Youth Finance

Money guides for ages 10-22 — first jobs, first paychecks, scams to avoid, and how to start saving early.

• A Spending Plan for Teens (It's Just a Budget, Less Scary)

  A simple, no-pressure way to map where your money goes — built for teen-sized incomes and real teen lives.

  4 min read

• Babysitting, Lawn Care, and Self-Employment Taxes

  When informal teen earnings — babysitting, mowing, dog walking — become taxable, why the $400 threshold matters, and how to handle it without freaking out.

  5 min read

• Common Money Scams That Target Students

  A plain-English guide to the scams that target teens and college students: fake jobs, fake scholarships, fake friend hacks, romance scams, crypto traps, and what to do if you get caught.

  5 min read

• Credit Cards Before 21: What's Allowed

  A plain-English guide to the rules for credit cards under 21: the CARD Act, authorized users, student cards, secured cards, and how to use credit without getting hurt.

  5 min read

• Crypto and Why You Should Be Careful

  A plain-English, no-hype look at what cryptocurrency really is, why teens get targeted by crypto scams, and what to do instead if you actually want to grow money.

  5 min read

• Debit Card vs Credit Card: A Teen's Guide

  A plain-English guide to the difference between debit and credit cards for teens: how each works, when to use which, and the fraud and overdraft rules to watch for.

  5 min read

• Earning Money Online: Real Opportunities vs Scams

  How to tell real online income from the scams that target teens — what actually works, the biggest red flags, and what to do if you get burned.

  5 min read

• Game Skins, NFTs, and Other 'Investments' — A Reality Check

  Plain-English look at NFTs, game skins, and loot boxes — what they actually are, why they are usually not real investments, and what teens should know before spending real money on them.

  5 min read

• How Allowance Can Teach Money Habits

  A plain-English guide for kids and parents on how allowance teaches money habits: the three-jar trick, saving toward goals, learning from spending mistakes, and earning extra.

  5 min read

• How Sales Tax Works (and Why It's Different in Every State)

  Why the price tag isn't what you actually pay, how sales tax varies state to state, and how to do the simple math in your head.

  4 min read

• How Taxes Work for Your First Summer Job

  Plain-English guide to the W-4, W-2, what gets taken out of your paycheck, whether you need to file a tax return, and what to do with any refund.

  5 min read

• How to Make Money as a Teen (Legally)

  Real, legal ways teens can earn money: W-2 jobs, gigs like babysitting and yard work, selling things, and the few honest online options. Plus what to skip and what the law says.

  5 min read

• How to Save for Something Big as a Teen

  A plain-English saving guide for teens: pick one goal, do the simple math, open a savings account, automate transfers, and avoid the things that quietly drain your money.

  5 min read

• How to Talk to Your Parents About Money

  Awkward but useful — gentle, respectful ways to start money conversations with the adults in your life, plus what to do if your family is not open to those talks.

  5 min read

• Investing as a Teen: What Custodial Accounts Are

  A plain-English guide to UTMA and UGMA custodial accounts — how they work, the trade-offs, and what to know before opening one with a parent.

  6 min read

• Money Confidence: Beating the Anxiety Around Numbers

  Money anxiety is real and not a personal failing. Gentle, practical steps to build confidence with money — without needing to be "a math person."

  5 min read

• Money Scripts You Got From Your Parents

  The unspoken money beliefs you absorbed at home shape how you spend, save, and feel today. A gentle, non-judgmental way to spot them and decide what to keep.

  6 min read

• Numbers Don't Have to Be Scary: Reading Money Stuff

  A practical, no-shame guide to building money confidence — including a one-week challenge to make reading bank statements, paystubs, and bills feel normal.

  6 min read

• Online Shopping Mistakes Teens Make

  The 10 most common ways teens lose money online — from hidden shipping fees to free-trial traps — and what to do about each one.

  5 min read

• Saving for College: 529 vs UTMA Account

  A plain-English breakdown of 529 plans and UTMA accounts — the two main ways families save for college — and what makes each one different.

  4 min read

• Saving for Your First Car as a Teenager

  What it really costs to buy and own your first car, how to set a real saving target, and the boring stuff (insurance, gas, repairs) most teens forget to plan for.

  5 min read

• Subscription Traps and How to Spot Them

  A plain-English guide to subscription traps: free trials that become paid plans, auto-renewing annual charges, hard-to-cancel apps, and how to find and stop the ones quietly draining your money.

  5 min read

• The Math of Compound Interest for Teens

  Compound interest in plain English — the rule of 72, why starting at 16 beats starting at 26, and how to put a little money to work for a long time.

  4 min read

• Tipping in America: When, How Much, and Why

  Why America tips the way it does, where tipping is and is not expected, and the real story behind tip screens, tipflation, and the tipped minimum wage.

  5 min read

• What Happens to Money in a Recession?

  A calm, plain-English explainer of recessions — what they are, how they affect families, what changes for jobs and savings, and what teens can actually do.

  6 min read

• What Is FAFSA and How Do I Fill It Out

  A plain-English walk-through of the FAFSA: what it is, when to fill it out, what you need before you start, and the most common mistakes to avoid.

  5 min read

• Why Banks Pay You Interest (Sometimes)

  A plain-English look at why banks pay interest on savings, why some accounts pay much more than others, and how to make your money work a little for you.

  4 min read

• Why Free Apps Aren't Really Free

  How 'free' mobile apps and games actually make money — through ads, in-app purchases, subscriptions, and your data — and how to keep them from quietly draining your account.

  5 min read

• Your First Bank Account: A Plain-English Guide

  A walk-through of opening your first bank account: checking vs savings, banks vs credit unions, what to bring, fees to avoid, and how to use the account safely.

  5 min read

• Your First Job: Money Things Nobody Told You

  Plain-English guide to your first paycheck: taxes, the W-4, paystubs, direct deposit, tips, and what to actually do with the money you earn.

  5 min read