6 top Greenlight card alternatives for teens and kids
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Greenlight is an award-winning, all-in-one money app and debit card for kids and teens. Its innovative platform helps parents teach money management safely, with parental spend controls, purchase approvals, and automated chores and allowance tools. Kids learn to earn and save with savings rewards¹, fun games, and a cool investing for kids³ feature.
The family debit card space is crowded, though, with many companies offering similar basics. So which one's right for your family? Here's a quick look at the details, prices, pros, and cons of some of the top Greenlight card alternatives for teens and kids to help you make an informed decision.
Top 6 Greenlight card alternatives
Acorns Early (formerly GoHenry)
BusyKid
Capital One
Famzoo
Venmo for teens
Modak Makers
1. Acorns Early (formerly GoHenry)
Monthly fee
$5/mo. for one child
$10/mo. for 2 to 4 kids
Features
Debit card for kids 6 to 18
Chores and allowance tool, customizable by age
Parent-paid interest
Parental money controls
Comprehensive financial literacy library
Highlights
Acorns Early offers core features like a debit card, allowance automation, chore assignments, and basic parental controls. It's popular with many families for its comprehensive financial literacy section and a large menu of personalized card options.
Priced only $1 apart, Greenlight and Acorns Early each include the debit card, allowance, and chores tools. But Acorns Early doesn't offer the savings incentives¹ or cash back² that Greenlight does – which can help grow more wealth over time.
Acorns Early also lacks enhanced safety options, so it's less flexible if your needs change. With Greenlight, you can upgrade to benefits like location sharing, SOS alerts, crash detection, and driving reports4. You always have the option to upgrade (or downgrade) to fit your priorities.
With a debit card of their own, kids and teens learn to spend wisely, keep an eye on balances, and track their spending. Big money dreams? Set savings goals and start investing with as little as $1 — with your approval on every trade.
2. BusyKid
Monthly fee
$48 per year, billed annually
Features
Debit card for kids 5 to 17
Chore chart and tracking, set by age
Allowance management, set by age
Investing for kids
Charity donation options
Bonus payout
Parental matching on child savings
Parental money control, approval, and activity monitoring
BusyPay money sending
Highlights
BusyKid offers a prepaid Visa debit card through its money management app, which includes automated chores and allowance, savings and parental matching, and investment tools.
Both digital money management apps come with standard features like a debit card for kids, allowance and chore tracking, and investing basics. But signing up for Greenlight gives you access to more features beyond the basics, like granular parental spending controls, custom photo cards, family location sharing, SOS alerts, and drive reports4, making Greenlight an all-in-one app for families.
For a basic money management app that includes investing for kids, BusyKid may fit the bill. But if you want more features and flexibility, like family location sharing, crash detection, drive reports4, and granular parental money controls in addition to money management and investing³, Greenlight might work better for your family.
3. Capital One Teen Checking
Monthly fee
None
Features
Debit card for kids ages 8 and up
Access to Capital One's mobile app for account management
Interest-earning on any balance amount
Teen savings goals
Parent allowance transfers
Parent account monitoring
Fraud protection
Highlights
With Capital One's free, online-only checking account for teens, a parent or guardian jointly owns the checking account, and teens access their accounts through the Capital One app. You can deposit checks, set savings goals, and make purchases with a debit card.
While there are no monthly service fees, CapitalOne can access kids' data, and the app lacks more robust safety, investing, and financial literacy tools.
Ultimately, Capital One Teen Checking is a basic checking account. Greenlight is an all-in-one money management and safety app tailored specifically for families.
Capital One Teen Checking may work for families seeking a simple, no-fee account for their teens. However, if you value advanced features like financial education opportunities, investing tools³, robust safety features, and parental controls, Greenlight may be the better option.
When kids start investing early, they have the chance to grow their money as they save toward all their future goals. New car. College education. First apartment. You name it.
4. FamZoo
Monthly fee
$5.99/mo. or $59.90 annually
Features
Debit card for kids
Chore and allowance checklist
Spend, save, give accounts
Scheduled and instant transfers
Payment splits
Real-time activity alerts
Parent-paid interest
Family billing
Informal loan repayment tracking
Highlights
FamZoo's prepaid debit cards include a parent-loading card alongside cards for your kids and IOU accounts that track money parents hold elsewhere. The no-frills app consists of a family billing system where parents can "charge” kids for shared expenses like cell phone bills or track money borrowed with a parent-defined interest rate.
When deciding which debit card for kids to use, think about what makes the most sense for your family. FamZoo offers a solid basic money management app plus tools like family billing and loan repayment. But, if you’re looking for more robust features like investment tools³, family location sharing, crash detection, drive reports4, and granular parental money controls in addition to money management, Greenlight offers a more flexible, comprehensive suite of options.
5. Venmo for teens
Monthly fee
None
Features
Debit card for teens 13 to 17
Parental account monitoring
No-cost cash withdrawals at in-network ATMs
Early access direct deposit
Fast money transfers
Works wherever Mastercard is accepted
Highlights
Teens and their parents can apply for a free teen debit card and a teen Venmo account. The teen account is a simplified version of an adult Venmo account, allowing teens to securely send and receive money to friends and family. Parents have complete oversight of their teen’s spending — teen account balances can be monitored from the parent Venmo app and parents can lock their teen's debit card at any time plus receive notifications on spending activity.
But, one thing to note is that Venmo's teen offerings don't include a savings account feature — or other money management tools common with other prepaid teen debit cards.
If you just want an easy way to keep track of your teen’s spending and accounts, the Venmo teen debit card and account is a good option to consider. However, Greenlight may be the better choice for families wanting a more comprehensive app that teaches smart saving and spending habits and investing fundamentals³ while maintaining parental control over your child’s accounts. You can also upgrade for expanded family safety features like location sharing and driving reports4.
6. Modak Makers
Monthly fee
None for basic features
Features
Debit card for kids and teens
Customizable parental controls
Financial literacy tools and educational content
Chore and allowance management
Savings goals and rewards
Parental oversight on spending and saving
Highlights
Modak Makers offers a free money management app and debit card for kids and teens. There is savings and spending tracking, chore management, and allowance-based earnings. However, you will pay fees to transfer money, and parental spending controls are limited. Modak Makers is a good choice for families looking for a simple way to teach kids money management through tracking spending, savings, and allowance-based earnings.
Choosing between Greenlight vs. Modak Makers comes down to a cost vs. value consideration. Greenlight offers extensive financial tools, investing options³, and advanced safety features that can grow with your kids as they become teens. But if you prefer a pared-down approach to debit cards for kids and chore/allowance management with no ongoing monthly fees, Modak Makers may be the better pick.
How to choose the right family money app and debit card for kids
It comes down to your family's unique dynamic and needs. Which features do your kids need most? As parents and caregivers, what perks and tools will help you most? Here are a few things to consider when making the choice.
Parental convenience and oversight controls
Flexible parental spend controls
Savings goals
Automated allowance
Chore incentives and task lists
Safety and security features
FDIC insurance for the funds underlying pre-paid debit cards
Strict COPPA adherence (personal information protection)
Location sharing4
Driving reports and SOS alerts4
Earning and growth opportunities
Cash back²
Savings rewards¹
Parent-provided interest
Parent-controlled investing for beginners³
Engaging educational tools
Chores and allowance automation
Games and interactive features
Financial literacy resources that foster smart money management skills
If you only need a basic debit card for kids and teens, a free prepaid card is a good place to start. If you want a kids' debit card with more parental controls and financial literacy tools that teach kids how to earn, save, spend, and invest long-term, consider one of the fee-based family money apps.
Whichever end of the spectrum you decide, you want to protect your kids and your family's money. As you compare debit cards, look for these critical basics and valuable extras.
Both you and your kids download the Greenlight app — with tailored experiences. They check off chores, you automate allowance. They spend wisely, you set flexible controls. They build healthy financial habits, and you cheer them on.
The bottom line
These Greenlight alternatives deliver similar core features (e.g., pre-paid debit card, parent funding, allowance automation). Where they differ is in price, features, and overall value.
If you just want a basic debit card for kids and teens, one of these free or lower monthly fee providers may be right for you. But there's much more to building lifelong money management skills than opening an account.
Robust family money apps like Greenlight can make life easier for parents by teaching – and protecting – kids and teens while they gain financial independence. For a few bucks a month, Greenlight delivers an invaluable toolkit of rich features, perks, and capabilities that similarly priced apps don't offer, including:
Up to 5% on savings¹
Up to 1% cash back²
Customizable parent controls like category and store-specific spending limits
Schedule chores and approve task-related payments
Automatic allowance payments
Divide funds between spending, giving, and saving
Investing for beginners w/parent controls and low $1 bid options³
In-app financial literacy game, Level Up™
Learning Center blog and expert resources
Advanced safety features like location tracking, driving reports, crash detection4, and phone5, purchase, and identity theft protection
Greenlight maxes out on benefits, flexibility, safety, and real-time personal finance education. Greenlight is perfect for kids, younger tweens, and teens who will benefit from hands-on saving, spending, and money management skills with a parental safety net.
Join Greenlight. One month, risk-free.†
Plans start at just $5.99/month for the whole family. Includes up to five kids.
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