Top 10 reasons why your kids need the Greenlight app

Greenlight is all about helping parents raise financially-smart kids, which starts by providing them with opportunities to make smart decisions about their money. As parents, we understand the importance of money knowledge. The Greenlight app introduces those opportunities and sparks natural conversations between parents and kids.

1. The Greenlight app and debit card for kids

With Greenlight’s help, you can teach your kids to earn, save and invest. More than a kids’ and teens’ money app, Greenlight offers products for all of your family’s needs. 

One of Greenlight’s most exciting products is our debit card for kids. That’s right, kids and teens get their own spending cards. Their name goes on the card, and even their own picture (if you choose to customize it for a fee). Talk about making them feel extra special.

Kids will also get their own in-app experience while parents get a Parent's Wallet, keeping balances private and secure. Parents or guardians can transfer money from their Parent's Wallet into their kid’s money account in real-time. 

Kids can then choose to spend, save or propose to invest their dollars. Kids and teens can also check and manage their balances right from their devices. And parents can make sure they’re using their money on a budget with parental controls and real-time notifications.

Greenlight tip: We recommend setting time to talk with your kids about debit cards and why people use them. Convenience, safety and security. Check, check and check. 

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At Greenlight, we put safety first. Your kid’s debit card is as secure as can be, while your money is FDIC insured up to $250,000. 

2. A chores app with allowance for kids

Want your kids to chore more? Greenlight lets you manage chores and monitor progress. Kids can use the Greenlight app to check off chores and get chore reminders. You can celebrate their wins by giving them an allowance — or not. Completely up to you.

Kids can learn to take on responsibility when you customize their chores. Choose recurring chores, like making the bed, or one-time chores, like donating clothes. 

Parents can also choose when their kids are paid. Pick a day and decide how often you’d like their payout to hit. The best part? It's automatic. Set it on autopilot, sit back and watch them chore more. 

And with allowance allocation, kids can divvy up their earnings between Spending, Savings and Giving. Yep, that’s right. Kids choose where their money is going. 

Not a chores type of family? That’s OK. Greenlight lets you use allowance on its own. Set their allowance to pay out weekly, biweekly or monthly — without tying it to chores. 

3. Set Saving Goals and Parent-Paid Interest

Saving for short and long-term goals can be challenging, especially when the satisfaction of taking a full piggy bank to the local teller is a figment of banking past. Did you know? Greenlight kids save 3x more than the national average. That’s because Greenlight families are always encouraged to start money conversations and provide kids with real-world scenarios to encourage saving.

With the help of Greenlight's Savings Goals, we’ve made it easier for you to empower your kids to establish healthy, lifelong financial habits. Your kids can create Savings Goals to save for specific purposes — like a new bike, phone, game, or trip!

And when kids save, Greenlight rewards them. In fact, kids can earn up to 3% on their Savings balances with Greenlight Savings Reward when they’re on a Greenlight Max plan.* 

While we reward them for saving, parents can monitor and make decisions with parental controls. This way, you can be involved in the money conversations that matter most — continue to save or spend their hard-earned money? You help them decide.

Kids can also watch their savings grow when parents add Parent-Paid Interest. With Parent-Paid Interest, you have the opportunity to set and pay an interest rate of your choice from 1-100% to reward saving, with growth at a much faster pace than a traditional bank account. 

This will show your kids how their money grows each month when they make responsible saving decisions. Bet your old piggy bank couldn’t do that. 🐷

4. Spend and get cash back

As much as we love to save it, we also love to spend it. Especially when we get cash back. Yep, that’s right. Kids get 1% cash back on every purchase when they’re enrolled in a Greenlight Max plan.*

The 1% cash back gets automatically deposited into your kid’s money account, so they don’t (ever) forget about their money goals. Yeah, we know — sounds too good to be true. But it’s not. It gets better.

5. Invest with Greenlight’s investing platform

Enter Greenlight’s investing platform for kids — and parents! At Greenlight, we know investing is the key to building long-term wealth. That’s why our investment platform for kids gives them the chance to learn in a safe environment, with you by their side.

When you open a Greenlight investment account, your kids will be able to research stocks and ETFs then propose trades. And with fractional shares, you can start investing together with as little as $1.

6. Teens 13+ can earn with Greenlight

Does your teen want to earn some extra cash? Now they can — right from their phone. Teens 13+ can refer friends with their unique referral links and earn cash rewards. The more friends they share Greenlight with, the more they’ll earn!

(P.S. — Parents can earn referral rewards, too!) Ready to start earning? Join Greenlight to start collecting cash rewards today.

7. Set up direct deposit for your teens

Direct deposit automatically places teens' hard-earned paychecks into their Greenlight money accounts. This makes it easy for them to use their Greenlight card as soon as they get paid. It’s convenient, safe, secure, and saves everyone a trip to the bank.

8. Use parental controls to set spending limits

We’re better than your average prepaid debit cards. What sets us apart? Parents are always in the driver's seat with ATM controls and real-time spending notifications.

Kids have their own debit cards and can send money requests, but parents are always the approvers. Get notified when they’re close to hitting their spending limit and track the categories your kids are spending the most on.

9. Educational content. Right in the app.

Did you know? 93% of teens believe they need financial knowledge and skills to achieve their life goals, and 97% of parents agree. Empower teens with Greenlight’s financial content.

Find videos, quizzes and other educational content in the Greenlight app. It’s made to be engaging and fun for the family — so you can navigate the world of financial literacy together.

10. Get started with an easy set-up process

Now that you know why your kids need the Greenlight app — are you ready to get started? One of our favorite things about Greenlight is how easy it is to onboard your kids and teens. After creating a parent account, you’ll be able to complete your kid’s profile in a few simple steps. 

If your little one doesn’t have a cellphone, it’s no problem. They can use a username and password to log in. And any app-enabled device will do — iPhone, Android, iPad, Kindle, you name it! If you’re ready to put real-world money lessons right in their hands, you can sign up for Greenlight today.

*Greenlight Max families can earn monthly rewards of 3% per annum on an average daily savings balance of up to $5,000 per family and 1% cash back on spending monthly. To qualify, the Primary Account must be in Good Standing and have a verified ACH funding account. See Greenlight Terms of Service for details. Subject to change at any time.