Your child may be expecting a raise soon.
Children between the ages of 4 and 14 years old got an average of $471 a year or $9.06 per week in allowance in 2018, up 3.7% on the year before, according to a sampling of more than 30,000 kids by chore-tracking app RoosterMoney. (That’s higher than roughly 3% annual wage increase given to the average American worker last year — not accounting for inflation.)
That includes an average of $58 in cash gifts for Christmas. And kids are better at saving than adults, the survey showed, saving 42% of it compared to 2.4% of adults, according to RoosterMoney. Of course, they have less overheads.
Here are the top earning chores:
1. Washing the car: $4.60
2. Gardening: $4.34
3. Cleaning their bedroom: $2.71
4. Mopping the floor: $2.33
5. Cleaning the bathroom: $1.82
6. Cleaning the kitchen: $1.72
7. Vacuuming: $1.52
8. Helping with dinner: $1.52
9. Dusting: $1.52
10. Looking after pets: $1.48
The numbers come as more parents are focusing on the importance of teaching children sound financial skills, a recent study published by San Francisco Edelman Financial Engines found. Some 89% of parents believe it is “extremely important” that their kids grow up with good financial habits, but nearly half (49%) say they do not know how to discuss finances with their kids.
Incorporating chores and allowance is a good way to start, said Will Charmichael, the CEO of RoosterMoney. “The New Year is a great time to kick-start things with an allowance and saving routine to encourage your kids to make considered choices about how they use their money,” he said.
Parents should ensure they are offering children equal opportunity to take on high-paying chores so they can earn a fair amount compared to their siblings, or you may risk perpetuating the gender gap. Boys ages 5 to 7 years old earn 50% more in weekly allowance than girls a June 2018 study from app BusyKid found.
There are other ways to teach kids finances outside of chores: the classic piggy bank method, which can be upgraded to a more modern ATM and board games like Monopoly or Dave Ramsey’s financial education game for kids. Books are also an accessible way to teach kids finance, said Ric Edelman, financial adviser and writer of a new children’s book “The Squirrel Manifesto,” which he co-authored with his wife.
“Unfortunately, many parents think personal finance refers to the stock market,” Jean Edelman, his wife, added. “In fact, the most important aspects of money have nothing to do with investing.”
“It’s easy to teach good money habits at very young ages,” he said.
