BusyKid: Kids Debit Card Reviews

The cost for Busy Kids is worth it. My 9 yo son and I struggled with our relationship every day. I give him a directive and he didn’t follow through. I repeat myself multiple times a day but it didn’t get me anywhere but frustrated and annoyed. I researched the debit card apps for kids and came across Busy Kids. The price is affordable $20 for the year. It may not have all the bells and whistles compared with other apps” BUT I don’t need the extras, just the basics. It has a share/donate, spend, and save option. It automatically sends a portion of my sons earned income to the above. You can transfer all money into the spend account BUT we decided to donate to an organization. (If the organization isn’t listed, you can send a request to the team). I’ve used BusyKid for 2 weeks now and I can tell you that it has minimized the arguments I’ve had with my son on a regular basis. I remind him: “ Remember , your paycheck is coming up. Make sure you earn that money!” BusyKid is pretty easy to use— and I did have a question , sent an email, and the team responded the same day! So , they are definitely available for concerns.

Just downloaded BusyKid and I can’t wait to introduce it to my two children. I think the concept is awesome. Though there are a couple features that I think may be helpful, because I found myself searching through BusyKid to see if they were an available-I see list by “child”, “chore” and weekly chore view. I would love to have an option to view the whole month laid out like a calendar and show who has a chore in each day’s box of the calendar grid to ensure that I have given both children the opportunity to earn equally for the week and the month. Not necessarily the detailed chore, but just that child A has two today and child B has one-but tomorrow child A has one and child B has two(so it balances out) at a glance. It would also be helpful to have the weekly and monthly allowance total available per child viewable for the parents so that we can anticipate amounts for payday and see how much they could potentially earn per month individually without having to manually click each date and add up myself. (Unless I just overlooked that feature, in which case just omit 😬)Just a few shortcut ideas that I thought may help me and possibly other parents 🤷🏼‍♀️ Hope to rate more accurately once we have used BusyKid !

THIS IS NOT A PIAD REVIEW!
We were looking for a way to help our grandson. Wanted to teach him the value of money, how it’s earned, how to save and invest for his future.
This program does it all. In my opinion, at 13, his job is to do well in school and we’ve made that his primary focus. In addition, we wanted him to learn other things besides gaming. He earns for reading a book, photography, cooking/helping to prep meals, along with keeping his room clean and a few other chores. He loves the charity portion and has his 2 favs. He owns several stocks or at least a percentage of shares. He has his spend card and can use it for anything he wants without having to ask so long as he keeps a set balance in his spend account. It has been a great tool. He’ll send me a screenshot of his stock prices from time to time with a, “Yeah Tesla is up today!” His grades are up and his cooking skills are fantastic! This has been one of the best things we have done for him.
It takes a minute to get it set up but there are some great “how to” video’s online. We had no problem with set up and/or continued use!

Love how BusyKid helps us teach our kids about financial responsibility. The ability to match their savings has helped them think about long term planning, and the conversation regarding budgeting and charitable giving was very positive.

What would make BusyKid better and easier to manage would be more options regarding chore scheduling. With multiple kids, we try to rotate the chores to teach them the responsibility and effort of different jobs. We would love the ability to rotate chores between kids, assign which kid is scheduled to do the chore first, how repetitive the chore is, and how often to rotate the chore (every day, every week, every specific number of weeks). It would also help to have the ability to allow extra days to complete the chore, and to have the choice for chores to be completed over multiple days with the payout being at the end of the multiple days and not just each day.

Really appreciate the goal of BusyKid! Hoping the chore management/scheduling improves for our family’s needs.

We have used BusyKid for a couple of weeks now and like the concept, however there are a few things I wish BusyKid had. For example, although you can assign a chore to all of your children, such as “feed the dog”, it does not recognize from profile to profile when one of the kids has completed that task. Unless the kids all talk to each other (yeah right), the dog might get fed multiple times in the same day. It would be nice to have the ability to have one list of “group” chores for all the kids to complete, as well as the individual chores assigned to each kid. It would also be helpful to be able to assign chores without a specific date but rather a week or a month as the timeline. For example it would be good to be able to assign “vacuum the living room” with a periodicity of once a week. It should show up on the list of chores to complete for the entire week and show when someone completed it. It doesn’t matter to me what day of the week that chore gets completed, just as long as it gets done by someone once a week.

I love the concept and system in place to help kids manage their finances. It’s easy to set up and get going except that you have to wait for the card to transfer money into the account. To save time, an account should be assigned immediately so that it can be used right away instead of having to wait for the card.

The other feature I would add is the ability to choose my child’s charities they support instead of being locked into the ones listed. Aside from that, I love being able to select and create chores along with pay on the days of the week desired. This is great which allows our child to value work and create a healthy relationship of work and money. The savings match is also very useful to incentivize savings. I am looking forward to using BusyKid and to future updates and improvements.

STARS!!!
5 STARS!!!! By far the best customer service by Mike and Scott! Due to user error, YUP WE MADE THE MISTAKE, we received our card which had our names spelled incorrectly. I called the card service phone number thinking I was calling this app. I didn't get the best customer service from the card services, so I went on here and ranted and wrote a bad review about this app. Mike and Scott responded, and through numerous emails they did everything to make sure I got my card reordered with our names spelled correctly. Scott even stayed on the phone with me the entire time and walked me through every step. I can't say enough of about this company. Be patient if something doesn't go smoothly. Just email them directly and they will help you through any issue. We are excited for Maddisyn to learn how to save, invest and spend wisely. Maddisyn has two accounts due to two house holds, and Scott even made some wise suggestions to navigate the two accounts for all of us. Thank you, Mike and Scott!

Hello this app! We love the concept and have our card, but we can’t figure out how to get funds loaded on payday. We are very app-savvy but this is just not intuitive. We have looked and looked for an “approval” feature for chores but it doesn’t seem to exist. My child did chores, checked them off, and the funds didn’t appear on “payday.” Also, the process to load funds at the very beginning when your child brings you the big stack of $1 bills they’ve had in the shoebox is not clear. The only way we could figure out to do this was the “bonus” feature, and that was a max of $50 at a time. The spend/save/give feature and how money moves is also unclear. For example, my child has $50 loaded on the card but it isn’t showing up in the “spend” bucket to move it around. So it seems like there are actually 4 buckets - spend/save/give & card funds?? I looked everywhere online and could not find a tutorial for BusyKid. The features and concept are great, but many features are unclear and there are no videos beyond promotional videos. Please help! Thank you.

We got Busy Kid about 18 months ago, I think. We got it because our 14 y.o. son was not motivated to do his chores. When he could see the chores and the money accumulating when he checked them off (after doing them), he was hooked! And then when we got him the debit card he felt grown up. Our son is 16 now and he loves being able to use his allowance on the card to purchase stuff on his XBox. We love it because we can control how much he can spend; and also b/c a certain percentage of his allowance automatically goes to savings and to charity that we pre-set. If our son wants hard cash to go out with friends (before COVID), then we can digitally refund ourselves that amount from his debit card and hand him cash out of our wallet. It’s user-friendly and we all have BusyKid and I can adjust chores, give bonuses, and change the amount the chores are worth at the drop of a hat. And,...it’s super affordable!!! Well done Mike P.!!!!

Busy kid has worked very well for me. My parent was able to pay me money for a good amount of chores. Busy kid was going well in my house until I found another app called “Step”. Step is a mobile banking app similar to busy kid, but better in almost any way. One major difference is the fees. Because there are none. No fees. Nothing at all. Another great thing about step is that there’s a virtual card you can use with Google Pay, Samsung Pay, Apple Pay, and etc. Once your parent approves the account, you can immediately activate your virtual card just using your phone. No phone calls needed. And one more thing that has to be my favorite is the fact that step helps Kids build credit for their future credit score. This means that if I make my purchases wisely, that will count as a referral for a credit card application. Busy kid is still a great app, but I just wish it would turn into a Gen Z focused app, and not an adult banking focused app. Like step. ☺️

I have this set up for each of my kids but I do find it cumbersome to use. I really wanted something simple where each kid could look and see each day what they had time for and choose according to that. The chores have to be added one by one for each kid and you have to decide which days and how much. Since I have three kids this took me FOREVER. There should just be a “bank” of chores the kids can choose from each day and I shouldn’t have to assign a chore to each kid.

Also, my daughter wanted to deposit her accumulated cash onto her debit card so we went to the bank and then BusyKid limited me to putting only $50 on the card at a time with a $150 limit. There should be a way around this from the parent’s account. I understand having a limit for the kids but that was frustrating so now I have to deposit her cash amounts over three different days waiting 24 hours in between each

Update. After 10 months we are moving on. Cards have been compromised several times and BusyKid is just too complicated to use. No changes were made as promised.

We’ve been with this app a long time with 4 kids. We love the options of give, save, and spend; and the stock option is a huge bonus to my two boys who are learning the ropes of investments. BusyKid itself is easy to navigate. Payday is a cinch, and it holds my kids accountable to checking off their chores/responsibilities. And the bonus pay is helpful when I want them to “pay for their own”haircut, clothing, snack, etc.

More than that, their customer service is great. In a day where you are more likely to get a robot or someone overseas who doesn’t understand the company or business they work for, it is a breath of fresh air to have people who care, step in to help and answer questions. The few problems we have had, have been dealt with and handled well. Customer service is huge to me, and I appreciate and applaud theirs.

Would be ZERO stars if it would let me. Loaded $5 on each child’s card before activation, like recommended. Activated the card through BusyKid . Card symbol on app went from ‘locked’ to showing last 4 digits of the card. I then loaded $2 on one of the cards using ’Load Card’ button. The money in the ‘Spend’ account vanished but did not load on the card. Customer service tried reactivating the card still no money in either the spend account or on the card. Then they asked if the money was withdrawn from my bank account. Well DUH!! How else would the money get on the cards?? Customer service then said it must be an app issue and wanted to give me an email address to send my issue. WHY should I have to wait for someone to view an email??!! My money disappeared with a click of a button. They said there’s a phone number but no call center so I’d have to leave a message a wait for them to return my call. Again still no resolution to my issue! The kids worked hard to have money and their own debit cards. We are all very disappointed.

Have only been using BusyKid for about two weeks and like the overall concept. However, a few simple changes could make it so much better. I tried to reach out, but the response didn’t even address my feedback. First, there are other chore/allowance apps that have incorporated overall behavior and growth mindset goals alongside chores. The ability to reward for positive behavior and remove funds for negative behavior would make BusyKid a holistic solution. Second, the option to give cash should come BEFORE funds are taken from my bank account and transferred to the this app card. It doesn’t make any sense to transfer money from my account to the card, only to turn around and transfer it back with a 2-5 day delay and a $5 fee!! This is crazy. It’s actually less expensive to double pay my child by giving him/her the cash on top of what was transferred. At least my money stays in the family vs. throwing away $5.

We have been using BusyKid for two weeks now and the excitement of getting a card with HER name on it that she can use, ticking chores off as she completes them, payday, and choosing how to spend what she earns has not yet worn off and I don’t think it will any time soon. It’s nice that I can add as many different chores as we want on whatever days we want them done and edit/add them at any time from my phone. We can also determine the amount each chore is worth and how many times a week to do them.

My daughter is 11, and since we started using BusyKid we have had many discussions about earning/spending/saving her money. I feel this is an invaluable tool to help me to teach her about financial responsibility. I highly recommend BusyKid for any age kid. We have really enjoyed learning all the different ways it can be used.

Was great until it updated. A flaw isn’t allowing me to transfer money between accounts. When I try, it closes the transfer window before it’s complete. Also, there’s a lot of loopholes the kids have found to exploit. My ten year old figured out my pin and was logging in to my account to pay himself. The individual accounts shouldn’t be available for everyone to see or access. Another thing he figured out was that he could go months at a time and check off chores. On my end it looked like a glitch and he was getting paid for chores he never did. This is the second app I’ve tried and I’m considering moving to a third. The safeguards are lacking on BusyKid. And of course now, I can’t even transfer their money to their cards.

For a mom who is not a natural born “manager”... BusyKid has been a God-send!!! I have tried many “house chore” systems through the years to get my boys involved in helping around the house...fun chore charts, rewards, check-off-lists, etc...but they all fizzled out over a month or so. I struggled staying on top of it all...who did what...who didn’t do what...how much to pay...remembering to pay, etc. BusyKid manages everything for me! Each of us have BusyKid on our phones....my boys love checking off their chores each day...& watching the money add up;-). They also love the fact they now have their own Visa Card...and can see the rewards, for their hard work, load onto their card each week! Very user friendly app for us all;-) I finally have a team...knocking out home-life together!!! Thank you this app!!!

BusyKid chore setup is pretty simple as well as setting each child’s profile. Two things need fixed... firstly, there needs to be a way to mark the chore incomplete. Why..? I am teaching my kids it’s THEIR responsibility to complete the chore and then mark it completed. Just like real life you don’t get paid for incomplete work. Secondly, I found the child can go back and check off incomplete chores AFTER the selected payday as well as BEFORE the selected payday. The child should only be able to tick the box on the day of the chores!! Obviously, parents should still be able to override from their dashboard so one could go back and check/un-check a box during that current pay period. Just like real life, I want them to feel the REWARDS of a job well done as well as the STING of incomplete or “forgetting “ to check the box. Once fixed you get 5 STARS ! Thank you, K.M.

BusyKid is so much easier to use than the old charts I tried in the past! I love how my boys can learn to manage their money that they earn in extra chores I want them to do. BusyKid already divides their earnings into Share, Save, and Spend. The philanthropy of sharing has sparked real life conversations of giving back to the community/our responsibility.

The spend card makes it so easy for the kids to be in control of their purchases, good or bad. They have made purchases they regretted as they see their money disappear😂 but have also been proud of the ones they saved for. They feel so grown up using the card in stores.

App is easy to navigate. I have full control over their accounts as I teach them along the way. My kids are ages 8, 12, 14, 15.

I have been using this for a little over a year but it’s been getting worse. I am the “child” so I have no control over my payday but it’s usually on fridays, my parents load my card and I get my money on the card. But it’s been saying whenever I try taking money out of my savings that it’s been declined and “try again in a few minutes” bestie it’s been 2 weeks. I’ve tried everyday and that’s all it says. I wait about 6 hours before trying again 🤨. I have 40 bucks in saving and I’m just trying to take out 20 😭. And lemme also say when you get the actual card you can’t insert and only swipe so when I go out in public and it’s a insert I stand there like “ 🧍” “uh” like it’s a good app but the amount of times it’s declined me taking out money when I clearly have enough is crazy. Like bestie I just wanna roll for Kokomi I’m on 65 pity 😭.
Anyways download at ur own risk ig 😩.
Busy kid step it up bestie 😟

I was a little hesitant based off of the reviews but I’ve been searching for an app like this one. It’s pretty good and useful. The only thing I would like is to have a “complete by” date and time. I have my kids on a schedule throughout the day/week. As for now, I just add the time in the chore title and don’t let them check off a chore if it’s not done by a certain time. And the only thing I don’t agree with is the .50 cent fee if their transaction is declined. I’ve never been hit with a fee on any other debit card, prepaid debit card or credit card. I mean I guess it’ll teach my children to keep better track but then again, they are just kids. I’ll write an updated review in a few months when we have more experience with BusyKid .

I have had this app for over two years. I was waiting until the new version updated to really get a feel for the new updates. Definitely wasn’t worth my time. Dashboard was hard to use before and would glitch out all the time. It is a little easier to use now.

The Friday payday and “transfer” is instant from my bank account to this app, but takes days to show up on my kids account. (If it does show up) I’ve emailed customer service in regards to two bonuses sent to my kids that show “approved” to pay, but have yet to be deposited into the kids accounts. This was approved back in the beginning of Dec 2019. Customer service is ridiculous, you wait on the phone for 30-45 minutes or talk over email for weeks. Everything is always “fine” on their end and the only resolution is to make sure BusyKid is updated to make sure it’s working properly for me.

After trying many chore-assigning approaches over literally years (including charts and threats), this app was the answer to my frustrated prayers! I started using this when my kids were in 8th grade and I was worried that they might think it was baby-ish. But they loved that chores are assigned to them on their phones and they have all day to get them done. The cash out option has been so great on those shopping trips where my kids unexpectedly want something and have no money with them. They simply transfer the cash back to me and I purchase the item in the store. I have recommended this to several other families with teens who also love it. this app is a game changer!

There are some rather glaring gaps in the model.

For example, When my kid went to ‘donate’, BusyKid immediately sent the money I had just paid a fee for in order to transfer to my kid, back to me, to do the actual work of going to a charity website and entering the donation. That was just annoying, I’m paying for absolutely nothing at that point.

Another issue is that if the kid doesn’t check off their chores they don’t show up in payday for approval. OK. Well, supposing I check them off? It still won’t go through. That’s not like the real world. Employers have to pay their workers regardless of time card records submitted, if the employer knows or should have known that the employee did the work.

Our friends are big fans of Greenlight and I’m afraid after 4 weeks of this nonsense we’ll be swapping out of BusyKid. I haven’t been able to pay my kid outside of sending a bonus and I’m busy, why should I have to figure out canceling the chores and doing the bonus and all of that. It’s just too much work and not flexible enough. And BTW with two kids, not any cheaper than the fixed-cost model with Greenlight.

At first BusyKid was great, didn't habe that many isssues... The concept is great, my children looked forward to payday, then BusyKid started getting updated and everything quit working properly, my children couldn't log into BusyKid . I gave my child a bonus and it took two weeks for it to make it into the correct childs account. It has become more frustrating than it is worth. I also could never get through to customer service on the phone, and when i did get a reply to my email, they did not answer my question and dirrected me to somewhere else. When you cancel you also have to cancel threw the debit card company. Very dissapointed with what could have been such a great tool. Thank you for the effort... but i'll stick to a real bank.

We’ve been using this app with our four kids since the latest release came out. It’s been a fun and effective way to convert tasks we need them to do around the house into what they want: money to spend and also invest. The interface looks like it’s been completely revamped and BusyKid is much quicker and better organized than before. Overall, looks great!

Let’s see how this version works. I really liked the first version, hated the second version, let’s see how this one works with me and my grandkids.
I’ll say that the customer service is excellent!!

Amazing, because being a kid who’s parents forget to pay them money after they do chores, this is an extremely easy way to do chores and get rewarded for them. I also like how you can get a debit card and load your money onto it. I’m a lot more aware about how much things cost, and if I’m going to buy something that’s ten dollars, I’m going to use my money and not theirs.

Love it! I recommend BusyKid to other parents. My kids use their allowances to pay for lunches with friends, movies, any extras they want. It makes the mom can I have money for the movies end. They know exactly how much money is on their credit cards. This is the best app to help a family understand money doesn’t grow in trees. It is earned with hard work.

My kids love going on BusyKid and seeing what chores are due for the day so they can tap on the “I did it” button. They have their cards and like seeing how much money they can save before buying something they want. Plus it helps me not having to ask them a bunch of times to do chores.

Helps my 9 year old understand the process of earning, saving (buying stocks), spending and donating money. Great motivator for her to do chores as well as achieve personal goals.

BusyKid is well thought out, very usable and overall a pretty smooth experience for parents and kids. Kudos!

This has taught my child to save and spend wisely. It also motivates my child to want to complete chores. I no longer have to give my child spending cash because she uses her debit card for on-line shopping or wherever she goes. Busy kids works for us! I highly recommend BusyKid.

So easy to use and manage. No more IOU’s and running to the bank to get cash for kids allowance. My kids can see their savings add up and are learning how important that is about 20 years before I did! Love this app. Everyone with kids or grandkids needs BusyKid.

I downloaded BusyKid for my nephews. They love it! Their parents report that they are excited to complete their chores throughout the day and enjoy seeing their allowances grow. BusyKid gives them the ability to purchase items they want while teaching them to be charitable and fiscally responsible.