GoHenry Review [2025]: Financial App + Kids' Debit Card

What is GoHenry?

GoHenry is a financial technology app launched in 2012 as a simpler way to fund allowances and teach kids money habits. It offers kids' debit cards and ATM access, financial education tools, parental monitoring over activity and transactions, parental controls such as spending limits, the ability for kids to set savings goals, and more. Fun fact: the "Henry" in the name came from the first child to use one of the company's debit cards.

Monthly fee	$5 per child or $10 for up to four kids
Target age group	Kids ages six to 18
Free trial	First 30 days free, charges apply after the trial is over
Maximum number of accounts	Up to four children
Parental controls	Yes — spending controls, block or unblock the debit card, spending notifications, merchant blocks, and limit how much a child can spend at specific stores
ATM availability	Yes, wherever Mastercard is accepted
ATM withdrawal limits	$120 daily or $480 in four days; parents can change the maximum amount in the account limits
FDIC insured	Yes, if the prepaid card is registered with the card issuer

In early 2023, GoHenry was purchased by savings and investing platform Acorns. Now, GoHenry is transitioning to become Acorns Early, and Acorns customers with an Acorns Gold subscription can access the kids' debit card and tools included in GoHenry at no added cost.

Is GoHenry legit?

Yes, GoHenry is a legitimate platform for teaching your kids to manage their money responsibly and offer them a debit card of their own. It is based in the UK but available in the U.S.

According to GoHenry, over two million people have used the app. The company has a respectable rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot, with over 10,000 reviews. The GoHenry mobile app is rated 4.3 out of 5 stars on Google Play and 4.4 stars in the App Store, and the Acorns Early app is rated 4.5 stars on Google Play and 4.2 stars in the App Store. Parents can use either app for the time being, but new features are only available in the Acorns Early version.

Who should use GoHenry?

I can see GoHenry being a good fit for you if: 

• You want an easy way to pay your child an allowance and assign chores.
• You want to prioritize teaching your child about money in a fun and rewarding way.
• You already invest with Acorns.

This app is geared toward parents who want to teach their kids about money. It has wonderful features to give your child a basic knowledge of how to save and spend (and let's face it, using strictly physical money isn't going to prepare them quite the same way as a debit card, as cash becomes less and less common).

With the app, you can transfer money to your child's account, set parental controls on your child's spending habits, and even pay them interest on their savings (though note that this comes from you, not GoHenry). The fun, educational Money Missions set this platform apart from other money apps and debit cards for kids.

Some drawbacks of GoHenry are that it charges a monthly fee and does not pay any interest on your child's savings. For interest savings and investing tools, we recommend Greenlight instead. GoHenry also isn't likely the best option for young adults because the app is geared toward a younger crowd, so we'd suggest a Capital One MONEY Teen Checking account if you're looking for a more traditional, teen-focused checking account.

How does GoHenry work?

Here's a breakdown of key GoHenry features from the perspective of both parents and kids.

Chores and allowance

Whether you believe in an "allowance" or solely paying children for tasks they complete, these payments to kids are convenient with the GoHenry app. Parents can set up automatic weekly allowances to their child's account and select when the funds are available.

Chore payments are easier with GoHenry as well. You can assign household chores, give each one a dollar amount, and transfer funds once each task is completed. If circumstances change or your child refuses to do their chores, you can even remove an allowance once or permanently through GoHenry's companion parent app.

Parental spending controls and monitoring

One of the biggest challenges of parenting is discerning when it's better to let kids make mistakes and when it's better to step in with an assist. GoHenry parental controls let you digitally peek over your child's shoulder to see how they handle funds. You receive real-time spending notifications and can set weekly or single-purchase spending limits.

In emergencies, you can quickly transfer funds to your child's card and receive an alert if the card is ever declined. You can lock the card and enable merchant blocks for stores that sell age-restricted items. Plus, it's simple to block or unblock a card via the app in case of loss or theft.

GoHenry offers a seamless way to gradually loosen the reins on your child's financial habits. The level of parental control is similar to what you'd find with Greenlight, BusyKid, or FamZoo.

Funding

To add money to a GoHenry account and fund the debit card, you'll need to link a checking account to your own dashboard as the parent and primary account holder. Direct deposits are also supported, and you can schedule automatic funding to cover allowance and task transfers if your account balance dips below $5.

Kids' debit card

One of GoHenry's primary features is its prepaid debit card, which is offered through Community Federal Savings Bank (Member FDIC, Cert. #57129). Kids can get a custom card with their choice of over 45 different designs for a fee or receive a free standard card without customization. (Look, another opportunity for a money lesson: do you pay the extra $4.99 for a fun, customized design or stick with the standard version?)

Parents can cancel and replace a lost or stolen debit card through the app for free. However, a replacement card solely for a different design will set you back another $4.99.

The debit card is offered through Mastercard, has a secure chip, and allows PIN-protected transactions. Cards can be used online, in-store, at ATMs, or even through Apple Pay. The GoHenry debit card has a $120 daily withdrawal limit or a $480 limit over four days. There is a maximum of three withdrawals in one day or four in four days.

Financial literacy games and quizzes (Money Missions)

One of the strongest features of the GoHenry app is interactive money lessons called Money Missions. They provide age-appropriate financial literacy stories, quizzes, and games on money basics like earning, borrowing, budgeting, and investing.

Topics were created with teachers and financial education experts following the K-12 Personal Finance Education National Standards, so they're not merely about fun and games.

Challenges are divided into three age-appropriate levels. The app nudges kids to participate and awards badges when your child has completed a game or lesson. If you like, you can offer cash prizes for completing Money Missions.

Autosave and savings goals

GoHenry helps kids set up savings goals with target dates (for instance, if they need a set amount for a class trip) and autosave features. You can prevent your kids from moving money from one goal to another or leave it unlocked and let them decide what to do with their funds.

Since GoHenry is not a bank, it does not pay interest on its savings account. However, you can pay your child interest on their savings balance every month if you wish. You set the interest rate and can adjust the amount through the app. It's a fun way to give your kids real-world experience with the power of compound interest.

How much does GoHenry cost?

GoHenry costs $5 per child or $10 for up to four children each month, and you can test it out for 30 days for free. GoHenry allows you to cancel anytime and doesn't charge foreign transaction fees.

Again, you can also access GoHenry as an Acorns Gold user, which costs $12 a month.

What customers are saying

GoHenry has earned 4.4 out of 5 stars on the Apple App Store and 4.3 out of 5 stars on Google Play.

One positive review stated, "My kids are doing their chores and so excited to watch the videos. They like having their own personal card at stores and are actually saving vs. using cash. Love it!"

One recurring complaint on Trustpilot is that the prepaid debit card isn't accepted everywhere. Merchants accept prepaid debit cards on a case-by-case basis. If you're concerned about having the card readily accepted everywhere, opening a traditional bank account with a debit card with your child might be a better choice.

Overall, many customer reviews are happy with the app, with parents and grandparents commenting on the topics' thoroughness and the features' usefulness. However, some report the app malfunctions or is slow to load updates.

GoHenry alternatives

Despite its helpful features, GoHenry may not be the perfect fit for every family, especially if you have more than four children. If you're looking for investment options or an account that pays interest, GoHenry doesn't fit the bill.

You might consider one of these similarly priced apps.

	GoHenry	Greenlight	Busykid
App features	Allowance and chore lists Kids' debit card Savings goals Parental controls Merchant blocks Financial literacy lessons	Allowance and chores Kids' debit card Savings Earning interest on savings depending on membership level Financial literacy Cashback and investing options for higher-tier monthly memberships	Chores and allowances based on age group Kids' debit card Savings match Parental controls and push notifications Investing options for no additional cost
Monthly fee	$5 or $10 for up to four kids	$5.99, $9.98, or $14.98 a month, depending on the features	$4 a month, billed annually
Number of children	Up to four children	Up to five children	Up to five children
App store ratings	Apple App Store: 4.4 Google Play Store: 4.3	Apple App Store: 4.8 Google Play Store: 4.7	Apple App Store: 3.4 Google Play Store: 3.7
Debit card available	Yes	Yes	Yes
Investing features	No	Yes, on Greenlight Max and Greenlight Infinity memberships	Yes, at no additional charge

Greenlight

Greenlight has three monthly membership levels, starting at $5.99 for basic features with Greenlight Core. If you're looking for more features, including investing for parents and kids, earning 2.00%-5.00% (as of Feb. 10, 2025) on savings, and purchase protections, you'll need to sign up for Greenlight Max ($9.98 a month) or Greenlight Infinity ($14.98 a month). All plans support up to five kids or teens, and Greenlight is available to kids of any age (compared to GoHenry's minimum of six).

Like GoHenry, Greenlight enables parents to pay their children an allowance or wage and direct it toward specific savings, spending, or giving goals. Greenlight also offers educational tools and games to teach children financial literacy. Overall, we see Greenlight as the better choice for "extra" features like investing, cash back on spending, and interest on savings, and we give GoHenry the edge for simplicity if you're worried about your kid getting overwhelmed. Greenlight would also be less expensive for larger families on the Core plan, though this lacks some of the platform's best features.

To see more about how it stacks up against GoHenry, check out our GoHenry vs. Greenlight comparison.

Visit Greenlight | Read our Greenlight review

BusyKid

BusyKid is another platform we recommend if you're looking for a money management app and debit card for kids. For $4 a month (billed annually), you can access app features like allowance and chore tracking based on age, savings and investing tools, and Visa debit cards for up to five children. 

We like this option a little better than GoHenry when it comes to giving your kids choices for how they use their money since it supports charitable donations and unlimited investing in stocks and ETFs. It also offers savings matches funded by BusyKid and the ability to schedule automatic savings transfers from allowance payments. BusyKid's educational tools aren't as robust as GoHenry's, and it doesn't have as many spending perks as Greenlight, but this option offers better value and more features than GoHenry across the board. Just note that BusyKid's app isn't as well-reviewed.

Visit BusyKid

FAQs

Bottom line

GoHenry has many helpful features and financial literacy lessons to give kids a strong foundation in managing money. Before committing to any one app, research the available options and read customer reviews to help you get an accurate picture of the experience.

While teaching your child about money and financial concepts through an app might seem unnecessary, giving them experience in handling their own money before they enter the adult world can be a game-changer. If you'd prefer to work with a traditional bank and open a children or teen account, though, check out our list of the best banks for options that might work for you.