Teaching Kids Responsibility and Work Ethic Through Money Rewards

Topline Findings

May 28, 2026 – A new Wells Fargo survey, with data collection provided by Ipsos, finds that the majority of parents of school age children (6-17 years of age) are rewarding them with money, mainly in cash form, and primarily as an incentive for good schoolwork. These monetary rewards tend to result in repeated behavior for half of the parents most of the time or always. Other types of rewards are used by parents, but money rewards are most prevalent.

A top motivation for providing a monetary reward is to help their child understand the concept of what it means to earn.

Respondents were asked questions about their child in one of the following age groups: 6 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.

Detailed Findings

1. Money rewards are a common parenting tool, primarily used to drive academic outcomes

• Overall, nearly three-quarters of U.S. parents or guardians (72%) tell us they have given extra money as a reward to their child, beyond any allowance the child may receive.
• There is only a slight difference between children of different ages:
  • Child 6 to 8 years old – 73% rewarded with extra money
  • Child 9 to 11 years old – 78% rewarded with extra money
  • Child 12 to 14 years old – 72% rewarded with extra money
  • Child 15 to 17 years old – 67% rewarded with extra money
• Rewarding a good report card or high mark on an assignment is by far the most rewarded behavior with half of parents (51%) rewarding for this. Other situations where the child is rewarded with money are for good behavior for a babysitter or other caregiver (24%), sticking with an extracurricular activity (22%), and for meeting a savings or financial goal (20%). Fewer are rewarding a child for reading for enjoyment (18%) or limiting their online/screen time (16%).

2. Other forms of rewards often complement money rewards

• While not as prevalent as monetary rewards (72%), under half of U.S. parents or guardians reward by giving the child a choice of a family activity, such as a meal or an outing (49%) an item they want, such as candy, clothing, games, etc. (42%), experiences with friends, like a movie or sleepover (42%), a special privilege such as caring for a pet, using the family car, delayed bedtime or access to digital devices (40%), or with a visual recognition like stickers or a star chart (19%).
• A non-monetary reward is being given more to children ages 6 to 11 than those 12-17 years old.
• Fewer than one-in-ten (9%) are not rewarding their child with money or with non-monetary forms of reward.

3. Money rewards are effective, though consistency is limited

• While just over half (53%) of those giving money to their child say the reward results in the behavior being repeated most of the time or always, this increases to 92% with the inclusion of sometimes.
• There are no ‘payoff’ differences between the four child age groups.

4. Cash remains the primary reward format, while digital payments rise with age

• Cash is the top form of monetary reward, selected by more than four-in-five (82%) of U.S. parents providing a monetary reward to a 6-17 year old, followed by Peer-To-Peer / P2P payments such as Venmo, PayPal, CashApp, Zelle, Greenlight, and Apple Pay/Cash (26%), money deposited into their bank account (19%), prepaid debit card (10%), and other methods (3%).
• Cash is given to 9 to 11 year olds (88%) more than 15 to 17 year olds (76%).
• Older children and teens (12 to 17 year olds) are more likely to receive money from their parents for rewards through Peer-To-Peer / P2P (36%) versus children 6 to 11 (16%).
• Money deposited into the child bank account and prepaid debit cards are relatively the same across child age groups, ranging from 15% to 23% and 7% to 12%, respectively.

5. Levels of Agreement Pertaining to Rewarding Children with Money

• Eight-in-ten (82%) U.S. parents and guardians of 6-17 year olds surveyed agree (agree strongly + agree somewhat) with the statement A money reward helps my child understand the concept of what it means to earn.
  • The level of agreement with this statement is higher than the other statements below.
  • Agreement is higher among those who have given money rewards (91%) than those who have not (58%).
• Three-quarters (76%) of the parents surveyed agree (agree strongly + agree somewhat) Money rewards help to instill a positive work ethic.
  • The level of agreement with this statement is higher than the other statements below.
  • Agreement is higher among those who have given money rewards (87%) than those who have not (48%).
• Just under three-quarters (73%) of parents surveyed agree (agree strongly + agree somewhat) Money rewards are effective at reinforcing continued good behavior.
  • The level of agreement with this statement is higher than the other statements below.
  • Agreement is higher among those who have given money rewards (84%) than those who have not (44%).
• Roughly seven-in-ten (69%) of parents surveyed agree (agree strongly + agree somewhat) with the statement When my child is resistant to a task, a financial reward can help motivate them.
  • The level of agreement with this statement is higher than the next two statements below.
  • Agreement is higher among those who have given money rewards (80%) than those who have not (42%).
• Under two-thirds (64%) of parents surveyed agree (agree strongly + agree somewhat) Money rewards are more effective than punishment-based approaches, such as restricting privileges.
  • The level of agreement with this statement is higher than the statement below.
  • Agreement is higher among those who have rewarded with money (74%) than those who have not (39%).
• Under three-in-five (57%) of parents surveyed agree (agree strongly + agree somewhat) with the statement I prefer to give money as a reward because it is easier to give compared to other forms of reward.
  • Agreement is higher among those who have given money rewards (70%) than those who have not (25%).

These are findings of a Wells Fargo survey, with data collection provided by Ipsos, conducted between April 2 and April 15, 2026. A sample of 1,500 U.S. parents aged 18 and older with at least one child between 6 and 17 years of age in the household were surveyed online in English, as part of Ipsos Omnibus shared survey program. The results of this research have a credibility interval of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points for all respondents. Respondents were asked questions about their child in one of the following age groups: 6 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.

For full results, please refer to the following annotated questionnaire: