Are you a high school student looking for an online job?
Good news: many online jobs are available to teenagers. Making money online as a high school student is not that difficult and is a great way to earn some extra cash.
However, online jobs for teens also involve important risks:
- It might hurt your academic performance.
- It can be stressful to balance school and work.
Since there are pros and cons to holding an online job while in high school, it can be hard to make a decision without knowing the job opportunities that are available for high school students.
To help you make a better decision, here is a list of the best online jobs for high school students. To rank these online jobs, we took into consideration criteria like training time, workload, salary, and flexibility!
1. Freelance Writer
- Average Salary: between $20 and $100 per 1000 words.
- Workload: 85% of positions are full-time.
- High Demand: 142,394 writer jobs are available on
Did you know that you can make money while improving your writing skills?
In fact, many editors hire high schoolers to write basic pieces of content like:
- Youtube video scripts
- Product descriptions for eCommerce websites
- Blog posts
Let's be honest, freelance writing is not a get rich quick scheme. As a high schooler, it will be difficult to land writing jobs that pay more than $10 per 1,000 words. However, if you manage to grind your way up, get testimony from clients and put together excellent writing samples, you can potentially earn anywhere between $20 and $100 per 1000 words.
Requirements
- A good grasp of grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
- A portfolio that shows excellent writing. A great way to gain experience is to start with your high school newspaper and/or community type of newsletter.
2. Online Data Entry Jobs
- Average Salary: from as little as $5 up to $25 per hour.
- Workload: 10% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 680 data entry jobs are available on
Data entry jobs are exactly what they sound like! They’re jobs that involve entering data, such as:
- Describing or identifying images
- Entering up-to-date prices
- Transcription of audio notes
- Subtitling
- Tagging and annotating data
- You name it!
You are typically asked to perform on-demand tasks that computers are unable to do.
Requirements
- Preferred: High school diploma or equivalent.
- Preferred: Completing a qualifier to validate transcription/subtitling/tagging skills.
3. Doing Homework For Others
- Average Salary: depends on how well you negotiate with other students (a fair salary is $16 per hour).
Some websites actually pay you to do homework for other people.
The deeper your knowledge is, the higher your chances are to make a decent wage. Moreover, if you are good at finances, math, and physics, you will have a better chance of earning a respectable income.
Doing homework for other people can be deemed unethical, especially when completing graded assignments. Make sure answers to homework questions can only be used as a tutoring aid or a reference.
Requirements
- Good grades in a related subject.
4. Online Surveys
- Salary: $9 per hour.
- Workload: 93% of positions are full-time.
- Medium Demand: 10,268 online survey jobs are available on
Online surveys are one of the easiest ways to make money online during high school. Many survey sites want to know the opinion of teenagers about new products. After entering personal data on a survey site, you will be matched with market research firms that are relevant to your profiles.
Even though surveys offer an easy way to earn extra cash, the earnings are low compared to other online jobs.
Requirements
- Required: Be willing to share your private information and personal opinions.
5. Online Tutor
- Salary: $20 per hour.
- Workload: 93% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 505 online tutoring jobs are available on
Tutoring is all about sharing the beauty of a subject with students who have a hard time understanding it. As a tutor, you get the opportunity to help others in need. Maybe this is why teaching is one of the most rewarding jobs!
Requirements
- Good grades is usually required.
- Recent teaching experience is a plus.
6. Virtual Assistant
- Salary: $12 per hour.
- Workload: 100% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 14 virtual assistant jobs are available on
Virtual assistants are work-at-home administrative assistants.
As a virtual assistant, you might be asked to:
- Schedule appointments
- Make phone calls
- Respond to emails
- And do other administrative tasks: bookkeeping, writing, marketing services, etc.
Many business owners hire virtual assistants to perform routine administrative tasks. Just as many remote jobs, it is possible to offer your virtual assistant services on platforms such as UpWork, Fiverr, etc.
Requirements
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
- Preferred: prior experience as an administrative assistant.
7. Blogger
- Average Salary: No guaranteed remuneration.
- Workload: 100% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 58 blogging jobs are available on
Bloggers write informational content on their blogs. They perform keyword research to find content ideas, conduct research on the topic, and write blog posts.
To grow their audience, bloggers promote their articles on social media and optimize their content for search engines. It usually takes months (sometimes even years) to build a sizable audience through blogging. Once they have enough traffic, it is possible to make make money with ads and affiliate marketing.
If you are a high school student looking for a quick buck. blogging is not for you. Passive income is a long and slow process that can only be achieved after years of hard work.
Requirements
- Preferred: English proficiency, excellent communication and internet marketing skills.
8. Online Proofreading Jobs
- Average Salary: From $5 to $50 per hour.
- Workload: 100% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 75 proofreader jobs are available on
Proofreaders ensure that articles and scripts are free from grammatical errors: spelling, formatting, and syntax mistakes are everywhere!
It is challenging to find online proofreading jobs in high school because some platforms have age requirements. That being said, it is possible to find proofreading jobs on freelancing job boards such as UpWork, Fiverr, etc.
Requirements
- Age Requirements: Some proofreading platforms might require you to be 16 years old, while others require at least 18 years of age.
- Preferred: English proficiency, attention to detail, and persistence.
9. Freelance Graphic Designer
- Salary: $25 per hour.
- Workload: 93% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 124 graphic designer jobs are available on
Graphic designers are hired to design logos, magazine covers, advertisements, and other communication materials. There are many graphic design jobs on websites like Fiverr, Upwork, and other freelance websites.
Requirements
- A strong portfolio of logos, illustrations, or other graphics
- Familiarity with design software (such as InDesign, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, Photoshop)
10. Web Developer
- Average Salary: $71,000 per year (on average).
- Workload: 93% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 283 web developer jobs are available on
Freelance web developers build websites for organizations and small businesses.
Building websites isn’t as hard as it seems, there are Content Management Systems like WordPress that do most of the jobs for you.
For tech-savvy high school students, the difficult part of the job is:
- Reaching out to potential clients: local businesses, lawyers, photographers, music bands, influencers, etc.
- Understanding the client’s needs: talk with your client about the project and estimate the web development cost.
- Sketching a basic concept website: build multiple draft versions, make revisions as requested by the client.
Requirements
- Build a few websites to highlight (and train) your web development skills.
- Understanding of HTML and CSS.
11. Social Media Manager
- Salary: $15 per hour.
- Workload: 100% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 70 social media manager jobs are available on
Social media managers make money by representing companies on social networks. Many companies hire social media managers to:
- Attract new fans: publishing engaging content, promoting the brand with paid advertising, reaching out to local influencers, etc.
- Turn fans into customers: responding to questions about the product/service, retargeting advertisements, etc.
- Turn these customers into advocates: organizing giveaways (share this post to win our product), create communities on Reddit and other forums, etc.
Requirements
- Usually required: Social media marketing experience.
- Preferred: Degrees in English literature, psychology, sociology, and communication studies.
12. Freelance Video Editor
- Salary: $22 per hour.
- Workload: 100% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 16 video editor jobs are available on
More and more businesses need videos to promote their services on Youtube and Instagram. It is a golden opportunity to make money as a freelance video editor.
Requirements
- A stunning video editing portfolio.
- Extensive experience with editing software (e.g. Lightworks, Premiere, After Effects or Final Cut).
13. Youtuber
- Average Salary: No guaranteed remuneration.
- Availablity: no jobs are available right now.
It is the new trend in high school: many students make money by publish videos on their Youtube channel.
The role of YouTubers is to create engaging video content on YouTube. They are responsible for attracting people’s attention to make money through advertisements and affiliate marketing.
It is important to note that while some YouTubers make huge amounts of money, there is no guarantee when it comes to revenue on YouTube. Most YouTubers barely make anything at all.
Requirements
- Required: A decent camera and a microphone.
- Preferred: Excellent communication skills.
- Preferred: high-speed internet connection.
More Jobs for High School Students
Many high school students believe that it is challenging to find online jobs and make money online. Has we have seen in this article, many online jobs are actively hiring high school students. If you want to find more part-time job opportunities, I recommend the following articles:
If you do not want to work part-time during high school to earn money on the side, it is fine too. At the end of the end, personal finance is… personal.