Raising Entrepreneurs: How To Make Money As A Kid
Inside: How to make money as a kid is a question that comes up a lot in my home when we say no to an item our kids want. Here I have compiled some of the most creative ways for you to show your little kids how to make money.
I’m super excited to tackle the question of ‘how to make money as a kid‘ because there are so many opportunities for your kids to be entrepreneurial and make their own cash. Kids can have their first job and start working well before they finish school, and there are so many benefits to doing so.
Having a job and earning your own money will teach kids some valuable life skills that they don’t learn in school. How to make money as a kid would have been a class I would have loved to take!
I guess you could say I have always had the entrepreneurial gene. But when I was young, I was always trying to figure out how to make money as a kid. Before the age of five, I was tagging along with my older siblings when they would deliver papers on their paper route.
Like almost every kid, I set up a lemonade stand in my front yard. One of my favorite memories involved my siblings and me having a garage sale (without my parent’s permission) on our front porch with the neighborhood kids. Let me just say that it didn’t end well!
As a tween, I started babysitting the neighborhood kids and would help my mom out around the house for a little pocket money.
Nothing was as rewarding as earning my own cash.
I’ve compiled some of the most wonderful and creative ways for you to show your little ones how to make money as a kid. Plus, learn the benefits of making money as a kid!
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How To Make Money As A Kid
It’s now more important than ever for kids to understand the value of money. Money doesn’t grow on trees, and the younger kids learn this, the better they’ll be able to handle their finances as they grow up.
You’ll be surprised how many ways there are to make money as a child. Here are just a few ways how to make money as a kid.
Related: Why You Need to Teach Your Kids the Importance of Saving Money
10 Life Skills You Need to Teach Your Kids Before They Leave Home
1. Organize Garage Sale
Raise your hand if your house is full of ‘stuff.’ Yep, I hear ya! One way that your kids could make some extra cash, and clear the house out is to organize a garage sale. You might have to help them with some of the heavy lifting and pricing, but they’ll be more than able to run the show. As it’s a team effort, agree to split the profits 50/50.
If they don’t have any items of their own, they can partner with neighbors or family members with their garage sales. They can offer to clean and tag items in exchange for a small split of the profits.
2. Walk a dog
Being a busy mama, sometimes there’s just to much on my plate to take the dogs for a long walk. I would love it if my kids offered to take our four-legged friends for a walk, and I’d happily give them a few bucks for it! What better way for your kids to earn money and get some exercise at the same time!
3. Lemonade Stand
I’m pretty sure everyone had a lemonade stand as a kid. And that’s because it’s an excellent way for kids to make a bit of cash on those scorching summer days. Show your kids how to make money with this tried and tested side hustle.
4. Car wash
One of the best ways to make money as a kid if to roll up the sleeves and do a hard day’s car washing. A car wash is also another good summertime hustle for kids who don’t mind getting a little soapy and having water fights in between washing the cars.
5. Open An Online Store
This one will need the assistance of an adult, but kids can open an Etsy or Shopify store selling anything from scarves to jewelry to digital prints.
6. Consign Your Stuff
My daughter just partook in this money-making opportunity. We gathered up toys, clothes, and furniture we no longer used. Then we prepped it for a consignment event in our area. She was happy to earn money for the items she no longer used while mom was delighted to have some things no longer cluttering the house!
7. Sell Arts and Crafts
Does your son or daughter like to make crafts, or are they a talented artist? Kids can sell their arts and crafts (with the help of their parents) through venues such as craft fairs, carnivals, school events, or online via a website or Facebook marketplace.
My daughter aspires to sell her artwork through Etsy. She is working on building her inventory and taking pictures of her paintings.
8. Start A Youtube Channel
You have seen those channels were kids are talking and recording themselves while they are playing Minecraft or opening and playing with toys, right? Well, your kid can start their own Youtube channel and make money, too, through sponsors and advertisements on their channel!
How To Make Money As A Teen
9. Babysit
Babysitting is one of the best ways for teens to make some extra money. They could just babysit their younger siblings or their friend’s younger siblings to start. They’ll be inundated with referrals before you know it.
10. Run Errands
Being an adult is busy work. Offering to run errands for adults and elders is a great way to make money as a kid and help someone check things off their to-do list. Running errands could be anything from grocery shopping to walking the kids to and from school. It’s surprising what some adults will pay a few bucks for!
11. Mow Lawns
Perhaps the most common way for teens to make some money is by mowing lawns or doing a bit of gardening for the neighbors. Mowing lawns isn’t just a summertime side hustle. It could scale and turn into a viable business venture for any kid with an entrepreneurial spirit.
12. Tutor
Tutoring is an easy way to make money if you excel in an academic subject. Finding clients shouldn’t be too hard. You have an entire school of potential clients! Most tutors charge anywhere from $20-$60 an hour. Not too, shabby!
13. Create An App
How many times have you heard “there’s an app for that”? Probably too many to count. In 2018, according to Apple, there were 500 million weekly visitors to the App Store. And that isn’t even taking into account how many visitors there are in the Google Play store. Creating an app and selling it on both platforms can rake in some real cash if your app is a hit.
14. Teach Others To Code
Many afterschool programs and businesses are looking to hire kids who have programming experience. Kids can find local companies that employ high school and college kids to teach their afterschool and summer coding camps.
15. Build and Sell Websites
If your kid has website design and programming experience, they can build websites for local businesses, online entrepreneurs, or anyone in need of a website. Checking with your local Chamber of Commerce, churches, or local business clubs is a great way to find your first client.
16. Take Photographs
Are you handy with a camera? You don’t need expensive equipment to be a photographer. If you have a decent camera and a good eye for composition and light. You can start your business by offering free or discounted photo sessions for friends and family to build your portfolio. Create a Facebook page, drop your card off at local businesses, and ask for referrals.
17. Complete Surveys
Completing surveys certainly won’t make you rich, but it will offer you some quick spending cash for not a lot of work. Share your opinion to help brands make better decisions about their products or services and get paid!
Some sites will pay you in cash via PayPal, while others will pay you via points that can be cashed in for gift cards.
Here are a few survey sites to check out:
- Swagbucks– get a $5 bonus just for signing up
- Pinecone Research– They pay $3 per survey (15-20 minutes per survey, typically), and have one of the best reputations among survey sites. They may also send you free products to test.
18. Birthday Party Entertainment
Do you look like a princess? Are perhaps a magician? Can you make an elephant out of ballons? Being a birthday entertainer is a great side-hustle for a teen! Take your talents and offer entertainment packages for birthday parties or events.
Benefits To Making Money As A Kid
While there are a lot of benefits to making money as a kid. My favorite reason for teaching your kids how to make money is that it will teach them the value of hard work! Like I said earlier, money doesn’t grow on trees. By giving your kids pocket money in exchange for doing jobs, they’ll learn that there is value to working hard.
My second favorite reason for getting kids to earn their own money is that it gives them a sense of achievement and purpose. By saving up the pocket money that they make over time, they’ll be able to save for the things that they want. In turn, this will teach them to value their possessions more because they’ve had to pay for them.
The value of money is not an easy concept for a child to understand, but it’s an important one all the same. Instead of just seeing money as something mom and dad seem to have an endless supply (don’t we all wish), earning pocket money through doing chores will teach them that money has a value. By helping kids to learn how to make money and it’s worth, they’ll also be able to understand the difference between wants and needs.
Showing kids how to earn money can also teach skills like financial planning, the benefit of saving, careful spending, and money management. Studies have also shown that kids who make money are at less risk of running into debt as adults.
How To Make Money As A Kid: Final Thoughts
There are countless ways to make money as a kid or teenager. My 11-year-old recently began asking how to make money as a kid. I am pleased we now have a long list of items she can choose from to start her entrepreneurial journey.
From lemonade stands to car washes, garage sales, and babysitting, there’s no reason for your kids not to be making their own money. Your kids can find inspiration from the young self-made millionaires.
The benefits of kids earning their own money are huge! Not only will they learn the value of money from a young age, but it will also teach them essential life skills and reduce their risk of getting into debt as an adult.
Do you have any additional ideas on how to make money as a kid? I would love it you shared them below, and I will add them to the post!
