Roughly nine of ten parents or guardians feel it’s important to discuss the value of saving and setting financial goals with kids, but almost a third (32%) feel uncomfortable talking with their kid about money.
May 28, 2025 – A new Wells Fargo survey, with data collection provided by Ipsos, finds that parents have difficulties in teaching their children about money, despite the importance of discussing the value of saving and setting financial goals with their children.
Allowance continues to be one of the tools to teach kids about money with seven-in-ten (71%) American parents and guardians of children ages 5-17 regularly (43%) or occasionally (28%) giving their child an allowance.
The prevalence of providing allowance and the form in which it is given differs depending on the age of the child. P2P (peer-to-peer) payments such as Venmo, PayPal, CashApp, Zelle, Greenlight, and Apple Pay are the second most popular payment form, behind cash, mentioned by nearly one-in-four (24%) for allowance and one-in-ten (11%) as preferred tooth fairy gift method.
Respondents were asked questions about their child in one of the following age groups: 5 to 8 years of age, 9 to 11 years of age, 12 to 14 years of age, 15 to 17 years of age. If they had more than one child, they were randomly asked about only one of the age groups.
