"What are you going to buy with it THIS time?" — the line you say every allowance day.

How much allowance for kids? Let them earn it, not just get it.

I said it too — until the day my kid blew a month's allowance on in-app purchases. Instead of getting mad, I changed the setup. I'm a dad of two, and here's the system we actually use at home.

📌 30-second summary

💡 Structure > amountHow you give it matters more than how much

📊 Peers = referenceAverages are a starting point, not a rule

🔁 Let them earnMoney they earn, they don't waste

📊 What kids typically get

A common rule of thumb in the US is about $1 per year of age, per week. Rough ranges:

Age	Typical weekly
🧒 5–8	$3 – $5
👦 9–12	$5 – $10
🧑 13–15	$10 – $20

※ These are just averages. Your family's budget and values come first.

😮‍💨 But the real problem isn't the amount

Blown in one shot on a game, "buy me this" on repeat, no sense of what money is worth. No matter how perfectly you pick the amount, just handing it over doesn't fix that.

😐 Just given

Feels automatic
No sense of value
Impulse spending
No record

🚀 Earned better

Work = reward learned
"I'll save up for it"
Spends carefully
Tracked automatically

🧮 Our formula: small base, earn the rest

💵Basesmall, steady

+

🧹Chore pointsearned

=

🎯What they get

Keep the base small (what they get for being part of the family), and let them earn more through chores when they want something. "Money is the reward for effort" sinks in — without the nagging.

⚠️ One caution

Don't put a price on basic responsibilities (their own room, homework)
Pay for those, and you get "no pay, no work"
Only extra work (dishes, taking out trash) earns points

🔁 How to run it — 4 steps

1

Pick chores + point valuesDishes 100, trash 50 — decide together with your kid

2

Kid reports done → parent approves → paysA parent check between "did it" and "got paid" builds trust

3

Set a savings goal"Nintendo Switch = 5,000 pts" — make the goal visible

4

Pause before spendingA quick "are you sure?" teaches self-control

🎯 Nintendo Switch3,200 / 5,000 pts · 64%

📲 Run it in an app, not on paper

Chores become points, savings goals become progress bars. Kid reports, parent approves, points add up. No ads.

Get FamilyPay on Google Play →

📒 Why paper trackers fail

❌ Everyone forgets to write it down
❌ Parent's and kid's records don't match
❌ "How much do I have?" is unclear, so motivation dies

I tried a paper allowance book too — it lasted a week. Switching to FamilyPay — where parent approvals and the kid's savings live on one screen — made it stick.

🔒 Safe to use

No adsIt's an app kids use

Minimal dataNo phone number or address

Easy startKids use a PIN; only the parent signs up

Built by a dadMy own two kids use it daily

Not a big-company app — just a small one a dad built for his own family. That's why there are no ads and no data-selling. (Privacy Policy)

❓ FAQ

My kid blows it all on in-app purchases

"Don't spend" works less well than "earn it first." Money they worked for, they spend carefully. Set one thing they want as a savings goal, and impulse buys turn into "how much more do I need?"

My younger one cries that they get less than their sibling

Instead of matching amounts, apply the same rule — "everyone earns what they do." Age-appropriate chores and points for each, and it becomes "I can earn it too" rather than "why do they get more?"

Won't paying for chores mean no pay = no work?

That's why you keep basic duties (room, homework) unpaid and only pay for extra work. Don't put a price on the obligations.

Start with just one thing today

Pick one chore, give it a point value. Let the app keep score instead of you nagging.

Get FamilyPay →

Not a fit? Just delete it. No pressure.