can help your business thrive in the early stages.

To operate a successful UPS Store franchise, it’s essential to be detail-oriented and organized. You will be handling a lot of different types of packages, documents, and paperwork, so it’s essential to have a system in place to keep everything running smoothly. Additionally, you should be comfortable interacting with customers and providing excellent customer service.

Another key to success with a UPS Store franchise is being proactive in marketing and advertising. You can take advantage of the brand’s marketing resources and materials, but you should also think outside the box when promoting your business. This could include reaching out to local businesses to form partnerships to host events and promotions to attract new customers.

Starting a UPS Store franchise can be a fantastic way to take control of your career and start a business that offers a wide range of services to a diverse customer base. With hard work, attention to detail, and a commitment to providing excellent customer service, you can be well on your way to running a successful and profitable business.

More business ideas

  • 15. Start a yard work service business
  • 16. Start a re/max franchise business
  • 17. Start a scooter's coffee franchise business

18. Start a hearing aid dispensary business

Hearing dispensers interpret hearing assessments and use the information to select the best hearing aid possible for their patients.

The hearing aid dispensers are fully qualified clinicians who assess hearing and provide aftercare for hearing aids.

To start the hearing aid dispensing business, you need on-the-job training from an audiologist and apply for the audiologist license.

19. Start a blockchain services business

How much you can make: $1,000 — $30,000/month

How much does it cost to start: $4,100 (?)

How long does it take to build: 330 days (?)

20. Start a bike rental business

A bike rental business involves providing bicycles to customers for a fee.

To start this business on a budget, first, you'll need to acquire a small fleet of bikes, which can be bought new or refurbished.

Find a convenient location to set up your rental station, such as a popular tourist spot, park, or near a busy urban area.

Create a simple pricing structure, set up a basic rental system (like paper forms or a simple online booking platform), and market your business through social media, local advertising, and word-of-mouth.

Offer safety instructions and basic maintenance tips to your customers, and consider providing optional extras like helmets or bike locks for an additional fee.

How much you can make: $150,000/month

meet the author
Pat Walls

I'm Pat Walls and I created Starter Story - a website dedicated to helping people start businesses. We interview entrepreneurs from around the world about how they started and grew their businesses.