How much allowance should a kid get, by age?
There's no official standard, but there is a common rule of thumb parents and financial educators have used for years: 50 cents to $1 per week for every year of age. A 7-year-old gets $3.50–$7 a week. A 13-year-old gets $6.50–$13. It's a starting point, not a law — here's how to use it.
The rule-of-thumb table
| Age | Weekly range ($0.50–$1 × age) | Monthly equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | $2.50–$5 | ~$11–$22 |
| 6 | $3–$6 | ~$13–$26 |
| 7 | $3.50–$7 | ~$15–$30 |
| 8 | $4–$8 | ~$17–$35 |
| 9 | $4.50–$9 | ~$20–$39 |
| 10 | $5–$10 | ~$22–$43 |
| 11 | $5.50–$11 | ~$24–$48 |
| 12 | $6–$12 | ~$26–$52 |
| 13 | $6.50–$13 | ~$28–$56 |
| 14 | $7–$14 | ~$30–$61 |
| 15 | $7.50–$15 | ~$33–$65 |
| 16 | $8–$16 | ~$35–$69 |
| 17 | $8.50–$17 | ~$37–$74 |
Want a personalized number instead of a table? Try the allowance-by-age calculator — it adjusts for what the money needs to cover.
What pushes you to the low or high end
The wide range exists because families expect allowance to do very different jobs. Three questions settle where you land:
- What does it have to cover? If allowance is just for toys and treats, the low end works. If your 14-year-old is expected to pay for movie tickets, snacks with friends, and part of their own clothes, that's a high-end (or above-range) budget — and that's fine, because the money was leaving your pocket anyway.
- What's your cost of living? $10 goes further in rural Ohio than in San Francisco. The rule of thumb was coined in cheaper times and cheaper places; adjust without guilt.
- How many kids? Three kids at the top of the range adds up to a real line item. Consistency across siblings matters more than the exact dollar figure — kids compare.
Flat allowance vs. pay-per-chore
The other big decision is how the money is earned. Both models have real trade-offs:
A flat weekly amount is predictable and easy to run. Its teaching strength is budgeting — a kid who gets the same $8 every week quickly learns what happens when it's gone by Thursday. The weakness: there's no built-in link between work and money.
Pay-per-chore creates that link directly — no work, no pay. The weakness shows up the day your kid decides they'd rather skip $3 than mow the lawn, or starts negotiating payment for every small favor. Many families end up on a hybrid: a modest flat amount, plus a short list of extra paid jobs. (More on that split in paid vs. unpaid chores.)
When to move from cash to a real debit card
Cash is perfect for the early years — physical bills make "spend vs. save" concrete in a way an app balance never will for a 6-year-old. But cash stops keeping up somewhere between ages 10 and 13 for most families. The signs:
- Your kid wants to buy things online or in games, and cash can't do it.
- They're out with friends and you're handing over bills at the door anyway.
- You keep forgetting payday, and a card with automated allowance would just fix it.
- They're ready to practice checking a balance before spending — a skill you want built before 18, not after.
When that moment comes, the kids debit card finder lets you compare cards by age, monthly fee, and features like chores and parental controls — including free options from major banks.
Related tools
- Allowance-by-age calculator — get a weekly number tailored to your kid's age and what it covers.
- Kids debit card finder — compare cards when cash stops keeping up.
- Paid vs. unpaid chores — decide which jobs belong on the paid list.