Average allowance by age for kids and teens
Highlights:
- In 2024, the average weekly allowance for kids ages 5-19 was $12.98 for families who use Greenlight.
- Nearly 80% of U.S. parents give their kids an allowance and 64% require them to earn it by doing chores or other tasks.
- Nationally, the mean allowance amount is $19.39 per week, with 35% of parents paying between $11 to $20 a week.
- The majority of families that offer allowance do it to teach the value of earning and managing money.
What is an allowance — and why should kids get an allowance?
An allowance is a recurring amount of money given to kids, typically from their parents or caregivers. Many families use allowance to introduce financial literacy at an early age. Offering kids and teens an allowance can be an effective way to teach them about earning and how to manage money through real-life experiences.
But an allowance doesn’t have to be free spending money. You can use it to teach budgeting, saving, and financial responsibility. Especially when you have the right tools, like Greenlight’s debit card and money app and money app for kids and teens.
With Greenlight, parents decide how an allowance is paid out. You can set the app to pay an allowance based on completing household chores. Or you can wait to enable that feature until you feel your child is ready to learn to manage their own money.
Regardless of how it’s paid out, Greenlight helps kids learn to save, give and invest. Greenlight also helps parents teach them to manage their own money, build smart money habits and meet all their savings goals.
Average allowance for kids and teens
Now that you know where to get started, how do you decide how much allowance to give your kids? That depends on your family situation — or if you’re offering allowance for a specific purpose, like doing household duties or chores.
The national mean is $19.39. But 35% of parents report paying allowance in the range of $11-$20 a week according to T. Rowe Price’s 14th Annual Parents, Kids & Money Survey.
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One popular method is to give $1 for each year of their age per week. If you have a 7-year-old, their allowance would be $7 a week. A 16-year-old would get $16 per week, and so on.
Things to consider before deciding on an allowance amount
National allowance averages are just that – averages based on a broad range of families. When deciding how much allowance to give, think about your unique family circumstances.
Goals - What do you want to achieve? Do your kids want more spending autonomy, a specific item, or do you want to teach them general financial literacy?
Chores - You could pay by individual task or for a schedule of age-appropriate chores.
Incentives - What motivates them? Some parents offer rewards for achieving certain earning or saving milestones.
Budget - Only agree to give what you can afford to fit into your family budget.
Age - You can start a basic allowance as early as age 5 or 6 if you feel your child is ready.
Understanding - How well do they grasp the idea of allowance and the basics of budgeting? Do they have specific money goals and why?
It’s more about purpose than a specific dollar amount. Define what you each want to accomplish with an allowance and build from there.
Greenlight average allowance for kids and teens in 2024
According to Greenlight’s 2024 data, weekly allowance climbed steadily with age. A 5-year-old pocketed just over six dollars a week on average ($6.05), while a 13-year-old earned nearly double at $11.57. Seventeen-year-olds earned an average of $20.87 in weekly allowance — more than three times what the youngest earners got!
Below is the average weekly amount paid by parents to their kids, categorized by age.
Weekly Allowance by Age 2024 - Greenlight Kids & Teens
Age | Allowance |
|---|---|
5 years old | $6.05 |
6 years old | $6.22 |
7 years old | $6.60 |
8 years old | $7.12 |
9 years old | $7.77 |
10 years old | $8.44 |
11 years old | $9.29 |
12 years old | $10.32 |
13 years old | $11.57 |
14 years old | $13.10 |
15 years old | $15.14 |
16 years old | $17.57 |
17 years old | $20.87 |
18 years old | $24.43 |
19 years old | $30.14 |
Greenlight average allowance for kids and teens in 2023
According to data collected in 2023 (YTD as of 05/23/23), Greenlight found that the average weekly allowance for 5-year-olds was $6.04. Meanwhile, the average weekly allowance for 13-year-olds was $13.01. Lastly, at the top end, the average weekly allowance for 17-year-olds was $23.69.
Below is the average weekly amount paid by parents to their kids, categorized by age.
Weekly Allowance by Age 2023 - Greenlight Kids & Teens
Age | Allowance |
|---|---|
5 years old | $6.05 |
6 years old | $6.69 |
7 years old | $7.11 |
8 years old | $7.73 |
9 years old | $8.37 |
10 years old | $9.27 |
11 years old | $10.32 |
12 years old | $11.64 |
13 years old | $13.01 |
14 years old | $14.96 |
15 years old | $17.09 |
16 years old | $20.54 |
17 years old | $23.69 |
18 years old | $29.69 |
19 years old | $34.57 |
Comparing Greenlight’s 2023 and 2024 allowance data, there’s a noticeable decline in weekly earnings for both kids and teens. In 2023, a 6-year-old received an average of $6.69 per week, while in 2024, that amount dropped to $6.22. Similarly, 13-year-olds saw a decrease from $13.01 in 2023 to $11.57 in 2024. While 5-year-olds maintained a steady $6.05 per week in both years, older teens saw a dip as well, with 17-year-olds earning $23.69 in 2023 compared to $20.87 in 2024.
How do kids and teens spend their allowance?
So where does all of the money go? Greenlight kids have the option to spend their money with a custom debit card. When kids spend, they get cash back which automatically goes to savings. They can also save any extra money — or even learn about investing it in the stock market.
In fact, Greenlight kids have already saved more than $225 million collectively. Families have also invested over $10 million. And for the generous kids, Greenlight also offers a ‘Give with Greenlight’ feature where kids can donate to the charities of their choice.
Types of chores – 10 ideas to get started
Here are some of the most popular chores for Greenlight families, plus a few creative ideas to help you get started:
Clean your bedroom
Take care of a pet
Take out the trash
Wash the dishes
Read a book
Practice an instrument
Train or practice a sport
Wash the car
Do laundry
Study for a test
Greenlight tip: Don’t be afraid to get creative with chores. We’ve seen some innovative options ranging from “Make tacos” to “Practice magic.”
Use Greenlight to teach kids and teens financial literacy — with chores and allowances
Connecting chores and allowance can go a long way. Just like Greenlight kids, your kids will learn the importance of saving and investing early and often. They’ll also learn about budgeting and how to allocate their money toward wants and needs. Lastly, if your teens check off chores for dollars, they’ll see that working hard goes a long way. When the time comes for a new job, they’ll be ready to take anything on.
Are chores separate in your family? That’s okay — at Greenlight you don’t have to connect allowance to chores. Just choose a day and decide how and when you’d like their payout to hit.
You can even set it on autopilot for an effortless and consistent routine. Pay them a flat rate and pause at any time. By giving kids the opportunity to handle money on their own, they can practice for a bright financial future.
Now, if you’re ready to onboard your family and try our comprehensive allowance app for kids —Try Greenlight today!
This blog post is provided "as is" and should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional advice. Some content in this post may have been created using artificial intelligence; however, every blog post is reviewed by at least two human editors.
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