There are many people would love to be able to work from home. Long commutes and the stresses of the modern workplace are among the many reasons for this. Housewives and workers who need some extra cash would love to earn without having to leave their homes. Can modern technology and the advent of the internet allow these people to earn money online?

As of now, only a very few lucky and skilled workers are able to take advantage of tele-commuting, even though there are some companies that allow employees to work from home. But other people are able to start their own businesses, or take jobs with lower pay, to make money online.

A growing number of individuals have started to purchase locally retailed goods and resorted to selling them online through auction sites for a net profit. This income is after the costs incurred in delivery and commissions are taken into account. This has become a favored and novel mode to earn money online where popular items include concert tickets and apparels. There are online forums and tutorials which instruct about the rudiments of selling over the Internet.

Some companies have small, information-based tasks which need to be done. These tasks, such as transcription and information verification are very difficult for computers to do properly and they are now being offered to workers in the form of piece-rate jobs. Although these jobs are poorly paid, they may still suit those who can't stand the nine-to-five.

Call-centre companies are increasingly outsourcing their work to teleworkers. Advanced telephony systems allow calls to be routed to people who work in their own homes. Sales, order-taking and technical support are among the types of jobs these workers do. Pay can be quite poor and employers usually require you to have a dedicated office for this job.

Alot of people have setup there own online business to earn money. These businesses can be as simple as offering products for sale at a website, then advertising that particular website and waiting for orders to arrive. Many of these online businesses have a certain amount of risk involved.