A Comprehensive Digital Money Guide for Parents

Digital payment platforms are now making it easy for parents to send money to their children. However, these platforms are not equal. In this guide, we will show why Cash App, children’s debit cards, and Apple Pay are better options for parents and their children than the likes of Google Pay and PayPal.

Apple Pay

Apple Pay’s wallet comes with an option known as Apple Cash Family, which allows parents to add their children under 18 to the wallet. Once the children are added, the parents can create an account for them and fund it. As a parent, you can lock access to that account, restrict who the children send money to, and receive notifications whenever a transaction is made.

Considering that most payment platforms, including Apple Pay, do not allow anyone under 18 to open an account, Apple Cash Family is making it possible for children to make transactions electronically, which is more convenient than cash.

Cash App

This is one of the few payment platforms that let teens open accounts. If your child is 13 and older, you can open a Cash App account for them. Note that they can only send or receive a maximum of $1,000 per month.

So, how do you create a Cash App account for your kid? After using their details to sign up, you will be asked to provide yours to approve it. Keep in mind that you will become the legal owner of the account.

Cash App accounts for teens do not come with monitoring features. This means you can only assess your kid’s account activity via a monthly statement. It is worth highlighting that Cash App blocks transactions made to liquor stores, rental cars, bars, and dating services. Also, the payment platform lets users cancel or pause their children’s accounts whenever they wish.

Google Pay

Google Pay accepts teens from the age of 13. The platform allows parents to add their debit/credit card as a payment method and then restrict spending on specific apps. Moreover, as a parent, you need to preapprove any purchase made by your kid.

The biggest disadvantage of Google Pay for teens is that your kids can only use it on Google Play. So that means they cannot use it to send money to family and friends.

Venmo

In May 2023, Venmo launched its Venmo Teen Account. Once a parent opens this account for their child who is between the ages of 13 and 17 years, Venmo will generate a debit card for them. Additionally, the account comes with privacy settings that keep your child’s transactions private, meaning the public cannot access them.

Note that Venmo Teen Account does not attract monthly fees. Also, when your child withdraws funds at select ATMs, they will not incur any charges.

PayPal

PayPal does not allow anyone under 18 to open an account. So, as a parent using PayPal, you will have to share your account with your kid.

Zelle

Just PayPal, Zelle does offer an account for minors. So, parents looking to open accounts on a digital money app for their children will have to explore other options.

Children’s Debit Card Options

Since most digital payment platforms do not accept teens, you might want to consider other options, such as apps that offer debit cards for kids. Some of them include:

Greenlight App

This app offers debit cards for kids bearing their names. It is the duty of parents to fund the debit cards from their Greenlight accounts. Your kid can use the Greenlight debit card at any merchant that accepts Mastercard.

GoHenry App

Debit cards for teens issued by the GoHenry app come with several features that allow parents to monitor their kids’ spending behavior and set limitations if need be. The best part about the GoHenry app is that it gives the kids access to financial education, covering topics like money management and budgeting. It also offers a savings plan for kids.

Conclusion

If you are a parent who wants to open an account for your kid on a digital money platform, you can explore any of the above-mentioned apps and pick one that matches your needs.