Here's How to Find Work From Home Jobs

Do you daydream about working from home, either part time or full time? Would you love a commute that doesn’t involve a coat or car keys? If the answer is yes, you may be stuck on the next question: How on earth can you find work from home jobs that are legitimate?

On the one hand, we’ve got great news: working from home, or finding work from home gigs, is easier than ever. On the other hand, it definitely adds a layer of complexity to your job search. You need to dig, and be persistent, in order to uncover a legitimate work-from-home opportunity.

When you’re trying to find work from home jobs, you have to balance traditional job search strategies with a laser focus on remote opportunities. For example, someone looking for work from home jobs or gigs needs to:

network in a different way than you would in a traditional search
use job search engines differently to find remote jobs/gigs
leverage social media (Facebook or LinkedIn) groups to find remote work
find and use websites that match gig workers and/or work-from-home employees

I’ve compiled some tips, tricks & resources for finding work from home jobs, below. (Please add any additional suggestions in the comments!)

NETWORK TO FIND REMOTE WORKERS/OPPORTUNITIES

Working from home is so common these days that you quite likely already have one, if not dozens, of people you already know who currently have work from home jobs.

How can you find them? Ask your friends, family, and existing network. When you find a contact who works from home, ask if you can gather some insight about how they found their job.

Also- many times people don’t think about their network outside of their local geography, but now’s the time to reach out! Your uncle who lives in San Francisco, your college friend who lives in Atlanta… they may have local companies they know who hire remote employees.

HACK TRADITIONAL JOB SEARCH ENGINES TO FIND WORK FROM HOME JOBS

You can use these tips on all major job search engines, including LinkedIn.

First, whichever site(s) you choose, you’ll need to refine your job-specific keywords (for example, “graphic design”) until you get the right match for the job titles you’re seeking.

Then, once you’re comfortable that the keywords find you jobs/gigs that are the right match for your skills, THEN you’d add remote-work based keywords to your keyword search. You can experiment by adding some of the following:

LOCATION: “WHERE”

In the “where” field enter “Anywhere”. This search alone may bring up virtual/remote opportunities (as well as some that are not).
OR, in the “where” field enter another major city that you think may be hiring for your type of work. (In this version of the search, you’ll also need to pair this location with a “what” keyword (below).
OR, leave the “where” field blank.

KEYWORDS: “WHAT”

Next, hone in on remote job opportunities by using keywords in the “what” field of your search.

Pair your normal job keywords (let’s say you’re a writer) with specific work-from-home type keywords.

Here are some of the work-from-home keywords you can try:

Remote
“Work at home” or “work from home” (use quotes when you search)
Home based or home-based
Telecommute or telecommuter
Virtual
Freelance
“Home Office”

And you combine the above keywords with others to narrow your search, for example:

“Work at home” designer
Telecommute “customer service”
Freelance writer
Remote accountant
Home-based software architect
Virtual “project manager”

In addition, some job boards only post work-from-home jobs, as detailed in this Yonder post:

50+ Sites for Finding Remote Jobs or Remote Workers

ONLINE GROUPS DEDICATED TO REMOTE WORK

Did you know that there are dozens of private Facebook or LinkedIn groups for remote workers? Group members encourage each other, network, and give tips for finding remote work. In addition, some of these groups have job boards and many group members regularly share remote job openings with each other.

Study any group before you join, to make sure it’s a good fit for you, and make sure to check the member list before posting anything – your boss might already be a member, doing his/her own search!

Note: Some of the groups with the strictest rules are the ones with the most valuable content and networking potential.

Once you’re in, get familiar yourself with the group’s rules and make sure you’re in compliance with them before you begin posting. Group moderators will quickly ban members for disobeying the rules.

Here are some tips to keep in mind if you’re going to participate in Facebook/LinkedIn groups for job seekers:

The pros of Facebook/LinkedIn groups for remote work:

You’ll find some excellent resources and networking opportunities in a good Facebook group. These groups are full of employers, too, not just people looking for remote work.

The pitfalls of Facebook/LinkedIn groups for job seekers:

A poorly moderated group will be full of scammers, spammers, or multi-level/network marketing representatives (MLMs) seeking to have you sell products as part of their team (they’ll often talk about an incredible product and how few hours they need to work, and ask you to private message -PM- them). Even in the best group, some of these people slip in and try to recruit new “team members.”

And, any group with a “public” setting doesn’t keep your posts or activity within that group private.

A note about Facebook group settings: “Public” = anyone can join, anyone can see your activity. “Private” or “Closed” = members need to be approved, and only other members can see your activity. “Closed” may still mean someone from your organization may also be a member, so use these groups wisely if you’re in a stealth job search.

Here are some examples of Facebook groups that are dedicated to work from home jobs or gigs.

REMOTE WORK / GIG WORK WEBSITES

Here are useful websites and platforms for remote workers and/or gig workers:

Outsite maintains a list of 100 large (US) companies hiring for remote work right now.
Skillcrush has a list of 50 great companies that hire remotely.
Upwork is a freelancing website for web developers, mobile developers, designers and creatives, writers, VAs, customer service agents, sales and marketing experts, accountants and consultants.
Fiverr connects business owners with skilled freelancers willing to do jobs of any size in fields of design, developing, writing, video editing, and more.
Flex Jobs is another site offering telecommuting and freelance job listings. Skills testing feature lets you polish your profile and stand out from the crowd of job applicants.
Jobspresso only lists remote work opportunities. It filters jobs by niche: designer, developer, devops, marketing, project management, sales, support, and writing.
Similarly, Virtual Vocations is focused on telecommuters and has powerful search filters, telecommuting ecourses, and job tracking tools. You’ll need to register for the site in order to use them.
Remote Work Hub Specializes in listing remote jobs with employers worldwide. It also offers skills training, advice, and other resources for remote workers.
Skip The Drive search by category, then filter by posting date. Full Time, part time, or contract work.
Remotive job categories include education, engineering, HR, marketing, sales, support, and product development.
We Work Remotely posts only remote work jobs in DevOps, SysAdmin, Business Exec and Management, Programming, Marketing, Customer Support, Design, and Copywriting.
Wanderbrief 100% location independent jobs, full-time to freelance. Employees can earn credits from all employers, which can be redeemed for access to coworking and living spaces around the world.
Remote.co Suited for a developer, customer service rep, recruiter, designer or sales professional, though it has many sub-categories of work within those areas.
toptal is an exclusive freelance network for “Top Talent” and therefore only accepts applications from about 3% of its applicants. They do place freelancers with large companies like JP Morgan, Pfizer, and others.
Crossover Connects highly qualified (they say “top 1%”) candidates with multi-year projects in well-compensated 100% remote roles. There is a rigorous 1-3 week application process.
Git Hub keeps a list of remote work options around the world, most of them development focused.
Working Nomads posts primarily tech-related remote work opportunities around the world, sorted easily by job categories or skills.
Jobbatical finds work anywhere in the world, but its focus is helping you relocate to a new job in a foreign country.

Tech-focused remote work job boards:

Remote OK aggregates remote job opportunities from other traditional job sites like Indeed.com and Stack Overflow. Most jobs listed are tech-based. Search filters are good; you can even search by pay level. Don’t forget to sign up for automated job offering updates.
Europeremotely matches you with employers willing to let you do tech and development work during European work hours.
Jobscribe sends you a daily list of remote jobs at tech startups, with access to back issues.
WFH.IO newsletter focuses on new remote work opportunities in digital and tech fields.

Other examples of niche-based remote work websites:

Nex Rep is specifically for customer service positions, with flexible, part-time work schedules. (This link takes you directly to their application page.)
Outsourcely hopes to match long-term remote positions at startups with qualified applicants.
Freee Up Freelancers in this network specialize in the eCommerce industry (Amazon, eBay, and online store platforms like Shopify).
Cloud Peeps Get matched up with employers for ongoing or one-time projects. Great for content marketers, social media managers, and SEO professionals. You must apply to join this talented community of freelancers.

Remote work hubs for writers, editors, and similar professionals:

ProBlogger Jobs is great for freelance writers, editors and proofreaders. New jobs are listed daily.
This post at Curata.com is a comprehensive list of content writing resources. Look under “Writer Marketplaces” for a list of 24 different sites businesses use for outsourcing their content writing.

Popular remote work hub sites specifically for women who want to work from home:

Rat Race Rebellion highly curated non-scam work-from home opportunities receive in-depth discussion on this blog.
Power To Fly connects women to excellent freelance and remote work around the world.
The Penny Hoarder a personal finance blog that frequently posts jobs, side gigs, careers and work-from-home opportunities.
Work at Home Woman sign up to get weekly Work at Home (WAH) job leads.
Dribbble work-from-anywhere job opportunities for designers. Remember to check the “remote/anywhere” checkbox to narrow the search.

As you can see, many resources have sprouted up to serve the remote worker/digital nomad/gig worker. This list is a tiny slice of what’s available – basically, if a profession exists, it’s likely to have a remote-work or gig platform dedicated to it.

Here’s what I recommend:

As you can see, there are many ways you can find work from home jobs. Traditional job search skills, such as networking, using job boards, and leveraging social sites like LinkedIn, can be paired with an extra set of techniques to uncover remote opportunities.

Here’s How to Find Work From Home Jobs