7 Book Blog Success Stories [2024]

Updated: November 19th, 2023
Start A Book Blog

Here are some real life success stories of starting a book blog:

1. OrderOfBooks.com ($600K/year)

Graeme McGaw came up with the idea for OrderOfBooks.com after realizing the need for a resource that provided book readers with the order of books in a series. With his passion for books and his expertise from the gambling industry, he launched the website, which now makes six figures per year and serves as a valuable resource for readers worldwide.

How much they make: $600K/year
How much did it cost to start: $200K
Current team size: 8

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How I Started A Six-Figure Niche Book Blog

OrderOfBooks.com is a website that lists books in both publication and chronological order and generates six-figure revenue after starting off as a resource for the founder and his friends, serving as a valuable resource for book readers.

About
Graeme started OrderOfBooks.com almost 13 years ago
Revenue
Graeme grew the business to $50K/month
Costs
It cost Graeme $200000 to start the business
Read by 17,245 founders

Richard Reis, founder of Most Recommended Books (MRB), was inspired to start the business after writing a popular blog post in 2018. With the realization that he had a talent for creating content that resonated with people, Richard teamed up with his best friend, Anurag, to create MRB. The idea came to Richard after reading about how Mark Zuckerberg built various projects before Facebook, leading him to believe in the power of trying different ideas until one gains traction.

How much they make: $12K/year
How much did it cost to start: $0
Current team size: 0

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How Two Best Friends Started A Side Hustle Recommending Books

Most Recommended Books helps you discover books recommended by the world's most influential people, with 500+ experts and 6,000+ books, and garnered 70,000 monthly visitors with the goal of reaching 100,000 to start looking at other ways of making money.

About
Richard started Most Recommended Books over 4 years ago
Revenue
Richard grew the business to $1K/month
Read by 3,310 founders

So... can you actually make money with a book blog?

Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.

But how?

  1. Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
  2. Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
  3. Take action, because now you have the roadmap.

Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:

Start Now

3. Book Club Chat ($48K/year)

Heather Caliendo, a journalist with a passion for reading, turned her love for books into a profitable business with Book Club Chat. Despite the saturation of the book blogging market, Heather stood out by creating a beautifully designed website and focusing on providing book club questions tailored to novels. With over 5,000 visitors a day and earning $4,000/month in ad revenue, Book Club Chat has become a go-to resource for book clubs around the world.

How much they make: $48K/year
How much did it cost to start: $50
Current team size: 0

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How I Started A $4K/Month Website Dedicated To Book Club Questions, Reviews And Book Lists

Book Club Chat founder Heather Caliendo started a website dedicated to book club questions, reviews, and book lists with no upfront costs by dedicating a lot of time to reading and writing high-quality content that attracts over 5,000 daily visitors and has made $4,000 per month in ad revenue alone by focusing on organic search, SEO, and Mediavine.

About
Heather started Book Club Chat about 6 years ago
Revenue
Heather grew the business to $4K/month
Costs
It cost Heather $50 to start the business
Read by 5,683 founders

4. Merrative ($24K/year)

Harshala Chavan, the founder of Merrative, came up with the idea for her business after noticing a lack of dedicated spaces for people to discuss literature. After attending a book club meetup, where she had a great discussion with others who had read the same book, she wondered if she could bring this experience online at scale. She validated her concept through participating in BPlans and growing her Instagram page, which eventually led to the launch of Merrative as a community-led marketplace for publishing talent.

How much they make: $24K/year
How much did it cost to start: $100
Current team size: 0

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How I Bootstrapped A $2K/Month Online Community To Discuss Literature

Merrative, a community-driven marketplace for publishing talent, generates an average of $1,500 per month in marketplace transactions from their 5,000+ strong community of readers, writers, journalists, and scholars.

About
Harshala started Merrative almost 4 years ago
Revenue
Harshala grew the business to $2K/month
Costs
It cost Harshala $100 to start the business
Read by 3,249 founders

So... can you actually make money with a book blog?

Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.

But how?

  1. Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
  2. Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
  3. Take action, because now you have the roadmap.

Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:

Start Now