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Definition, Formula and Examples of Residual Income

You may believe that only a few people have financial freedom.


The CEOs, high-earning employees, and people with a wide range of technological skills are all well-known.


The truth is that anyone can build wealth and make life choices.


How? You can create a steady stream of residual income.


Contrary to popular belief your income doesn’t determine how wealthy you are.


Wealth is not about your ability to provide for yourself if you lose your main income.


Earning residual income is a way to build wealth and financial independence.


Are you not familiar with this income source? You don’t have to be. We’ll explain everything you need about residual income in this post.


Continue reading to find out what residual income is and how it differs to other incomes. Also, learn how to earn it to build real wealth.

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What’s residual income?


Residual Income refers to your net income after paying all of your expenses.


You may have heard of discretionary income. This is money that you can spend as you please. The same thing is called residual income.


People get paid when they exchange time for money. This means that there is active work required to generate that income.


There are many opportunities for residual income that can bring you money with very little effort.

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You can increase your wealth by creating streams of residual income. This will allow you to take control of your finances.


Why residual income is important?


For many reasons, residual income is important. It provides more information than your income. This information is vital for many parties.




  • Lenders consider your residual income when you apply for loans.

  • Your residual income will determine whether you are a candidate for income-driven repayment plans.

  • Do you want to buy a car or a home second? You will be able to achieve your goals based on your residual income.


Understanding the importance of residual income is key to financial success. You can actively manage your finances and achieve your goals.


Types and sources of residual income


In different contexts, residual income may have different meanings. Let’s take a look at some common uses of residual income.


Corporate finance


In the world of corporate finance, residual income is how you calculate profit.


It can be used to determine a company’s net value by subtracting the opportunity costs capital from the annual operating profits.

To determine the equity value of a company, you can use residual income.


Personal Finance


Retained income can also be used to establish creditworthiness.


Many institutions and banks use this income to assess whether an individual has enough money to pay off a loan or cover his expenses.


If you have a large amount of cash left after paying your monthly bills and paying your debts, you can show your financial standing to be approved for a loan.


Online business

After you have set up an online company , your residual income is the amount of profit that you make.


You might, for example, open a Shopify shop to sell lucrative items. It will take some time and investment to get the business started. These items will be subtracted from your monthly revenue to generate your residual income.


It is usually very easy to keep the income flowing after initial efforts have been made. In the context of an online business, residual income can also be referred to passive income.


How do you calculate residual income


A formula will be used to calculate your residual income. It will take into account your average operating assets and net revenue from your business or investment.


Residual Income formula:


Residual Income = Net Income (Average Operating assets x Cost Equity)


  • Net Income: Your total revenue less all implicit and explicit costs. This includes taxes, interest payments, and taxes.

  • Average operating assets are the assets that generate income for your investment or business, such as inventory and equipment. Add the ending and beginning balances of all your assets for the period that you are measuring to calculate the average operating asset. Divide by 2.

  • Cost of equity is the return investors can expect from investing in your investment or business. This can be calculated using either the capital asset pricing model (CAPM), or another similar model.


This is an example using numbers to illustrate how residual income can be calculated:


Let’s suppose you have a rental property that produces $30,000 annually in rental income. The property’s expenses, which include property taxes and maintenance, amount to $25,000 annually. Add your rental income to your expenses to calculate your net income.


$30,000 – $25,000 = $5,000 (net income)


Next, calculate your cost-of-equity. Let’s say your cost of equity equals 10%. Your investors can expect a 10% return on their investment in the rental property.


You now need to calculate your average operational assets. Let’s assume that your property has a value of $200,000 and you have $50,000 in assets that can generate rental income. Your average operating assets would then be:


Average Operating Assets = (200,000 + $50,000) / 2 = 125,000


Now you can calculate your residual income.


Residual Income = $55,000 – ($125,000x 10%) = $5,000, $12,500 = –$7,500


This example shows that your residual income is negative. It means that you are not making enough money to pay the equity capital costs. To generate a positive net-income, you may need to modify your rental property strategy (e.g., increase rent or reduce expenses).


Passive Income Vs Residencial Income

Google will return dozens of interpretations for “residual Income meaning”, with some suggesting that residual income could be the same as passive income. This is partially true. People often refer to “residual income”, and “passive income” because they can make a passive income while still making a profit.


Let’s say Tom, a blogger decides to make passive income. He inserts affiliate links into some of his posts to achieve this goal. Passive income is generated when visitors to his blog click those links. To calculate his residual income, he subtracts the commission Tom pays his affiliate partner as well as the taxes he charges on his affiliate earnings.

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Types Of Residual Income



In different contexts, residual income may have different meanings. Let’s take a look at some common uses of residual income.



Corporate Finance



In the world of corporate finance, residual income is how you calculate profit.


It can be used to determine a company’s net value by subtracting the opportunity costs capital from the annual operating profits.


To determine the equity value of a company, you can use residual earnings to calculate the instinct value of its shares.


To do this, the company will be assessed based on its current book value and its future expected residuals.


This can be done by subtracting net income from net capital costs. After adjusting for equity costs, the net profit will be the result.



Personal Finance


To determine your creditworthiness, you can also use residual income.

This income is often used by banks and other institutions to determine if an individual has enough money to pay his bills and secure a loan.


If you have a large amount of cash left after paying your monthly bills and paying your debts, you can show your financial standing to be approved for a loan.



Online business


After you have set up an online companyspan styling=”font-weight 400 ;”>,, your residual income is the amount you make after all the hard work.

You might, for example, open a Shopify shop to sell lucrative items. It will take some time and investment to get the business started. These items will be subtracted from your monthly revenue to generate your residual income.


It is usually very easy to keep the income flowing after initial efforts have been made. In the context of an online business, residual income can also be referred to passive income.



Making Residual Income



A residual income stream can make a huge difference in your life.


Consider opportunities to make a recurring income, whether you are in college or already working.


These are some residual income streams that can help you get started:


1. Dropshipping is a great way to start a business

An dropshipping store allows customers to shop online for different products.


A customer orders an item and the order is sent to a third party supplier, who then ships it directly to the customer.


This eliminates the need to store inventory and figure out how to get the item to your customer.


Dropshipping can be a great way to make residual income.


Suppliers will handle the majority of your business, i.e. You will be able to focus on product fulfillment and less on customer service.

Create an online store using Shopifyspan styling=”font-weight 400 ;”>. Install the Automizely app to find dropshipping suppliers.


2. Start a subscription company


While this residual income business is not for everyone, it can be done well and the money will grow.

You can sell everything from clothing to shaving products through subscription business


You can also hire a fulfillment company to package your products and deliver subscription boxes.

Companies such as Cratejoy can handle onboarding new customers.



3. Let your property be rented


Remote work is a popular trend that may mean you are not using your apartment or home as often as you would like.

Don’t let it sit idle. Create a residual income stream by listing it on Or another similar platform.


You can even rent a spare bedroom to generate discretionary income, even if you don’t want to rent the entire house upfront.


This strategy can be very successful if you keep your tenants happy.


Too many landlords fall prey to the negative stereotype of being greedy and neglecting issues and concerns, as well as ignoring expectations for amenities.


You can be the landlord everyone loves (and refers to), so make sure you check in with your tenants every day and resolve any issues as soon as possible.



4. Crowdfund real property


Real estate crowdfunding is based on small investments by many people to buy property or finance real estate development.

Sign up to become an investor and earn easy residual income. Sites such as RealCrowd and Fundrise allow investors to pitch at various investment levels.


Once your investment has been processed, you will become an equity shareholder of a real estate venture. You can then start receiving passive dividend payments.


Property appreciation may be a way to reap the benefits of property appreciation. Dividend earnings rise when assets are valued more.


Sign up on a few crowdfunding sites to get started. You should have access to at least four to eight property deals per month. This will allow you to make informed decisions about your investments.


5. Make an app


If your technical skills are strong, creating an app could be a great way for you to make some extra income.

You can create an expense tracking app or news app , a to-do app , or a recipe app depending on what you need.


You might also have an idea for a game app like PUBG. This could be your key to a huge fortune.

Hire developers and coders at Upwork or PeoplePerHour if you don’t know much about programming but have an idea for an app.


After you have hired someone to build your app, you can make residual income by advertising, paid access and add-ons that users purchase to make it more fun.


6. Publishing a book


This is a great way to generate residual income.

You can choose to publish your book through a traditional publisher, or self publishing using print-on-demand services


Earnings from royalties and sales will continue to rise, with the possibility of making thousands if the book is a success.


This is the best way to get started.


This means that you should consider your passions and skills when creating a title for the book.


It is also worth evaluating if the information that you plan to share in five to ten years’ time will still be relevant. This will ensure that your book is still being purchased.


7. Photos for sale

Do you have a good eye for photography? Are you a photographer who enjoys taking candid photos of people in public spaces? You might consider selling your work online at sites like Shutterstock or Getty Images.

Stock images are used on a lot of websites every day for blog posts and social media. Their owners are happy to pay for their use.


Why not make a profit from your images collection? With minimal effort, you can license a collection of photos and then sell them again and again.


The platform that you sell your images on manages all the logistics.


8. Etsy allows you to sell digital products

Etsy offers an Instant Download page that allows you to sell digital products. These items are delivered electronically and not physically.


You have the option to sell everything from graduation or anniversary cards to wall prints, inspirational texts, and digital copies of your art.


This has the obvious advantage that you can make multiple copies of the digital file once you have created it. You can also list it on the platform to sell it.

Selling digital products requires less overhead because you don’t have to ship or pack anything.


9. Create an Instagram following


This requires some work upfront. However, once you have a loyal fan base, it becomes simple to make residual income.

Start by creating an Instagram account and then start writing content in a particular niche. To get your posts seen by a wider audience, you can use Instagram hashtags.


Although you might not be able gain the same following as top Instagram stars, it is possible to make a lot of money by running an Instagram account that is smaller and focuses on a specific niche.


Because they are likely targeting the same audience, businesses in your niche will find them valuable. If they choose to sponsor you content, that could lead to a good-sized payout.


Earn residual income today


While everyone loves the idea of having additional income, not everyone can create it. It could be because you don’t have the right strategy or are not receiving honest advice.


These residual income ideas will allow you to make more income, and often passively.

These methods can be easily integrated into your current job. You can build wealth with your 9-to-5 job, or any other primary income source.


Which are your top ways to generate residual income? Comment below to let us know your favorite ways to make residual income.


FAQ


What’s the difference between corporate and personal residual income?


Individuals can earn personal residual income from passive income sources such as stock dividends or rental income. After deducting all expenses and including equity capital, corporate residual income is the income that businesses make from ongoing operations.


What’s the difference between passive and residual income?


Google will return dozens of interpretations for “residual Income meaning”, with some suggesting that residual income could be the same as passive income. This is partially true. People often refer to “residual income”, and “passive income”, because they can make a passive income while still making a profit.


Let’s say Tom, a blogger decides to make passive income. He inserts affiliate links into some of his posts to achieve this goal. Passive income is generated when visitors to his blog click those links. To calculate his residual income, he subtracts the commission Tom pays his affiliate partner as well as the taxes he charges on his overall affiliate earnings.

The principal idea behind residual income is to cover the expenses involved in creating passive streams span style=”font weight: 400 ;”>.


Is it possible to have negative residual income?


Yes, residual income may be negative. When expenses incurred to generate income from an investment or business exceed income generated, this is called residual income. This is when the residual income is negative and indicates a loss in the investment or business operation.


However, residual income can be positive if the income generated is greater than the expenses. Positive residual income is a sign of profitability. It can be used to invest in the business, pay off any debts, or invest in income-generating opportunities.

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Adeel Qayum
Author: Adeel Qayum

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