Best Investing Apps and Accounts for Teens (2026)

The short answer: a teen who wants to place their own trades can use a teen-owned brokerage account, Fidelity Youth or the Schwab Teen Investor account, from age 13. Money meant to grow untouched until adulthood usually belongs in a custodial brokerage account that a parent manages. A teen with a job can add a custodial Roth IRA. Many families end up with two of the three.

Teens can’t open a brokerage account in their own name until 18, because a brokerage account is a contract (the age-by-age breakdown has the details). Every option below is a way around that, and they differ on two things that matter most: who owns the money, and who presses the buy button.

The options, side by side

Teen-owned brokerage accounts

Fidelity Youth and the Schwab Teen Investor account are real brokerage accounts for ages 13 to 17, and the teen places their own trades. They aren’t custodial accounts. Fidelity’s is owned by the teen with a parent overseeing it. Schwab’s, added in March 2026, is held jointly with a parent. Both suit a teen who wants hands-on practice with real money, usually a smaller amount they’ve earned or been given to learn with.

Before you open one, look at what the parent can see and control, whether the teen can withdraw or transfer money, and what happens to the account at 18. Rules and features change, so check the current terms on each brokerage’s site.

Custodial brokerage accounts

A UTMA or UGMA custodial account is the standard home for money meant to grow until adulthood. The teen owns it, but a custodian (usually a parent) makes every trade, and it transfers to the teen at 18 or 21 depending on your state (the state-by-state table has the age). Fidelity, Charles Schwab and Vanguard all offer them with no account minimum. The trade-off for a teen is that they watch rather than drive, so it teaches patience more than stock picking.

Custodial Roth IRA, once they have a job

Once your teen earns money from a job or their own business, they can contribute up to what they earned (capped at the annual limit) to a custodial Roth IRA. It’s the strongest long-term account a teen can have: decades of tax-free growth, and the contributions can come out later if they need them. See your teen’s first job and the Roth for what counts as earned income.

Debit card apps with investing

Apps like Greenlight are spending-first: a debit card with allowance and chores, plus the ability to buy stocks with a parent’s approval on higher-priced plans. The investing account is in the parent’s name, and there’s a monthly subscription. That works if the card is the main goal. If investing is the main goal, one of the brokerage options above usually fits better (more in Greenlight alternatives for investing).

How to choose

• Your teen wants to trade: a teen-owned brokerage account, funded with a learning amount.
• The money should grow for college or adulthood: a custodial brokerage account.
• Your teen has a paycheck: add a custodial Roth IRA.
• You want them to see everything in one place: a dashboard like MemoryBank shows every account they have, across brokerages, without letting them trade or move money.

For younger kids and the full range of apps, see the best investing apps for kids, and once your teen has an account, here’s how to start investing as a teenager.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best investing app for a teenager?

It depends on who does the investing. For a teen who wants to place their own trades, Fidelity Youth and the Schwab Teen Investor account are brokerage accounts for ages 13 to 17. For money meant to grow until adulthood, a custodial brokerage account managed by a parent is the usual choice, and a teen with a job can add a custodial Roth IRA.

Can a 16-year-old open a brokerage account?

Not alone. Until 18 a teen can't sign a brokerage contract, but from 13 they can use a teen account such as Fidelity Youth or Schwab Teen Investor with a parent involved, and at any age a parent can open a custodial account for them.

What is a custodial brokerage account for a teen?

It's a UTMA or UGMA account owned by the teen and managed by a custodian, usually a parent, who makes the trades. It has no contribution limit, and it transfers to the teen at 18 or 21 depending on the state.

Can my teen invest without a parent?

Not before 18. Every teen option involves a parent, either as custodian, joint owner or overseer. At 18 they can open a brokerage account in their own name.

Should my teen have a teen account and a custodial account?

Many families use both: a teen-owned account with a small amount to learn by trading, and a custodial account for long-term money the parent manages. They do different jobs.

What to do this week

1. Decide whether your teen should trade, or watch long-term money grow.
2. If they have a job, check how much they’ve earned this year for a Roth contribution.
3. Open the account and show them how to read it.