Teens under 18 can't legally hold their own brokerage accounts. Every "teen investing app" works around this through one of two structures: a custodial account where a parent is the legal custodian, or a parent-supervised teen account where the teen is the account holder but the parent has visibility.
How we ranked these
We built Slyce. Slyce fits the parent-funded custodial spend-to-own brief specifically — we're honest about where it doesn't fit (Slyce isn't a self-directed teen app like Fidelity Youth).
Criteria, in order:
- Account structure. Custodial vs parent-supervised teen account vs custodial Roth.
- Cost. Subscription fees disproportionately drag small teen-balance accounts.
- Fit for the teen's actual goal. A teen earning summer-job income has different needs than a teen with a parent-funded custodial account.
- Parent UX. A teen-focused app needs to keep parent visibility without becoming a surveillance tool.
1. Fidelity Youth — the bank-grade self-directed choice
What it offers: real Fidelity brokerage account for teens 13–17. Parent linked for visibility. Full Fidelity research tools. No monthly fee[1].
Pricing: $0 per month.
Where Fidelity Youth wins: if the teen is genuinely interested in learning investing and wants their own account, this is the right answer. Bank-grade safety, real research tools, $0 fee, and the account converts cleanly to a standard adult brokerage at 18.
Where Fidelity Youth doesn't win: no automation. The teen has to actually use the app to invest. For a teen who wants stocks to buy themselves in the background, Fidelity Youth is the wrong shape.
2. Slyce — parent-funded custodial spend-to-own
What it offers: custodial UTMA where the parent links a card and rules trigger fractional-share buys for the kid's account. Trump Account routing for kids born 2025–2028.
Pricing: $0 per month.
Where Slyce wins for teens: for parents who want to fund a teen's custodial account through their own spending without a monthly subscription, Slyce is the fit. The Trump Accounts guide covers how Trump Account routing layers on for in-window kids.
Where Slyce doesn't win: the teen isn't the account holder — the parent is the custodian on a UTMA. For a teen who wants their own account, Fidelity Youth is the better shape.
3. Greenlight — teaching-focused family app
What it offers: kid-debit-card and chore-management with an investing add-on. Parent-controlled, teen-visible.
Pricing: monthly subscription.
Where Greenlight wins for teens: if "teach my teen about money holistically" is the brief and investing is one piece, Greenlight is the category leader for parent-controlled financial education tools.
**Where Greenlight doesn't win for teens: investing is shallow compared to dedicated brokerage apps. Subscription on top. By age 16+, most teens benefit more from a real brokerage account (Fidelity Youth) than from a parent-controlled teaching app.
4. Acorns Early — round-ups for younger kids primarily
What it offers: round-ups on linked-card purchases routed into a diversified ETF custodial UTMA[2].
Pricing: higher Acorns tier required.
Where Acorns Early wins for teens: continuity if the parent has been using Acorns Early since the kid was younger. Decade-old brand and longest operating history.
Where Acorns Early doesn't win for teens: the diversified-ETF approach matters less by the teen years, and the subscription cost compounds against the account. A teen who's old enough to think about investing benefits more from a self-directed account than from continued round-up automation.
5. Robinhood — not for under-18s in their own name
Robinhood requires account holders to be 18+[3]. Robinhood Financial LLC and Robinhood Securities LLC are broker-dealers filed with FINRA[4].
Where Robinhood doesn't win for teens: it doesn't. Robinhood Retirement is available to adults. A teen who's 18 and has earned income can open a Robinhood Roth IRA with the contribution match — but that's not a teen account.
We include Robinhood here only because parents search for "best teen investing app" expecting Robinhood to appear. For under-18s, the answer is one of the other apps on this list. For 18-year-olds with a summer job, Robinhood Retirement is a reasonable adult-account option, not a teen account.
On the custodial Roth IRA
Independent of the teen-app question: if a teen has earned income from a documented job, a custodial Roth IRA is one of the highest-expected-return accounts available to them. The contribution limit is the lower of the teen's earned income or the annual Roth contribution limit.
Custodial Roth IRAs aren't held inside the teen-app ecosystem above. They're opened at Fidelity, Schwab, or Vanguard with the parent as custodian. The contribution-and-then-forget pattern fits the teen profile particularly well — there's nothing to manage day-to-day, and decades of compounding ahead.
The kiddie tax does not apply to qualified Roth IRA withdrawals[5]. Earnings inside the Roth grow tax-free and qualified withdrawals after age 59½ are tax-free.
Verdict by teen profile
- Teen 13+ wants their own account, will actually use it: Fidelity Youth.
- Parent wants to fund a custodial account through their own spending, no subscription: Slyce.
- Family wants teaching-focused chore-and-money app with shallow investing: Greenlight.
- Continuity from younger years on Acorns Early: Acorns Early, but reassess as the teen ages.
- Teen has earned income and wants a Roth: custodial Roth IRA at Fidelity, separate from any teen-app choice.
For the broader context across all kid ages, see the broader best-app-for-kids ranking. The custodial accounts guide covers the legal-structure side of these decisions.
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Frequently asked
- Can a 16-year-old open their own investing account?
- No. Brokerage accounts require account holders to be 18 (or the state's age of majority). Teens invest through either a custodial account where a parent is the custodian (UTMA, custodial Roth IRA), or a parent-supervised teen account like Fidelity Youth where the teen has a real account but the parent has visibility and some controls.
- What's the difference between Fidelity Youth and a custodial UTMA?
- Fidelity Youth is the teen's own account at Fidelity (ages 13–17), with parent visibility and some restrictions. The teen is the account holder and the assets are theirs. A UTMA is a custodial account where a parent is the custodian until the teen reaches the age of majority — the assets transfer to the teen at that point.
- Should a teen open a custodial Roth IRA?
- If the teen has earned income from a real job (W-2 or documented self-employment), a custodial Roth IRA is one of the highest-expected-return accounts you can open at this age. The contribution limit is the lower of the teen's earned income or the annual Roth limit. Open at Fidelity or Schwab — it's a no-fee custodial Roth, distinct from any of the teen-app brokerage options.
- Does the kiddie tax apply to a teen's investing app?
- Yes, where applicable. The kiddie tax applies to a child's unearned income above an annual threshold, regardless of which app holds the account. Roth IRA contributions are after-tax and qualified withdrawals are tax-free, so the kiddie tax is not the relevant tax rule for a Roth.
- What happens to a teen's account when they turn 18?
- Depends on the account type. UTMA: assets transfer to the teen at the age of majority. Fidelity Youth: converts to a standard adult brokerage account. Custodial Roth IRA: converts to the teen's own Roth IRA. Trump Account: rolls over per the OBBBA rules — the federal program has its own conversion path.
Keep reading
Slyce Editorial
Published May 3, 2026 · Updated May 3, 2026