How to Make Money Easily (for Kids)

Co-authored by Lauren Novack

Last Updated: March 20, 2023 References

Depending on your age and work experience, it may be hard to find ways to make some easy money as a kid. There are still plenty of opportunities available to you though, as long as you know where to look. To make money easily as a kid, you might consider doing housework to earn an allowance, babysitting, mowing lawns, finding a part-time job with a low minimum age requirement, or even becoming an entrepreneur of sorts -- for instance, you can set up a lemonade stand or craft stand on your sidewalk! Finding creative ways to earn money will be nice when you don’t have to go to your parents for spending money, and some jobs can even help you build a resume and give you valuable experience.

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Creating a Neighborhood Business

1
Have a lemonade stand. Lemonade stands are popular in the summer, and can make you a good amount of money. Get some friends together and make lemonade to sell in your neighborhood.^{[1]
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- There are a lot of factors that make a lemonade stand successful, the first being location. You want to put your lemonade stand somewhere where there isn’t a lot of competition and that’s in a busy, visible part of the neighborhood, like a street corner.
- Make your stand look as inviting as possible. If you are feeling really creative, build an old-fashioned stand and decorate it with ribbons and a banner with your “company’s” name on it.
- Keep track of what you spent on ingredients, and charge enough so that you can make a profit. Just don’t charge too much.
- Make a menu with your offerings, and consider offering more than just lemonade. Maybe you have cookies or brownies, or other flavors of lemonade. Create a website to advertise your business. Just make sure to get your parents permission first. Try using Wix.com to create it.
- Assign different tasks to everyone. Make signs and have some kids go around the neighborhood posting them up or standing at the ends of the block advertising. Have someone making your goods so you don’t run out.
2
Sell drinks and baked goods on the road. Like having a lemonade stand, you can apply the same idea to sell refreshments out at community events. Get a cooler and sell your goods or even bottled water at parks on hot days.
- If you have a sibling that has a baseball or soccer game, you can go to the game and offer refreshments to the players and parents there.
- Make signs for your sale, and set up a little area with a table and cooler.
- Sell water and juice to make extra money.
- Keep your prices reasonable.
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3
Make and sell jewelry and other goods. Gather up some friends and make something; beaded jewelry, boondoggles, etc. Sell at car boot sales, market stalls, yard sales and even online, with your parent's help and permission.
4
Sell items you don't need on eBay or at these events. Just ask your parents first, to make sure that it’s okay with them.
5
Host a group car wash. Get together with some other kids in the neighborhood looking for some easy money and offer car washes.
- Decide on a date and make some flyers to advertise. Pop the flyers in your neighbor's mailboxes and ask each member of the washing group to get their families to come along too.
- Choose a suitable car washing spot, such as at a house with a good length of driveway.
- Get buckets, water, wash cloths, sponges, etc. Wash cars on the day and collect the money.
- Only do this for local people you know, and have an adult there to supervise.
- Always ask before putting car washing products other than water on anyone's car.
6
Mow lawns and shovel driveways around the neighborhood. Offering up your services to mow lawns and shovel snow is another great way to get some extra money easily. Treat it like a business, and come up with a name for your services.
- Post flyers around the neighborhood advertising your services and a way to contact you. Ask your next door neighbors directly as well.
- It’s best if you can provide your own equipment, though you may find certain clients who already have equipment you can use.
- Offer a fair price that’s related to the size of the lawn or driveway, and how long it takes you to mow or shovel.
- For mowing lawns, set up a consistent day and time every week when you will come and mow the lawn. For shoveling, be able to get the job done in a timely manner.
- You can also hire the bully to force the kids to work for you.

Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Tutoring, Babysitting, and Pet Sitting

1
Tutor your friends and neighbors. If you’re really good at a subject in school, or at playing an instrument like guitar or piano, you can offer to tutor your friends or neighbors down the street for some extra cash. Know, though, that your friends may also not have a lot of extra money, so be generous and don’t overcharge your buddies.^{[2]
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- If you are in the same class as your friend and you are better at that subject, you can offer to tutor your friend and help with the homework and studying for tests.
- If you have a younger sibling, you can also offer to tutor your sibling so your parents don’t have to always be checking up on grades and homework.
2
Babysit for your neighbors and your parents’ friends. One of the most profitable ways to make money easily for kids is to babysit. Start by offering to babysit your own sibling, and once you’ve got some experience, reach out to the neighborhood.
- Take a babysitting course. Red Cross offers a certified course that trains you gives you skills from handling children to teaching you what to do if there’s a medical issue. Being certified will help you get jobs and may even let you charge more.
- Get referrals. Ask your parents to reach out to friends who might need a babysitter, and post signs up around your neighborhood.
- Treat babysitting like it’s your own business. Come up with a name, and choose a rate to charge.
- Consider joining and online babysitting network like Sittercity.
3
Hold a daycare. During the summer months, when you don’t have school, but your parents still need to go to work, holding a daycare service in the neighborhood can be another great way to make some extra money. This works best if you have some friends helping you out too.
- Not all parents will want to leave their kids with you all day, but if you have established yourself as a reliable babysitter, you may have some luck.
- This method works best if you are a little bit older and have some other friends helping you out.
- Advertise your daycare around the neighborhood and feature fun activities for the kids to do. Maybe you organise a park day where you play games like kickball. Or you hold an arts and crafts day at the house.
- You can even combine a daycare with your tutoring.
- Ensure you check out local bylaws, to be sure that you are compliant. There may be restrictions on how many children you can sit for, and how many daycare "supervisors" you have per child, before licensing, inspections, and so on becomes an issue.
4
Pet sit, or dog walk for your neighbors. If you are comfortable around animals, pet sitting or dog walking is great way to easily earn some money. Dogs and cats will usually need some pet sitting, but people will also be interested in caring arrangements for fish, amphibians, reptiles, etc. Don't look after anything you can't care for though.
- Make flyers advertising that you are open for business. Leave them in mailboxes and on bulletin boards close to your area.
- Find out and stick to the schedule of the pet you are taking care of.
- Talk to the owner to know the needs and preferences of the pet.
- It will help the pet transition to be cared for by another person because consistency reduces anxiety and stress.
- Keep a planner. This is so that you know which animals you have to watch over at which times. Also keep a record of food and cleaning needs.
- Be sure to keep the keys for the different houses organized. Tie paper luggage labels to keys with names on them but do not add the address in case you lose them.
- Charge a fair price but be competitive with other pet sitters. A flat rate of $4 to $10 a visit or per walk is a good starting price to negotiate.^{[3]
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Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Earning an Allowance

1
Ask your parents for an allowance. Ask your parents to pay you for doing certain chores around the house on a weekly basis. If your parents don’t want to give you an allowance for doing work, try explaining to them that by giving you an allowance, you won’t need to rely on your parents every time you go out.
- Earning an allowance is like a job. By getting paid for your services you can start to build a great work ethic that will help you as you get older.
- Come up with a proposal for your parents. Make a schedule for the week and write down what sort of tasks you are willing to do and how much you think those tasks are worth. Then, you and your parents can negotiate your allowance.^{[4]
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2
Clean your house. Cleaning rooms in your home is a great way to earn an allowance. Whether you agree to clean the windows, dust, or vacuum, there are plenty of tasks you can complete to earn your allowance.
- Keeping your own room clean may not be enough for an allowance. Chances are your parents think that you should be responsible for keeping your room clean on your own. So offer to go above and beyond and clean other rooms in the house.
- Discuss with your parents about how much each room or chore may pay you. Maybe cleaning the hallway doesn’t pay as much as the dining room, since the hallway is much smaller and takes less time.
3
Do outside chores. Doing seasonal, outside housework is another great way to earn an allowance since it’s work your parents may not have time, or want to do themselves.
- Offer to rake leaves, shovel snow, mow the lawn, and weed gardens.
- If you’re doing a seasonal, but consistent chore like mowing the lawn or shoveling your driveway, you can talk to your parents about a set rate for each time you do this chore.
- If you’re raking leaves, try negotiating an hourly rate.

Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Getting a Part-Time or Summer Job

1
Work at a retail store or restaurant. Most retail stores and restaurants have an age requirement, but if you are old enough, getting a part-time or summer job is a great way to easily earn some money, and start to build your resume.
- More and more teens are finding part-time work through bussing tables, or working at hotels. These aren’t the most glamorous jobs, but you may have an easier time getting hired.^{[5]
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- Other retail stores, like teen clothing stores, or places like Best Buy, or Macy’s may also be a good place to look for a job. Go onto the company’s website and look for open positions.
- When applying for a job, and especially when interviewing. You want to dress nicely and respectfully, unless you are requested to wear something specific to the interview. If you don’t have a resume, be able to speak about past accomplishments. It’s also always a great idea to have references.
2
Become a lifeguard or park manager. Another easy way to make money, and sometimes get a nice summer tan, is to be a lifeguard or park manager. Go to your local pool or park and ask if there are any positions available and what you need to do to get hired.
- Lifeguards have to have special training and be certified, so if you’re serious about becoming a lifeguard, it’s good to get the right training.
- Once you become certified, you may not be guaranteed a job, however. It’s good to find out if your local pool or beach is hiring, or ask your trainer for tips on landing a job.^{[6]
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- You can also contact your local park district to see if there are any summer park jobs that you can work. Sometimes these consist of overseeing weekly events for kids, or managing sporting events.
3
Work at the family business. If your parents own a business, you can see if your parents will let you work part-time. This is a good alternative to an allowance and may be easier than finding another job if you have less experience, or are still too young.
- Ask if you can help keep the shop clean for an hourly rate.
- There might be busy work that needs to get done as well, like filing papers, stuffing envelopes, or even going around town passing out flyers or coupons.
- This is also a great opportunity to start building your resume which will help you when it’s time to go out and find other work.

Community Q&A

Question

I would like to know what kinds of crafts I can make and sell.

Community Answer

It depends on what you want to do. People make friendship bracelets, beaded jewelry, knitted hats, duct tape wallets, etc. Do a little research and find something you'd enjoy making.
Question

Would selling electronics or having a yard sale work?

Community Answer

Yes. Put up posters around your neighborhood for a yard sale. If your neighborhood has a Facebook page, put something on there about what you are doing.

Warnings

When selling anything on eBay, make sure your parents approve. You don't want to sell anything they might want.

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Helpful 16 Not Helpful 2
In the US, it's against the law to put brochures into people’s mailboxes. In Australia, you are allowed to do it provided that there isn't a sticker saying "No Junk Mail".

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Helpful 11 Not Helpful 3
Make sure you get a license to make a lemonade stand from your local council.

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