Taschengeld

[Gambatte 972]

How much regular Taschengeld would you give to your 13yr old?

We think 40 eur/month. Too much? Too little?

 

The intention is this to be a learning tool.

The sum should cover all own fun stuff done outside family or school framework. For example buying own stuff like music, books, magazine, fashion, presents for friends birthday etc, public transport to go places with friends etc., random snacks / junk food / ice cream / drinks when out, etc., cinema, ...

 

Important activities like klassenfahrt, music lessons, sport are already paid by us parents

[Krieg 15,074]

https://www.taschengeldtabelle.org/

 

My 12 y/o get 10 EUR a week and my 14 y/o 15 EUR.

[Gambatte 972]

18 minutes ago, Krieg said:

https://www.taschengeldtabelle.org/

My 12 y/o get 10 EUR a week and my 14 y/o 15 EUR.

 

Very interesting, thanks a lot. Compared to you we are stingy. But still more generous than the tabelle.

[Krieg 15,074]

It is more based on rounding the amounts up for convenience.   I guess in a couple of years I will upgrade them to 15 and 20 EUR.

 

I've been thinking in opening bank accounts for them and giving them cards so I can just automate everything.   My daughter says there are kids in her class paying for things with their Apple Watches.

[Gambatte 972]

4 minutes ago, Krieg said:

I've been thinking in opening bank accounts for them and giving them cards so I can just automate everything.

 

This is indeed what we did already.

[karin_brenig 712]

slightly OT, but maybe ok.... this discussion reminds me of when I first decided to give my daughter (now 33 years old) some Taschengeld - to teach her how to handle money.

 

When she turned 6 and had just started learning the numbers in school I told her that she'd get 6 € per week (and every year after that I'd give her 1 € more per week).

 

She asked "why"? I said "so that you can buy things for yourself that you want, whenever you want, without having to ask me for it." She took the money and put it in a trinket box.

 

Several weeks went by. I gave her the 6 € every week, but I never asked what she did with it. Then one Saturday, when I was getting ready to pay her, she said "Mom, please don't give me any more money. I'll give you back the money that you already gave me. I don't know what to do with it. I have everything I want. And I don't mind asking you for things that I might need."

 

I was surprised - and a little proud of her. So I suggested that I'll wait for her to tell me if she ever changes her mind about money.

 

When she turned eight she said.... "hey, Mom, that Taschengeld thing that you offered a while back, is that still valid? If so, you can start giving me 8,- € per week now, please."

[Fietsrad 427]

40€ seems quite a lot to me, but I still think in Deutschmarks or even pounds, shillings and pence😉

 

I wonder whether the Bundesregierung has thought about issuing rules or guidelines about Taschengeld?

[LeonG 14,850]

19 minutes ago, Fietsrad said:

40€ seems quite a lot to me, but I still think in Deutschmarks or even pounds, shillings and pence😉

 

I wonder whether the Bundesregierung has thought about issuing rules or guidelines about Taschengeld?

 

I never got taschengeld as a kid and my parents were awful with money.  I learned by example on what not to do while for my brother it was the opposite.

 

Deutsche Jugendinstitut has these guidelines on taschengeld:

 

[europaeuropa 121]

I remember as a mid teen I got 5 pounds per week. It then increased to 8 pounds per week at 16, and 10 pounds per week as a late teen.

 

In today's money, I guess that amount will have almost doubled since then.

[john g. 37,776]

I got no Taschengeld when I was growing up. I did a paper round seven days a week and that paid for visits to my local football team ( Southend United ❤️) every second week ( behind the goal!). 

( PS: they mostly lost despite my huge financial contribution😂)..

[jeba 4,364]

I remember getting 1 German Mark / week, which I put onto the window sill to bribe the stork into delivering me a brother.

[optimista 5,925]

Did it do the trick ?

 

Aged 16 I got a pound from each of my mum, dad and sis till I left home at 18. From their side a good investment. It flowed back later... at a high return.

 

To answer OP's question, 10 euros a week sounds reasonable to me. It will get the lesson across. Save some, spend some wisely, cut your cloth according to your means and don t lend it unless you want to lose it. That is more important than the actual amount.

[robinson100 12,853]

Shorty got €1/week for each year of age.

It worked well at the time, but with the current inflation, I would tend to add something to it - maybe a fiver from the age of 10.

She easily picked up the concept of saving for things she really wanted to have, and has taken on many of my habits, which is quite a relief - I am definitely careful with money, just as my parents were.

I also "never" borrow money - had to once, when buying a flat, as the money was there, but tied up for three months....

[jeba 4,364]

1 hour ago, optimista said:

Did it do the trick ?

No, I had to do with my sister.

[Gambatte 972]

3 hours ago, robinson100 said:

€1/week for each year of age.

Wow, my 13yo would get 58.5 €/m, this seems to me very much.

The purpose of this being a learning tool, which I expect all parents to agree (?), it's important that is neither too much nor too little. Unless it's the right amount it won't serve its purpose.

 

[Krieg 15,074]

In our case we considered what the kids do with the money.  For example both kids like to go with their friends on Fridays after school and do something.    With the current prices just a Kebap with no drink is already 6 EUR.  The small one normally goes out to buy something to eat.    The big one does different things, sometimes shopping, sometimes eating or having a drink with the friends, sometimes watching a movie.   I would say that with current prices what they get from me is actually on the low side.   

[Keleth 9,321]

13 hours ago, john g. said:

I got no Taschengeld when I was growing up. I did a paper round seven days a week and that paid for visits to my local football team ( Southend United ❤️) every second week ( behind the goal!). 

( PS: they mostly lost despite my huge financial contribution😂)..

This.

Going to football with my dad was my pocket money,did an evening paper round for which if I remember rightly I earned a pound a week.

I don´t remember how much we gave as a kid but I know once he left school we probably gave more to him by slipping him a tenner or whatever when he was out with his mates or girlfriend.

[emkay 10,319]

We gave our daughter 10€ per week in her mid teens, she’s now 21. Other earning incentives helped too. When my dad visited us when she was about 13, he and my husband had a few too many beers and both offered her 10€ for every 1 Note. 5€ for a 2. Wisely, given the beer consumption, she asked them both for a signed promise!  She very much appreciated the rewards for many years. A deal is a deal!  She also earned her own money offering English tuition. Learning to save and budget helped her too. 

 

Now she’s at Uni, we still give her 60€ per month pocket money though we do have the joy of paying for lots extra. Also, whenever she visits home, she leaves with her car full of groceries etc. Plus ‘poor student’ cash donations. Empty nest is still painful at times. I’d gladly trade our now tidier house for the general chaos of her friends often being here, parties etc…..just happy noise and mayhem. 

[catjones 1,702]

No one mentioned what the child should do to earn the money...as a "learning experience".  Is it simply child welfare?  Is that the lesson?

When I was a kid, my parents gave me chores to do and I'd get some spending money on Friday.  Work = Pay.

[LeonG 14,850]

8 hours ago, Gambatte said:

Wow, my 13yo would get 58.5 €/m, this seems to me very much.

The purpose of this being a learning tool, which I expect all parents to agree (?), it's important that is neither too much nor too little. Unless it's the right amount it won't serve its purpose.

 

Maybe you should discuss this with the parents of your kids friends?  If everybody is getting less, your kid will be swimming in money in comparison.  If everybody is getting more, your kid will be the poor one who can't afford to keep up with the friends.

 

51 minutes ago, catjones said:

No one mentioned what the child should do to earn the money...as a "learning experience".  Is it simply child welfare?  Is that the lesson?

When I was a kid, my parents gave me chores to do and I'd get some spending money on Friday.  Work = Pay.

 

Maybe they don't have to earn the money but the lesson is that they are on a fixed budget they have to make do with rather than ask mom and dad for more money all day long.

 

I'm not sure that chores should be linked with payment.  Household chores is something we all have to do as a part of daily life.