What age did you start giving pocket money hand how much?

[broccoliflowers]

Just that :)

My son is 3.5 and become very aware of using pennies from his piggy bank to buy the odd toy he's been desperate for (I've been emptying random piles of dh's change into it for a couple of years )

I feel it needs a little more structure and also to sort of teach the idea of saving up in order to buy something he'd really like.

Just wondering if it's too young? - we are just finding it difficult to constantly argue the toss for toys in supermarkets/ what boundaries there should be (ideally hardly ever getting a toy from a super market). "Run out of pennies today" makes sense to him now.

He's really very good at accepting "maybe for your birthday/ Christmas" except they're 14 days apart so it's a long time to wait! Thinking of asking for Xmas money this year (held back) so he can choose to spend on toys he's moved on to later in the year? Half the things he got for Xmas he has possibly grown out of. (Brio trains) Others he's really into. (Play mobile)

I do cringe at piles of expensive useless plastic too, so to sort of help him learn to value things he really wants rather than tonnes of commercial crap ignores a few paw patrol pups recently acquired

DS1 was about 10. It only really happened because he started to ask for lots of expensive clothes/trainers/xbox games and it was getting a bit ridiculous. He used to ask for toys and things if we went out when he was younger but it was never too bad. He's very good at saving now and only occasionally asks for an advance.
With DS2 (11 months) I'll probably start younger, think it is good for them to learn to save and think about what they really want.

Forgot to say DS1 got £10 a week at 10, he's 12 now and gets £12 a week.

Started when dd1 turned 7. She's now 8.5 and gets £2 a week paid monthly onto her Osper card. My dad also lets her take a handful out of his change jar for good behaviour etc every once in a while and last handful was over £20!

I'm interested in the answers to this thread. We haven't yet started pocket money: older child is 6, younger is 4.

For those of you giving pocket money to siblings, did you start giving both / all siblings at the same time? Or did the younger ones have to wait until they reached a particular age? I can see both options having pros and cons.

I asked this I another group actually and got a wide range of responses.

I'm a teacher and have been thinking about more of the links to maths actually.

I'm not keen to link it to 'chores' as I think it should be normal not conditional that basic things are done eg tidying etc. No-one pays me to tidy the house! But I guess he could earn extra when he's older eg washing the car.

A good response elsewhere was "as soon as they're aware of money" - which seems totally logical!

We are going to start it at a pound a week (see how it goes and maybe raise to 2 when he's 4). He's already learning the worth of items eg that a kinder egg is a pound (didn't want to waste his money on it then!)

For me a big reason to start this is the amount of stuff he keeps asking for. For example gazing at a playmobil leaflet. We live in a town with lots of shops, museums etc. In his mind he won't equate or compare the cost amount of an exciting toy to another cheaper treat such as a £1.99 paw patrol football, which Daddy bought yesterday. I think once he realises the toys are £14 it will help to understand why he can't buy them all the time.

I have no issue buying the odd nice treat such as something from a museum visit, or magazine etc. But I think it's good for him to understand about budgeting and saving if he's starting to underhand we hand over money to get things.

Pinpon an answer I was given elsewhere for this was that the younger got less until they realised they were getting less. I guess the toys they want aren't necessarily any cheaper than what the older one wants.

My parents gave us the same with a 3 year age gap. I know I got an 'allowance' when I was 16, I can't remember if my sister got it at the same time or had to wait though.

Dd is 4, she doesn't get regular pocket money but gets little bits if she helps out with extra chores.

I was driven to pocket money by the constant requests too. And then I found that cash was going into her piggy bank and she never had any on her when we were out. So I would sub her and forget to get it back. Hence the Osper which I keep on me all the time. And she forgets to spend it which means saving up for bigger things is easier for her and means more beanie boos in the house I don't give 4.5yo dd2 pocket money yet but my dad gives her some every so often but she hasn't really got a clue and half the time puts it in dd1's piggy bank!

DS2 is only 11 months so hopefully DS1 will be out earning his own money before we have to pay a second lot of pocket money
We don't link to chores to get the money but I have occasionally threatened to take money away for moaning/rudeness. Normally works pretty quick.