5 Niche business ideas you can start with zero money (I'll be your first customer)

Starting a business doesn't have to mean taking out a loan, hiring a team, or spending months building a product. Sometimes, the best businesses start with a problem, an idea, and zero budget. If you're a tech-savvy person looking to build something on your own, here are five business ideas you can start today with minimal investment—and they're ideas I'd personally love to see come to life.

These aren't just pie-in-the-sky concepts. They're practical, actionable, and designed to be launched quickly. Whether you want to start a side hustle, build a sustainable solo business, or just get your feet wet with entrepreneurship, each of these ideas offers a low-risk, high-potential path forward.

1. Curated newsletter with a specific focus

Imagine a newsletter around a niche topic—coding tips, productivity hacks, or a weekly roundup of indie maker projects. Personally, I'd sign up for a newsletter like this in a heartbeat. The best part? You can automate the entire process using tools that pull in content, format it, and distribute it through platforms like Substack or Mailchimp.

Real-world example: Check out PremarketBell.com, which curates pre-market stock news completely on autopilot. The setup is straightforward—define your content sources, set up automation to collect and curate, and let the system run while you focus on growth.

Monetization ideas: You can start with sponsorships, paid subscriptions, or affiliate marketing. As your audience grows, you could explore premium content or partnerships. A newsletter like this could build a tight-knit community of engaged readers—and if that's not a dream scenario, I don't know what is.

2. Bedtime story podcast for kids

I love this idea. Imagine a podcast that shares bedtime stories for children, all generated automatically. Your role would be to provide simple story outlines—something like “A bunny who learns to share” or “An adventure in a magical forest.” Then, let AI tools like ElevenLabs take over, generating the story and producing audio with different voices.

Why it works: You get to create something magical for kids and parents while leveraging automation to handle the heavy lifting. I'd probably listen to these stories myself—there's just something so soothing about a good bedtime story, right?

Monetization Ideas: You could offer a premium version with extra stories or themed story packs as a paid option. There's also the potential to build an audience for a related product or service.

3. Selling "boring" templates for important tasks

I'm a huge fan of templates. They save time, bring order to chaos, and make life just a bit easier. Whether it's budgeting, project management, or meal planning, templates can be lifesavers. Focus on those “boring” tasks that people struggle with—like creating a family budget or organizing freelance projects. You could create these templates in Excel or Google Sheets and sell them on Gumroad, Etsy, or even your own website.

Why it works: Digital products like templates require upfront effort but can generate passive income over time. And honestly, who doesn't love a good template? I'd buy one of these in a second.

Pro tip: Hang out in online communities to see where people are struggling, then create templates that solve real problems. Offer a free version of a simpler template to build an audience and then introduce paid offerings when the time is right.

4. A simple media kit web app

Here's an idea I'd love to see in the wild—a lightweight web app that helps startups create professional media kits with custom domains and branding. Many small businesses struggle to present their brand to potential partners, and a media kit app could fill that gap beautifully.

How to start: You could use no-code tools or a simple tech stack to build an MVP over a weekend. No need for anything overly complex—just a clean design, an easy-to-use interface, and a few customizable options to get started.

Monetization strategy: I could see this working well with a freemium model—offering a free tier and charging for premium features like custom domains or advanced analytics. It's the kind of tool I'd genuinely consider paying for if it made my life easier.

5. "Read It Later" with a twist

I'm all about efficiency, and a browser extension that lets users save articles to read later would be amazing. The twist? Use AI to summarize the content and automatically generate a personalized “weekend reading” newsletter. I'd use this in a heartbeat, especially on those weeks when my reading list feels endless.

Revenue opportunities: You could monetize through a freemium model, ads, or affiliate links. The automation potential here is fantastic—it frees you up to focus on refining and promoting the product while the extension does the work.

Final thoughts

These are not just ideas—they're starting points for real businesses you can build quickly, with minimal investment, and as a one-person operation. Whether you're automating a newsletter, launching a podcast, or building a simple web app, the barriers to entry have never been lower.

If I had the time, I'd be tempted to start one of these myself. And if you do, please let me know — I'd love to be your first customer!