Best Debit Cards for Kids and Teens: Greenlight, Acorns Early, BusyKid and FamZoo

The best debit card for most kids is Greenlight. One $5.99 a month plan covers up to five kids, and it pays a savings reward on what they put away.

It isn’t the cheapest, though. BusyKid works out to $4 a month if you pay for the year, and FamZoo is $5.99 a month for the whole family with a free month to try it.

And if you went looking for GoHenry, it’s called Acorns Early now. Same idea, new name, and it’s $8 a month.

A kids debit card works like a regular debit card, with one big difference: you control it from your phone. You load the money, set the limits and see what they spend.

This article was reviewed by Brian Meiggs, who has been cited as a personal finance expert on publications such as Insider, Discover, and Yahoo! Finance.

The Best Debit Cards for Kids

Overview of Greenlight

Greenlight is a debit card and money app for kids and teens. You set chores and allowance, your kid gets a card, and you keep an eye on the spending from your phone.

There are four plans, and every one of them covers up to five kids:

• Core: $5.99 a month, with a 2% savings reward
• Max: $10.98 a month, with a 3% savings reward, 1% cash back and investing for kids
• Infinity: $15.98 a month, with a 5% savings reward, plus location sharing and crash detection
• Family Shield: $19.98 a month, with a 6% savings reward and up to $1 million in identity theft coverage

The savings reward is the part other cards don’t match. It’s paid on an average daily balance of up to $5,000 per family, and Greenlight can change the rates at any time.

Do you need more than Core? Probably not at first. Max adds purchase and phone protection (the phone part isn’t available in New York), and that’s where the price starts to climb.

New customers get a trial. Your first monthly charge comes seven days after you register, so cancel before then if it isn’t for you.

Greenlight isn’t a bank. The card is issued by Community Federal Savings Bank, Member FDIC.

Sign up: Greenlight

Overview of Acorns Early (Formerly GoHenry)

GoHenry is now Acorns Early. Acorns owns it, and the app is for kids ages 6 to 18.

What’s different about this one is the lessons. The app has more than 100 Money Missions, which are short educational pieces your kid works through.

You get the usual parent tools too: automatic allowance, chores you tick off when they’re done, spending limits and a notification every time your kid spends.

There are two ways to pay for it. Acorns Early Lite is $8 a month. Or it’s included in Acorns Gold at $12 a month, which also gives you Acorns’ investing and checking accounts for yourself.

So it’s the priciest of the four if all you want is the kids card. It makes the most sense if you’d use Acorns anyway.

Acorns Early isn’t a bank either. The card is a Visa issued by nbkc bank, Member FDIC.

Sign up: Acorns Early

Overview of FamZoo

FamZoo gives you prepaid cards for kids, teens and parents, plus an app that works like a family bank. You’re the banker.

You can track chores and odd jobs, automate allowance, and move money between cards instantly. Teens can set up direct deposit from a job.

Not ready to hand a young kid a card? FamZoo has IOU accounts, where you just track what you’re holding for them.

Pricing is per family, not per kid:

• Pay monthly: $5.99 a month, with a 1 month free trial
• Prepay 12 months: $59.90, which works out to $4.99 a month, plus an extra free month

FamZoo is set up so nobody can drain your main bank account through the cards. Money held in FamZoo is FDIC insured, and the cards carry Mastercard’s Zero Liability policy for unauthorized purchases.

Sign up: FamZoo

Overview of BusyKid

BusyKid is a chore app first and a card second. You set the chores, your kids do them, and allowance is paid out each Friday.

From there your kid can split the money: spend it with the BusyKid Visa Prepaid Card, save a percentage automatically, donate some to charity or invest it.

It’s the cheapest of the four at $4 a month. The catch is that it’s billed annually, so you’re paying for the year up front. You can get up to five BusyKid cards.

BusyKid isn’t a bank. The card is issued by Pathward, N.A., and cardholder funds are eligible for FDIC pass-through insurance. BusyKid says some additional card fees may apply, so read the cardholder agreement.

Sign up: BusyKid

Greenlight vs. Acorns Early vs. BusyKid vs. FamZoo: Which Is Best?

All four do the basics: a card for your kid, an app for you, chores and allowance. So pick on price first, then on the one feature you care about.

Best for Fees

Here’s what you pay for the card itself:

• BusyKid: $4 a month, billed annually
• FamZoo: $5.99 a month, or $4.99 a month if you prepay a year
• Greenlight: $5.99 a month on Core, up to $19.98 on Family Shield
• Acorns Early: $8 a month

BusyKid wins on the sticker price. If you’d rather not pay for a year up front, FamZoo and Greenlight Core are tied at $5.99 a month, and FamZoo gives you a free month first.

GoHenry used to be the budget pick. As Acorns Early, it’s $8 a month, so it isn’t anymore.

Best for Learning

It depends on how your kid learns.

If they’ll actually sit through lessons, Acorns Early has the most of them with 100+ Money Missions.

If they learn by doing, FamZoo is the better teacher. You run it like a real bank, with allowance, chores, odd jobs and IOU accounts, and they see what happens to their balance when they spend.

Best Overall

For most families it’s Greenlight.

One $5.99 plan covers up to five kids, so the more kids you have the cheaper it gets per kid. The savings reward gives them a reason to leave money alone, and you can move up to investing later without switching apps.

The other three are better picks in specific cases: BusyKid if price is everything, FamZoo if you want the family bank setup, Acorns Early if you’re already an Acorns customer.

Are Debit Cards for Kids Safe?

They’re about as safe as your own debit card, and you get more control than you have over cash.

None of these four companies is a bank. Each one works with a bank that issues the card: Community Federal Savings Bank for Greenlight, nbkc bank for Acorns Early and Pathward for BusyKid. FamZoo says funds held with it are FDIC insured.

The bigger safety feature is you. With these apps you set the limits and you can see where the money goes.

Two things to tell your kid on day one: never share the card number or PIN, and tell you right away if the card goes missing.

FAQs

Do kids debit cards build credit?

No. These are debit and prepaid cards, so nothing gets reported to the credit bureaus. They teach the habits. Credit comes later.

Is GoHenry still around?

In the U.S. it’s now Acorns Early. It’s for kids ages 6 to 18 and costs $8 a month, or it’s included in Acorns Gold at $12 a month.

What if I have more than one kid?

Greenlight covers up to five kids on one plan, BusyKid gives you up to five cards and FamZoo charges per family. With two or more kids, any of those three will cost you less than paying per child.

Bottom Line

Start with Greenlight Core at $5.99 a month. It covers the whole family and it’s the easiest one to grow into.

If that’s more than you want to spend, BusyKid at $4 a month (billed annually) does the chores and allowance part just fine.

Whichever one you pick, the card isn’t the lesson. Talking with your kid about what they spent last week is.

Sources (6)

We use primary sources: each company’s own product pages and legal terms.

1. Greenlight. Plans. greenlight.com. Accessed October 12, 2026.
2. Acorns. Acorns Early. acorns.com. Accessed October 12, 2026.
3. Acorns. Plans and pricing. acorns.com. Accessed October 12, 2026.
4. BusyKid. Home page. busykid.com. Accessed October 12, 2026.
5. BusyKid. Pricing. busykid.com. Accessed October 12, 2026.
6. FamZoo. Home page. famzoo.com. Accessed October 12, 2026.