Canonical (the Ubuntu developers) makes money from advertising on their website and from donations.

How does Linux make money?

Monetization Strategy#1: Selling distros, services, and subscriptions. Yes, you read it right. RedHat sells their Linux distros and it is perfectly legal to do so. Linux distros are under the GPL license which basically means that you are free to sell it.

Is Canonical for profit?

Canonical is a private company, wholly owned by Shuttleworth, so we don’t know its financial details. … In the first nine months of Canonical’s 2019 fiscal year, the company had $83.43-million in gross revenue with $10.85-million in profits. A closer look reveals that Canonical has been profitable since 2018.