The major source of income of the Jukun during the period covered by researchers was the slave trade.
When they conquered a city, they would take the inhabitants of that state and sell them just to earn money. They equally received taxes and tributes from their vassal states. Again, war tools were another source of income.
Moreover many of them were agriculturists that produced the following crops – groundnuts, pepper, rice, corn, yam and oilseeds.
Other agricultural products included ivory, ostrich feathers, hides, cotton and indigo. Another was salt; before the European salt was imported into Nigeria the inhabitants were using the locally produced salt.