Top 5 Digital Nomad Jobs if You Like Freedom & Flexibility

It's quite an emotional topic for many who have landed on this lifestyle. I, for one, was never really happy in an office environment. I met my husband during a trip to Scotland to see my editor. I was living in Canada at the time and promptly quit and moved.

The whole thing was a daunting experience at times. But I'll be honest and say it was also super romantic! If I had a digital nomad job, I would have stayed immediately.

This is the beauty of working as a modern-day nomad in a digital age. You can travel wherever you like with only your laptop. Imagine sitting by a stunning mountain-side pool in Austria while typing your next article. Yep, I've done that!

But enough about me and my love for this career path! Below, I'll tell you how to become a digital nomad. I'll also discuss the best digital nomad and fully remote jobs and how to get one.

What Are Digital Nomad Jobs?

The standard description of what a digital nomad is and does is 'someone who lives a nomadic lifestyle and works digitally from wherever they are.'

As more and more people focus on the importance of work-life balance, more digital nomads are showing up. Who wouldn't want to travel to the most stunning places on the planet while getting paid?

Digital nomad jobs are fully remote jobs done from your computer. You can go anywhere with an internet connection and complete your work. You then get paid regardless of your current location. 

How Much Money Can I Make?

Digital nomad salaries can fluctuate depending on the kind of work you do. But to put things into perspective, it's often higher paying than many regular jobs! Expenditure-wise, if you want to be a traveling digital nomad, you'll have to aim for a higher salary. 

$1000 to $2000 monthly is a good target for those wishing to country or city-hop regularly.

If you stay in one location longer, you'll need enough to cover bills and food. In that case, as little as $400 monthly can be enough. Obviously, this depends on your location. 

Having a game plan for budgeting and saving money is always helpful.

What Are The Best Digital Nomad Jobs?

If you google 'best digital nomad jobs' right now, you'll get a long list of what you could do. Most of these include data entry, surveys, or remote customer service.

While these are excellent remote jobs for some, they usually pay pretty badly. Take it from someone who once subtitled foreign tutorials on obscure software design for 8 hours daily. The point is, it's just not worth it sometimes!

Affiliate marketing or Amazon affiliate shops are great for people with a big social media following. They'll only usually make you a living if you do, though.

Below is a short list of the best fully remote jobs for anyone. For even more diverse options, browse this exciting list of digital nomad jobs.

My top digital nomad jobs are great for beginners with no experience and experienced freelancers. If you want to break into the digital nomad lifestyle, look no further.

Programming or Web-Design

Programming and web design are amongst the hottest remote working jobs around. If you know how to code, businesses will pay quite a bit to have you on board.

Web design is also great for those wanting to own their business. Just ensure you set your terms and conditions right at the start. You want to avoid customers who keep returning with 'little tweaks' that render your hourly pay rate worthless.

As with all jobs listed here, good communication with your customers and a friendly disposition are key. Recommended sites for programmers and web designers looking to freelance include Toptal, Upwork, and UpStack.

Translation

Translating is perhaps the ideal digital nomad job around. If you love traveling and languages, translation can be a great gig. You may even learn more about the local languages you encounter in the process!

The translation is a reasonably well-paying digital nomad job and can offer lots of exciting topics. As with copywriting and editing, you'll want to outline exactly where your topics of expertise lie.

Most translation job sites do expect translators to have a native level of proficiency and/or some form of formal certification. Sites like Gengo also expect you to complete an entrance test. Some of the best sites for translators include Gengo and Upwork.

Teaching Languages

Want to learn Japanese from a person who actually lives in Japan? Totally possible! A friend of mine does just this. Conversely, you're in luck if you want to teach languages from your locale.

Teaching languages can be lucrative as people generally want a proficient teacher rather than a cheap one. There are language apps for those who want to learn a few words. Donde está la biblioteca?

Remember that, as with translation jobs, you'll usually be expected to have a native level of proficiency in your chosen language. If you do, setting up your own website and offering your services there can make sense.

Best sites for language teachers? Preply gets good ratings, as do Skillshare and iTalki.

Illustration or Graphic Design

One of the holy grails of digital nomad working is working in illustration and graphic design! If you're even a beginner illustrator, people will be throwing their money at you to do things.

The best part of freelancing as a graphic designer is that you can even prep some downloadable items and stick them up on sites like Etsy or your Shopify page.

Examples of the above include

• Downloadable templates, 
• Logo kits, and 
• Resumes! 

If you work as an illustrator, you'll never believe how little others generally know about illustration. Trust me on this one.

If your skills are legit, you might land a big contract with publishing firms, NFT creators, and more for quite a good payout! Some of the best places to start as an illustrator or graphic designer include Upwork, Working Not Working, and Dribbble.

Copywriting or Editing

If you know how to write or just love reading, this is the one for you. The world of digital copywriting and editing has come a long way since I started in 2010.

There's a constant need for writers who are really knowledgeable about chosen topics. Product descriptions and marketing copy are also always hot. You can even find gigs as a ghostwriter if fiction is more your thing!

Best of all, you get to chat with many other writers and editors and share exciting experiences. In the travel field, this is particularly fun! 

As most writers like to paint pictures with their words, I've seen much more of the world than I actually have through their eyes.

Many platforms exist, from Fiverr and Upwork to more niche ones and even big marketing companies. They'll all allow you to set up profiles where you describe your talents and expertise.

So What's The Catch?

As with anything that sounds too good to be true, working as a digital nomad can be difficult. At least initially.

Some of the things you'll want to watch out for are anything that pays too much or sounds like a scam. You'll see the likes on platforms like Instagram, offering hundreds per day for little to no effort, and these types of jobs generally are scams.

Getting started as a digital nomad can take time, and you may need more income initially. An excellent place to start is freelancing on the side while you're studying or working for a 'normal' company.

Setting small targets and watching these increase by month or quarter can also help.

Lastly, it's really worth it to stick to doing what you love. The lifestyle of a digital nomad can be enjoyable and rewarding, but only if you stay true to yourself. 

For example, writing about topics that are not joyful for you will feel like a drain. This will show in your work, which isn't good for your reputation or portfolio.

Plan Your Digital Nomad Life with Pilot!

Becoming a digital nomad may sound like an unattainable dream, but many options exist. Once you've worked out the nitty gritty detail, you can start to craft your ideal travel experience for you, your family, and your friends