How can a 12-Year-Old Make Money?
What 12-year old wouldn’t like to earn some money of their own? But earning money at that age isn’t quite straightforward. Labor laws prevent children from engaging in certain jobs and entrepreneurship often requires a level of experience and huge capital. How then does a 12-year-old make money to achieve some financial independence?
In this article, we share some business ideas for younger teens that won’t interfere with their school, chores or social life.
16 Ways 12-Year-Olds Can Make Some Money
Here are some ventures a 12-year old can safely and legally engage in to earn extra cash.
Babysitting or mother’s helper
By the time they turn 12, most kids have already helped their parents or neighbors look after their children in their absence. Turn the experience into a money-making venture and apply for babysitting gigs. If you are not confident enough to watch kids without adult supervision, you can work as a mother’s helper. You will care for the children while their parents are home so they can work uninterrupted.
Tutoring
If you do well in school or have a special skill, you can tutor other kids and get paid. You can teach kids in your grade and below, you just need patience and good communication skills. You can tutor kids in math, science, languages, dance, piano lessons or baseball.
Delivering Newspapers
Delivering newspapers is much romanticized in Hollywood as a hustle for young kids. You too can deliver newspapers and earn some. delivery may require that you have a work permit. So, see that your parents assist you in getting one.
Seasonal Yard Work
Nature presents a way for an active 12-year-old to make some money. In winter, people have snow blocking their driveway and in autumn leaves litter the environment. If you are strong enough to handle a snow shovel, you can charge people and get the snow out of the way. Leaf raking is easy and pays just as well.
YouTuber
As a YouTuber, you could share your opinions on things you are passionate about. As your audience grows, you make money through ads or affiliate marketing. To create your own channel, you have to be at least 13 years old. But at 12 years old, you could simply ask your parents to help.
Sell Used Items
If you have old but still usable items like toys, games and clothing, sell them as second-hand goods. Sites like eBay are a good place to find willing buyers online. A yard sale is great as well, you’ll get to meet your buyers and maybe make friends.
Wash Cars
At age 12, you probably find washing cars to be fun. A lot of adults find the chore burdensome and will pay you to take it off their hands. Create your own car wash and go house to house or ask clients to bring their cars to your parents’ driveway. You may need some sort of business permit depending on where you live so ask your parents to find out.
Doing Household Chores
Perhaps your parents are not sure it’s safe to work around your neighborhood at your age. You could still earn from the comfort of your home. Talk to your parents and older siblings about doing extra chores for money.
Sell T-Shirts
Do you think you could design cool t-shirts for kids like yourself? With a laptop, some knowledge of graphic design and a fashion company, you are good to go. You don’t have to handle the production and shipping by yourself. Companies like Shopify print out a physical shirt and ship it anytime someone places an order online.
Rent Your Stuff
look around carefully, you may find stuff in your house that someone would pay to borrow. Sports gear, board games, gaming equipment, DVDs or even costumes are rentable goods.
Publish a Book
You can take your storytelling skills and turn them into a profitable venture by writing books. You don’t have to wait for a publishing company, you can publish e-books by yourself. Self-publishing is low cost and easy thanks to digital bookstores like Amazon Kindle.
Make Music
If you are a very talented singer, you could make some money even before you become a big star. You’ll need your parent’s help to record a few songs in a professional studio. Then upload the songs to platforms like Spotify or SoundCloud. They will pay you every time someone listens to your songs.
Sell Craft
Wooden bowls, resin molds, and polymer clay jewelry are some of the many crafts you can make and sell online. You will find customers on websites like Etsy and social media platforms. Of course, you will need the help of an adult to set up payment and delivery.
Grow and Sell Produce
You can grow your own fruit and vegetables for sale. If you are worried about space, try vertical gardens. You can even create your own homemade brand of pickles, jam and the like. Healthy eating advocates would definitely enjoy fresh foods from your gardens and kitchen.
App Tester
Platforms like TesterWork and UberTesters recruit kids to test apps and give feedback. You can register to be an app tester and earn some money for the effort. It’s best to inform your parents of this endeavor though, they can help you set up payment channels. Also, they can protect you from testing harmful apps.
Create Games
If you are a video game fiend who is always noticing how games could be better. Perhaps it’s time to take matters into your own hands. Building your own games can earn you some cool cash. You are going to take some lessons on coding but don’t worry, it’s a lot easier than it sounds.
Conclusion
Despite the limitations, a 12-year-old will most likely encounter when looking to make some money, they actually can. They just need a little creativity and entrepreneurial spirit!