Making money online is the dream for many people, teens and adults alike. While adults have a lot more opportunities, there are plenty of online jobs for teens as well. Most of these won’t be the same type of employment adults would get, but it’s more than enough to make some extra cash.
Before you hop on to any of the online jobs for teens listed below, note that the list provided is only a recommendation. Some of the online jobs may not be available in your country. Make sure you’re following any teen labor laws in your country and that you have the permission of a parent or legal guardian to perform such work.
Traditional Online Jobs for Teens
Some companies offer traditional job roles for teens such as customer service, sales, social media management, etc. These will usually be support roles where you’ll follow the directions of someone who’s more experienced in the field.
Customer service representatives
Customer service is an entry level position in most companies. As such, little experience is required and some organizations are also willing to hire teens.
You can find customer service roles in regular job search websites such as on Indeed. Make sure to always check the minimum age requirements as some jobs won’t be available for teens.
For most of the online jobs in customer service, you’ll mostly just need to be able to either respond to chat messages or voice calls, both of which are relatively easy skills.
Data entry specialist
A similar entry level role, but one that requires very little human interaction is a data entry specialist. It’s a great way if you want to earn extra money while doing mostly mindless work. Data entry is just moving information from one system to another, involving lots of copying and pasting.
It may require some minor skills such as familiarity with some software. Knowing how to work around Excel or Google Sheets will often be enough, especially if it’s an online job for teens.
Content creation support
Many teens look for online jobs outside of regular employment websites. Streamers, YouTubers, and other content creators often look for supporting members for their business.
You can find online jobs for your favorite content creators at times and these can be wildly different in the tasks you’ll be provided. Some creators will look for Discord moderators, others may look for video editors, designers, or artists.
Each of these online jobs will have different skill requirements. Some may not be fitting for teens as they may require some prior work experience, however, you can always look for less skilled roles in the same field.
Social media management
One of the online jobs for teens that they’re usually great at right off the bat is social media management. Most teens are quite familiar with most social media platforms, making it easy work.
You can find social media jobs for all kinds of platforms, from Facebook to TikTok. It’s best to look for online job opportunities that only require you to post, comment, and respond to customer questions. Online jobs that involve creating ads will usually take some work experience.
Gigs and Project-based Online Jobs for Teens
Teens can also find online jobs on freelancing and gig websites with relative ease. While these sites may have fewer online job opportunities for teens, the work hours would be much more flexible. You only need to meet the deadlines set by clients.
Freelancing
If you have artistic or any other skills, freelancing is a great way to earn extra cash with just an internet connection. There’s plenty of freelancing platforms available where you can find short term online jobs with ease such as Fiverr and Upwork.
Both of these freelancing platforms have tons of jobs available for all types of skills – copywriting, design, video editing, translation services etc. All of the pay and deadlines are transparent, making it easy to know how much money you can earn.
Online surveys
While freelancing can net you a full-time income, it’s a lot of work to get to that point. If you want to earn money online with a lot less work and fewer requirements, online surveys are a great way to do so.
All you need to do is register to a paid online survey provider and fill out questionnaires in your free time. You won’t earn as much money as you would freelancing, but online surveys require no skills and usually have no requirements. All you need to have is an internet connection.
Testing products and software
Product testing is a legitimate practice that allows large organizations to build better products. Many companies are looking for 18+ participants, but there may be programs available for even younger people.
There’s one drawback – some of the work in product testing may include physical activities. For example, shoe companies may ask you to walk a set amount of miles in their sneakers before submitting a review. As such, it’s one of the online jobs that may include physical activity, which can be both a benefit and a drawback.
Online community management
Many forums, Reddit subreddits, and other community platforms are constantly on the lookout for moderators and managers. These are great online jobs for teens that want to stay within communities while having the ability to earn money.
Take note, however, that online community management sometimes may be unpaid. Many moderators, for example, may begin as volunteers and only earn money once they have some experience or the community grows.
Entrepreneurial Jobs for Teens
The internet has enabled nearly anyone to earn money online through various platforms. While these methods are significantly harder (and may require some money to begin with), they’re some of the best ways to earn money online.
YouTube channel
Having a popular YouTube channel is one of the most sought after online jobs for teens and adults alike. Ad revenue and brand deals can net enormous yearly returns, making a YouTube channel a better source of income than most offline and online jobs.
Unfortunately, getting popular on YouTube is a hard task – there’s thousands of people who try and fail each year. Additionally, it will likely take a fairly long time (sometimes even years) before the channel earns enough money to qualify as an online job.
Dropshipping
Dropshipping has gotten fairly popular in recent years as one of the online jobs that can pay decent amounts of money. It also brings in a lot of risk, however, so you should be extremely careful with such ventures.
Blogging
Blogging is the text alternative to a YouTube channel. Many extremely popular blogs have grown out of online jobs to complete business ventures. Additionally, with free hosting and all of the other opportunities, blogging can be completely free, making it one of the best online jobs for teens.
Just like with YouTube, however, getting a blog to the point where it’s the only online job you’re doing is extremely difficult and time-consuming. It can be completely free to try, however, so it might be worth a shot if you’re looking for an online job without startup costs.
Influencing
Finally, definitely one of the most sought after online jobs for teens is becoming a social media influencer. With many apps now tailored towards younger demographics such as TikTok, it can become an online job better than most regular employment contracts.
Unfortunately, everyone wants to be a social media influencer these days, so standing out and reaching the point where it’s your only online job can be nigh impossible. Finding ways to stand out from the millions of other users is incredibly difficult. So while the rewards are incredible, it’s also a difficult process.
Online Jobs for Teens – Some Safety Tips
Some less well-intentioned people know that online jobs for teens is a great way to scam others out of money or work. Most teens have little to no work experience, so someone looking to take advantage of that fact can cause a lot of trouble and pain.
To stay safe when looking for your online job, make sure to read up on popular scams in the employment market. Some of the popular ones are asking to pay upfront, asking a lot of personal information without revealing any details about the job, sending phishing links and many others.
If you find someone offering online jobs for teens, it’s always recommended to ask someone with more experience to evaluate the offer. People who have been working for a long time (e.g., your parents) will be able to accurately assess whether the online jobs posted are legitimate.
Finally, it’s often best to stick to tried and true websites (such as Indeed) that offer online jobs. While these won’t protect you from all scams, it’s significantly easier to find legitimate and safe offers.
