Review of KidsSave Savings and Money Manager

Written by Elizabeth on May 15, 2008 – 12:12 pm -

I received a License Key to try KidsSave, a savings and money management software program designed for kids ages 6 and up. KidsSave shows kids how to save money towards a goal, how to keep track of their allowance, even how to earn monetary rewards like extra money or “interest”. Parents act as the Banker in setting up the initial account and monitoring transactions.

There are two features of the program that I particularly like, the first is the “What If?” feature. Kids can set a savings goal and then see at their current deposit rate, how long it will take them to reach that goal. Or, they can see how much they will have in 3 months, 6 months, a year, etc. It’s a great way to teach how to make adjustments to savings to reach a financial goal.

I also like the Money Counter, which teaches kids how to add and subtract coins and bills to their account. It’s available in U.S., Canadian, and Australian currency. Now, as the Banker/Parent, your responsibility will be to actually keep your kids’ money in an account somewhere. If they decide to make a withdrawal, you’ll need to be able to come up with their cash!

I give my boys their age in dollars for allowance every two weeks, and I do not tell them what to do with it. If Nathan wants to blow the whole nine dollars on a new lego set, that’s up to him, but then if a week later he sees something else, he has to wait until his next payday. KidsSave is a great visual tool to explain the benefits of not spending the entire allowance all at once.

You can download a free trial of KidsSave on the Kidnexions website, or purchase it for $29.95. You might find yourself creating an account and setting up your own savings goals like I did!


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