GoHenry Review – Teach Kids about Money

GoHenry is described as the ultimate family banking for you and your kids. Allowing you to set up an account which is linked to an account for each of your children. You’re able to easily manage their accounts online, or through the GoHenry mobile app.

Each child on the GoHenry account will be given their own debit card, so you can teach them the importance of using money from a young age. The card and account comes with plenty of unique parental controls so that you can make sure your kids are only spending the money that you’ve allowed them to have on the card

GoHenry was launched in 2012, and currently has racked up over 500,000 users. They state that the bank was setup “for parents, by parents with a mission to help children develop good money habits and management skills”.

How does GoHenry differ to High Street Bank Accounts?

This is a fair question! You can set up accounts for your kids at most conventional high street banks, so why even bother looking to GoHenry for an account?

GoHenry is more comparable to most modern-day challenger banks such as Starling or Monzo. They do not have any high street branches, and everything is run online or through their mobile phone app.

The key differentiator though is in how the app has been set up with a focus on making sure your kids have a great learning experience into the world of handling their own money. You have the ability to set extra pocket money for your kids. For example, if they clean the dishes well on a Monday night, then you could give them an extra £2 per week. You can set tasks in the app in which if they achieve them, then they can earn a little bit of extra pocket money.

The GoHenry app basically allows you to create that sense of accomplishment of tasks in achieving further pocket money. Most of us experienced this growing up, but this allows you to do it all from an app, which has the added benefit of extra controls and monitoring.

GoHenry Charges

Obviously GoHenry is primarily set up for usage by kids, so the charges have to be minimal. That’s why an account with GoHenry is only £2.99 per child, per month. You can also sign up for a month’s free trial to see if the GoHenry platform is something which you feel would benefit you and your children.

The problem here is that kids do not receive a lot of pocket money conventionally. Some may view £2.99 as a large amount of money if you plan to only give your child £5 a week for pocket money. However, it depends in how you look at the potential of the app. I adjusted my view to see GoHenry as not just a convenient way to give kids pocket money and set up potential financial goals for them, but primarily as a learning/educational platform. You wouldn’t hesitate to pay £2.99 for a book for your kids to learn from, would you? So why should £2.99 be an issue to help your kids learn about the importance of money management.

What’s Great about GoHenry

• Notifications: It is always good to get notifications when things are happening through my phone. As a parent, it allows you to know when any cash movements take place, and what your kids are spending money on as and when it happens
• Savings Account: Setting up a GoHenry account will allow your child to set savings goals, and put their pocket money towards those goals. Perhaps they want the latest games console? Well, that target can be set, and they can see their progress towards that goal. This helps children learn the importance of patience with their money.
• Chores: One of the best features of the app for me is the ability to assign tasks within the app. It can be a great way to get your kids to do those menial things they should do, but don’t want to. Like brushing their teeth twice a day!
• Simple Money Movement: Perhaps it is your child’s birthday coming up, and you want to give them a little extra. The movement of money into your child’s account is so simple and seamless.

Downsides of GoHenry

• Charges: Depending on how many kids you have signed up to the app, this could actually become somewhat expensive for what it actually does. Do you have 5+ children? Then it becomes over £15 a month. In which case, you could potentially make the argument that purely for the case of holding small amounts of money in for your kids, a conventional high street bank may be a better option.
• Phone Usage: This very much depends on your household rules, but some parents may want to avoid encouraging their kids to spend any extra time on their mobile phone. GoHenry gives them yet another opportunity to be staring at a screen. However, the argument could also be made that there are worse things for them to be using their mobile phone.
• Split Households: Unfortunately, there are split-families, and there is no way the GoHenry app allows for two separate parents to manage a single child’s account. For parents who have split up, one parent will have to be the manager of the account. Unless of course, you’re so amicable that both of you share the account details.

GoHenry Account Review

I view GoHenry as not only a great way for children to easily hold onto money, without the need for us as parents to carry around small notes to give as pocket money, but it also acts as a great educational tool that can help them build an understanding about the importance of money management and budgeting.

The cost of £36 per year, per child, may seem a little steep for its uses. However, once viewed as an educational tool, I think most parents would agree that GoHenry provides a lot for children. I would definitely recommend trying out their one-month free trial and seeing whether you think the £36 is worth it!