Summer’s here, and if you’re like me, you’ve resolved to use this time to finally set up a chore and allowance routine that sticks. Or perhaps you’re just sick of staring at the shapeless blob of teenage limbs permanently adhered to your couch. Whatever your motivation, it’s time to ditch the paper chore chart and explore the many digital tools available. Read on for our collection of the best apps for managing chores and allowances this summer and beyond.
Because we know every family is different, apps were selected based on their flexibility and the ability to customize them to meet your family’s needs. We looked for options that were easy to use and included robust features. User ratings were also taken into consideration to make sure our choices passed the real-world test.
Plans range between $4.99-14.98/month (one-month free trial)
Greenlight is an all-in-one banking and chore-management app that helps kids learn financial literacy skills while earning money for completing chores. It’s highly rated across all device platforms and has three subscription tiers, so you can choose the plan that best fits your family’s needs.
With Greenlight’s robust parental controls, you can choose if you want to tie allowance to chores and set up partial payment for partially completed tasks. Greenlight has a lot of the same chore management options as other apps, but where it really shines is its financial education component.
Because Greenlight is also a banking app, you can get a debit card for your kid so they can learn money management. Depending on the subscription level, kids can also earn between 1-5% cash back deposited into their savings account (cha-ching!). With investment options, money-literacy games, and flexible savings goals, your child will be earning financial wisdom alongside their money. And because it’s linked to your bank account, you can scratch ATM visits off your to-do list.
$2.99 (one-time charge)
iAllowance is a no-frills app that sticks to its lane and does it well. It allows for plenty of flexibility so you can customize your child’s chore and allowance plan for maximum success.
This app is a great choice for families who don’t want to connect a bank account to their allowance app. With buckets for spend, save, and charity, your kids can set goals and watch their money grow.
If your family prefers to keep allowance and chores separate, you can set up alternative rewards such as stars or extra screen time. Rewards can be allocated by amount or percentage, and chores can be set up on daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly intervals. A full slate of preloaded chores will get you started with ideas, or you can add your own custom options.
Standard plan: free
Premium plan: $4.99/month (free trial for 45 days or 450 completed chores, whichever comes first)
S’moresUp goes beyond chores and allowance with a variety of household management tools. It refers to itself as the “Swiss Army knife of parenting” and sets out to make your life easier, from scheduling and chores to allowance and family communication.
S’moresUp is a highly customizable app with an emphasis on collaboration between family members. Chore reminders, chore scheduling, and a shared family calendar will get you organized in no time. Kids earn “S’mores” for completing chores and can cash them out for money or other flexible rewards. The ability to post messages and photos will keep the whole family on the same page. You can also require photo proof that a task has been completed, so you don’t have to check when you arrive home.
Basic plan: free
Premium plan: $19.99/year (7 day free trial)
Chores & Allowance Bot is another highly rated, customizable app that allows for maximum flexibility. And there’s a web version, making it ideal if your kids don’t have devices yet.
You can rotate chores between kids and even set up-for-grabs chores for motivated kids. It also includes features like partial allowance for partial chore completion, customizable savings goals, and chores reminders. Chores can be set on a one-time, daily, weekly, or monthly basis. And while it doesn’t require linking to a bank account, it does have a detailed ledger of transactions so you can help your kids see their progress and track their goals.
Establishing a routine for chores and allowance can feel daunting as parents. But by utilizing an app to help you manage things, you can have an effective system set up in no time.
