How to Make Money as a Teen: The Rules First, Then the Ideas

What teens can legally do to earn money, by age

If you are working out how to make money as a teen, there are three broad routes: being hired by an employer, doing small jobs for neighbors and family, and selling things they own. Federal law sets the floor for the first one, and it changes at 14 and again at 16.

Here is the short version, taken from the Department of Labor's YouthRules pages:

Two things sit on top of that table. First, states can be stricter. The DOL says that "where a state child labor law is more restrictive than the federal law, the state law applies", so a 15-year-old in one state may face tighter rules or need a work permit that another state does not require. Your state labor office is listed on the DOL's state labor offices page.

Second, online work has its own gate: most sites that pay people to transcribe, rate AI answers or pet-sit require users to be 18. So the realistic menu before 16 is mostly local and offline, and it widens at 16, mainly for in-person jobs.

The hour limits for 14- and 15-year-olds, straight from the Labor Department

If you are 14 or 15, federal law caps when and how long an employer can schedule you. According to the DOL page for 14- and 15-year-olds, you may not work:

• more than 3 hours on a school day, including Friday;
• more than 18 hours per week when school is in session;
• more than 8 hours per day when school is not in session;
• more than 40 hours per week when school is not in session; and
• before 7:00 a.m. or after 7:00 p.m. on any day, with the evening limit extended to 9:00 p.m. from June 1 through Labor Day.

Work also has to happen outside school hours.

The same page lists what this age group can do. It includes most retail work (cashiering, selling, price marking, packing and shelving), errands or delivery work by foot, bicycle or public transportation, intellectual or creative work such as tutoring or playing an instrument, and some yard, kitchen and car-related tasks with specific limits. The key sentence is the last one: "If an occupation is not specifically permitted, it is prohibited for youth ages 14 and 15."

Some "teen job" ads ignore the off-limits list. Door-to-door sales, sign waving and youth peddling are prohibited. So are operating power-driven machinery other than office machines, baking operations, working from ladders or scaffolds, and most manufacturing, construction, warehousing and transportation work.

In practice, a 14-year-old can run a register for a few hours after school or tutor a younger student, but should not sell candy door to door for a company recruiting on social media. If an offer seems to fall outside the list, check with your state labor office.

Jobs for 16 year olds and 17-year-olds: what changes and what you'll be paid

People search for jobs for 16 year olds because that birthday is when the rules loosen the most. The DOL page for ages 16 and 17 says you "can be employed for unlimited hours in any occupation other than those declared hazardous by the Secretary of Labor." Your state may still set hour limits on school nights, so check before you accept a schedule.

The hazardous list matters most for jobs that sound like summer work. Among the examples on that page: driving on public roads is generally banned for 16-year-olds (17-year-olds may drive cars or small trucks in daylight for limited times under strict conditions), operating most power-driven hoists like forklifts is prohibited, and most roofing, trenching and excavation work is off-limits.

What teens are paid

The federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, and many states set a higher one. Teens should also know about a lower federal rate. The DOL says "a minimum wage of $4.25 per hour applies to young workers under the age of 20" during their first 90 consecutive calendar days of employment with an employer. After 90 days, or at 20 if that comes first, the regular federal minimum applies. If your first paycheck looks low, that rule (or your state's own rule) is the first thing to check.

Where 16- and 17-year-olds usually find work

Because most work-from-home employers require adults (see below), most real options at 16 and 17 are in person: retail, restaurants, camps, recreation centers and summer office help. These jobs also build the work history remote employers ask for later; TP's remote customer service posting, for example, wants six months of customer service experience, and other call-center employers ask for similar.

Online jobs for teens: the age rules most platforms set

Online jobs for teens are rarer than search results suggest, and the reason is in each platform's terms. Most companies that pay people to do work over the internet sign them up as independent contractors, and their terms set an adult minimum age. Here is what each platform says about age, from its own pages:

So if a site offers "online jobs for teens" with no adult involved, be skeptical: either its own terms exclude you, or it isn't a job. Apps that "pay" you in points or gift cards for playing games or watching videos are left out on purpose: they are not a real income.

What actually works online before 18

Two online routes are legitimate for teens, both with a parent in charge.

1. Selling your own things under a parent's account. Etsy explicitly allows this for 13- to 17-year-olds when the parent owns the account and handles the money. eBay requires members to be 18, so the account and payouts would have to be the adult's. For bulky items, local apps avoid shipping entirely; OfferUp, for instance, charges no fee on in-person sales. Our guide to where to sell used items compares the fees.
2. Tutoring arranged through family and neighbors. The DOL lists tutoring among permitted work for 14- and 15-year-olds. A video tutoring session with a younger student whose parent you know is the same work, just on a screen.

What our own job board shows for under-18s

When we counted on October 13, 2026, our board held 232 US-eligible part-time remote listings and 215 entry-level ones posted in the previous 30 days. None of them is aimed at minors. Every company in our directory of remote employers that states a minimum age sets it at 18 or older, including TP (Teleperformance), Liveops, Prolific and Mindrift. So an online "job" that offers a 14-year-old steady pay with no interview is a reason to stop and check, not to apply. Before anyone in the family replies to an offer like that, run it through this checklist:

Money ideas for ages 13 to 15

For ages 13 to 15, the best answers to how to make money as a teen are local, use skills you already have, and keep a parent in the loop. Each of the ideas below fits inside the federal rules described above.

1. Babysitting. The DOL lists babysitting on a casual basis among the jobs open to youth under 14, so it is one of the few options at any age.
2. Pet care for neighbors. Rover requires sitters to be 18, so this works only as a direct arrangement with people you know: feeding cats while a neighbor travels, walking a dog after school.
3. Tutoring younger kids. Strong in math or a language? The DOL explicitly lists tutoring as permitted intellectual work for 14- and 15-year-olds.
4. Yard and outdoor help. The DOL allows some yard work at 14 and 15, with limits on power-driven equipment.
5. Selling what you've outgrown. Clothes, games, sports gear and books can be sold locally with a parent, or through a parent-owned Etsy account for crafts and vintage pieces.
6. Working in a family business. The DOL allows youth under 14 to work for a business owned entirely by their parents, outside mining, manufacturing and the hazardous occupations.
7. A first part-time job at 14 or 15. Retail work such as cashiering and shelving is on the DOL's permitted list, within the hour limits above. Your state may also require a work permit; your state labor office or school counselor can tell you.

Avoid anything that asks you to pay to start, door-to-door sales (prohibited at 14 and 15), and anything you can't explain to a parent in one sentence. Our page on how to make money from home covers the bigger picture for adults.

Money ideas for 16- and 17-year-olds, at home and nearby

At 16 and 17, you can take nearly any non-hazardous job for as many hours as your state allows. That opens up the in-person part-time market. Here is how the options sort out, including the narrow set of ways to make money from home as a teen.

In-person jobs (the biggest pool)

• Retail, grocery and restaurant work, including evening and weekend shifts.
• Lifeguarding, camp counseling and recreation programs (lifeguard jobs require a certification; ask the employer which one).
• Office and front-desk help at local businesses.

From-home options at 16 and 17

• Tutoring and music lessons by video, arranged through people you know, with a parent handling payments. For context, the BLS May 2025 median for all tutors is $20.84 an hour; that median covers adult professionals, so a teen tutor should expect less while building a track record.
• Selling online through a parent's account, as covered above.
• Freelance help for people you know: setting up a relative's online shop listings, editing a neighbor's photos, making a flyer for a local business.

Why remote company jobs mostly wait until 18

Remote employers in our directory set adult-only requirements. TP's remote customer service posting requires applicants to be 18 or older, Liveops requires 18, and transcription and AI-training platforms require 18 (table above). If you are 17 and planning ahead, our guides to part-time remote jobs and online jobs for college students show what opens up next.

Getting paid: bank accounts, paperwork and the $400 tax rule

Earning money as a teen raises three practical questions: where the money goes, who signs the paperwork, and whether taxes apply.

A bank account you can use

Expect the bank to ask for a parent or guardian on any account opened for a minor. A teen checking account shared with a parent lets you receive direct deposit from an employer, and some banks offer custodial accounts that a parent manages for you. Rules and fees differ from bank to bank, so compare a couple of options together and ask directly about minimum balances and monthly fees.

Paperwork with an employer

Real employers ask for your Social Security number after they hire you, not before an interview. The FTC warns that scammers ask for your Social Security or bank account number before you interview, which is a reason to stop.

Taxes on teen earnings

Age doesn't change how tax rules work. If you are an employee, your employer withholds taxes from each paycheck. If you work for yourself, such as tutoring, pet care or selling crafts, the IRS says you must pay self-employment tax and file Schedule SE if your net earnings from self-employment were $400 or more. The self-employment tax rate is 15.3% (12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare). A parent or a tax preparer can help with the first return.

Keep a simple log from day one: date, work done, who paid, and how much.

Staying safe, with a parent in the loop

Scammers count on new workers not knowing what normal looks like. Four FTC rules matter most:

• Never pay to get a job. The FTC says honest employers will never ask you to pay to get a job. That includes "starter kits", training fees and equipment you must buy first.
• Never deposit a check and send money back. The FTC says no honest employer will send you a check to deposit and then tell you to send part of the money on or buy gift cards with it. The check bounces and the bank wants the money back.
• Ignore job texts you didn't ask for. The FTC says to ignore unexpected texts, WhatsApp or Telegram messages about jobs, and not to reply "YES" or "INTERESTED".
• Skip "like and rate" apps that ask for deposits. The FTC says paying money to get money you've supposedly earned is a sure sign of a scam.

A simple family agreement

A few house rules help:

1. A parent or guardian owns or co-owns any account that handles money.
2. No sharing your Social Security number, bank details or ID photos without a parent present.
3. Meet buyers for local sales in a public place with an adult, never at home alone.
4. If a message creates pressure to act fast, show it to a parent before replying.

Our work from home scams guide has a checker that scores any offer against the FTC's red flags, and the guides hub links to other situations, from college students to parents at home.