10 Highest Paid Travel Bloggers: The Elite Earners of 2024
WHAT ARE THE TOP EARNING TRAVEL BLOGS?
If you are eager to know what travel bloggers are making and how you can become one too, you are in the right place, as in this article we are talking all about the 10 highest-paid bloggers.
Since the early 2000s, travelers have been sharing their stories on the internet. And now, they’re making more money than ever 🤑.
👩💻 To help you with your travel blog, I highly recommend taking a course. Head here for info on the best travel blogging courses. If you want to read a full review about the best one I’ve done, head here.
These previous 9-5ers took the plunge and are now the highest-paid bloggers in the travel industry. And before you think, well, they probably started years ago, think again.
Yes, some of them have spent almost 20 years travel blogging. But others started just a few years ago. If they can do it, then you can do it too.
So how much do travel bloggers make? Let’s look at some travel blogs that make money.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
I want to travel the world and get paid! That’s what the owners of these top-earning travel blogs said before setting out to make their dreams a reality.
Then they figured out how do you get paid for a blog and made it happen. So let’s take a look at the top 10 highest paid travel bloggers.
1. Matt Kepnes from Nomadic Matt
💰 Estimated Annual Revenue: $1,000,000+
When it comes to travel blogging, Nomadic Matt is a name that many aspire to emulate. His travel nomads blog and New York Times Best Selling Books have been a go-to resource for travel enthusiasts around the world.
But beyond being an authority in the travel world, Nomadic Matt has managed to turn his passion into a lucrative career with one of the highest paid blogging sites on the internet.
🤑 Sources of Income:
In 2018, it was reported that his travel blogger salary was up to $750 000 per year 🤯.
With even more income streams available through affiliate marketing, display advertising, courses, and products, his income as one of the travel blogs that make the most money has only continued to grow.
It’s easy to guess that Nomadic Matt is one of the richest travel bloggers around. All thanks to Matt’s travel tips.
One interesting note about Matt’s nomad travel website income is that neither he nor his team of writers gets paid to travel the world — everything they write about comes from their personal plans and travel experiences.
While the thought of making that amount of money may seem out of reach to some, his success serves as a reminder that with consistency and dedication, anything is possible in the travel blogging industry.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
2. Kiersten Rich, The Blonde Abroad
💰 Estimated Annual Revenue: $1,000,000+
If you’ve searched for travel tips on the internet in the last decade, you’ve likely heard of one of Kiersten Rich AKA The Blonde Abroad.
Kiersten is a female travel icon who has managed to turn her love of solo travel into a seven-figure business.
What sets her apart from the rest? With multiple income streams, she has managed to turn her blog into a business that was generating a travel blog salary of around $1 million dollars per year by 2019 🤯.
The Blonde Abroad is not just one of the most popular travel bloggers and entrepreneurs around. She’s also a strong, solo traveling female inspiring women all over the globe to leave footprints in the sand of the travel blogging world.
🤑 Sources of Income:
From brand partnerships to ad income and affiliate marketing to digital products, Kiersten has leveraged every monetization opportunity available.
But she didn’t stop there. Kiersten has also created unique income streams by consulting and running her well-known, all-female travel tours.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
3. Johnny Ward of OneStep4Ward.com
💰 Estimated Annual Revenue: $1,000,000+
Meet Johnny Ward, a previous 9-5er who quit his job to become one of the internet’s bloggers who make the most money.
Okay, so he didn’t actually make a travel blog business plan to do that, but it is what happened. He’s been a full time travel blogger ever since.
In 2006, Johnny went on to pursue his passion for travel and blogging. According to his Money I’ve Made from Blogging calculator on his website, that leap of faith has paid off big time — three million dollars big 🤑, so far.
Despite facing challenges along the way, Johnny’s online blogger salary is likely over $100,000 per month now, earning him a spot as one of the most successful travel bloggers on the internet.
🤑 Sources of Income:
In addition to affiliate marketing and ad income, Ward monetizes his experiences through public speaking and group trips. He has also purchased over 250 websites over the years and has monetized them as well.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
4. Alex Jimenez, Travel Fashion Girl
💰 Estimated Annual Revenue: $1,000,000+
Alex Jimenez was tired of feeling frumpy and not like her fashionista self when she started traveling full-time in 2008. Come 2012, she found a solution and started her empire at Travel Fashion Girl.
It wasn’t long until Alex was generating a travel blogger salary per year of seven figures 🤑. Proving again that travel blog money is no joke when you put your mind to it.
By blending her previous fashion industry background with her around-the-world journeys, Jimenez has created a brand dedicated to helping women pack smart and travel chic.
🤑 Sources of Income:
Travel Fashion Girl’s seven-figure income was largely through AdThrive and affiliates, particularly from online retailers like Amazon and LTK. She also sells digital products, including packing ebooks to teach her audience how to pack like a pro.
Alex has also launched her own product line, Compass Rose Travel Accessories, and acquired Women’s Travel Fest, an annual conference that aims to empower women through travel, community, and connection. She also has used her travel blogging money to grow her real estate portfolio.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
5. Glo Atanmo, The Blog Abroad
💰 Estimated Annual Revenue: $1,000,000+
This solo-female travel entrepreneur has been making seven figures since 2020.
With a massive Instagram following of 259k, plus her website and a YouTube channel, she is proof that you can achieve incredible success with the right mindset and a solid understanding of how to make passive income work for you.
It’s also an answer to the question: how much do Instagram travel bloggers make. Evidently, a lot as Glo is one of the highest paid travel bloggers on Instagram.
🤑 Sources of Income:
How did she achieve this dream-worthy feat of travel blogging? Wondering how travel bloggers earn seven figures? With multiple streams of income.
Glo Atanmo, now generating income from seven to eight different streams, has become a master of selling sustainable passive income streams — academies, masterminds, affiliate income, digital products, and more.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
6. Dave & Deb of The Planet D
💰 Estimated Annual Revenue: $800,000-$900,000
This power couple at The Planet D has undoubtedly cracked the code when it comes to brand building and creating one of the highest earning blogs.
Since creating their website to share and monetize their travels in 2008, they have steadily built up a following of over one million monthly readers 🤯 and counting.
🤑 Sources of Income:
With a combination of savvy monetization strategies (diversification is key — the best travel bloggers in the world all know that!), this couple earns a high six-figure income annually 🤑.
According to their blog income reports, these top-paid bloggers affiliate marketing earnings of $20,000-$40,000/month, display travel blog earnings coming in at $30,000-$35,000/month, and campaigns and brand partnerships reaching up to $50,000/campaign.
In addition to these power income streams, The Planet D adventure travel blog also monetizes a loyal email list, digital products, public speaking, and YouTube (they’re travel vloggers too!). Now you know the answer to the question:
how much do travel bloggers make on YouTube 🤯.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
7. Shelley Marmour of TravelMexicoSolo.com
💰 Estimated Annual Income: $600,000+
Introducing the Affiliate Marketing Queen, Shelley Marmour — that’s me! After making just $8,490 in the entire 2021 year as a travel Mexpert, I grew my blog to earn multiple six figures by the end of 2022, including a $52,000 month!
If you want to learn how to earn money as a travel blogger, I can help you through my affiliate keyword and blogging courses.
🤑 Sources of income:
With almost 300k sessions, I’ve leveraged my affiliate marketing knowledge to earn an impressive $20k- 30k per month 🤯 through affiliate marketing alone.
But I didn’t stop there. My local travel blog about Mexico also brings in $8k-$10k per month with display advertising, while digital products like my ebook and email list contribute additional income as well.
I have expanded my affiliate marketing empire by starting multiple niche sites. All of my sites generate both affiliate and ad income, making me one of the most successful travel bloggers in a short period of time.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
8. Dariece and Nick from Goats on the Roads
💰 Estimated Annual Income: $200,000-$400,000
In 2012, Dariece and Nick set off with a goal of earning $1,500/month to travel and live abroad — not just for a few weeks a year, but forever. As of 2022, these two Goats on the Road make $15k-$30k/month travel blogging 🤯.
This savvy pair has figured out a way to make a living and travel the globe for over a decade now. With a tagline Turn travel into a lifestyle, they are now experts in earning remote income and helping you do the same.
Can you get paid to travel the world? They’ve proved the answer is yes.
Whether it’s through blogging, online jobs, freelancing, or any other means possible, Dariece and Nick have proved time and time again just how attainable traveling the world can be.
🤑 Sources of Income:
Dariece and Nick have monetized their blogs with affiliate marketing, ads, and partnerships. However, that monthly income doesn’t include all of their income sources.
They now share their knowledge through 3 travel bloggers’ courses and an impressive email list from their freebie opt-in 101 Ways to Earn Money and Pay for Travel.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
9. Lia & Jeremy from Practical Wanderlust
💰 Estimated Annual Income: $300,000-$500,000
This dynamic travel blogging duo left their desk jobs in 2016 to explore the world. While they shared monthly income reports back in 2018, they’ve stopped doing that in recent years.
But, they are transparent about their ability to now live off of and make multiple six figures from their blog. life
In 2018, Practical Wanderlust’s 100k monthly sessions were bringing in $11,000 in their highest earning month. Now, their traffic has more than doubled, and so has their income. That’s just the life of a travel blogger.
🤑 Sources of Income:
Their income streams come from a combination of display advertising, affiliate income, paid press, sponsored posts, and sponsored content, product and course sales, affiliate link placements (no-follow, of course), and even some freelance writing on the side.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
10. Katie and Ben from Two Wandering Soles
💰 Estimated Annual Income: $350,000-$500,000
These two wandering soles started their blog in 2014 and haven’t slowed down since. While they stopped doing their income reports in 2019, they were making a whopping $25k/month from their blog.
This once van-life/budget/nomadic travel blog has turned into an eco-friendly, sustainable travel blog for every type of traveler, from families to digital nomads and van-lifers to scuba divers.
🤑 Sources of Income:
Their reports, although already impressive, only include their affiliate and advertising income.
A few years later, they have tripled their sources of income to include digital products, brand partnerships, email marketing, and courses like their Blogging Bootcamp and Van Conversion Academy.
Three Ways to Make Money Travel Blogging
So now that we’ve covered the blog travel writers that earn the most money, let’s quickly cover how YOU can start earning money with your blog.
These are just a few tips on how travel bloggers make money. The opportunities are endless — you can dive into a more in-depth article on How to Become a Travel Blogger and Make Money.
It has some of the best travel blogging tips around, so you won’t be wondering “how much do travel bloggers make” much longer. You’ll also learn about the best paid travel blogger jobs.
You’ll learn how to get paid for travel blogging in no time. Keep in mind that the biggest travel bloggers don’t just use one of these methods — they use almost all of them.
So, ready to learn how to become a travel blogger and get paid? Try out these top three favorite blogging money makers.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
1. Advertising
Get paid for your content. Display advertising in an effective way to monetize your blog through ad networks. Mediavine, AdThrive, and SheMedia and some of the most talked about ad networks in the blogging industry.
However, these popular ad networks have minimum traffic requirements, so you’ll have to put in some work before placing ads on your site.
Depending on your niche (like luxury travel or a family travel blog) and your country, advertising can become a lucrative form of income on your blog.
So how does a travel blogger make money with ads? The more content and traffic you create, the bigger your earnings.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
2. Affiliate Marketing
Unlike advertising, affiliate marketing allows you to start making money with a travel blog even faster.
No need to wait for a specific amount of traffic to make your first dollar. This makes it one of the most popular travel blog monetization methods available.
My favorite part of affiliate marketing — the sky’s the limit. I make over half of my income from affiliates.
👩🏻💻 I teach bloggers how to find keywords with big potential to earn affiliate income in my How to Find Affiliate Marketing Keywords Class. You can read more about my class in this Best Courses for Travel Bloggers article.
You can gain access to countless affiliate networks, like Viator and Booking.com, that can help you monetize your site like those of this list of travel bloggers do.
From booking tours to promoting products, earning money through affiliate marketing is as easy as pie, and best of all, it’s all passive.
So how do travel bloggers make money with affiliate marketing? Promote products with affiliate links, and you get a commission when readers use them to buy things! It can even be part of your social media management strategy.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
3. Products (Digital & Physical)
While affiliate commissions are a great way to start earning, you’re only getting a portion of those profits.
That’s where products come in! E-books, printables, photo presents, and courses are just a few of the ways you can monetize your travel blog with products.
With a bit of upfront work, you can create products that will keep earning you money long after you’ve hit publish.
Not only can digital products give you another consistent travel blog income stream, but they allow you to share your knowledge and expertise with your audience.
Plus, you have complete control over the pricing, branding, and distribution of your products. If you want to learn how to make money from a travel blog from day one, digital products are a great option.
This is just the tip of the iceberg. If you want to learn more, I’ve written a more in-depth article about all of this → How to Become a Travel Blogger and Make Money.
Frequently Asked Questions: Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
Now that you know all about these highest-paid and most famous travel bloggers, here are some FAQs about how to make money as a travel influencer.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
How much do top travel bloggers make?
Many of the top travel bloggers earn seven figures annually, with money coming from a variety of income streams. Their primary sources of income include affiliate marketing, advertising, product sales, and building a loyal email list of readers that can be monetized.
By building a brand and creating inspiring content, travel bloggers can build large audiences to leverage these monetization strategies, generating significant income from their passions.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
Is it hard to make money as a travel blogger?
With persistence and determination, it is not hard to make money as a travel blogger — especially if you know how to get your travel blog noticed. Establish yourself as an expert in your niche and satisfy your reader’s needs.
From there, by promoting affiliate products, displaying ads, and partnering with brands, you can turn your travel blog into a money maker. With hard work and the right strategies, how to get paid to blog about travel is achievable.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
Can you make a living with a travel blog?
Yes — you can make a living with a travel blog. Many people make a full-time living and impressive income from their travel blogging salary.
The beauty of a travel blog is that you have complete control over how much money do travel bloggers make.
A professional blogger salary can range from $1 to $1 million per year 🤯. While it takes time to build a successful blog (nothing happens overnight), the only limit to how much does a travel blogger make is the one you set for yourself.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
Can a blogger become a millionaire?
Yes — a blogger can become a millionaire. Not only is it possible for a blogger to become a millionaire, but it has been done time and time again over the last two decades of travel blogging.
With hard work and dedication, bloggers have continued to reach new heights by monetizing their travels and expertise.
The Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
How competitive is travel blogging?
With tens of millions of travel blogging websites on the internet, it is certainly a competitive market. But not all of those millions are travel blog companies that make money.
By standing out as an expert in your specific niche, you can set yourself apart from the masses and find success as a blogging traveler as a career.
Industries are always changing, and travel blogging is no different. No matter your passion, there’s an audience waiting for your unique perspective. Don’t be afraid to experiment and stand out from the crowd on your way to the top.
Final Thoughts: Highest Paid Travel Bloggers
What does a travel blogger do? They travel, write about their experiences, and make money! Isn’t that a job?
This is a small list of the most successful travel blogs and the highest-paid travel bloggers in the industry — for example, I didn’t even get the chance to mention Two Monkeys Travel Group! But, it shows just how lucrative and profitable travel blogging can be.
There are millions of travel bloggers making a living from their blogs — you can earn money travel blogging too.
If you’re wondering how to travel blog and make money, look no further than these 10 bloggers changing the industry one trip at a time.
Ready to invest in a travel blogging course? 👉 Sign up for the FREE live webinar to meet my coach Laura, who has helped me grow my blog fast!