It’s not easy to get parents and teenagers to agree about anything. But when it comes to investing early, they’re on the same page.
Schwab recently conducted a study that found 70% of teenagers ages 13-17 say they are very or extremely interested in investing, and nearly three-quarters of parents (73%) say it’s very important for teens to learn about it.
Now here’s something that may surprise you. Teens in the study cited their parents more than any other source for trusted investing advice, ahead of friends, social media or anyone else.
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In other words, this isn’t an area where finding the balance between independence and control inevitably becomes a point of friction. Rather, it’s an opportunity for guided learning, and it’s one that most families are more ready for than they may realize.
In my role leading Schwab’s Branch Network, I’ve seen firsthand how many parents want to help their children build healthy financial habits but aren’t always sure where to begin. The encouraging news is that teens are often more interested in these conversations than we assume.
It’s also an amazing time to begin investing. Teens have more access to information, tools and choices than any generation before them.
But with that comes more exposure to speculative trends, hype and “get rich quick” content. That’s what makes this moment so pivotal. We have a genuine chance to give our kids a head start on building wealth, but if they start down the wrong path early, it can be hard to undo.
More than building wealth, investing teaches patience, discipline, decision-making and how to think about the future. Those lessons can benefit teens long before they see their first meaningful investment gains.
So, it’s critical that parents help their teens get off on the right foot. Here are seven ways to do it.
1. Talk about your own experience … including the mistakes
Being open about financial decisions you’d make differently is often more impactful than presenting a polished track record.
When teens hear a parent say, “Here’s what I wish I’d done at your age,” they listen.
It’s more relatable than a lesson, and it makes the whole conversation feel less like a lecture and more like a shared experience.
2. Connect investing to actual goals
Our survey found that teens want to invest for concrete reasons:
- Getting started building money as early as possible (45%)
- Paying for college (34%)
- Saving for something big like a car (30%)
Anchoring the conversation in what your teen actually wants to accomplish makes investing feel purposeful rather than abstract.
3. Start with something that already interests them
Fractional shares have lowered the barrier to entry significantly. A teen who’s a fan of a particular brand no longer needs $1,000 to buy a single share. They can invest $20 or $40 into it.
That turns an abstract concept into something personal and provides an ideal prompt to talk about what makes a company worth owning in the first place.
It’s also a natural opportunity to introduce the idea that successful investing rarely depends on a single company or trend, but on building a diversified portfolio over time.
4. Let them practice before the stakes are real
Mock trading and stock market simulators give teens a sandbox to experience real gains and losses without real consequences.
It’s often the first time they grapple with managing risk directly, which builds confidence for when the money is actually theirs.
Separating what’s genuinely relevant from what’s just noise is challenging for investors of all ages, not just teens.
A practical rule to consider is a 24-hour pause before acting on anything your teen sees or hears online. If your teen can’t clearly explain why an investment might be valuable beyond what they saw online, that’s often a sign it’s worth slowing down and learning more before making a decision.
6. Consider the right account for your family
Custodial accounts keep parents in control until teens become adults.
Joint accounts, like the Schwab Teen Investor account, give teens ownership and the ability to move money in and out starting at age 13, while parents stay involved.
The decision comes down to how much control you want your teen to have early on.
7. Take advantage of educational resources
You don’t have to have all the answers. There are tools designed specifically for this moment, including content from Schwab, which covers investing fundamentals built for teens.
Working through a video or article side by side signals that this is a shared project, not a solo assignment. And it takes the pressure off parents to be the sole source of expertise.
The good news is that today’s teens are already getting an earlier start than their parents did. Most parents (68%) in our study say they didn’t become aware of investing until they were young adults or older, and half (51%) wish they’d started sooner.
Today’s teenagers are well ahead of that curve. Most say they became aware of investing as preteens or in their early teen years. That head start matters because time is the greatest advantage young investors have.
The teens who start now, even with modest amounts, have decades of compounding ahead of them.
But the goal isn’t simply to help your teen make their first investment — it’s to help them develop the knowledge, judgment and confidence they’ll rely on throughout their lives.
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