Summary
GoHenry is a unique Pre-paid Visa card and App that helps parents to teach their children about money. It’s the perfect way to help kids learn how to manage money, set savings goals and make informed spending choices – all from an early age.
The GoHenry card can be used anywhere Visa is accepted and comes with a built-in parental control so parents can top up the card, manage spending and see where their children have been spending. The free GoHenry App also offers in-depth insights into family finances, round-up payments for everyday purchases and even the ability to pay friends quickly and easily.
Overall
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Ease of Use
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Fees
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Customer Service
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App Reliability
Pros
- Teaches children the value of money by saving and budgeting
- Parental controls can limit spending
- Family and Friends can easily transfer funds as gifts
- User Friendly App
- Secured card with chip and pin feature
Cons
- Max 4 children per family
- Saving won’t earn interest
- To cancel, must call customer service
Teaching your kids financial responsibility is essential.
For many years, parents have used the system of an allowance to give their kids practice with saving and spending responsibly. However, in today’s increasingly mobile and digital world, finding time to stop at an ATM or the bank to get your kids cash can be a hassle.
Many parents opt to give their children their own debit card to simplify this, but that can come with its problems, such as overdraft fees, and often very young children don’t qualify for a standard debit card.
One option that many parents are finding success with is the GoHenry Debit Card. GoHenry is a debit card specifically designed for kids that teach them fiscal responsibility along the way.
In our GoHenry review, we will discuss what GoHenry is, how it works, the Pros and Cons, and finally if this product is worth it.
What is the GoHenry Debit Card?
GoHenry is a pre-paid debit card for kids between the ages of 6 and 18. The card was created by parents who wanted to teach their children how to handle money in a safe way that allowed them to be involved in all of their child’s spending.
The card comes with an app that allows parents to see everything their child is doing, transfer money to their child regularly, and parents can even control where their kids can use the card.
How the GoHenry Card Works
The GoHenry card works much like a bank account debit card, except that it is pre-paid. This means that kids can’t overspend and rack up overdraft fees.
Parents can schedule regular payments for their child’s allowance, or they can tie payments directly to chores. Kids get paid when their chores are marked completed.
Parents can also let relatives gift money to their child via the GoHenry app for holidays and special occasions, meaning no more running to the bank with checks or letting your kids have free reign with cash.
To set up your child’s account, all you need to do is go to the GoHenry website or download the app. It only takes a few minutes to put in the information for you and your child, and then your child’s card will be mailed out to you.
There is a monthly fee of $3.99 for each child using GoHenry. The app allows kids to set savings goals and has tools to help them learn how to budget.
As a parent, you can see everything that your child spends money on and block the card’s use at any time.
GoHenry Features
The GoHenry card has several convenient features that make involvement in your child’s financial education and spending habits easy and simple.
Spending Notifications
The GoHenry app has two separate interfaces, one for parents and one for kids. With the parent account, you receive notifications every time your child spends money.
These notifications tell you where your child has spent money and how much they spent. This is a huge benefit over cash. If you hand your child their allowance in cash, you may have no idea how they’re spending their money or how much they’re saving.
Parental Controls
The GoHenry debit card is the equivalent of parental controls on the internet but in a debit card. So even when you aren’t with your child, you can rest assured that they won’t be able to use the card for any 18+ services or websites.
This is built into the card. Any store, website, or item that has an 18+ business code can not be purchased with the card. This includes alcohol, cigarettes, services via dating websites, and a plethora of other adult-oriented purchases that you may worry about your teen accessing.
Parents also have the option to control the channels where the card is used. Some of the channels where the card may be used are in-store, online, or ATM withdrawals.
If you don’t want your child to be able to use one of these channels, you can easily block it from use within the parent version of the mobile app.
You also have the option of limiting how much your child can spend in a week or limiting the amount that can be withdrawn from an ATM.
Budgeting and Finance Education Tools for Kids
One of the best features of the GoHenry debit card is that the app comes with so many tools to help kids learn fiscal responsibility. In addition, the app has budgeting tools that are colorful and fun for kids to use.
Kids can see the direct correlation between hard work and money earned as the chore tracker tool puts money onto the card for household tasks completed. This feature also gives parents a way to track how quickly and how often chores are being completed.
There’s an educational tool in the app called ‘Money Missions.’ This program turns learning about money management into a fun game with interactive quizzes where kids can earn points and badges.
Kids can set goals for savings. They can pick what they want to save up for, whether that’s a prom dress or pocket money for a family vacation. Then, kids can put their goals into the app, set goals for savings, and see when their savings have fallen off track.
By teaching kids to save for fun things when they’re young, parents will set them up for success later in life, as they’ll have already built solid habits and experienced money management success.
They’ll also positively associate fiscal responsibility, mentally linking it to a new bike or paying for their own pizza slumber party.
Gift Links for Friends and Family
The GoHenry app allows parents to send Gift Links out to friends and family for holidays and birthdays. As a result, grandparents and aunts and uncles don’t have to resort to mailing checks or trying to figure out what to buy for picky teenagers. Instead, they can deliver cash to their GoHenry account via direct deposit.
The money arrives with a cute and colorful digital card and message that family members can select. This adds a touch of creativity and personalization when gifting money.
GoHenry Card Pricing
The GoHenry debit card has monthly membership fees of $3.99 for every child you sign up. However, if you’d like to get your child a custom card (of which there are a number of unique and customizable designs), that’s a one-time fee of $4.99 when you sign up.
There’s also a fee of $4.99 if that custom card ever has to be replaced, whereas there is no replacement fee for a lost card that are not customized.
There is also a $1.50 fee for ATM withdrawals (whether the ATM is in-network or out-of-network). There can sometimes be additional ATM fees charged by the ATM provider as well.
In addition to these fees, there are a few limits placed on GoHenry debit cards. The cards in one family (meaning all of your children combined) can not have a balance exceeding $6,000.
The number of purchases made by all of the kids can’t be greater than 10 per day or 20 per 4 days. Purchases made by all of your children combined can not exceed $2,500 per day.
GoHenry Pros and Cons
Pros of the GoHenry Debit Card
- Teaches young people at an early age to learn budgeting, saving, and the value of money for future fiscal responsibility. The app has tools to budget, tools to set savings goals and track savings progress thus developing good money habits
- Parents can give relatives gift links for birthdays and other special occasions so that money is put right onto the child’s pre-paid GoHenry debit card, rather than having to deal with the more traditional cash or checks in birthday cards.
- It is a pre-paid debit card, so unlike a debit card you’d get through a bank with a checking account, there’s no risk of your child over-spending and incurring overdraft fees.
- The app and online portal are very user-friendly and fun to use. The children’s portal is brightly-colored and engaging, making money management enjoyable and child-friendly.
- Parents are always aware of what their child is spending money on with real-time spending notifications.
- Parents can reward children for keeping up with their responsibilities using the chore tracker tool. Many parents don’t like to pay children for completing chores because they feel strongly that children should learn to do their share without a tangible reward. Still, other families decide that children should see the relation between hard work and earning their own money.
- Parental Controls prevent kids from spending money at any establishment or website with an 18+ adult services business code. Parents can also control which channels their kids use the card at, blocking in-store or online purchases or ATM withdrawals if they so choose. Spending limits can also be placed on how much your child spends each day or how much they can withdraw from an ATM.
- The split-the-bill feature makes it easy for teenagers to split the check at restaurants and other establishments.
- Parents can schedule a set amount for their allowance or child’s spending money.
- The cards are secure since they have a chip and a pin number.
- The app has a built-in function for charitable giving, so kids can learn the joy of giving back.
Cons of the GoHenry Debit Card
- The fees can add up if you have multiple children.
- To cancel the child account, you have to contact customer service. You can’t close out the account yourself, and the account will not even cancel after your child turns 18 and is no longer eligible for the account.
- GoHenry only allows families to sign up a maximum of 4 children. Families with more than four children may need to look into other debit card options or figure out their own system for spending and tracking money.
- Savings won’t earn any interest, as they would with a savings account through a bank.
Is the GoHenry Debit Card Legit?
Yes! GoHenry is FDIC-insured, meaning that your money is safe. The card is a prepaid debit card and is accepted anywhere that Mastercard is accepted, including internationally.
The company has been in operation since 2012. They started in the U.K and branched out to operations in the U.S several years later. They have consistently positive reviews across various platforms.
On Trust Pilot, GoHenry has an average rating of 4 out 5 stars, with many glowing reviews from parents saying they love the convenience of the app and enjoy all the tools provided for teaching kids money management.
Wrapping It Up
GoHenry is a prepaid card that comes with an app for both parents and kids. It’s an easy way for parents to keep track of everything their children spend money on, with real-time notifications letting parents know whenever their kids make a purchase.
The GoHenry debit card is accepted everywhere that Mastercard is accepted and can be used in-store or online. It can even be used for ATM withdrawals. Parents have the option to block some of these channels. For example, if you don’t want your child to be able to spend all their weekly allowance right away online, you may block their card from making online purchases.
With built-in tools for budgeting, tracking spending, and setting goals for savings, your child will be well on their way to learning healthy financial mindsets. Thinking before they spend will become second nature to them.
There are a couple of downsides to the GoHenry debit card. The fees can be costly if you have numerous children. It can also be inconvenient to cancel the account, as it requires contacting customer service.
However, for parents with one or two children who want to monitor spending and set their kids up for financial success, GoHenry can be a solid option. It’s available to children as young as six years old, so it’s a good choice for parents of young children who aren’t yet old enough for a debit card through a bank.
GoHenry is a great way to streamline allowances, chore payments, and cash for birthdays and holidays while teaching kids the importance of financial literacy and smart money management.
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