How to Build Wealth as a Digital Nomad: Jobs for Beginners
**This post contains a list of digital nomad tools and digital nomad resources for people looking for digital nomad jobs for beginners.
Do you want to travel the world while making money online?
Do you dream of working wherever and whenever you want?
Do you want to build wealth for you, your loved ones, and your retirement?
If so, becoming a digital nomad might be the career change you’re looking for, and digital nomad jobs for beginners are out there just waiting for you.
Basically, a digital nomad is someone who has the freedom of working online from anywhere in the world.
In this article, I’ll share a game plan for making beaucoup bucks with digital nomad jobs for beginners.
You will:
Find out what it really means to be a digital nomad… and the top three newbie mistakes to avoid.
Discover five free essential tools and digital nomad resources you need to get ahead as a complete beginner.
Learn the quickest, easiest way to start making money as a digital nomad with no experience. PLUS, three ideas for leveling up your wealth when you’re ready.
And in, most importantly, you’ll find the answer to the million-dollar question:
Can you build wealth as a digital nomad?
What Does it Really Mean to be a Digital Nomad?
First, let’s get something important out of the way—just because this article is about digital nomad jobs for beginners doesn’t mean it will be easy.
Please don’t end up as one of those ‘begpackers.’ They are “western backpackers, most often traveling in south-east Asia, who beg for charity from the locals.”
That’s the very opposite of what you’re trying to achieve here.
If you want to build wealth as a digital nomad from scratch, then you’ll first have to define what you want and need from this lifestyle.
Let’s begin with these two questions:
1) What are the top three things you want out of this lifestyle?
Some things digital nomads seek from this lifestyle include:
Experiencing new cultures
Exploring local nature spots
Meeting other digital nomads and expats
Having a flexible work schedule
Traveling to as many new places as possible
Earning as much money as possible
Saving money by reducing your cost of living
2) How much will you need to support this lifestyle?
The average monthly budget of a digital nomad is $1,875 and $22,500 annually.
That’s achievable for a beginner, don’t you think?
And here are some really great cities that fit that budget:
(Just note that these figures are a rough ballpark of what you can expect. We took the price of living from this article and added on expenses you can expect such as food and transportation. These numbers can vary depending on how much you spend.)
If you’re a new digital nomad, pick cities with a lower cost of living.
It will help you stretch your dollar while establishing your new career.
The Top 3 Mistakes to Avoid as a New Digital Nomad
1) Having zero emergency funds
What if you discover that a certain city — or digital nomad job for beginners — just isn’t right for you?
You’ll want to have savings to last you for at least three to six months, including money for a plane ticket home just in case.
2) Working all the time
You’ve taken the leap and made the move.
But now you find yourself working all the time just to make ends meet. You might have barely stepped away from your laptop to check out your new neighborhood, and your only taste of local cuisine came from your food delivery app.
In just a moment, I’ll share how you can avoid this common mistake with some career planning.
3) Forgetting the time zone difference
Enjoying location independence can be exhilarating…
Until you have to skip out on parties with your new European friends because you have a work meeting when it’s 2 p.m. back home in the U.S.
You can avoid this mistake by targeting clients in time zones closer to your own or using one of the tools I’ll share with you below.
Free Digital Nomad Tools and Resources
You don’t need to spend lots of money and chase after every shiny new app that comes your way.
Here are all the digital nomad resources and digital nomad tools you’ll need to build your wealth as a new digital nomad. (Plus, they’re all free!)
1. Google Calendar
With Google Calendar, you can block in stretches of leisure time each week or month…
And then build your work schedule around this time.
Also, you can add deadlines based on your client’s time zone and turn on alerts so you’ll never miss a meeting.
Manage your time well enough, and you could be taking 15-minute meetings in the middle of a hike up Camino del Rey without skipping a beat.
2. White noise
A hallmark of digital nomad life is spending the day at a cafe with good WiFi while enjoying your cup of joe and some local pastries.
But what about when you’re trying to crank out work in a noisy café?
Plug in your earphones and listen to white noise.
That way, you can get that deep work done and deliver more value to your clients.
3. Goodbudget
Want the freedom to buy your next plane ticket whenever you want?
Then budget for it.
With Goodbudget, you can quickly and easily set a budget for each area of your life.
Every few days, all you have to do is key in your expenses and income, and the app will help keep you on track to meet your financial goals.
You can even figure out how to set up a budget for even a month, which can further help you understand how to plan out your future.
4. $0 Fee Brokerages
While traveling, it’s easy to get caught up in the romance of it all…
And forget unpleasant realities like inflation.
But if you want to build wealth, you’ll want to make sure your hard-earned money continues to grow whether you have $10 or $100 to spare.
Here are the top $0 fee brokerages you can use to invest your money to make sure that even while you are having fun and working the schedule and life of your dreams, you’re still building your wealth.
5. Wise
Receiving payments globally? Can’t we use PayPal for that?
Yes, you can, until you factor in the international fees of up to 4.5%. And those fees can get expensive over time.
A cheaper option for international transfers is Wise. It charges a much lower fee of around 0.35% to 1.65%. Plus, opening an account is free and quick.
Digital Nomad Jobs for Beginners
Digital nomad jobs for beginners are out there waiting for you.
And if you’re serious about actually getting rich as a digital nomad, be prepared to hustle, especially as a beginner.
So, by all means, go for your hikes, farm stays, and house parties.
But also recognize that there'll be some weeks where you’ll have to buckle down and work harder especially if you want to work less and travel more one day.
So do everything you can to expand your income such as starting a side hustle or learning new skills to get better jobs.
Here are some higher-paying side hustles you can do to increase your income (and avoid having to work every waking hour in your new city). Here are some rough estimates of what you could be making:
Editors: $25 to $35 per hour
Writers: $30 to $40 per hour
Programmers: $60 to $70 per hour
Web and mobile developers: $50 to $60 per hour
You can find gigs like these on Upwork, where on average, you can earn $20 an hour.
This platform is great for beginners because:
You can get work even without experience or a portfolio if you know how to send great pitches.
You can gain valuable experience and client testimonials so you can charge more for your time.
You’re getting paid to learn to become a digital nomad instead of throwing cash at a bunch of courses.
It takes care of payments and invoicing for you so you’re not bogged down with paperwork when you’re trying to have the time of your life.
It’s one of the best platforms for breaking into higher-paying industries even if you have no experience.
What’s the catch?
The platform does charge fees, which are taken from your earnings for each job.
But think of it this way: It’s hard enough to get domestic clients to pay freelancers on time.
It’s even harder when you’re a digital nomad with clients from all over the world.
So think of Upwork’s fee as a small price to pay for getting jobs quickly and making sure you actually do get paid.
3 Ideas for Leveling Up When You’re Ready
After you’ve established your digital nomad career for three to six months, start thinking about ways to generate more income so you can have more free time to go wherever you want with financial freedom.
But please be warned: All these ideas need hard work, time, and resources… at first.
Idea 1: Raise your Upwork rates
If you’ve been working hard on Upwork for a few months, chances are:
You’ll have a great job satisfaction score.
You’ll have great reviews from clients.
You’ll become more confident and skilled at what you do.
When you get to this stage, you can score some long-term clients, and even raise your rates for each project.
And if you become really good at what you do a $250/hour rate might just be in the cards for you.
Idea 2: Dropshipping
As a dropshipper, you'll advertise and sell physical products in your online store.
What about storing the goods and shipping?
The wholesaler takes care of it, which is a great arrangement for digital nomads.
You can make up to $1,000 to $5,000 per month through dropshipping alone if you put in the work.
Idea 3: Affiliate marketing
Also consider affiliate marketing, which can bring in $67,520 a year.
Basically, if you take the time to build an online audience through a blog, social media, or YouTube by sharing pictures, videos, and stories about your travels.
You can earn a commission every time your audience buys a product you promote.
Like dropshipping, prepare to put in lots of time up-front to create useful content and grow your audience.
Can You Build Wealth as a Digital Nomad?
To help you answer this question of how you can build wealth as a digital nomad, here’s a little calculator you can use.
All you have to do is:
Make a copy of this Google sheet.
Key in the monthly cost of living at your dream location (remember to pick a beginner friendly one).
Choose how long you’ll spend at this location.
Decide how many hours a week you’d like to work.
Figure out how much you’d like to save/invest each month.
And the calculator will tell you how much you’ll need to earn to build wealth whether or not you’re a new digital nomad.
So in the Taipei example in green that you see above…
If you charge $36 an hour for your skills…
You can work 20 hours a week…
And then spend the rest of your time enjoying the various hiking trails in Taipei and sampling its world-famous street food.
I think you can see by now that anyone can become a digital nomad as long as they’re willing to plan and work hard to sustain the lifestyle.
So what are you waiting for?
More Resources
Want to do more research before you set out on your next adventure as a digital nomad? Check out some of these books to get you started!
Upwork Saved My Life: How To Create A Profitable Career On Upwork By Freelancing
The Digital Nomad Survival Guide: How to Successfully Travel the World While Working Remotely
How To Make Your Dream Of Living In Another Country A Reality
Don't Keep Your Day Job: How to Turn Your Passion into Your Career
(Editor’s note: This content uses affiliate links.)