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Best Sites to Make Money Online as a Teen
Branded Surveys 13+
$0.50 – $5 on average per survey with bonus points ($1 sign up bonus)
Average survey length is 10-20 minutes and minimum payout is $5
Collect rewards in PayPal, Direct Deposit or gift cards (100+ brands)
Swagbucks 13+
$0.50 to $1.50 per survey – earn up to $100 each month using Swagbucks
18 unique ways to earn money and free gift cards, plus $5 sign up bonus
Redeem e-gift cards from $1 or withdraw $5 minimum payment from PayPal
Survey Junkie 16+
$0.50 – $3 per survey + extra ways to earn up to $100 with focus groups
Each survey time varies, but on average it takes 15 minutes to complete
Redeem rewards using PayPal, e-giftcards or bank transfer ($5 min)
15 Summer Jobs for Teens
Lawn Service
If you’re the type of person that enjoys working outdoors in summer providing a lawn mowing service may suit your needs. Of course, you’re probably going to need your parents permission to use their lawnmower and any other yard tools that you’ll need.
But, this can be lucrative, you can set your own rates and most people charge $20-$25 per ¼ acre yard.
If you canvas the neighborhood you’re sure to find people that need a lawn service that they can rely on. You can visit people door to door and leave a flyer or you can post your service on social media for your area.
Retail & Food Service
One of the best summer jobs for teens is working in the retail or food service sector. The most common job for many students is at a fast food restaurant, such as McDonalds, where you could expect to earn around $9 per hour.
Some typical restaurant tasks, would include:
- Cleaning,
- Taking orders,
- Accepting payments
- Answering food related questions.
Diligent workers may even find a career progression structure in place to a team leader position. This could even lead to a full time career if you like the work and extra responsibilities.
If you prefer the idea of working in the food service sector, you can expect to earn around $10 per hour. Responsibilities include: scanning items, stocking shelves, bagging items, helping customers and taking inventory.
As an added bonus, some stores offer a staff discount which can really help out with grocery bills over the summer months!
Pet Walking
Rover Summary
- 6 different ways to earn money available
- Get up to $25,000 pet care coverage
- You get to decide how much to charge
- 24/7 support, Including vet assistance
If you like looking after animals, you could consider a dog walking job with a platform like Petsitter.
Unlike Rover, Petsitter places a focus on local dog walking and pet sitting jobs for teens. It’s easy to post a profile on the Petsitter site or you could just browse the available jobs in your city.
You set your own working rates or simply apply to a particular job that suits your needs. This is a competitive market, so don’t set your hourly rate too high, on average a pet walking earns $15 per hour.
Babysitting
Care.com Summary
- Earn $15 to $20 per hour on average
- Payments processed quickly within 2 days
- Get up to $500 in benefits each year
- All caregivers get 4 different benefits
One of the best summer jobs for teens is babysitting. Parents are always looking for responsible and reliable babysitters.
If you’re diligent you can earn regular cash and repeat business from your babysitting clients. It’s easy to find babysitting jobs via social media, local job bulletin boards or even care.com.
However, don’t neglect your personal network for friends and family that may be looking for a regular babysitter that they can trust. A babysitter earns around $16 per hour on average but this should be increased if you have to look after more than one child.
Photographer
Photography is an engrossing hobby that can turn into a lucrative side gig and career for those with genuine talent. If you’re a budding photographer and you can pass the background check you could join PhotoSesh as a photographer.
This is a great platform for new and more experienced photographers that offers a number of benefits.
- The work hours are flexible,
- Leads are generated in your area,
- A built-in ratings systems displays your status for clients
- You can sync your calendar up to a work schedule.
All you need to join PhotoSesh is an iOS device, simply download the app and complete your profile to get started.
Pool Cleaner
One of the classic summer jobs for teens is working as a pool cleaner. This is another way to work outdoors and enjoy the weather as you earn extra money.
Pool cleaning isn’t as simple as it may appear on TV and there are a lot of things to remember.
A pool cleaner needs to clean the surrounding pool area, the water pH level needs checking and the pool filters need regular changing and cleaning.
But, if you enjoy the work you can set up your own pool cleaning business and invest in some pool cleaning equipment and supplies. Most teens start out working for a pool cleaning company where they can expect to earn around $16 per hour.
House Cleaner
Craigslist Summary
- Posts are anonymous
- Quick and easy listing in a matter of minutes
- Little to no seller fees, most auctions are free
- Sell within your local area
Most people take pride in keeping a clean home, but they don’t always have the time to get all their cleaning chores completed. They are happy to hire a house cleaner to pick up the slack.
If you don’t mind cleaning a home and you’re reliable you can expect to earn around $13 per hour for your services.
Some common cleaning tasks will include:
- Dusting,
- Vacuuming,
- Sweeping,
- Laundry,
- Cleaning bathrooms
- Washing the dishes.
It’s easy to find work on Craigslist or through a local cleaning company or you can post flyers in your neighborhood.
Car Washer
Washos Summary
- Make up to $1000 per week + tips and bonuses
- Start working in less than a week
- No hidden fees – upfront strategy and prices
- The platform handles all scheduling
Most car owners like to drive around in a clean car, but washing, detailing and waxing is a real chore that they want to avoid. This opens up a world of opportunity for detail orientated teens that want to make some extra money.
Offering your services as a mobile car washer to clean peoples cars at their home or business can be lucrative. Larger car washing machines can scratch the paintwork and hand washing is always preferable.
If you do a great job, the word will spread and you will have plenty of work to keep you busy over the summer. You can set your own schedule around any other activities or school work commitments. Make sure to include the costs of your cleaning supplies when you’re setting your car cleaning rates.
Lifeguard
One of the most rewarding summer jobs for teens has to be working as a lifeguard. If you enjoy hanging out at the beach, pool or lake and you’re a strong swimmer you could work as a swim instructor or a lifeguard.
In both roles you can expect to earn around $11 per hour.
You must undergo training, including:
- Safety procedures,
- CPR techniques
- Certification.
In some roles you may also need to pass a series of exams to evaluate your swimming skills.
Construction Work
Many people are unaware that construction work can be a seasonal or part-time job. However, there is a real demand for workers in the summer for work that needs to be completed when the weather is good.
A teen working as a laborer earning around $15-$20 per hour. The work is hard but the hardest jobs typically pay more. This is also a good way to learn some useful DIY skills that you can use when you have a home of your own.
Camp Counselor
If you have an interest in a leadership role or a future career in education then a camp counselor job may be an ideal fit. This job allows older teens to spend time outdoors and work with younger kids as a mentor.
This is a rewarding position, you can teach new skills and learn how to become more independent. A camp counselor typically earns around $10 per hour. Many of the skills that you would learn such as communication, conflict resolution and leadership will be useful throughout your life!
Flea Market Worker
A well organized flea market booth can make a great side gig and it’s a relatively low maintenance job. The rents are usually pretty cheap and all you need are some items to sell. Some possible sources of sellable items, include:
Stuff you don’t need in your own home,
- Local garage and estate sales,
- Facebook yard sale groups,
- Stuff left at the curbside
- Thrift stores.
Once you start looking for bargains you may be surprised at what you can find and turn for a quick profit.
If you don’t like the idea of getting up super early, don’t worry. You can buy and sell products online.
Farm Hand
One of the best summer jobs for teens in rural areas is work on local farms. This sort of work typically includes tasks such as caring for animals, feeding them, planting, harvesting, bailing hay, general cleaning and more.
It’s worth noting that farm work is physically demanding. The average pay is around $11.50 per hour. However, if you have an interest in agriculture this is a great way to get a feel for farming and learn more.
Tutor
If you love school work and you’re a dedicated student you can make extra cash over the summer by tutoring younger kids. A good tutor can make $20 per hour on average and finding students isn’t as hard as you might imagine.
Although it is true that some tutoring platforms only accept applicants over 18 years of age this isn’t a hard and fast rule. As an example, Tutor Care is a tutoring app that accepts younger tutors ages 13 and over to provide in-person or online tutoring.
In fact, it is even possible to get paid work answering questions to help students complete their homework assignments.
If you join Tutor Care you need to take an interview and complete an application form. When you’re successful, you can start work. They will send you an email when you’ve been paid so you don’t need to chase any payments.
Youth Sports Referee
Many travel and youth recreation leagues hire teens to umpire and referee sports games over the summer. This type of role usually pays around $17 and the payments are made on a per game basis.
So, if you really enjoy a particular sport or you want to try your hand at making the tough calls this could be a great fit.
The only real drawback could be dealing with irate parents or rival coaches that believe you made a bad call. This type of behavior has led to a shortage of referees in recent years but if you can handle the pressure this is a rewarding summer job.
Best Platforms to Find Summer Jobs for Teens
There are some great platforms for teens to find work in various industries. These include:
- Petsitter – You can earn cash walking and looking after pets
- Photosesh– Sell photographs and your photography skills
- Craigslist– Look for part time work
- Tutor Care– Tutor younger students
How to Land a Good Summer Job?
Once you decide on your dream summer job, you need to start searching for vacancies as soon as possible.
You should gather personal references, so you can demonstrate to potential employers your flexibility, reliability and responsibility. It is also a good idea to practice interview techniques. So, once you have an interview, you can impress and land that job.