Are you looking for ways to make money as a teen? One of the ways adults can help teens learn about money is by helping them find ways to increase their income and make money.
I recently heard a quote by Robert Kiyosaki that said, “If you want your children to have an unfair advantage in life, teach them financial education. Show them the real rules of money and taxes.” I totally agree with this quote because the more your children know about money, the better they will be able to manage money in the future.
Since having children, it has become very important for me to teach them about financial literacy and the many ways they can create wealth. Because of that, I created a full list of ways teenagers can make money in 2021.
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How Can I Make Money Fast As A Teenager?
There are a lot of different ways a teenager can make money fast, such as completing easy tasks on the site Swagbucks. Swagbucks is a great site where you can complete tasks such as watching videos and completing surveys to earn money. In addition, this post will cover legit ways teenagers can make money this year.
How Can A 14-year Old Make Money?
A 14-year-old can actually make money by selling items they don’t use anymore on sites such as Mercari, Offer up, and Amazon. With help from their parents, they can make extra money every month by doing this side hustle.
20 Ways To Make Money As A Teen In 2021
1. Complete Tasks On Swagbucks
Swagbucks is one of my favorite ways to make extra money. A huge bonus to Swagbucks is that anyone 13 years old or older can sign up and start earning points to receive free gift cards or PayPal cash.
Since signing up for Swagbucks, I have earned $5,000, which equals to an extra $1000 per year since joining in 2017.
The best ways to make money from Swagbucks are by completing surveys online, watching videos, and referring others to the site to sign up. If you have free time throughout the day, Swagbucks is a great site to sign up for to make money from home. Click here to check out Swagbucks and grab a $10 bonus.
2. Complete Surveys Online
Similar to Swagbucks, completing surveys online is a great way for teenagers to make money. When companies do market research, they tend to ask questions in the form of surveys through companies such as Survey Junkie or Pinecone Research. Those surveys are pushed out to the public and people are able to make money by completing them and giving their honest opinion.
Many sites require that a person be at least 13 years old to sign up, but even so, make sure to talk it over with your parents to see which survey sites are best for you.
Some of my favorite and legit survey sites to make money from are:
3. Earn Money Back From Ibotta
Ibotta is one of my favorite cash-back apps. With this app, you can earn money on purchases that you make at grocery stores. To get started, all you have to do is download the app then select different products and items that you will purchase at your local store.
Once you get to the store, purchase the items you selected on the app and upload your receipt onto the Ibotta app, and get paid. It’s that simple! To see a full review about Ibotta and how to use the app, click here.
4. Scan Receipts On Fetch Rewards
Fetch Rewards is another great way to make money as a teen. This app is very similar to Ibotta because it lets you upload your store receipt and earn free gift cards. Since joining, I have gotten a ton of Amazon gift cards. Check out Fetch Rewards by clicking here.
5. Start A Blog
Starting a blog is one of the best ways to make money as a teen. There are many ways a person can make money with a blog, such as through affiliate marketing, ad revenue, working with brands on sponsored posts, and selling digital products.
If you are just starting out and not sure how to start a blog, check out my “How To Start A Blog” post to help get you started. Click here to check it out.
6. Offer Freelance Services
There are a ton of freelance services that a teen can offer to make money. A lot of businesses and bloggers look for freelancers on places such as Upwork, Freelancer.com, and Fiverr to help them with different tasks. Some of the freelance services a teen can offer are:
- Graphic Design
- Social Media management
- Proofreading
- Bookkeeping
- Babysitting
- Dog walking
To find freelance jobs, simply go on freelance sites such as Fiverr, Freelancer.com, Upwork, and Care.com and post your freelance services.
7. Sell Video Games
If you have video games that you don’t want anymore, you can sell them on a site called Declutter. With this site, they will buy your unwanted games from you and you can get paid. Check out Declutter by clicking here.
Additionally, if you want to get paid to play games, check out sites such as Twitch, which is the world’s largest streaming platform for gamers. On Twitch, you can get paid through donations, and if you become a Twitch partner, you can get paid from serving ads.
8. Get Paid To Walk
Did you know you can actually get paid to walk? Yes, it’s true. The app SweatCoin pays you in SweatCoin currency to walk on a daily basis.
Now, this app won’t make a person rich, but you can earn points that can go through products and services such as Apple and Nike. Additional fitness apps that will pay you to be active are Achievement, FitPotato, and StepBet.
9. Become a YouTube Influencer
Another great way to make money as a teen is by creating a YouTube channel and uploading videos focusing on a specific niche.
On YouTube, you can make money in a lot of ways such as affiliate marketing, ad revenue, and by directing viewers to your website to purchase your own physical or digital products. If you are just starting out, check out the “How To Make Money On YouTube” post on my site by clicking here.
10. Do Yard Work
A great way to make money as a teen is by doing yard work. During each season, most people need yard work, which can equal an opportunity to get paid. A great app to use to see if anyone in your town needs yard work is NextDoor. On this site, you can search and find individuals who might need help with their yard.
Some yard work duties that a teenager can do are
- Mowing lawns
- Water grass and flowers
- Pulling and picking up leaves
- Painting
Doing yard work is a great way for teenagers to earn money on the side and a great opportunity to meet new people around the town.
11. Work As A Camp Counselor
Another great job that teenagers can do in the summer season is becoming camp counselors. As a camp counselor, you will have job duties such as helping the campers throughout the program, providing coaching to campers, and helping with cleaning around the camp.
If you are interested in learning more about becoming a camp counselor, check out the American Camp Association. On this site, you will see the current camp job openings and more information about becoming a camp counselor.
12. Become A Lifeguard
If you can swim, becoming a lifeguard in the summer might be a great idea. To become a lifeguard you will have to have the proper certification and pass a swimming test.
So, if you are a great swimmer and love helping people, this might be a great part-time side hustle for you. To find out more about what’s required to become a lifeguard, check out this lifeguard video by clicking here.
13. Babysitting
Babysitting is another great way to make money as a teen. A great place to find babysitting gigs is Care.com. On this site, you can find people in your town who need babysitters for their children. This site makes it super easy to find babysitting jobs fairly quickly.
Additionally, you can check out SitterCity, which is very similar to Care.com because you can find babysitting jobs in your town.
14. Pet Sitting
If you love animals, becoming a pet sitter might be a great side hustle for you. Places such as Rover hire individuals to take care of cats and dogs on a daily basis. On the Rover site, you sign up to become a sitter or walker.
This is a great way to make money as a teen, and you can create your own schedule. To find out more about Rover, click here.
15. Sell Clothes On Mercari And Poshmark
Do you have a lot of clothes that you don’t wear anymore? Maybe consider selling them on the Poshmark website. Poshmark is a marketplace where individuals can sell their clothes to other people online.
The Poshmark platform is a great way to make money as a teen because you can set your own prices for your unwanted items and pick and choose the items that you want to sell. Selling unwanted items is one of the quickest ways to make money fast. To read more about how to sell items online, check out a post on my site which shares the top items to sell online by clicking here.
16. Tutor Students Online
If you love working with students and helping them excel at their schoolwork, becoming a tutor might be a great option for you to make extra money. When you sign up to become a tutor, you can tutor in subjects such as math, science, English, and much more.
Places online to find tutoring jobs are
If you have a creative talent, you can also look into conducting music lessons on Take Lessons. On this site, you can set your own hours and have piano lessons, guitar lessons, singing lessons, and much more.
17. Open An Etsy Shop
If you have a love for creating digital products or creative products, setting up an Etsy shop might be great for you. Etsy is one of the most popular online platforms that you can sell creative digital and physical products on such as jewelry, headbands, budgeting templates, and much more.
Millions of users use this platform, so it’s a great way to showcase your products to the world and make daily sales. If you are new, I have a post on this site that shares the best items to sell on Etsy and how to get started on the platform. Check it out by clicking here.
18. Sell Your Photos Online
Did you know you can get paid for selling photos online from your iPhone or Android phone? Yes, it’s true, you totally can. Places such as Getty images purchase photography from people, and all you have to do is apply online. To check out Getty images and apply, click here.
To get a fast jumpstart on how to sell your photos online, check out this video tutorial which shares some of the best tips to sell photos online.
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19. Start A Drop Shipping Business
Have you thought about starting your own T-shirt line? One of the ways you can start a T-shirt business is by setting up a dropshipping business. Once I researched how to start a T-shirt business, I realized it’s actually pretty simple when you set it up with a print-on-demand service.
A print-on-demand service takes care of everything for you. After you design the shirts on a platform such as Canva, you send it to the print-on-demand company to make the T-shirt and send it to your customers. Platforms, where you can sell your T-Shirts, are Etsy and Shopify. If you are looking for more information about how to get started with print-on-demand, click here to see a video tutorial.
20. Become A Social Media Assistant
If you love social media and love helping others build their social media profile, becoming a social media assistant might be a great side hustle for you.
When you become a social media assistant, you will help bloggers and online entrepreneurs with creating content for their social media pages and help them grow their brand and following. This is a great job for individuals who love social media and love helping others grow their social media presence. To find these types of jobs, check out the places below.
- Fiverr
- Indeed.com
- Upwork
21. Sell Books Online On BookScouter
If you have any books that you don’t want anymore, you can sell them on a site called BookScouter. BookScouter purchases unwanted books from people and pays them for the books.
So, if you are a book reader who has a ton of books that you don’t want anymore, consider selling the books to the BookScouter platform and get paid. Check out BookScouter by clicking here.
22. Become An Instagram Influencer
This is a fun side hustle. If you love Instagram, you can get paid by doing sponsored posts for different brands.
With sponsored posts, brands will pay you to promote products that you already use and love on your social media account. Keep in mind a lot of companies want you to have some type of following on the platform because ideally, they want you to promote their products to your followers in hopes that they will buy the products as well. Some of the best places to find sponsorship opportunities are listed below:
- Clever
- FameBit
- Tomoson
- Ambassad Her
- Massive Sway
23. Get Paid To Shop With Field Agent
Field Agent is an amazing app that will pay you to shop. For this side hustle, you have to be at least 18 years old. I really love this app because you can get paid for completing simple tasks such as purchasing items that you already would from your local store or check to see if a store has a certain product in stock.
This mystery shopping app pays your payment directly to you on the app soon after you complete the store task. Check out Field Agent by clicking here.
24. Complete Tasks On TaskRabbit
Another great way to make money as a teen is by completing tasks around your town on TaskRabbit. For this side hustle, you have to be at least 18 years old.
The TaskRabbit site matches freelancers who are looking for work to individuals who need work done. For example, a task on this site might be someone in your local town who needs boxes moved out of their house or a neighbor who might need his lawn mowed. This is a great site to find local work around your town.
25. Become A Movie Extra
This is a super fun way to make extra money. If you live in a city where filming takes place, such as Los Angeles, Atlanta, or Chicago, you might be able to grab a spot in a movie or TV Show as a background actor.
Keep in mind that you will never have to pay to be a background actor, so if someone is requesting money, they aren’t legit. Also, make sure to keep your parents in the loop of everything.
Additional acting resources and places to find acting jobs:
- Project Casting
- Auditions Free
- Backstage
- How To Get Started As A Child Actor
26. Sell Baked Goods
If you love cooking and baking, consider selling baked goods for profit. With a baking business, you can sell cakes, cupcakes, and other sweets to individuals around your town.
I know a young girl who sells baked cakes and cupcakes named Jacie. She currently has her own baking business called “Jacie Bakes.” With her baking business, she makes money from selling her cakes and cupcakes.
If you are looking for more resources on how to start a baking business, check out this post.
Benefits Of Making Money As A Teen
There are a lot of benefits to making money as a teen such as learning about different ways to create and build wealth. Additionally, another benefit would be the networking side of things. You will be able to meet new people in town and build friendships that might be able to help you as you grow older.
What To Do With The Money As A Teen
As you make money as a teen, one of the things to consider to do with the money is to create a savings account to build wealth. The earlier you create a savings account, the more it will be able to grow over time. Additionally, you can also look into investing as you grow older. Check out this guide with your parents by The Balance on how to invest as teenagers.
Final Thoughts
This post shares some of the best ways to make money as a teen. There are a ton of ways to increase wealth and build savings as a teen, and I hope this post pointed you in the right direction to get started. Do you currently make money as a teen? If so, share what type of side hustle you do below.