A growing number of employees and entrepreneurs are working from home today. The question, though, is whether it’s better to work for yourself or for a boss when you’re a stay-at-home worker.

The answer, not surprisingly, depends a lot on the type of worker you are.

Working from home comes with a host of benefits. It also comes with some challenges. How you handle those challenges will go a long way to helping you determine whether you’re the type of home worker who should be self-employed or the kind who would benefit from working for someone else.

If you work for yourself from home, you’ll have the potential to earn an unlimited amount of income, depending on how successful you are. You’ll also be able to work your own hours, and build your business in any manner you see fit.

Those are benefits. But depending on your work ethic or style, these pros can easily turn into cons.

For instance, when you work from home for yourself, there is no guarantee that you’ll earn any type of paycheck. Your income potential may be unlimited, but remember that there’s no floor, either.

Secondly, if an idea fails, it’s your fault. You are the sole decision maker. You will also bear the entire brunt of a failed idea. This can be a heavy burden.

Finally, if you’re not the type of worker who is self-motivated, working from home for yourself can be a recipe for disaster. If you’re a procrastinator, you might find your at-home business quickly dying. It won’t be a pleasant situation when the postman is delivering plenty of bills but no checks.

For some at-home workers, then, working for an outside employer is the best fit. The good news is that a growing number of companies are comfortable with letting their employees work at least some of the time outside the home.

By working from home for someone else, you’re guaranteed a paycheck. That’s a big benefit. You’ll also have greater job security, and a more clearly defined role. These are important factors for workers who thrive on stability.

On the downside, you’ll still be expected to put in regular business hours, you’ll just be doing it from your home instead of the company cubicle. Flexibility is one of the main benefits of working from home. If you’re working from home for a company, you lose some of this flexibility.

Another con is that your boss can terminate your work-from-home status at any time. You may be comfortable working from home only to receive a memo that you’re expected to return to your cubicle the following day.

There is no one right choice for home workers. But before deciding whether you are going to work from home for yourself or for an outside employer, be sure to consider all the pros and cons of both options.