How much allowance for a 14-year-old?

Phone credit and hobbies

Around fourteen, fixed costs can show up: a phone plan top-up, a club fee, equipment for a hobby. Decide which of those the allowance should cover and which you will keep paying. Whatever you hand over should come with a clear line, so there is no argument about it later.

The fourteen-year-old range in dollars

Dutch 14-year-olds typically receive €25 to €32 a month according to Nibud's 2025 survey of secondary-school students, a description of what happens in practice.

Fixed and flexible costs

• Phone credit or an app subscription they choose
• Hobby supplies, such as art materials or sports kit
• Clothing extras beyond the basics you buy

Monthly, with a written budget

Hand it over once a month and ask your teenager to jot down a simple budget: fixed costs first, then spending, then saving. Look at it together in the first month, then step back.

A budgeting exercise

Example: of $50 a month, $15 for phone credit, $20 to spend and $15 to save. These numbers are only a way to practice the split. Pouch adds a pretend allowance each week, so you can divide the monthly sum by about 4.3 there.

The role of choice

Teenagers may push back on rules they had no say in. Offer a menu: you can take a smaller sum with the phone plan included, or a larger sum and pay for the plan yourself. Letting them pick forces them to think about the full picture. Whichever they choose, hold them to it for a set period, such as three months, before reopening the topic.

Chores at 14

Fourteen-year-olds can manage larger household tasks. Whether those earn extra is up to your family; the guide on chores and allowance compares approaches. Chores for 14-year-olds lists tasks, and allowance for teenagers covers the wider question.

What the next and previous ages get

Neighboring ages are covered in allowance for 13-year-olds and allowance for 15-year-olds. When you want to compare rates, the allowance by age calculator is the place.