Hello,
Does anyone have any experience/recommendations for prepaid debit cards for children? I have had a look around and there seems to be a few options out there but if someone had actual experience using one that would be really useful.
Many Thanks
I’m using gohenry and have done for a while.
It’s a brilliant service with one downside. Before the downside, the benefits are; it allows a custom card with the name “go[kids name]” printed on the custom-graphic card, easy top-ups, a physical card that your child can use for ATM withdrawals and contactless (or chip & pin purchases), in-app notifications for both parent & child, spending history for both parent & child, extra ‘tasks/jobs’ setup for your child to earn extra money. It is very good.
The downside. It costs £2.99 per month, per account (child) - and that’s if you remember to ensure all ‘outgoings’ to the child are covered by a single top-up at the start of the billing cycle. If you need to top-up during the billing cycle, you’ll be charged an extra 50p per top-up. Not great.
If you feel that you can spend (at least) £2.99 per billing cycle to allow your child to receive their spending money and to receive the benefits detailed above, then it will work for you. It is working for me at this point, but I am actively watching for less expensive alternatives. Cash, like the good old days, springs to mind…
Haha, if this were me I’d take the £2.99 out of their allowance 
Try Soldo?
https://www.soldofamily.com/en-uk/c/family/
Charges are slightly different, so might work better for you, I guess.
Thanks - I’ll check this out.
From 6-10 I’d say GoHenry is a good shout. Rooster is another to try.
https://www.roostermoney.com/gb/feature/the-rooster-card/
If the child is 11-15 I’d recommend a basic account rather than pre-paid. It means no loans, overdraft, direct debits etc. They get contactless and Google/Apple pay if they have their own phone.
You can also get a Santander mini account which can be from birth and switches at 11 to their own.
https://www.santander.co.uk/personal/current-accounts/123-mini-current-account
GoHenry was the one that I had seen that prompted me to start this topic, I think I will give them a go and see how we get on, wasn’t sure if anyone else had any experience with them so wanted to reach out before I took the plunge.
I’d also look at Osper, Nimbl and Rooster too before buying.
I vote🐓
This seems perfect for my children Ebbels, Itre and Nads, but I fear poor Ogle will suffer from a cease and desist.
Thank you, I’m here all week.
“Nads” is by far the winner there
And thank goodness one wasn’t named Bble. Especially a week on Thursday>>> 
I’ve tried a few of them, but 100% vote for Rooster Money 
. They seem to have a big focus on education which helps with all those “why why why” questions. We’ve got the card which also seems to be cheaper than the others and less hidden fees. It’s been an absolute game changer!