Homey - Chores and Allowance Reviews

by Shana J.

In one day of using, we have experienced..

- Not being able to switch accounts between children.

- Instead of the name appearing one time, everything is doubled. “This chore is signed to BobBob, AnnaAnna, DavidDavid, GeorgeGeorge”

- Cannot press back button quite frequently. The loading sign appears, and just stops there. Forever. Have to close Homey and re-open.

- When we go to submit a chore, Homey crashes.

- When we go to submit the picture, after FINALLY being able to submit the chore, Homey crashes.

- FINALLY, we have submitted the chore!!! But what on earth is happening!? Four new notifications. 🤔 Apparently, the system feels that every single time a chore is completed, that it was a huge team effort. Because it tells me everyone did it, and now I have to go and approve the one and deny every other family member.

- 1 hour I into using this, my husband texts me “Deny. Deny. Deny.” I’m sure he appreciates getting bogged down with notifications that were 100# unnecessary, because the chore shouldn’t have been marked complete in the first place. And, this was only for the small amount of chores my kids could actually submit.

- Finally, my son has come into my room and tossed the phone on the bed and said “I’m DONE with Homey!!! 🤬”

I would NEVER, under any circumstances, recommend Homey.

by EarthsDM

I went in with high hopes but using this app is ultimately a frustrating and distracting experience. I’m trying to work through my chores as quickly and effectively as possible, but even though it has me marked as overdue on my work I can’t interact or scroll through my everyday chores. Instead I’m bombarded with request to take pictures of completed work or provide feedback with no simple way to cancel. If my life was organized and together, if I had lots of free time to take pictures or write feedback I wouldn’t need a chore app. Instead my life is not together and I’m behind constantly hassled by an app that’s supposed to help.

Ultimately gets two stars instead of one because it is effective for organizing and tracking work when it’s not throwing pop ups at you.

by MyApps7365

I am using the free version and it doesn’t appear ready for prime time. Share menu button crashes app every time. It allowed me to create a savings jar for one child, but each time I add money, it goes back to 0. No error message or other notification. It would not let me create a jar for a second child. Fill out the entries in the menu, but the “create” button fails...again with no notification or instructions. It also has an unexplained “expiration time” entry that always stays blank. Overall just unusable in current state.

It’s too bad because the feature set is pretty cool. I like the chores based allowance plus jobs for extra. I would also like a points option. Not willing to pay 50/yr for something this unfinished. Moving on with the search for a chores app...

by Tlarsen45

I used Homey with the free trial and decided I would go ahead and keep it after the trial. Keep in mind that the developer said in previous reviews that the monthly fee was to provide the ability to link to your bank account. I would be happy to pay the fee, if only my bank was one of the very few banks that are supported with Homey. Now I feel like I’m paying full price for Homey without getting all of the features. I would suggest adding a whole lot more financial institutions to your list or offer an option for someone to pay a onetime fee to use all of the other features. I find it ludicrous that I am expected to pay a monthly subscription fee when I can’t even use the service they are charging for.

by Sgvaughan

Homey is a great concept, however there are some pretty significant issues. I have been using it with my daughter now for about 2 weeks and at first it seemed really promising, but as we use it it has become increasingly frustrating.
Firstly, if you want to use any really useful functions you have to pay for Homey . $4.99/mo. Is a bit steep in my opinion. I'd rather give that money to my daughter for her allowance. First issue is the lack of ability to approve or disapprove completed chores. This is pretty basic and should be included. They claim that the fee for Homey is to cover the cost of using the banking features. I do not need those features, but would still like to use the other features, like jars!!! Perhaps the developers could consider 2 subscription levels, with a cheaper price for those of us who do not need the banking features. I would gladly pay $2/month to use all of the other features.
Another annoying thing is the notifications. I am constantly getting notifications, but when I log into Homey I see nothing. No notification link or section and nothing to indicate what the notification is for. Pretty annoying.
I am going to plug along for a little longer, but sadly feel that if the improvements I suggested don't happen I will have to move on to another app.

by Jvs1979

I wanted something to keep track of my kids money for them. I have four kids and Homey only allows 3 family members in the free version. Only 1 “jar” per member in the free version. Setting it up was a chore. It seemed like everything I tapped would have 2-5 screens telling you what you can do with Homey when all I wanted to do was test the functionality. I set up one kid and the button to finalize it didn’t work so I got out and tried it again and then it set up two of the same account. When I tried to delete the duplicate, it just spins for a minute and doesn’t delete the account. I am pretty good at figuring things out so if it is due to user error, then Homey is very unintuitive.

by Aleet29

I have enjoyed Homey, though there are portions of it that are confusing and I haven’t exactly figured out how to navigate. But the main issue I have is that multiple times a week Homey won’t let my kids log their chores. So then they get frustrated and ask me to put it in for them so they can get paid. And that’s annoying. It makes them lose motivation. If this was just every once in a while it’d be ok and understandable, but it’s pretty often. Otherwise I think Homey is cool and is a great tool for encouraging chores, following up on completed chores and teaching kids about earning and saving money.

by KC_Baldwin

This is a great concept, and we love the idea behind Homey. It has truly helped our boys learn how to be responsible for their jobs around the house, and it’s great watching them learn about organization, time-management, and finance.

However, Homey has several frustrating glitches. Things often take a ridiculously long time to load, and then error out rather than loading at all. We are frequently unable to make edits, create new jobs, and switch accounts. When these things happen, we can SOMETIMES close out Homey and it works at that point but not always. In the last 20 minutes I’ve attempted to edit one of my son’s profile, add a daily goal, and edit a job. All of which failed after they timed out. For each of those three things Homey loaded for several minutes before telling me there was an error. We may need to cancel our subscription, delete Homey, and find something more reliable.

Very frustrating.

by Dainsworth

I think the idea is good, but it is very pricey. I read that the price point has to do with the bank feature. Why then are they charging for features like chore approval, etc? Seems they could isolate the charge solely for folks who choose to connect bank accounts. We are already happily set up on a banking app for our teen and don’t feel the need to utilize that feature.

I’m also frustrated that I’ve tried several times to create my own packs, but they never show up later. I don’t want to have to input the same job each time I assign it (for jobs that don’t recur on a regular schedule). It would be much easier to simply choose it from a pre-made pack that is unique to our family. All in all, seems like there are still a few bugs to work out.

by Christi617

I think this is a great concept. However, it is pricey...my husband is in credit card securities, so he does not want to link our accounts to this, so we are just using the jars for virtual money. A cheaper option for those people not linking accounts would be nice. When I set up the chores for our children, this looked promising. However I set up a daily goal for them to complete all of their chores. My middle child who is on the spectrum, finished all of his chores for the day, but Homey didn’t show he had made any progress towards it. That was frustrating for both of us. I will keep looking for an app that will work for us. For this price, I expect an almost flawless system.

by Stinky Lynx

Today is my first day using it. I switched from a different app because the other app was just “meh.”

It’s easy to set up and use, but it’s buggy when it comes to trying to name the jars. It lets me create a third jar, but every time I type in a name it freezes the entire app and I have to shut it down.

Also I think you should be able to edit a chore and have an option to update it across all users instead of having to go into each person to update it. My kids are close in age and so a lot of their chores have the same parameters, but if I change something on one I have to go in and update it on the other one which is annoying.

by S. Maxime

It's really a great app, great concept, but may have a couple of bugs with the Jobs section not appearing on the others' lists. Cloning and/or duplicating a Responsibility got a little hairy because their titles can be the same and they don't move when reassigned after duplication.
More can be done with regards to the commenting on chores to notify and thereafter find the comments.
So far it's been worth the subscription, things are getting done.
I would suggest allowing links to be clicked and videos on Jobs. One Job listed was QB mechanics for my son and it would have been great if he could click the link to watch video of the did beforehand or watch it in Homey .

by Laurels Galaxy

Homey has been fantastically helpful in managing chores, allowance, & savings. My kids now know how to navigate Homey and check-in on their allowance money. They also can designate money for savings — and they love to see the savings “jars” get bigger over time. There are a few “buggy” moments..and the navigation/functionality aren’t as intuitive as you think, and take a bit of practice. Yet once you are all setup, it’s easy for you and your children to manage their efforts and payoffs. Recommend!!

by Rajkpersaud

I’ve been a user and big fan for the last 18 months. I’ve spread the word about you guys to numerous friends because I genuinely believe you’ve understood what users are really after. I haven’t been as active over the last few months primarily because of the user interface. Myself and the kids on my account find the graphics, icons, severely unexciting color palette and typology increasingly lackluster and de-motivating. And that matters for an app like this! You want your kids to like logging in because of how bright, pretty, and modernly slick it feels. this app looks like an aged app. Contrast this with apps like Tallie and RoosterMoney and it’s a world of difference.

I highly encourage you to revise and update the look and feel of Homey . I promise it will bring so many new customers in!

Just my two cents,
—a formerly happy premium subscriber

by Megan Katte

I've been using this app for a few weeks now, and it's becoming one of my favourite apps. I do wish I could pick and choose which notifications I want to get (right now it's either on or off), with 5 kids notifications can get a bit much. Even so, this has been the first app that got my kids doing chores consistently, and without me nagging. I have a few recommendations: 1. don't bother setting up a spending jar - how the jars work, it's much better to keep spending in the "total money" and use jars for actual saving goals. 2. read the manual. I found it in the help section and it was a lifesaver. Homey has more features than your usual chore app, and it can be a bit complicated to set things correctly. I thought Homey was deleting chores, when in fact I had them set to multiple kids at once, and one kid always completed the one chore for all of them. 3. make sure your kids have just the permissions they need. I think Homey could make this a bit more obvious, but I had all my kids set up as parents and there's no clue apart them being able to do everything (delete chores, add money to their wallets...). Lets just say they had a bit of fun with it. 4. This one if for the this app team: MAKE TEXT BIGGER! I'm not getting any younger and some text is really small and white and hard to read, lol.

by Clara Bentham84

this app has EVERYTHING we need! If you need an app to set up recurring chores, have notifications pop up on each family member's devices, manage allowance and money for the kids, this is Homey for you! I just found that Homey actually works great with Dave Ramsey's system that we kind of follow, so I might redo all the chores according to his commissions system. But it is so customizable!! I was having trouble setting up everyone's permissions (I set up my son as a parent by mistake), and the support desk was quick to help me out! I love this app!

by Bernard Christianj

Really love all the features Homey has to offer! It totally makes our home run smoother and actually helps reduce the number of arguments over who has to do what. The only thing that would make Homey better is if I was able to make one task contingent on another. For instance, putting away the dishes would becomes due the day after the task for cleaning the dishes is completed. A decent work-around is possible if you select specific days of the week for those tasks to be completed so still giving a full 5 stars.

by Rgwinny

Our household is just me and my 11 yr old son, and we BOTH have ADHD! Hahahahaha it’s a lot of fun, a lot of crazy, and it used to be a lot of “did you remember to...” at bedtime when it was too late. Homey keeps us both in check, and my son loves it! He’s asked me to add just about everything, from brushing his teeth to feeding the cat. I love that I can require photo proof, and with the paid version (worth every penny, seriously, skip a couple meals out each year) I can approve or disapprove from my phone. One thing I would really love to see is integration with the Apple Watch!

by Werner Hope

This is such a simple idea, but it works! I've only just started playing with Homey , but the UI is top tier. My kids are usually really lazy when it comes to chores, but the photo completion feature has been motivating them so much! They even expressed a wish they could add more than one photo to each completion, so maybe that's something you can add in the future. As a parent I really appreciate the overview of what's owed, and what's paid, since that was a neverending conversation in our home. The tools and features of Homey are just what I need, and I highly recommend it.

by Lit_nether

Great app, but 2 suggestions. I accidentally made the family without knowing it would put me as a parent, switch accounts, and ect..so please add where the owner can give a family member ownership so it would be easier then just making another family account. Next one (But short), can u remove the next option off the tutorial page, its getting in the way of the words. And ye thats all i got, u can call the suggestions a half need and want (bc its a suggestion), but good app so far, love to see more updates but one last really short-suggestion, if u update Homey , make sure to still keep it simple. ✌🏾👍🏾🤟🏾😁😁😁😁

by 1947--70

The concept is awesome, but I’m going to have to keep plodding along without it. Some people can afford this program yearly, others only monthly, but then there are those of us that cannot afford either. Time can be rough these days, especially when you’re on a fixed income and your grand daughter just moved back in and brought her husband. We already had her daughter, who is 6 since her first Birthday. This is not a putty story, it’s just fact. I just wanted to tell you how great your program sounds and it is ashamed that it can’t be offered to those less privileged. Keep working on the program, you have a great thing going, just don’t tinker with it so much that it takes a PHD to understand how to use it for its best benefit. Thank you for your time and know that you are blessed with a mind few people have — organization. Have. Beautiful, happy, and peaceful life.

by Clarence Bacon

I like this app, but I have some suggestions that can make it even better: 1. Add the option to remove the photo on the chore. Some chores are very basic, and don’t need a photo, but if I play with features and set up a random photo for a chore, it seems I’m stuck with it forever, or have to search for a more appropriate image to change it. Give me a way to revert to the default chore image that was used before. 2. Is adding a birthday for every user really necessary. I read the fine print about child privacy rights and get it why you need that for kids to treat their data differently, but is it necessary I add that for the other parent? Seems like that field could be removed if I choose the user will be a parent. 3.Enable the user to choose colors of chore packs/user folders. I know it’s minor and doesn’t affect functionality, but I had to delete and recreate my son twice for him to get green - his favourite color. Thanks!

by YBonnie Sinclair

I had this exact same app idea for a few years now, and it’s great someone made it. I had to check where the developers are from and when they started making this app, because features are like exactly what I dreamed about and I definitely told many people about it. I feel they read my mind, lol! It just goes to show that parent problems are a real problem to solve, and many people have them. This is honestly the best app of this kind, has everything I need, and I can’t wait to show it to my kids when everything is set up. Keep up the good work!