Pocket money calculator (UK)
Choose a weekly amount for each child, tick the household jobs that count, and the calculator shares that amount across the jobs by size, so a bigger job is worth more. If your child does every job, they earn about their weekly amount: values are rounded to friendly numbers, so a week can land a little over or under, and the calculator shows exactly how far.
Work out what each job is worth
The calculator needs JavaScript. Here is a worked example of what it does.
A 6-year-old gets £3 a week. The jobs that count are making their bed and putting toys away every day, and watering the plants once a week (small jobs), plus setting the table 5 times a week and pairing the socks once a week (medium jobs).
| Job | Each time | This week |
|---|---|---|
| Make your bed (7 times a week) | 11 points (11p) | £0.77 |
| Put your toys away (7 times a week) | 11 points (11p) | £0.77 |
| Water the plants (once a week) | 11 points (11p) | £0.11 |
| Set the table (5 times a week) | 22 points (22p) | £1.10 |
| Pair the socks (once a week) | 22 points (22p) | £0.22 |
If they do everything: £2.97 (3p under £3).
How much pocket money should a child get at each age?
There is no right amount. Start from what your child will pay for themselves: sweets, a magazine, saving for a game, bus fares later on. Then pick an amount you can keep paying every week.
As a guide, here are survey figures for regular weekly pocket money in the UK, not counting money for chores or one-off top-ups.
| Age | Weekly pocket money |
|---|---|
| 6 | £2.69 |
| 7 | £2.79 |
| 8 | £2.88 |
| 9 | £3.07 |
| 10 | £3.27 |
| 11 | £3.56 |
| 12 | £4.01 |
| 13 | £4.50 |
| 14 | £5.10 |
| 15 | £5.66 |
| 16 | £6.68 |
| 17 | £7.95 |
Source: NatWest Rooster Money Pocket Money Index 2026, regular weekly pocket money by age, excluding chore payments and boosts. Based on Rooster Card families' data from 1 March 2025 to 28 February 2026. These are families who use a pocket money card, so they may not match every home. Treat them as a survey figure, not a rule. The same index puts children's total weekly income, with chores and top-ups, at £9.74 on average across all ages.
How does linking jobs to pocket money work?
You set the weekly amount first. Then you choose which jobs count towards it. Each job pays when it is done, so a child who does everything gets the full amount, and a child who skips a job gets a little less that week. Nothing is taken away.
The calculator works out what each job is worth in four steps, the same way Famoo does:
- Size each job. Small is 5 minutes or less, medium is 6 to 15 minutes, big is 16 minutes or more. A job that usually starts at age 8 or older moves up one size, because it needs more skill, care or strength. Small counts as 1, medium as 2, big as 3.
- Add up the week. Multiply each job's size by how many times a week it happens. Making a bed every day is 7 small jobs, which counts as 7.
- Share the amount. Divide the weekly amount by that total. Every job of the same size is then worth the same. A job done about once a month counts as 12 out of 52 weeks, so the weekly total includes about a quarter of its value, spread across the month.
- Round to friendly numbers. Values are rounded to whole points, or to multiples of 5 once a small job is worth 20 points or more. The calculator then nudges each size by one step if that brings the week closer to the amount. Rounding can still put a week a little over or under: usually a few pence, but £1 or more when a larger amount is shared over many daily jobs. The calculator shows the gap for your choices.
Famoo counts in points: 100 points make £1, so a point is a penny. Points are not money. You hand the money over yourselves.
One-off jobs: on top or inside the amount?
Some weeks there is an extra job, like clearing out the garage or washing the car before a trip. Pay it on top of the weekly amount: extra effort earns extra, and the weekly plan stays honest. Value it like a planned job of the same size. If you would rather keep the week's total fixed, count it inside the amount instead, for that week only.
When should you not link jobs to pocket money?
- Looking after themselves. Brushing teeth, getting dressed and having a bath are growing-up habits, which you may prefer not to pay for.
- School and reading. You may want to keep reading and homework unpaid, so they do not become a job done for money.
- Kindness. Calling a grandparent or helping a younger brother or sister is usually best left unpaid.
- Clubs and practice they chose. Music, sport and clubs are for them rather than a job for the home.
- When it causes rows. If money for jobs leads to haggling over every task, a plain weekly amount with a few expected jobs may suit your home better.
That is why the calculator only lists jobs that help the whole home or look after a child's own things. Famoo keeps the other jobs in daily routines, ticked and praised but unpaid.
Questions parents ask
How much pocket money should a child get in the UK?
There is no right amount. As a guide, the NatWest Rooster Money Pocket Money Index 2026 found regular weekly pocket money of £2.69 at age 6, £3.27 at age 10, £5.10 at age 14 and £7.95 at age 17, not counting money for chores. Those figures come from families who use the Rooster Card.
Should pocket money be paid for chores?
It can be, for jobs that help the whole home, like setting the table or hoovering. You may want to keep self-care (brushing teeth, getting dressed), homework and kindness to family unpaid.
Should I take money off if a job is not done?
You do not need to. Paying for what is done is simpler: each job pays its value when it is done, and a job not done just does not pay. Taking money away can turn jobs into arguments.
Should brothers and sisters get the same amount?
Not usually. Older children often get more because they spend on more and can do bigger jobs. Set each child's amount on its own.
Should I pay weekly or monthly?
Weekly suits younger children, because a week is short enough to plan for. A monthly amount can help a teenager practise budgeting for longer. This calculator works in weeks.
What if my child does extra jobs?
Pay it on top of the weekly amount, valued like a planned job of the same size. See the one-off jobs section above.
Is anything I type saved?
No. The calculator runs in your browser, sends nothing anywhere, sets no cookies and does not ask for names.
Set this up for your family in Famoo: it does the maths every week
Jobs change. A child takes on the washing up, the dog needs walking, a birthday moves the amount up. In Famoo you set each child's weekly amount once, and the planner works out each job's value the same way as this calculator. Values stay as they are until you choose to rebalance, and only a parent who runs the home sees the amounts.
Some words and pictures on this page were drafted with AI. Not yet checked by a person.
