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The old days of buying everything with cash are slowly coming to an end. These days, money can take the form of a piece of paper, a debit card, and even an app on the phone. With so many different options, you may be wondering which method for giving kids money is the best. No worries, Walter the Vault has your back. 

In today’s post, we will talk about different ways you can give your kids money and help you feel a little more sure in your money-giving decision.  Additionally, you may want to think about the order you introduce money to your kids.  Some researchers suggest to start with physical money, so that they get a strong foundation for what money really is. Once their understanding of money is strong, they learn to spend and save it.  From there, you can turn digital and let kids try out a debit card and virtual spending on apps.  Let’s dive deeper into each category.

Cash

Probably the most common way to give kids money is through cash. This can certainly be a great choice, especially if your little ones are just starting their money master journey. Cash can teach your kids to count and allow them to physically see how much money is available to them.  It’s a great idea to teach kids to memorize the value of each coin/bill – and learn to add them up to create different values.  Let your kids go to the store and practice spending money to buy things and receive change.  Experiencing things is a great way to learn.

Debit Card

Debit cards are a little bit more tricky to get the hang of. It is an excellent opportunity for slightly older kids to learn to manage their money in a more commonly used form, though! Debit cards can be much more convenient to carry around. They can also be safer to hold as cash is harder to carry around without losing.

Phone Apps

Transferring money from phone to phone just may be the easiest option of these listed. While it might be difficult for younger children to grasp apps like ApplePay, PayPal, or Venmo, older kids may actually prefer this method! As your child gets the hang of using their phone, transferring money to them will gran them real and valuable experience with these apps!

Allowances and money-handling tasks are very beneficial to our children’s journey to money mastery. No matter what strategy you decide to use for giving your kids money, know you are doing an excellent job of teaching them real-world finances.