Chore Chart for Pocket Money
Pick your child's age, choose chores, and set how much each paid task earns. See your family's weekly pocket money total and print the chart.
How Much to Pay Kids Per Chore
These suggested amounts are based on what families actually pay, gathered from parenting surveys and financial literacy organizations. Adjust up or down based on your budget and local cost of living.
| Age | Per-Chore Range | Typical Weekly Total |
|---|---|---|
| 2–3 | $0.25 – $0.50 | $1 – $2 |
| 4–5 | $0.50 – $1.00 | $2 – $4 |
| 6–7 | $0.75 – $1.50 | $3 – $6 |
| 8–9 | $1.00 – $2.50 | $5 – $10 |
| 10–12 | $1.50 – $3.50 | $7 – $15 |
| 13–15 | $2.00 – $5.00 | $10 – $20 |
| 16–17 | $3.00 – $7.00 | $15 – $30 |
Recommended Chores by Age
Based on developmental research and guidelines from the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, child development experts, and the University of Minnesota's landmark study on childhood chores.
| Age | Sample Chores | Daily Tasks |
|---|---|---|
| 2–3 | Put toys away, hamper clothes, wipe spills | 2–3 |
| 4–5 | Make bed, set table, sort laundry, feed pets | 2–4 |
| 6–7 | Sweep, vacuum, pack lunch, take out trash | 3–4 |
| 8–9 | Load dishwasher, fold laundry, clean bathroom | 3–5 |
| 10–12 | Cook simple meals, do laundry, mow lawn | 4–5 |
| 13–15 | Cook for family, grocery shop, yard work | 4–6 |
| 16–17 | Meal planning, home repairs, manage budget | 4–6 |
Chore Chart Ideas by Age
Every age group has a different set of chores that match their motor skills and attention span. Here are specific ideas to get you started.
Chore Ideas for 3 and 4 Year Olds
At this age, chores are really about building habits. Three- and four-year-olds learn by copying, so do every chore alongside them. Good starters: putting toys in a bin after playtime, placing dirty clothes in the hamper, wiping up spills with a cloth, and helping water plants. Keep each task under 5 minutes.
Chore Ideas for 5 Year Olds
Five is the age where most kids can follow a simple chore chart independently. They can make their bed (it won't be magazine-ready, and that's fine), set the table before meals, sort laundry by color, feed the family pet, and put groceries on low shelves. A sticker chart on the fridge works well because they can see their progress building up each day.
Chore Ideas for 6 to 9 Year Olds
School-age kids can handle multi-step tasks. Six- and seven-year-olds can pack their own lunch, sweep floors, and fold their laundry. Eight- and nine-year-olds can load the dishwasher, clean a bathroom, and help prepare simple meals. This is the age where you can introduce paid "extra" chores on top of unpaid family duties.
Chore Ideas for 10 to 12 Year Olds
Preteens are ready for real responsibility. They can cook simple meals, do their own laundry from start to finish, mow the lawn, and babysit younger siblings for short stretches. Give them ownership over which paid tasks they take on each week. Autonomy keeps them motivated.
Chore Ideas for Teens (13 to 17)
Teens should be practicing the life skills they'll need in a few years. Cooking dinner for the family, grocery shopping with a list and budget, basic home repairs, yard maintenance, and managing their own schedule all count. The chores at this age look less like "helping out" and more like adult competence.
Chore Chart Rewards That Actually Work
Money is the most popular chore reward, but it's not the only option. The best reward systems use a mix of incentives that match your child's age and interests.
Money Rewards
Paying per chore teaches kids the direct connection between work and earning. Use the chart builder above to set a dollar amount for each task. The pay scale table shows what most families pay by age. Combine this with an allowance splitter to teach saving and spending habits at the same time.
Non-Money Rewards
Younger kids often respond better to non-money rewards. Ideas that work well:
- Choose what's for dinner one night
- Extra 15 minutes of screen time
- Family movie night pick
- Stay up 15 minutes past bedtime
- Pick the weekend activity
- Special one-on-one time with a parent
- Friend sleepover
Point Systems
A point system works like a household currency. Each chore earns points, and kids "spend" points on rewards from a menu you create together. This teaches delayed gratification -- saving up 50 points for a big reward instead of cashing in 10 points for a small one. It's the same skill that makes adults better with money.
Why Chores and Pocket Money Work Together
A landmark study from the University of Minnesota followed children for over 20 years and found that the single best predictor of a young adult's success wasn't IQ or family income -- it was whether they started doing household chores at age 3 or 4.
When you connect chores to pocket money, you add a second lesson on top of responsibility: the link between effort and earning. T. Rowe Price found that 66% of parents who regularly talk to their kids about earning money report their children have stronger saving habits than peers who miss those conversations. Kids who earn their pocket money through specific tasks learn to budget, save toward goals, and make trade-offs -- skills that stick well into adulthood.
Setting Up a Chore Pay Scale
The simplest approach is to split chores into two groups. Family duties -- making the bed, clearing plates, keeping their room tidy -- are expected and unpaid. Extra tasks -- washing the car, deep-cleaning a room, mowing the lawn -- are paid at an agreed rate. This two-track system teaches both responsibility and the value of work.
When setting amounts, start low and increase with age. A 6-year-old might earn $0.75 for vacuuming one room, while a 14-year-old earns $4 for mowing the entire lawn. The chart builder above lets you customize every amount so you can match your family's budget exactly.
Making It Stick
Consistency matters more than motivation. Same chores, same days, same pay. Print the chart and put it where everyone can see it -- the fridge is ideal. When the rules are visible and agreed upon, you stop being the enforcer and the chart does that job for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
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It depends on the child's age and the difficulty of the task. A common guideline is $0.50 to $1 per chore for ages 4 to 7, $1 to $3 for ages 8 to 12, and $3 to $7 for teens. Simple tasks like making the bed pay less than bigger jobs like mowing the lawn. The chart above lets you set custom amounts for each chore so you can match your family's budget.
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Most financial educators recommend splitting chores into two categories: unpaid family duties (making their bed, clearing their plate) and paid extra tasks (washing the car, deep-cleaning a room). Basic household help teaches responsibility; paid extras teach the connection between work and earning money.
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More than you'd think. Three-year-olds can put toys in a bin, place dirty clothes in the hamper, wipe up small spills, help water plants, and stack books on a shelf. Keep tasks simple, physical, and visible -- they learn by doing, not by following complex instructions.
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Start with 2 to 3 daily chores for young kids (ages 3 to 5) and gradually increase to 4 to 6 for school-age children. Teens can handle a larger share. The goal is building a habit without overwhelming them -- consistency matters more than quantity.
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Research from the University of Minnesota found that the best predictor of a young adult's success was whether they started doing chores at age 3 or 4. Starting early -- even with simple tasks like putting toys away -- builds a sense of responsibility that sticks.
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A common approach is to pay roughly half the child's age per week for basic paid chores -- so a 10-year-old might earn around $5 per week. For individual tasks, scale by effort: quick jobs like emptying the dishwasher might be $1, while bigger jobs like mowing the lawn could be $5. Adjust based on your local cost of living and family budget.
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Make it routine, not a request. Same chores, same time, every day. Use a visible chart so the task list isn't coming from you -- it's coming from the chart. Praise effort over results. And for younger kids, do chores together at first; they'll eventually do them solo.
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Five-year-olds can handle more than most parents expect. Good starting chores include making their bed (it won't be perfect -- that's fine), setting the table, sorting laundry by color, feeding pets, and putting away groceries on low shelves. Keep each task to under 10 minutes and pair it with a visible chart they can check off themselves. Sticker charts work well at this age because kids can see their progress.
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Money is the most common reward, but it's not the only one that works. Non-money rewards include choosing what's for dinner, extra screen time, a family movie night, staying up 15 minutes later, or picking the weekend activity. Many families combine both: basic chores earn small privileges, while bigger tasks earn pocket money. The key is letting your child help choose the rewards so they stay motivated.
Connect chores to real money
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