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Free allowance calculator for kids

An allowance calculator recommends weekly spending money for children. It supports three systems — age-based, chore-based, and income-percentage — so you can pick the approach.

About this calculator

How to use

  1. Enter your child’s age.
  2. Select the allowance system that fits your family.
  3. Fill in any extra fields for chore-based or income-percentage methods.
  4. Click Calculate and review the weekly amount plus the tip.

Formulas

Age-based:

weeklyAllowance = childAge × $1

Chore-based:

weeklyAllowance = choreHours × choreRate

Income-percentage:

weeklyAllowance = (householdIncome × incomePercentage ÷ 100) ÷ 52

Monthly = weekly × 52 ÷ 12
Annual = weekly × 52

Worked example

Age-based, 10-year-old:

weeklyAllowance = 10 × $1 = $10/week
monthlyAllowance = $10 × 52 ÷ 12 ≈ $43.33/month
annualAllowance = $10 × 52 = $520/year

Chore-based, 5 hours/week at $2/hour:

weeklyAllowance = 5 × $2 = $10/week

Notes

  • The age-based $1/year rule is cited by the American Institute of CPAs as the most commonly used parenting guideline.
  • Research suggests children benefit most from allowances when they also have a savings component — encourage splitting money into spend, save, and give categories.
  • Adjust the chore rate for the child’s age and local cost of living. $1–$2/hour is common for young children; $3–$5 for teens doing substantial work.

Frequently asked

What is the age-based allowance rule?
The most common rule of thumb is $1 per week for each year of the child's age. A 10-year-old gets $10 per week, a 7-year-old gets $7. This was popularized by the American Institute of CPAs in their parenting finance surveys.
How does chore-based allowance work?
You set a rate per hour (default $2) and enter the total weekly chore hours. The calculator multiplies hours by rate to get the weekly allowance. This ties money directly to effort.
What is the income-percentage method?
Some families give each child a small percentage of annual household income per week. The default is 0.5% — so a $60,000 income yields about $5.77 per week. Adjust the percentage to match your budget.
Which allowance system is best?
Age-based is simplest and widely used. Chore-based teaches that income comes from work. Income-percentage scales naturally as family finances change. Many parents combine systems — for example age-based as a base plus bonuses for extra chores.
Should allowance be tied to chores?
Financial educators disagree. Some argue chores are a family obligation that should not require payment; others say tying money to tasks builds work ethic. This calculator supports both philosophies.
How do I share my allowance calculation?
Click Share to copy the page link, or Share with my numbers to include your inputs in the URL.