7 Best Debit Cards for Teens [Reviewed by a CPA + Father]

The humble debit card is one of the most vital tools in unlocking your teen’s financial independence.

The best debit cards for teens (and the attached accounts) give your kid somewhere to put earnings from a summer job, save for their first car or college, and spend while they’re out enjoying life with their friends. And all of these functions help your teenager along the path to financial responsibility, teaching them everything from saving and spending to investing and even charity.

Given how important this little piece of plastic is, you don’t just want a debit card for your teen. You want the best debit card. And I can help you find it.

I’ve not only been a CPA for seven years, but I’m also a father who’s interested in his sons’ financial futures, so I’ve also taken my own personal interest in debit cards that my kids might use one day. As such, I’ve reviewed some of the best debit cards for teens, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses to help you find the best fit for your child’s needs. After that, I’ve provided answers to popular parent questions about choosing, opening, and managing a debit card with their teen.

Best Debit Cards for Teens—Our Top Picks

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What Are the Best Debit Cards for Teens?

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I’ve compiled a list of the best debit cards for teens based on a wide variety of criteria, including costs, features, consumer protections, and more. But before you start scrolling to discover the top picks, here’s something important to keep in mind—especially if you’re new to the search:

While Young and the Invested’s ratings clearly indicate what I and my fellow reviewers believe are the top debit card solutions out there, I highly encourage you to look at each card’s combination of features. What ultimately matters is selecting a card that checks off the most boxes that are important to you. The best overall card in our eyes might be the best option for some people, but other cards might be a better fit for you and your teen.

Also, this article will look at debit cards through a teen-centric lens. If your children are a bit younger, you’ll want to explore the best debit cards for kids instead.

 

1. Greenlight (Best Paid Debit Card for Teens)

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• Available: Sign up here
• Price: Core: $5.99/mo. Max: $9.98/mo. Infinity: $14.98/mo. (All plans include cards for up to 5 children)

The Greenlight debit card allows kids to begin spending, but provides parents with peace of mind by giving them control over where their kids can spend money. Parents also can choose to receive alerts that tell them when, and how much, money is spent on the Greenlight debit card.

Greenlight works like a prepaid debit card, allowing you to transfer money onto the card for your child to pay for expenses at approved locations. You can choose how much money to load onto the card, and your child will be cleared to make approved purchases so long as a money balance backs up the card.

If your child asks for extra money to get added to the card, you can have them take a photo of the purchase they want to make and receive your approval. This gives you control and allows you to have discussions with your child about why a purchase might be a good or bad idea. And if your child has a job, they can add their own funds to the card via direct deposit.

The Greenlight debit card is a good choice for parents looking to teach their kids the importance of saving money and making prudent financial decisions. This financial product can be an effective learning tool for helping kids to understand why saving should be a priority and how to simplify paying an allowance or tracking chores. 

Greenlight boasts numerous other features, too. 

For instance, parents can open an investment account for kids to get their children investing in stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for the first time.

Greenlight offers monthly savings rewards based on your tier, listed in the box below. You may also set up “Parent-Paid Interest” between you and your child, which allows you to foot the bill and pay interest on accounts for up to five kids.

Any Greenlight subscription also lets users qualify for the cash-back Family Cash Card. Parents can add their teenagers as authorized users to this Mastercard help them learn how credit cards function and establish a credit history. This credit card offers the following cash-back rewards:

• 3% cash back when you spend at least $4,000 in a billing cycle
• 2% cash back when you spend at least $1,000 (but less than $4,000) in a billing cycle
• 1% cash back when you spend less than $1,000 in a billing cycle

There is no limit to the cash back that can be earned, and users can also auto-invest the cash-back rewards.

Each monthly Greenlight subscription includes debit cards for up to five kids. Replacement cards cost $3.50 each but are free the first time. If you need to replace your card quickly, you can get express delivery for $24.99. The company also offers a personalized card, with your own photo or design, for $9.99. Greenlight has no minimum age requirements for this card, but recommends starting at age 6 or older.

Read more in our Greenlight card review or sign up today.

Related: 13 Best Allowance and Chore Apps for Kids [Easier Family Life]

2. Axos Bank First Checking (Best Free Card at an Online-Only Bank)

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• Available: Sign up here
• Price: Free (no monthly fees)

First Checking by Axos Bank is the ultimate starter checking account and debit card for teens. It works as a joint checking account between a parent or guardian and their teen, allowing for easy-to-set, customizable parental controls with a debit card dashboard.

This free debit card for teens offers several safeguards, including daily limits on cash transactions ($100) and debit transactions ($500). Further, you can receive up to $12 in domestic ATM fee reimbursements per month, and you avoid any monthly maintenance, overdraft, and non-sufficient funds fees—essentially making the account free!

Users also earn a modest APY on any balance—typically lower than the national average savings rate, but still more than you’d expect from a checking account.

The account carries the highest level of security through biometric authentication techniques such as fingerprint readers, voiceprints and facial recognition (pending smartphone feature availability).

The product has a minimum age requirement of 13 and is recommended for ages 13 to 17. It will convert to an Axos Checking Account after the minor reaches the age of majority. Read more in our Axos First Checking Account review.

Related: Best Banking Apps for Kids & Teens [Teen Banking]

3. Acorns Early / GoHenry (Best for Customer Service)

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• Available: Sign up here
• Price: Acorns Early: $5/mo. for 1 child. $10/mo. for 2-4 children. Acorns Gold: $12/mo., includes Acorns Early for up to 4 children.

A longtime player in the kids’ debit card/financial app space has a new name and a new face: GoHenry, which was acquired in 2023 by Acorns, has officially become Acorns Early.

Many reviewers have long painted Acorns Early/GoHenry as just a way to spend. However, I see it as a real financial solution for minors—a debit card, yes, but also an app-based ecosphere that provides education and experience for the child, as well as ways for parents to keep their kids safe and teach them responsibility.

When you open an Acorns Early account, each child receives an Acorns Early Mastercard debit card that can be used anywhere Mastercard is accepted (so, millions of vendors). Not only can kids spend online and in stores, but they can also use their Acorns Early debit card to withdraw cash from ATMs. The standard Acorns Early debit card itself is included in the monthly subscription. However, your child can also choose to stylize their card with one of 35 different designs—most designs require a $5 one-time fee, though certain “limited edition” designs will be $6.

An Acorns Early account also allows kids to set savings goals, which they can fund manually or via autosave. And it also hosts educational materials to help children and teens alike develop good money habits. One of the more impressive aspects of the program is that it’s explicitly segmented into different age groups, starting with money basics for kids in single-digit ages, then becoming more advanced over time, so the lessons really appear to grow as your children do.

This FDIC-insured account also enjoys a variety of safety features, including chip and PIN protection, secure PIN recovery, and Mastercard’s Zero Liability Protection, which means your child won’t be liable for fraudulent purchases as long as they take care in protecting your card from theft and you promptly report any fraudulent activity.

Acorns Early also offers parents additional peace of mind by providing a number of controls, including:

• Real-time spending notifications
• Card lock/unlock
• Savings goal lock/unlock
• Adjustable spending limits on a per-transaction and per-week basis
• Card category block/unblock for in-store purchases, online purchases, and ATM withdrawals
• Adjustable spending block/unblock at stores that sell age-restricted goods such as firearms and alcohol

Also, kids can only spend whatever money is available on the card because it’s a prepaid debit card. That means parents don’t have to worry about costly overdraft fees or their kids running up a debt.

Acorns Early offers a number of ways to fund the account. Parents, of course, can send money in a pinch whenever they want with instant transfers. They can also set up a regular allowance, or tie payment to chores. (And parents get to approve chores before they pay out—no half-done dishes allowed.) Teens can also receive ACH deposits from their employers. And loved ones can either get “relative accounts” that allow them to send money to your kids, or they can send money via Acorns Early “Giftlinks,” which act similarly to an e-gift card.

GoHenry really stuck out to us as one of the best prepaid debit cards for kids because of its outstanding customer service. Good news there: Acorns Early users should expect a similarly high level of customer support, including seven-day-a-week phone service from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. PT, as well as 24/7 live chat support.

Parents have two ways of signing up for Acorns Early: 

1. Signing up for an Acorns Early account for either one or two to four children.
2. Signing up for Acorns Gold. Not only does a subscription come with a free Acorns Early account for up to four children, but you can also open an Acorns Early Invest account—a custodial account that allows you to invest for your kids’ future.

Acorns Early has no minimum age requirements but recommends starting at age 6 or older. Learn more in our Acorns Early review.

A note for current GoHenry users: For now, your app, features, and cards will continue to work as normal. However, if you want all of the latest features, you’ll need to download the Acorns Early app from the iOS App Store or Google Play. 

Related: Acorns Early (Formerly GoHenry) vs. Greenlight

4. Capital One MONEY (Best Free Teen Checking Account)

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• Available: Read our review and sign up
• Price: Free (no monthly fees)

Capital One MONEY Teen Checking is one of Young and the Invested’s top choices for parents who want to financially empower their kids at an early age. Yes, this free checking account is predominantly aimed at teenagers, but it’s actually available to kids as young as 8 years old.

This joint checking account offers flexibility for kids and a touch of tranquility for parents. Kids get a Mastercard debit card that they can use at millions of merchants across the U.S., as well as in roughly 210 countries and territories worldwide. Your teen also enjoys access to one of the largest fee-free ATM networks among kids debit cards—more than 70,000+ Capital One, MoneyPass, and AllPoint machines. They can also send and receive money via Zelle, receive direct deposits from employers, and even cash paper checks by snapping a couple photos within the highly rated Capital One app.

Parents, meanwhile, can also pay their kids a regular allowance, or make one-time payments as gifts or rewards. They also can monitor their teens’ transactions, lock and unlock their child’s card, and control their kid’s access to (and transfer limits within) Zelle.

To learn more about the account, read our Capital One MONEY Teen Checking review. Or you can sign up today by clicking “Get Started” above.

Related: 10 Best Money Apps for Teens [Invest, Spend, Budget + Pay]

5. Copper Card (Best for Teen Independence)

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• Available: Sign up here
• Price: 30 days free. Copper $4.95/mo., Copper + Invest: $7.95/mo.

Copper Banking teaches your teen how to make smart financial decisions by providing financial tools, as well as a platform where parents and their children can connect. With the Copper app, you get easy snapshots of your accounts. And with the Copper Debit Card, it’s easy to shop in-store or online, including with Apple Pay or Google Pay.

Plus, users get exclusive access to engaging advice curated by a team of financial literacy experts who provide tips on how to take control of their financial future.

Copper Banking features

• Send/Request: Teens and parents can easily send and receive money at the touch of a button.
• Spend: Spend using Apple or Google Pay, or using the Copper Debit Card.
• Withdraw: Access your money from more than 55,000 fee-free ATMs.
• Monitor: Get a snapshot of all your teen’s spending in an easy-to-read dashboard.
• Save: Gain quick snapshots of your kid’s savings and helpful tips on how to save even more. Set up savings buckets and save for the things that you want.
• Learn: With the help of Copper’s team of financial literacy experts, gain bite-sized tips on how you can maximize your money and prepare yourself for your financial future.

The basic Copper account includes the above banking features. But I more strongly suggest Copper + Invest, which also provides your teen with access to automatically curated smart portfolios built with their preferences in mind. Your child is given a questionnaire that helps Copper understand their goals and risk tolerance, then it invests their money in a portfolio of ETFs that are made up of thousands of stocks. Parents can review the portfolio to ensure it matches with not just your child’s preferences, but your family’s. Copper will then automatically rebalance the portfolio as needed.

Much like many other apps I’ve reviewed on Young and the Invested, your child doesn’t need much money to begin their investing journey with Copper. They can begin investing for as little as $1, then add more contributions down the road.

While Copper is appropriate for teens, it’s available to kids 6 years and older. Read more in our Copper Banking review.

Related: Best Prepaid Debit Cards for Kids and Teens

6. Revolut <18 (Best for Parent-Paid Bonuses)

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• Available: Sign up here
• Price: No monthly fees

Revolut <18 is a prepaid debit card for kids designed to teach them money skills for life. Aimed at building healthy money habits from an early age, the unique, customizable card empowers parents to have full insight into their kids’ card activity through providing instant spending alerts and parental controls.

You can choose to freeze the card, set controls on how they use the cards online and with contactless payments through your Revolut app. Further, you can set spending limits on how much your child can use with the prepaid card.

Parents use the card and accompanying app to teach kids about earning, budgeting, saving and even investing money (depending on the plan chosen). You can also use the card to manage chores and allowance, set savings goals as a family and help your children manage their money.

And if your child did something deserving of a reward? You can send parent-paid bonuses when they complete specific tasks. Simply add money to their digitized piggy bank through the app. You can send and receive money in seconds through Revolut’s Payments feature, which allows instant transfers between account holders and also global transfers at transparent rates.

Of note: You must have a personal Revolut account before you can open a Revolut <18 account for your children. You can add up to five Revolut <18 accounts per parent account.

IMPORTANT: You must have a personal Revolut account before you can open any Revolut <18 accounts. When you click our link, you will be directed to a page that will allow you to sign up for a personal Revolut account. Once you have done so, you can begin opening Revolut <18 accounts for your children. You can add up to five Revolut <18 accounts per personal account.

To learn more about Revolut <18, consider visiting their site and opening an account for yourself and your child.

Related: 9 Best Kids Savings Accounts + Children’s Bank Accounts

7. Current (Great No-Monthly-Fee Teen Card)

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• Available: Sign up here
• Price: Free (no monthly fees)

Current is a banking app designed for families. It offers both parent and teen accounts, with the latter acting like prepaid debit cards that parents load for their children.

The Current app allows you to track your teen’s spending in real-time, set limits on how much your teenagers can spend, and even block specific merchants on its Visa-enabled debit cards. You also get the peace of mind that comes with knowing your teen’s money is safe because it’s not cash—no temptations, just a tool parents can use to help teach teenagers financial responsibility.

Among Current’s features:

• No minimum required balances, no fees on transfers to other Current accounts, and no hidden fees
• Savings Pods and Giving Pods that allow you to save up for various goals.
• Round-Ups
• Ability to buy and sell 27 different cryptocurrencies with zero trading fees

Teens will love easy allowance deposits, a card they can use in stores or online, instant gas hold removals when buying gas, and access to more than 40,000 fee-free Allpoint ATMs nationwide. They’ll also have the opportunity to learn about financial responsibility and financial independence through Current’s Budgets feature, which allows them to track their spending and even receive alerts when they get too close to (or exceed) a predetermined limit.

The product has no specifically stated minimum age requirement, but the marketing suggests teens are the target audience. However, you might be able to open an account for a younger child. Read more in our Current review.

Related: Best Credit Cards for Kids: Building Credit & Money Habits Early

What Is a Debit Card for Teens?

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Children generally can’t open their own bank account until they reach the age of majority in their state—often 18 years old. Thus, parents often look for other paths, such as opening a sub-account from their own bank account so they can provide their children with a card to use. Even then, your child still must be at least 13 years old before receiving a card.

Unfortunately, these accounts might not come with the custom spending controls, parental oversight, or feature-filled mobile apps provided by many new debit cards for kids. These apps provide numerous controls over your children’s spending, including spending notifications, limiting where your child can use the card, and even allowing you to quickly lock and unlock the card. And in many cases, you simply fund your teen’s debit card, so it effectively functions as a prepaid debit card.

Traditional banks or prepaid debit cards might not allow you to accomplish this beyond maintaining the account balance at a certain level.

What Features Should the Best Debit Cards for Teens Provide?

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Choosing the best debit cards for teens is a balancing act. On the one hand, you

On the one hand, teens need to learn how to manage their money. So you’ll want features such as ATM withdrawal limits, access to your teen’s account for establishing spending controls, lockable cards, and more.

But you also want a debit card your teens will actually want to use. That means limited or no monthly fees or overdraft fees, rewards programs, instant money transfers, direct deposit availability, even a card that allows your child to earn interest—and likely more on top of that.

To help you determine what might matter most when you’re making your decision, here are all of the features you should look for when perusing debit cards that your teen can use.

1. Direct Deposit: If your child’s debit card includes direct deposit, your child’s paycheck will go directly into their account—that beats a paper check that either parents have to handle, or that the kid can immediately go and cash.
2. Mobile App: Generally speaking, mobile apps make it easy to check your account and perform various banking features. For teen debit cards specifically, mobile apps are a parental control center where they can establish controls, limit spend, lock down missing cards, and more. Plus, teen debit cards’ mobile apps also often act as an educational hub where teens can learn more about using money.
3. No Overdraft Fees: Overdraft fees are usually very high and punitive, so a debit card or prepaid card with no overdraft fees is best. Many prepaid debit cards accomplish this by simply declining charges when the bank account carries an insufficient balance.
4. Low monthly fees: Many debit cards for teens require you to pay subscription fees. While that might push away some parents, remember: Sometimes, you get what you pay for. Some free cards can get the job done, and well. But some paid cards offer perks that are well worth the money. Always consider what value-added services you’re getting with a paid debit card—if they’re worth it, then it pays to pay.
5. Parental Controls: This feature represents the biggest difference between teen-specific debit cards and regular cards offered by a traditional bank. Parental controls can vary widely—they can include spending notifications, spending limits, controls on where a child spends, locking and unlocking teen cards, and more.
6. Savings Goals: A savings account is nice. But so-called savings goals (or “pods,” “categories,” etc.) get your teen excited to save by allowing them to customize and track their goals. And many times, they’ll also include features that accelerate savings, such as parent-paid interest or an APY.
7. Investing Features: If you want your teenager to take a big leap in their financial literacy, consider teen banking services that also include investing features. Investing capabilities will vary from one provider to the next—some only allow teens to invest in a handful of prebuilt portfolios made up of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), while others will act similar to a full-fledged brokerage account, enabling them to buy stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, and more.
8. Financial Literacy Tools: On its own, a debit card or bank account can help your teen learn more about their finances. But apps that can actually populate lesson plans and educational videos can do so much more for fostering smarter spending.
9. Round-Ups: If your debit card comes with round-ups, any purchase will be rounded up—typically to the next dollar amount, though some cards have more customizable round-up tools. That excess money is then put back in the teen’s account—usually with other money earmarked for saving or investing. It’s a great sweetener for savers.

Debit Cards for Teens: FAQs

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Can a 13- to 17-year-old have a prepaid debit card?

Banks and credit unions have different policies about the minimum age required for an account holder to open an account and have a connected physical debit card issued. Some financial institutions start at 8, 11, 12, or even as old as 16. Other banks offer cards directly targeting parents with young kids or teens. Always read the rules and restrictions governing how old your teen must be to hold the product.

Related: How Old Do You Have to Be to Have a Debit Card?

Are debit cards for teens safe?

Yes. Teens’ debit cards are generally considered safe because of four major features.

1. FDIC Insurance: Most of these debit cards for teens include an FDIC-insured account, so no matter what happens to the bank, you’ll get your money back. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insurance provides up to $250,000 worth of protection per set of accounts at a single institution to millions of bank account holders across the United States.
2. Security features: Most debit cards have a multitude of security features that protect the card when you have it … and when you don’t. These include EMV microchips, password protection, fingerprint identification, multi-factor authentication (MFA), even factual recognition.
3. Consumer protections: One major advantage to a debit card over cash is it often comes with liability and fraud protection—if someone fraudulently uses your debit card, your financial institution can make you whole. Some cards even offer purchase protections on broken, lost, and stolen goods.
4. You: Believe it or not, you and your teen can do a lot to protect your personal financial information. Adults should teach their teens about several responsibilities when using a debit card, including safeguarding your PIN, storing your card in a safe place, keeping a safe and secure password not containing common words, and not using public wireless access to place purchases on your card.

What documentation do I need to open a debit card for my teen?

The federal government requires these financial services companies to “know” their customers using a specific protocol called “Know Your Customer,” or KYC. This widely used electronic check of identity and information complies with regulatory obligations established by the U.S. Patriot Act of 2001. The process verifies your identity at the time of account sign-up through matching your name, address and date of birth against a public records database like one available through one of the three major credit reporting bureaus.

As for specific info and/or documentation you might need to provide, always make sure to have all of the following available (though some of it might not be required):

Parent:

• Name
• Phone number
• Home address
• Date of birth
• Social Security number
• Government-issued ID

Child:

• Name
• Date of birth
• Social Security number
• Child’s birth certificate

Do teen debit cards offer contactless payments?

As a result of COVID-19, many card providers have accelerated the ability of their cardholders to use contactless payments technology. This includes teens’ and kids’ debit cards. Many of the cards listed in this article may be used for making contactless payments and purchases in stores.