Many people want to work from home, but don’t want to start their own business or freelance. The reasons people want home-based jobs vary and include:

  • They’re disabled and need work that can fit around their needs.
  • They want a steady, regular wage or salary
  • They need benefits
  • They don’t have the money to invest in starting a business

The most common action people take is to search Google for work-at-home jobs, only to come across a variety of business opportunities and scams, all of which ask for money. Many begin to wonder, is it possible to find a work-at-home job that doesn’t require fees?

The answer is, yes! In fact, just like traditional jobs, all work-at-home jobs (as in employment) are free. In fact, any work-at-home opportunity that charges money to hire you (except for a background check), is not a job, and could be a scam.

While work-at-home jobs are free, that doesn’t mean you won’t need to spend a little money. A few things you may be asked to pay for include:

  • Criminal background check: Many companies are passing this expense on to job candidates. This can be anywhere from $15 to $50 usually.Equipment or supplies to do the job: Not all employers will provide you with needed equipment or supplies do to the job. Legitimate employers won’t sell you the items you need. Any company that wants you to buy stuff from them should be suspect. Instead, a legitimate company will tell you what you need (i.e. a PC with high speed Internet, headset, etc), and if you don’t already have it, you’ll need to get it to do the job.

56 Work At Home Jobs with No Fees

Listing the best work-at-home jobs is difficult because like traditional jobs, much depends on what you want in a job and what skills and experience you have to offer an employer. For this list, “best” was defined as work-at-home jobs that have the potential of a good, regular salary and benefits.

These jobs are in areas such as customer service and support, financial services, technical (coding, support, etc), travel, marketing, and health care and insurance.

It’s important to note that these are companies looking to hire people to fulfill specific duties, and as a result you’ll need the skills and experience to do the work, and a stellar resume that shows you’re ideal for the job.

Also note that:

  • These companies may or may not be hiring work-at-home employees at this time.These companies may have many job openings, but not all may be done from home. You’ll need to search the companies’ job page for the home-based work. Use keywords such as “work at home,” telecommute, and remote.Not all the home-based jobs may provide benefits. Jobs that are less than fulltime may not offer benefits.Not all the jobs offered may provide a top wage or salary. For example, while many customer service jobs offer benefits, many have a starting pay of $8 to $15 per hour. If you have experience, you can often come in at a higher wage/salary.

How to Find Legitimate Work From Home Jobs Without Fees

While this is a long list, it’s not close to being your only option for home based employment. In fact, a better way to get a work-at-home job is to do searches on sites that list telecommuting job openings. A company, like one listed above, may have a work-at-home program, but it may not be hiring at this time, whereas a job search site lists current job openings.

Some places to look for work from home jobs include:

  • LinkedIn: Not only can you network for jobs, but also, LinkedIn has a job board.
  • FlexJobs: This resource isn’t free, but it guarantees it’s jobs are scam-free, and it make finding work-at-home jobs easy. Plus it provides company information, tips for applying and much more.
  • CareerBuilder: Using keywords such as “work at home,” telecommute, and remote, you can find many home-based jobs. You do need to watch out for business ops and other schemes.
  • Indeed.com: Indeed, and other sites like it such as SimplyHired and ZipRecruiter pull jobs from a variety of sources, making it easy to search for work in one place. Because it’s a general job search site, you need to use keywords such as “work at home,” telecommute, and remote to filter the home-based jobs. You also need to watch out for business ops and scams.
  • Career Specific Sites: Like traditional jobs, work-at-home job searches start with your skills and experience. Depending on your background, there may be a job search site in your area. For example, if you’re a teacher or work in education, check out Connections Academy. If you’re a writer, visit MediaBistro.com. If you want to work for a non-profit, check out Idealist.org. If you’re background is in insurance, nursing, social work, or other medical, visit UnitedHealthcare or Humana, both of which have many home-based jobs.

The most important thing to remember about work-at-home jobs is that they’re no different from traditional jobs. If an employer with a work-at-home position is asking you to do something a traditional employer wouldn’t (like send money to be put on payroll, or buy software from it), then you should be suspicious of the job. Like regular jobs, work-at-home jobs are free, and they require that you show the employer through an application or resume that you’re the best on for the job.