Type in the phrase “how to stay at home and earn a living” into your Google or Yahoo search bar and within seconds you will see a return of several million choices. Many individuals seek the freedom of working for themselves and quitting that pesky nine to five where you have to punch the clock everyday. Others simply want to stay at home so they can spend more time with their families. Add those facts to the sagging economy and you have more people than ever trying to work out of the home.

There are many different ways that you can earn money while you stay at home but perhaps the most popular way to earn a living from home is to run your own online business. In the old days this consisted of renting a warehouse, stocking the warehouse, paying for someone to develop a website for you, and then paying to advertise. These days that is all done for you to a certain extent.

Probably the two most popular places to run an online business is through two very well established companies, namely eBay and Amazon. Both offer free accounts and have moderate fees for the products you sell. Both companies offer many advantages, here a just a few:

• Ease of use: Both sites are extremely user friendly. Both sites offer toll free numbers that can be called to aid you in any step of the process should you need help.

• Low fees: Each company takes a certain percentage of your sales, known as a final value fee. This fee is only charged when an item sells. The final value fee percentage is lower for eBay but they also charge an insertion fee upfront for all items you list with them where Amazon does not.

• No advertising: Because you are selling your items on eBay or Amazon, you latterly have to do no advertising. Both sites boast millions upon millions of members who search the site everyday for deals. Your items have the potential to be seen by a vast group of individuals from all over the world. Just like that you can become international.

You can use one or both sites to earn money while you stay at home, but first you need to decide what you wish to sell. When deciding what to sell keep these things in mind:

• How much will the products cost you?

• How easily can you obtain these products?

• Is there a steady supply of these products?

• Do these products sell well on eBay and Amazon?

• Can you make a good profit?

While you are deciding what you want to sell for a living, you can go through your closets, garage, and attic and find a number of things that you no longer use that you can sell for some extra money. This will not only put cash in your pocket, but it will also give you some much-needed practice as well.

Once you have decided what you are going to sell go out and make your dream of staying at home and earning a living a reality. With the convenience and ease of eBay and Amazon, it is now easier than ever to stay home and earn a living. Thousands of people do this on a daily basis, why not you?