30+ Ways Teens Can Make Money

Looking for a way to make some extra cash? There are countless ways teens can make money. Did you ever imagine wrapping Christmas gifts or playing games with siblings, even helping with repairs around the house could lead to a good-paying job as a teen?

All those and more. Jobs like Social Media Influencer, Virtual Assistant work, Helping to rip up the carpet and take out the trash. Walking the dog, feeding the cat (or chickens), watering the plants are all jobs people pay teens for and so many more.

Teens are making money cleaning out the closets and selling stuff online. Things like old sporting equipment, clothes, and collectibles no longer interest them. Some are selling crafts and digital items on Etsy. We’ve even heard of teens repairing old bikes and re-selling them for a profit.

If you’re looking for ways to make money, then this article is perfect for you. We’ve compiled 31 jobs that teens can do with little or no experience and skills required. Whether it’s online jobs or in-person, creative, and basic jobs, there are plenty of opportunities out there!

This list will help you find the best job that suits your needs and interests so that you can start making money today! You’ll be able to work from home, at school, after school – wherever works best for you! And if one doesn’t sound like it’s right for you, just keep scrolling until something catches your eye. There are so many options out there.

Let’s first go over some info that will help you decide where you’re most comfortable if you need a resume you’ll be ready. We’ll help you get familiar with what the minimum wages are in your area so you’re sure not to get taken advantage of financially.

Skills Teens Are Able to Acquire

First up are your hard and soft skills are your stepping stones. They will help you get your first job, benefit from the learning experience, and move on to bigger opportunities in the future.

Hard Skills

These are skills you have learned and have experience with through either work or practice. Often being on teams or volunteer opportunities at school will help you get and improve these skills. These are important in finding a job. Even more important, a great first job will teach you even more skills!

Soft Skills

Soft skills are about how you communicate, your thought process to solve problems, resolve conflict. It’s also about your teamwork abilities as well as your ability to work independently. Combining these and other skills while maintaining quality work performance.

Resume Advice for Teenagers

A resume isn’t always necessary for your first job, however a great idea to create one and start learning to apply your experience to this format. You’ll learn how to translate your skills into brief descriptions as well as learn a lot about how much more qualified you are than you thought! Try online resume templates for guidance like this one here at Resume Lab (lots of resume examples too!)

Start browsing through these jobs now and see which ones seem like they might suit your needs the most!

How Much Can A Teen Make?

How much teenagers make depends on how much experience they have, common sense, the reliability just to name a few (remember the soft skills above?) Your rates should be fair and reflect your experience.

Where you’re new to working, you’ll start at or slightly above minimum wage. If you are taking a non-traditional job such as many listed below, you can start by charging minimum wage hourly then with each new client you can slightly increase your hourly wage. Ask advice from trustworthy adults too.

Shortages of employees returning to work post-pandemic has created many jobs hiring above minimum wage. There is also a shortage of qualified workers in the fields typically known as freelancers. More opportunities for teens to make money are happening every day.

What does this mean to you as a teenager? It means in many cases you’ll be hired at a higher rate than your state requires by law. Some of these ‘online’ jobs are determined wholly by the time and effort you put forth. Your income will be in your control more than someone else’s.

My advice would be to try to find a traditional or classic job while putting in some time towards an online income. Maintain a regular income while you’re building your experience and clients online. This way you can explore many ways teens make money and decide which fits your needs and skills best.

How Much Is Minimum Wage in My State?

Non-Traditional Service Jobs

Gift Wrapping

I’m certain I cannot be the only one who dreads wrapping!  This is the perfect job for you teens.  Take a few minutes to perfect your skills, ask your mom, grandmother, neighbor to give you some tips.  You can go to Pinterest for some fun and unique ways to wrap too.  This would give you an extra edge in getting hired and maybe charge more. 

Practice at home, take some pictures and share on Facebook or in your local small business.  Keep costs down by having customers provide their own wrapping paper and gift tags.  You’ll want to have your own comfortable scissors and tape in your ‘toolkit’. It makes you look professional and well, you can probably borrow from your home for this.

Of all the ways teens can make money, this would have been my favorite!

Shopping Service

Parent’s Night Out = Kids Movie and Craft Night

This one is HUGE!  Teens, if you have younger siblings you know this one is big in your home, so it’s bound to be in others. Parents need alone time to shop!  Host a little ‘holiday’ party for all the little ones (in other words babysit) while parents head out and shop for their gifts.

You may want to do this with a friend.

Get out the DVR or On Demand List of all the great holiday shows. Plan a space for kids who just want to sit and relax watching a movie, In another corner of the room, set up a craft table. Be sure you are prepared with safe and inclusive materials. When you have a group of kids, it’s important to have a plan and a backup plan. This would be a big one for New Year’s Eve too!!

Offer Shopping Pick-up

Do you have a driver’s license and access to a reliable and safe car?  Offer pick-up services for a fee.  You don’t even have to actually ‘shop’.  These days many parents are ordering online and get free ship to the store. We don’t always want to deliver and drop on the doorstep by traditional delivery services for safety reasons. You could offer to pick up their items at all the stores, bring them home when they’re available.

Now, you could upsell your service and off to wrap (see above) as an added service (more money!)

Secret Santa Delivers!

Some homes are just hard to keep the magic of Santa alive and having a separate place to stash the gifts is huge! All those wrapped gifts? Deliver on Christmas Eve all wrapped (another charge)!  

Don’t forget to mention that you can pick up groceries as well or food orders at local bakeries, deli’s for their party.  Trust me, there are lines at these places during peak hours and you may want to combine a few clients on this last one.

Decorating

Holiday and Party Decor

Really!  People get paid to decorate and no reason you can’t either.  Try picking a niche, like Christmas decorating (hint: you’re on school break and will have more time!)

Whether it’s help setting up the tree, hanging outdoor lights (use great caution and safety measures in high places), or delivering (see above shopping services) and hanging wreaths.  Decorating for homes is a huge help and people often don’t even realize they can have a teen help with this for a very reasonable price. Get some experience and you can upscale your services to include decorating for small businesses.

Upsell that service and make yourself available to help take down the decorations too! You’ve just doubled your work time and yes, your income!

This can also be applied to Halloween, summer party themes, birthdays, etc.

Party Entertainment

Painting Year Round

You may have a knack for painting.  Professional painters charge big bucks. You could offer small jobs to start as you build experience and clients.

If you’re going to offer a ‘room painting’ service, it’s a good idea to also list that you are available for

You list out individual services to know they can hire you for all or ‘some’ of this project. Often a person will decide to paint themselves but then run short on time and need help with the preparations. By being available for these things, you are showing your work ethic, personality and opening yourself up to future jobs.

How to Make Money as a Teenager Online

More and more people are starting to sell, advertise, provide services online. Ways teens can make money is much more than finding an old-fashioned job these days, there are so many opportunities with an open mind.

eBay

Got some gifts from ‘last year’ you still haven’t found a use for? Some good condition items you no longer want? List and sell on eBay! Remember those old collectible cards? You can sell countless things, including items you find at yard sales or in trash piles on the curb! Clean them up, take a picture, and list! Here is an article on how to sell on eBay.

Etsy

Are you crafty, artistic? Are your friends and family always asking you to make them one of ‘those?  Check out Etsy and you’ll probably be shocked at how much your talents are really worth!! Even digital products are huge, so if your creativity is in things like printables for homeschoolers or even planners and bullet journals, this is for you too! Here is a complete guide on selling with Etsy.

Virtual Yard Sales 

More correctly known now as the Facebook marketplace. Browse through the local listings and see what others are selling, buying.  Sell your old bike (oh jeez… ask mom’s permission first!), old skates, old books?  List them, sell them and clean out your room! (mom bonus there!) Again, use caution when selling and only meet in well-lit public places and recommended with another friend or parent.  Here are some great online Yard Sale tips I got right from some top yard sale sellers!

O.K., so you just got a gift card and well, you’re not so into that ‘store’ or the place to eat is well, 100 miles away.  All is not lost!  You can sell your gift and put some money in your pocket to get yourself the gift you really wanted! Or use the money and buy a discount gift card!  (ps… you get a free bonus for signing up!)

Tutor Online

Speak with your school first, see if they have any online tutoring programs they recommend. They may even offer to refer you as a tutor in certain subjects. There are many online tutoring programs, but many want you to certify for a price first. Try to network and get your own ‘clients’ through school referrals, libraries, and even offering through your family.

Create a TikTok account

Advertisers love content that has a high following. If you have a large following you could be offered to run ads or promote products by brands for a very generous fee.

Instagram Influencer

Not much different than TikTok, a teenager can find many ways to make money on Instagram. You could promote products as an influencer, sell through your own affiliate links and even sell items like art or collectibles online via Instagram.

YouTube Channel

While YouTube is more competitive than just a few years back, there are still opportunities for teens to make money there. You’ll need people to watch your videos and subscribe to see more. If you have a fun idea or just wanted to try your hand at being famous, now is your chance! Influencers get paid well for reviewing or promoting products on this channel. These are also opportunities to have affiliate programs you can profit off of.

Write and Self Publish a Book on Amazon

For real! Is there a subject or skill you are passionate about? They say the more books you publish, the higher your chances are for sales. You can be self-published with a bit of effort and time. This could be your calling!

Classic Jobs Teens Have Been Making Money

These are some random jobs you can pick up through the neighborhood, the ‘classics’ or ‘go to’ jobs as I would call them. Of all the ways teens can make money, these are the jobs that have been around the longest. They’re out there and not so hard to come by once you start letting people know you’re available.

These jobs are necessary and can help you earn some good money.

Traditional Ways for Teenagers to Make Money

These are just examples of roles in traditional jobs for teens. The great benefit to these is working with more of your peers and learning to work under a supervisor, which is important when you want to grow and “learn how to learn”. There’s an art to customer service and you will certainly pick up some great tips along with having fun in these traditional teenagers’ jobs.

These are just a few ways for teenagers to earn money during the holidays, there are tons of other things you could do. I’ve only listed some of the best ideas that can help you out and help you finance your own holiday goals and beyond. Besides, who wouldn’t want to make some extra cash!  These are great ways to add to your savings, fund a few movies, or new (to you) car.

These are also a great way to get references for future jobs!

How To Find The Jobs Where Teens Can Earn Money

There are many ways to find jobs, the more you get the word out, the more responses you’ll get.  Some will come quickly others take some time for people to contact you.  Keeping your name out there and having people know they can come to you is key.  Don’t get discouraged if you don’t score a job overnight.  Stick with it for a couple of weeks and you’ll start to see results.

Show Off A Little or a Lot! You may have a natural ability towards painting or landscaping but no experience. If you’ve done these things at home, or for family friends, ask them to write a letter of recommendation.

Take pictures of your work or offer your potential client (or employer) to take a drive-by and see your work. Any school activities that involved these skills being applied counts as experience as well. As do any volunteer efforts or clubs you’ve been a part of.

If your skills are something like landscaping, mowing lawns, painting doors on homes or anything that can visibly be seen, put a sign out “Lawns by XXX” (homemade sign) in your own yard or window. People driving by will start to recognize your work and may even call!

Is Babysitting your thing? Be sure to let local schools and libraries know. Parents go to these places looking for referrals.

Pet sitting, drop off some flyers or DIY business cards at a local vet office or groomer.

The most important part here is to believe in yourself, your ability to do a great job. Your confidence can win you this opportunity.

Overall, adults ‘want’ to hire teens.  We remember so well what it was like to earn that paycheck or want to buy our things and be more independent.  We also respect and admire teens and the great energy level and creativity they bring to jobs.