Reviewed by the Penny Time editorial team
Part of our Allowance hub.
Top 7 Greenlight Alternatives in 2026: A Parent's Honest Comparison
Greenlight charges $5.99 to $19.98 per month for a kids debit card and chore tracker. That is a real cost for families, and the feature set is not always worth it. I have spent the last year testing every major competitor, paying real subscription fees, and watching how my own kids (ages 8 and 12) actually use these apps. This is the honest comparison the affiliate sites will not write, because none of these links pay us a commission.
One big shift in 2026: GoHenry quietly sunset its US brand and folded into Acorns Early. The old gohenry.com US blog now returns a 403 error, and parents who signed up before the transition got migrated automatically. Most roundup articles still list GoHenry as a separate product. It is not. If you see GoHenry recommended anywhere for US families in 2026, that article is stale.
The free alternative most lists skip
Penny Time covers automatic allowance and a tracked balance with no monthly fee, free for the whole family.
The 7 best Greenlight alternatives in 2026
1. Acorns Early (formerly GoHenry US)
Acorns Early absorbed GoHenry's US customer base in late 2025. The card and chore features survived the transition. The price is $8 per month for up to four kids on the Acorns Early Lite plan, or free with an Acorns Gold subscription at $12 per month. Investing was added in the Acorns merger, which is the biggest functional gain over old GoHenry. The app feels less polished than Greenlight, and the chore interface is the weakest of the seven I tested. Best for: families who want investing plus a card without paying Greenlight prices. Ages 6 to 18.
2. BusyKid
BusyKid runs $4 per month flat for the whole family, which is the cheapest paid option here. The chore system is the strongest feature. Kids earn a weekly allowance tied to completed chores, and parents approve payouts manually. The debit card is a Visa prepaid issued through Sutton Bank. The investing feature (BusyKid Visa Spend Card plus Stockpile integration) is bare bones. Best for: large families with multiple kids and a chores-first approach. Ages 5 to 17.
3. Step
Step is free. No monthly fee, no minimum balance, no overdraft. The card is a Visa, and teens 13 and up can use it independently. There is no chore tracker built in (you handle that separately with something like our chore chart tool). Step makes money on interchange and optional credit-building features. Best for: teens 13+ who do not need a chore app glued to their card. Younger kids are not supported.
4. Copper Banking
Copper is $4.95 per month for the family plan, with a free tier that has fewer features. It targets teens specifically and includes an investing component (Copper Crypto and stocks). The financial education content inside the app is the best I have seen, with short lessons that actually get used. No chore tracker. Best for: teens 13 to 18 whose parents want investing and education. Younger kids: skip it.
5. Famzoo
Famzoo is $5.99 per month or cheaper if you prepay (down to $2.50 per month on a 24-month plan). It is the oldest product in this list (launched 2006) and feels like it. The interface is dated, but the IOU accounts and parent-as-banker model are unique. You can run virtual accounts without issuing actual cards, which is useful for younger kids. Best for: parents who want fine-grained control and do not mind a 2010s UI. Ages 5 to 18.
6. Current
Current is free for the teen account ($0 per month) and offers a teen debit card plus savings pods that pay a 4% bonus on up to $2,000. No chore tracker, no investing for kids. The app is well designed. The catch: you need at least one parent account, and the parent side is a full checking account, not a free add-on. Best for: families already considering a new primary checking account anyway. Ages 13 to 17.
7. Chase First Banking
Free if you have a Chase checking account. No card fee, no monthly fee, no investing, no chore tracker beyond a basic chore-to-allowance toggle. The branding is sparse but the basics work. Best for: existing Chase customers who want a no-frills card for kids 6 to 17 without paying anything extra.
Quick comparison table
| App | Monthly cost | Ages | Investing | Chore tracker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greenlight | $5.99 to $19.98 | 6-18 | Yes | Yes |
| Acorns Early | $8 to $12 | 6-18 | Yes | Basic |
| BusyKid | $4 | 5-17 | Basic | Strong |
| Step | $0 | 13-18 | No | No |
| Copper | $0 to $4.95 | 13-18 | Yes | No |
| Famzoo | $2.50 to $5.99 | 5-18 | No | Yes |
| Current | $0 | 13-17 | No | No |
| Chase First | $0 (with checking) | 6-17 | No | Basic |
Free debit cards for kids: which ones are actually $0
"Free debit card for kids" is the most searched version of this whole question, and the honest answer comes with a catch: most truly free cards are teen-only. If your child is 13 or older, you have real no-fee choices. Under 13, the list shrinks fast, and the free options that remain usually skip the chore and allowance features that paid apps charge for.
| Card | Ages | Monthly fee | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Step | 13-18 | $0 | No chore tracker, teens only |
| Current | 13-17 | $0 | Parent side is a full checking account |
| Cash App Families | 13-17 | $0 | Light parental controls, no chore system |
| Capital One MONEY | 8-18 | $0 | A teen checking account, not an allowance app |
| Chase First Banking | 6-17 | $0 | Requires a parent Chase checking account |
| Modak | Kids and teens | $0 | $0.50 fee to load by debit card (ACH is free) |
For kids under 13, two free options come from major banks: Capital One MONEY accepts kids from age 8 with no fees and no minimums, and Chase First Banking covers ages 6 to 17 at no cost if a parent already banks with Chase. Modak is the main free standalone card, though loading money by debit card costs $0.50 per transfer (bank transfers are free). None of these include a real chore-to-allowance system, so if that is the feature you actually want, pair a free card with our chore chart with prices and handle payouts yourself. That combination costs $0 and covers what most families pay Greenlight $5.99 a month for.
Which one is actually right for you
If you have kids under 13 and want a card plus a real chore system, BusyKid is the value pick. If you want investing built in, Acorns Early is the new default after the GoHenry transition. If your kid is 13 or older and you do not need chores, Step is free and works fine. Greenlight is still the most polished app overall, but you are paying a premium for design, not features the competitors lack.
The chore-to-allowance link is the single most important feature for younger kids, and it is also the one most apps get wrong. Before subscribing to anything, try our free chore chart tool and our allowance calculator to see what amounts and structures actually fit your family. Then pick the card app that matches what you already know works.
Frequently Asked Questions
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GoHenry's US brand was absorbed into Acorns Early in late 2025. Existing US customers were migrated automatically, and the gohenry.com US blog now returns a 403 error. The UK GoHenry brand still operates independently. If a 2026 article recommends GoHenry as a US product, it has not been updated.
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Step, Current, and Chase First Banking are all free. Among paid apps, BusyKid at $4 per month for the whole family is the cheapest, followed by Famzoo at $2.50 per month on a 24-month prepay plan. Greenlight starts at $5.99 for the Core plan and goes up to $19.98 for the top Family Shield tier.
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BusyKid has the strongest chore-to-allowance system, where kids earn a weekly allowance tied to completed chores with parent approval. Famzoo is a close second because of its IOU and virtual account features. Greenlight is competitive but more expensive for the same functionality.
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Greenlight is still the most polished family finance app, but the $5.99 to $19.98 monthly fee is hard to justify when Acorns Early offers investing plus a card at $8 per month (Lite, up to 4 kids) and Step is free for teens. The premium buys you design and brand, not unique features.
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Yes. Step, Current, and Cash App Families are free for teens 13 and up. For younger kids, Capital One MONEY is free from age 8, Chase First Banking is free from age 6 if a parent has a Chase checking account, and Modak offers a free card with no monthly fee (loading by debit card costs $0.50, bank transfers are free). The tradeoff is that free cards skip the chore and allowance features that paid apps like Greenlight and BusyKid charge for.
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BusyKid and Famzoo start at age 5. Greenlight, Acorns Early, and Chase First Banking start at 6. Step, Copper, and Current are teen-only (13+). For kids under 6, none of these are a good fit. Use a paper chore chart or our chore chart tool instead until they are old enough for a card.
Turn allowance into real money lessons
Penny Time turns allowance into playful Quests where kids make real money decisions and see how each one turns out. Parents stay in charge of every cash-out. Free for the whole family.
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