Dec. 7, 2025, 5:05 a.m. ET
It’s been a rough ride for many parents this year with job losses mounting and inflation that just won’t go away.
But amid all that, kids have been the bright spot, according to Greenlight’s family money app.
In 2025, Greenlight kids and teens up to age 17 invested more than $70 million, up 65% from last year, the company said. They also doubled their recurring automated investments and increased their average buy trade to $49.56 from $39.70 in 2024.
Whether earning from paychecks or allowance, kids are saving more and investing at younger ages, Greenlight said. The average age among Greenlight’s youth investors is 12.
“When I was 15, I started learning how to invest, and I became a better and better investor over time,” said Tim Sheehan, co-founder and Greenlight chief executive. “Learning to be a smart investor – like Warren Buffett and Peter Lynch – is how to build true wealth…We want to enable everyone to become a smart investor and build wealth.”
What are kids investing in?
As expected, kids pour money into what they know and love best – technology.
Top individual stock holdings include artificial intelligence chip leader Nvidia, iPhone maker Apple, ecommerce mammoth Amazon and electric vehicle maker Tesla, Greenlight data show. Kids also heavily invested in Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, which has about 40% weight for tech stocks.
Bitcoin also received teenage love this year. A bitcoin ETF jumped to #12 on the list of top holdings from #21 last year, Greenlight said.
What are they saving for?
The top 10 reasons kids saved in 2025:
- Car
- College
- Computers
- Savings
- Bike
- Holidays
- Apparel
- Phone
- Emergency
- Console gaming
Are they spending any money?
Teens continue to spend money, but their spending has become more intentional in line with broader trends among adults, Greenlight said.
That means thrifting, retro scores, and thoughtful bargain-hunting took over. Kids doubled their spending on online buy and sell platform Depop to $7.2 million from 2024 and upped their spending at discount retailer Five Below by 196% to $7.8 million, Greenlight data showed.
There is one perk they’ll continue to pay for though: concerts. Kids spent more than $3.6 million last year to see their favorite singers perform live.
Can kids stay on track?
Greenlight predicts kids will continue building on these trends next year, especially since half of them said in the survey they want money to buy a home or business by the age of 25 and 67% think they’ll be as financially well off or better off than their parents.
“As we look ahead to 2026, we anticipate more robust conversations around money, including how to manage, grow, and protect it,” said Jennifer Seitz, director of education at Greenlight. Kids “love seeing their money grow. And parents love this because it channels this ambition into long-term, healthy financial habits.”
Medora Lee is a money, markets and personal finance reporter at USA TODAY. You can reach her at mjlee@usatoday.com and subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter for personal finance tips and business news every Monday through Friday morning.
