| Allowance Calculator Results | |
| How much money should your kids get? |
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The purchasing power discussed above can help you determine how much it costs to buy the same amount of goods and services at different times (like now and when you were a kid). For example, it may have cost 10 cents to buy a candy bar in 1950, so an allowance of 25 cents a week would have allowed you to buy several treats. That 25 cents is equal to $1.94 of purchasing power today, which would also allow your child to buy several treats if you gave him $1.94 as a weekly allowance. Of course, if you literally gave him the same allowance that you received, or 25 cents, he wouldn't be able to buy much of anything.
This doesn't work for everything though. In 1950, it also cost 25 cents to see a movie, but you can't see a full-price new movie today for $1.94. So the price of a movie has increased faster than inflation and other goods and services.
Keep in mind that this is just one guideline. How much you give your child for an allowance depends on many things, with one of the most important factors being what you expect your child to buy with that money. If you already buy your child everything he wants, then he doesn't need much of an allowance. If he is going to be expected to buy his own clothes and pay all of his entertainment expenses, then he may need more.
If $1/year each week sounds like too much, then consider just giving 50cents/year each week or maybe just once a month.
Also remember that some portion of your child's allowance should go into a savings account to help your child learn about the importance of saving money.
This calculator uses Consumer Price Index (CPI) yearly averages from 1913 to 2004 to figure out purchasing power. It doesn't take into account monthly differences or regional differences when it does it's calculations.
Related Resources about Allowances:
- Allowance Poll - How much does your child get each week and when did you start giving her an allowance?
- About Dollars and Sense for Kids
- Allowances for Adolescents
- Kids and Money
- Giving Kids' Allowances
- Allowances and Chores
- Kids' Allowance Resources
