4 Ways To Generate $4,000 per Year in Passive Income With Microsoft
Written by
Jacob Wade
Edited by
Amber Barkley
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Passive income is the dream: Sitting on a beach, getting email notifications of deposits to your bank account and enjoying life.
It’s never quite like that — but there are ways to make income with very little effort.
Microsoft is one of the biggest companies in the world, and between its hugely successful stock and new AI products, there are a few ways to earn passive income with Microsoft.
Buy and Sell Microsoft Stock
The most passive way to make income with Microsoft is to become a Microsoft investor. Microsoft stock has had a great run recently, with an average 20% increase each year over the last five years. So if you invest $20,000, there’s a good chance you’ll see about a $4,000 gain in a year. This isn’t guaranteed, but based on recent performance, this might be a possibility.
To invest in Microsoft stock (MSFT), you’ll need a brokerage account at a reliable broker like Fidelity or Vanguard. You can buy MSFT shares, hold them for a year and enjoy the growth. After a year, you might be able to net around $4,000 — and selling after holding them for a year or longer gives you the benefit of long-term capital gains tax rates, too.
Collect Microsoft Stock Dividends
Microsoft stock also pays out quarterly dividends to investors. While the dividend isn’t great — under 0.9% per year yield — this is income that’s automatically deposited into your brokerage account every three months. Truly passive!
You’ll need a sizable investment in Microsoft stock to reach the goal of $4,000 per year in passive income.
Here’s the math:
- Dividend yield: 0.85%
- Share price: $378
- Annual dividend per share: $3.21
To earn $4,000 per year, you’d need:
- $4,000 ÷ 0.0085 = $470,588 invested
- $470,588 ÷ $378 = 1,245 shares
Now, buying 1,245 shares of MSFT isn’t usually something you can do overnight. You might need to dollar-cost average into the stock over a long period of time. But this is what it takes to earn $4,000 annually in passive income from Microsoft stock dividends.
Chances are, you’ll earn far more from Microsoft stock appreciation than dividends.
Use Copilot To Code an App
Microsoft Copilot can help you code quickly. Copilot is built into GitHub and costs about $10 per month, but is also available in some Microsoft 365 plans. Copilot can’t build the app for you, but can help you build an app — even if you’re a coding beginner.
The idea is to tell Copilot what you’re trying to do and have it provide the code for each part of your app. Some ideas for a simple app to sell include a budget tracker, a habit tracker, a side hustle income log or a workout tracker.
Now, to be honest, if you have no experience with coding, it might be challenging to build a functioning app. But you can learn from Copilot, as well as have it write lines of code for you.
Once your app works, you can sell it online through places like Gumroad, the App Store or Google Play. Here’s an example of how you could make $4,000 selling a Copilot-coded app:
- App price = $10
- Sell 400 downloads = $4,000
- Monthly = 34 downloads per month
This isn’t passive right away. But once you build it and list it online, you could wake up to sales every day!
Use Bing To Create Images You Can Sell
Microsoft search engine Bing now offers AI image creation. Bing Image Creator, which uses Dall-E, lets you generate AI art from text prompts. You get 15 credits per month to create images, and it’s quick and easy to use.
Now, the key to making passive income from these images is selling them online — creating printable items like wall art, digital planners, coloring pages and even stock images. You can sell your images on sites like Etsy and Redbubble or upload them to stock photo sites like Adobe Stock or Shutterstock.
The key to making it passive is to set up an online store that allows people to buy the images to print at home. No need for shipping or physical product costs.
Here’s an example of how you could make $4,000 selling images from Bing Image Creator:
- Digital print price = $5 each
- Sell 800 images = $4,000
- Monthly = 68 downloads per month
Can You Actually Make Passive Income From Microsoft?
Yes, you can make passive income with Microsoft. But, as with most passive income, it requires a little upfront work. Whether you invest in Microsoft stock or use their AI tools to build a passive income stream business, the key is to get started somewhere.
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