Let’s talk pocket money with Money Advice Service

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Navigating the world of pocket money can be a little tricky, especially since the rules are always changing. However it can also be for many children their first introduction to the concept of money and how to deal with it. That’s why in aid of ‘Talk Money Week’, Money Advice Service would love to hear all your thoughts, experiences and tips when it comes to pocket money.

Here’s what Money Advice Service has to say: “Children learn about money earlier than you’d think: by the age of 7 children have begun to form money habits. That’s why it’s never too early to start teaching them where money comes from and how to handle it. Giving pocket money – no matter how little – is one way to help children's’ money skills."

How much pocket money do you give your child/children? Do you set up a system where they can earn more if they do chores or do well in school? What about what they can spend it on? Are there any limitations or do you try encourage them to save it for something big? How much pocket money did you get when you were a child? And what age do you think it’s appropriate to start giving them pocket money?

Tell us everything about pocket money on the thread below to be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw
MNHQ

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We have given pocket money to our three who are now 12, 9 and 7 for 3 years.
They all get the same, £5 a week however that can be reduced or increased depending on behaviour and chores. They are expected to put their dishes in the kitchen and keep their rooms tidy but other jobs such as dishes or the eldest asks to help with the ironing earns extra money. Kind deeds have earned them bonuses too such as looking after each other, being selfless etc.

The youngest tends to blow her money on cheap plastic toys every week but the older 2 boys save theirs. Ds (9) likes to scour gumtree for deals on nerf guns. The eldest saves his for computer games.
It's coming up to their Dads birthday and all three have been saving to buy him a giant 4.5kg toblerone (he has a bit of a sweet tooth).

I think it does teach them about saving and being responsible, if there's something they want they know they have to save for it themselves.

Forgot to add, we didn't get pocket money when we were small but there was 5 of us! We got treats every now and again.

My DD is only 3 but we play the shop game with coins; she understands the concept of buying things for money and that money isn’t infinite or that you can afford anything you want so that’s a good start!

Pocket money will be given in exchange for small chores as she gets older.

Pocket money is a bit hit and miss but when they are old enough I pay it by automatic bank transfer into a bank account I help them to set up which saves me having to remember and teaches them to budget.

When dc were 7/8 we had a star chart system - 25p for the things on the chart that were done (eg music practice properly without being reminded) and bonuses for eg getting everything right in the weekly spelling test at school. The sanction was 25p off for "sad faces" for being rude etc.

Now they are teenagers they earn money babysitting etc so rather than giving them an allowance we offer to match savings for certain items eg go-pro etc. We also keep a small amount of cash they can raid for things we don't think they should have to spend their money on like emergency san-pro, basic toiletries etc but which they can be a bit self conscious about asking DH to put on the weekly shopping list.

Mine (DS12 and DD8) get £5 a week into their Go Henry accounts. They have to do a few chores to make sure they get the whole £5. They are then allowed to spend it on pretty much what they want. They can save into a separate area on the website if there is something specific they want to save for. It's great when we are out and about as if they ask for stuff then I say they can if they have the money on their cards. DS has his linked to his PS4 too so pays his subscription and any online stuff from there. I found that I never had any change for pocket money so although there are charges for Go Henry it works for us

What about what they can spend it

I give mine a pound for each year of their age, per week starting at age 4. They can spend it or save it and we talk about the value of saving for something big vs spending it all on one piece of tat. When I was little I got 2 pounds a week from about age 5 which went up 50p per year after that and I spent most of it on sweets and cat books 😂

Sorry didn't mean that first part!

DC aged 7 & 9 get £3 per week. Criteria is behaviour, manners and general stuff like tidied away toys. They save it and are allowed to buy things once they've saved enough (usually a book, magazine, small toy ). They get extra for a good school report too or if they've gone over and above the norm like helping out without being asked.
We've done this for about 12 months now so they can learn about saving and being patient mainly. It's also something they have control over. DD much better at saving than DS 😊

We don't give the kids pocket miney because we never know when we will have money and would feel terrible not giving it if it was expected. Instead, our kids can ask for money anytime and if we have it and the reason is good they can have it. We buy stuff they like when we are out together if it is something tbey really want and have done chores etc. We make sure they have money for trips with school and friends.

If thry do extra chores they can earn some money if they want to... usually v bucks for their fortnite games.

My children get £3 each per week and we keep a tally in a special book (we don't actually give them the money at this stage). They decide what toy/special thing they want and then they save towards it. Once they have saved enough pocket money, then they get to the shop and buy it themselves.

we dont do pocket money as the boys(14,7)get high rate dla so what ever they want or need we just get as thats what the money for

My parents tried to teach me and my sister about money from a young age. We got a set amount each week, around £5, but we were told to save half and we could spend half. Every once in a while mum would ask to collect the half we’d meant to have saved and she’d go and pay it it into our individual building society accounts. I always gave mine, which I’d kept separate from my spending half, but my sister would have nothing as she’d spent it all. All these years later and we have the same attitude towards money, I am a careful saver and she spends everything she has.

Now with my own children, my husband and I decided not to give a weekly set amount of pocket money, but the kids can earn money by doing extra chores. We have set chores that everyone must do, as it’s just part of being part of a family, everyone chips in. But if they do extra, they get paid. So DD for example has to keep her room tidy, put dirty clothes in the laundry basket, help put her clean clothes away, set the table for dinner. But if she wants to buy something, she will do extra chores like unloading the dishwasher, dusting, things that are not on her list. Then she can save and buy what she likes (within reason).

Hopefully they’ll have a healthy attitude towards money as they grow up, that if you want something, you work to earn it. But there are also some things that you just have to do regardless. I don’t want them to think that they should get paid for every little thing, that’s why they still have chores regardless of money, so they know if we want to live in a nice home we all have to help keep it that way. We also don’t give money as a reward for school work. We try to just encourage having a good education because it benefits them, we don’t want to confuse things by saying “if you study hard and get a certain mark on the test you’ll get money”. We want them to do their best because if they get a good education they can do whatever they want when they grow up, the world is their oyster type thing.

I have 2 children, 5 and 12. Youngest is really helpful and keen to do chores so usually when she's offered to do something, we give her a pound. Oldest has pocket money which is a monthly £60 from grandparents and we use this as a incentive to do chores, emptying dishwasher, tidying room etc or money gets deducted and sent back to grandparents. My youngest also gets pocket money from grandparents. If my oldest is saving for something big and wants to earn more we will give him money for extra chores, cleaning the cars, sweeping leaves, pulling weeds or hoovering etc earns between 1 and 5 pound.

Pocket money starts in Year 1 here. 50p a week then goes up 50p a week each year. 10 year old currently on £3.50 a week, 7 year old on £2 a week. 10 year old has £1 a week deducted to pay towards his Xbox live membership.

To get the full amount they have to put all washing in the basket and take all dishes out when they have finished. If they don't do these things money gets deducted (they do still require reminding, frequently). I've also introduced bedroom had to be tidy by the end of Sunday for them to get it as they are absolute tips and I'm fed up of it.

If they do anything extra like car washing or some weeding, they can earn extra.

I do encourage them to save. DD is pretty good at not spending. DS is a fritterer and will constantly buy a car and have nothing left. We did introduce him saving £1 a week which he was good at and kept too without being reminded but since he gets £1 taken for Xbox live membership, he doesn't save that £1. He has just saved up for a headset for his Xbox.

I like the concept of having pocket money from a young age to teach about earning, not getting something for nothing and saving for something that you really want.

I feel quite mean after reading about the amount of pocket money other children get.

My eldest children are 10 and 6 and can earn pocket money through doing chores. Payments range from 10p for putting the recycling out, to 50p for hoovering all the downstairs rooms in our house.

My older two are 6 and 8 and have been getting £1 a week since the age of 5. It started as my eldest became quite demanding whenever we went shopping, wanting things bought for him. By giving him some control, we could say, you can buy it yourself if you like, and it made him consider whether it was something he actually did want. They aren’t allowed to buy sweets but other than that can buy what they want. They tend to save it and buy big things. We use Rooster Money now after my eldest lost his wallet with £20 in it, so they don’t get the real cash, which I often think might not be the right thing as they don’t see the physical coins and notes. But it also means we don’t have arguments about whether or not they had their £1 this week, and don’t risk losing any.

I didn't get pocket money when I was young. Maybe 10p here and there and £5 to go to town when I was a teenager. My kids got 50p a week from about age 6 with extra for some chores. It became a bit harder to track as they got older and they wanted money for games/cinema etc and asking for more extras. Gohenry worked exceptionally for us as it got them used to using a card and choosing between saving and spending. I set it at £4 a week and then topped up by small amounts depending on chores done on the list. I pay £10 each a month topping up their phones. A bank account with card would have been cheaper (and gained interest!) but the customer service has been brilliant. Whenever one of them had a problem using a card while they were in town with their mates I could sort it out over the phone. Text alerts tell you where they are and what they've spent. Now they're getting older they are going to switch to a proper bank account but I will miss being able to keep an itemised track of everything. They are going to get part time jobs to top up their allowance when they're 15.

3 and 5 year old get £1 per week. There are no limitations on what they can spend it on but we have tried to explain that buying cheap things every other week means they cannot save for something more expensive. 5 year old rarely buys anything so always has loads saved, 3 year old usually manages around £6-7 before he gets too excited to spend it!

It is lovely when we are out and they want something, then decide that they will save their pocket money for something else. It has saved me from having hundreds of arguments in toy shops!

My 2 DSs get £1 per week, in exchange for setting the table and letting out the chickens in the morning. They are encouraged to save this in their piggy bank until an important occassion. My DD gets £11 per week, for clearing the table and keeping her bedroom tidy. With this she meets her friends in town at a weekend and she has to budget to purchase data for her mobile phone. She must always have data on her phone so that she can contact me.

DS 7 gets £8 a month. It started off as £5 when he was 5 and has increased as he is expected to do more around the house. He has a handful of chores (fold away/hang his clothes, set the table for dinner, make his bed are a few) and he has to do a few things he wasn't doing (turning off lights, putting his empty cup away) so the money is a reminder and incentive to do those.

We took him to the bank when he was 6 and opened up a children's saving account. He asks every now and then how much is in it and when we're in town he will often spend some of his money on a computer game or a book. He likes to save it though, not for anything in particular at the moment.

I never received pocket money as child, nor had to do anything around the house, so I feel like we are teaching DS a good lesson in earning and saving money as well what it takes to keep a house tidy.

DD is 9.
She gets £2 per week pocket money.
She gets an extra £1 if she looks after her guinea pigs (cleaning and feeding).
An extra 10p per music practice.
An extra 10p per day for being ready on time for school.
Negotiated extra for jobs or good behaviour.

10p removed every time she’s late for school unless it’s not her fault.

She’s allowed to spend it on anything she likes, or to save it and she usually spends it on a magazine or saves it.

When I was a child, I got 25p a week if there was enough family money to allow it. There often wasn’t.

By the time they're 7 most children can cope with a small weekly amount (£1 or £2) and begin to realise that saving is often better than spending it immediately.
A monthly amount into a bank account can back this up for when, inevitably, they ask for a particular item or outing. This way they understand the joy of saving!

1 pound a week unconditional....the odd pound for helping with gardening in the summer.

I am locked in constant battle with DD (7 yo) because of her various money making schemes....she has also recently conducted her own market research (asking her friends) then summarily cherry picked the results to make her case.

I think introducing her to pocket money as a concept has corrupted her soul and she will end up becoming a politician!

I will put £1/ week in his bank account including backdated to birth (setting up the account soon), he's 8 months old now, so when he's about 4 he can buy his first proper bike and start understanding about using money for toys, activities etc. I'll introduce basic tasks like tidying his room, washing up etc at appropriate ages, but no idea what those are yet.