Is there a free version of Greenlight?

No. Every Greenlight debit card plan has a monthly fee, from $5.99 (Core) to $19.98 (Family Shield). New families get a one-month risk-free trial: the first fee is charged on day seven and refunded if you cancel within the month. Greenlight's Level Up money game can be used without a card plan.

Can you get Greenlight for free?

Sometimes, through a bank or credit union. DCU members can get Greenlight SELECT at no cost with DCU as the funding source (the offer ends November 12, 2026), and U.S. Bank covers Greenlight Select for clients who keep an eligible checking account as the funding source. The bank pays, not Greenlight, and normal fees apply if the offer ends or you switch funding.

What is the cheapest Greenlight alternative?

Step, Chase First Banking (with a parent's Chase checking account), Capital One MONEY, Cash App Families and Modak's basic plan all cost $0 a month. Among paid options, Modak's chores plan is $2.99 a month, BusyKid is $48 a year (about $4 a month) for the whole family, and FamZoo is about $4.99 a month when prepaid for a year. Greenlight starts at $5.99 for Core and goes up to $19.98 for Family Shield.

Is there a completely free debit card for kids?

Yes. Step has no monthly fee and no minimum age (a parent sponsors kids under 18), Cash App Families is free from age 6, and Capital One MONEY and Chase First Banking are free from age 6 (Chase needs a parent with Chase checking). Modak's basic card is free too. The tradeoff is that free cards skip most of the chore and allowance features that paid apps like Greenlight and BusyKid charge for.

Which alternative has the best chore tracking?

BusyKid has the strongest chore-to-allowance system: parents set chores, kids complete them, and parents approve payday. FamZoo is a close second because of its IOU accounts and parent-as-banker controls. Greenlight is competitive but costs more for the same core features.

Is Greenlight still worth it in 2026?

Greenlight is still the most polished all-in-one family finance app, and the $5.99 to $19.98 monthly fee is worth it if you will use its chores, investing or family safety features. If you mainly want a card, Step and Cash App Families are free and BusyKid is $48 a year. Acorns Early ($8 a month) is the pick if you want built-in lessons.

What age can my child use these apps?

Greenlight, Step and FamZoo have no minimum age, and BusyKid starts at 5. Acorns Early, Chase First Banking, Capital One MONEY and Cash App Families start at 6. Fidelity Youth and Current are for teens 13 to 17. For kids under 6, a paper chore chart or our chore chart tool usually works better than a card.

Did GoHenry shut down in the US?

No, it was renamed. GoHenry's US service became Acorns Early on November 18, 2024, so existing US customers carried over automatically. The UK GoHenry brand still operates, and Barclays agreed in June 2026 to buy it. If a 2026 article recommends GoHenry as a US product, it has not been updated.

By the Penny Time editorial team May 20, 2026

Reviewed by the Penny Time editorial team

Part of our Allowance hub.

Top 7 Greenlight Alternatives in 2026: A Parent's Honest Comparison

Greenlight charges $5.99 to $19.98 per month for a kids debit card and chore tracker. That is a real cost for families, and the feature set is not always worth it. We compared every major competitor on current pricing and published feature lists, updated September 2026, and cross-referenced independent hands-on reviews. This is the honest comparison the affiliate sites will not write, because none of these links pay us a commission. Full disclosure: Penny Time is our own free app, and it is not one of the seven cards ranked below.

One shift many roundups still miss: GoHenry's US service was renamed Acorns Early in November 2024, so existing US accounts carried over. Most roundup articles still list GoHenry as a separate US product. It is not. If you see GoHenry recommended for US families in 2026, that article is stale.

Is Greenlight free?

No. Greenlight has no free debit card plan. Its four family plans cost $5.99 (Core), $10.98 (Max), $15.98 (Infinity) or $19.98 (Family Shield) a month for up to five kids. New families get a one-month risk-free trial, but the first fee is charged on day seven and refunded only if you cancel within that month.

There are two ways to pay less. Some banks and credit unions cover Greenlight's Select plan for members as an account perk (DCU through November 12, 2026, and U.S. Bank for eligible checking customers). And several alternatives below have no monthly fee at all: Step, Chase First Banking, Capital One MONEY, Cash App Families and Modak's basic plan. Our Greenlight price breakdown covers every plan and fee. Prices checked on Greenlight's fee disclosures in September 2026.

The verdict

What is the best Greenlight alternative in 2026?

The best Greenlight alternative depends on your child's age and whether you want chores, investing, or just a free card. Best value: BusyKid at $48 a year (about $4 a month) for the whole family, with the strongest chore-to-allowance system here. Best for investing: Fidelity Youth for teens 13 to 17, free and owned by the teen, or Acorns Early's $12 Gold plan for younger kids. Best free card: Step, with no monthly fee and no minimum age (kids under 18 need a sponsor), though it has no chore tracker.

Capital One MONEY and Chase First Banking also open from age 6 with no monthly fee (Chase needs a parent with Chase checking and adds basic chores). Greenlight itself is still the most polished all-in-one app; the question is whether you need everything it bundles at $5.99 to $19.98 a month. Under about 12, a free allowance calculator and a printed chore chart cover the same ground for $0.

The free alternative most lists skip

Penny Time covers automatic allowance and a tracked balance with no monthly fee, free for the whole family.

The 7 best Greenlight alternatives in 2026

1. Acorns Early (formerly GoHenry US)

Acorns Early vs Greenlight: pick Acorns Early if you already invest with Acorns, because Gold bundles the kids' cards with your own accounts ($8 a month for Lite or $12 for Gold, vs Greenlight's $5.99 to $19.98).

Acorns Early has been GoHenry's US name since November 2024, and the card, chores, allowance and 100+ Money Missions lessons carried over. The price is $8 per month for up to four kids on the Acorns Early Lite plan, or included with Acorns Gold at $12 per month. Gold adds Early Invest, a custodial investing account for each kid with a 1% match on the first $7,000 invested a year; Lite has no investing. Best for: families who want built-in money lessons, or custodial investing on Gold. Ages 6 to 18. See our full Greenlight vs GoHenry (now Acorns Early) comparison for how it stacks up against Modak.

2. BusyKid

BusyKid vs Greenlight: pick BusyKid if a chores-first allowance matters more to you than polish ($48 a year, about $4 a month, vs Greenlight's $5.99 to $19.98 a month).

BusyKid costs $48 a year, billed annually (about $4 a month), for the whole family, which makes it the cheapest paid option on this list. The chore system is the strongest feature. Parents set the chores, kids complete them, and parents approve payday before the allowance goes out each Friday. The debit card is a prepaid Visa issued by Pathward. Kids can also buy stock from $10 with no commissions, though the investing side is basic. Best for: large families with multiple kids and a chores-first approach. Ages 5 to 17.

3. Step

Step vs Greenlight: pick Step if you only need a card with no monthly fee and are happy to track chores yourself ($0 vs Greenlight's $5.99 to $19.98 a month).

Step is free: no monthly fee, no minimum balance, no overdraft. The card is a Visa, and there is no minimum age, though anyone under 18 needs a parent, guardian or trusted adult to sponsor the account. There is no chore tracker built in (you handle that separately with something like our chore chart tool), but parents can set up recurring payments for things like allowance. Best for: kids and teens who do not need a chore app glued to their card.

4. Fidelity Youth Account

Fidelity Youth vs Greenlight: pick Fidelity Youth if your teen is 13 to 17 and wants to own real investments ($0 vs $10.98 a month for Max, Greenlight's cheapest plan with kids' investing).

Fidelity Youth is free: no monthly fee, no account fee, and no minimum to open. It is the only option here where the teen legally owns a real brokerage account rather than a custodial one, and they can buy fractional shares of most US stocks and some ETFs from $1 with no commission. An optional debit card comes with it, and ATM fees charged by other banks are reimbursed. No chore tracker and no budgeting layer. Best for: teens 13 to 17 with job or allowance income whose parents want real investing rather than a simulation. At 18, the teen can convert it to a standard account. Younger kids: not eligible.

5. Famzoo

FamZoo vs Greenlight: pick FamZoo if you want to run IOU accounts as the family banker, with or without cards ($5.99 a month or $59.90 prepaid for a year, vs Greenlight's $5.99 to $19.98).

FamZoo is $5.99 per month per family, or $59.90 if you prepay for 12 months (about $4.99 a month). It launched in 2006. The unusual part is the IOU account, which tracks money you are holding on your child's behalf, so you can run the whole thing without issuing cards. That is handy for younger kids. Best for: parents who want fine-grained control. No minimum age.

6. Current

Current vs Greenlight: pick Current if your teen is 13 to 17 and you would open a Current account yourself, since a parent's account sponsors the teen's.

Current is free for the teen account ($0 per month) and offers a teen debit card with savings pods, though the bonus rate Current pays on pods is not available to teen accounts. No chore tracker, no investing for kids. The catch: a parent needs their own Current account to sponsor the teen (it has no monthly fee). Best for: families already considering Current for their own banking. Ages 13 to 17.

7. Chase First Banking

Chase First Banking vs Greenlight: pick Chase First if you already have a qualifying Chase checking account and want a no-fee card for a child 6 to 17 ($0 monthly service fee vs Greenlight's $5.99 to $19.98).

Free ($0 monthly service fee) if a parent has an eligible Chase checking account. No investing, and the chore tools are basic: you can assign recurring chores and pay your child when they are done. Best for: existing Chase customers who want a no-frills card for kids 6 to 17 without paying anything extra.

Quick comparison table

App	Monthly cost	Ages	Investing	Chore tracker
Greenlight	$5.99 to $19.98	Any age	From $10.98	Yes
Acorns Early	$8 to $12	6-18	Gold only ($12)	Basic
BusyKid	$4 ($48 a year)	5-17	Basic	Strong
Step	$0	Any (sponsor under 18)	No	No
Fidelity Youth	$0	13-17	Yes	No
FamZoo	$4.99 to $5.99	Any age	No	Yes
Current	$0	13-17	No	No
Chase First	$0 (with checking)	6-17	No	Basic

Prices, ages and features checked on each provider's own site in September 2026.

Still comparing? Start free while you decide

Penny Time runs automatic allowance and a balance kids can watch grow, with no card fee and no subscription.

If your shortlist has narrowed to the three biggest names, our Cash App for Kids vs Greenlight vs Acorns Early comparison puts those three head to head on cost, minimum age, and what each one actually does.

For the wider field beyond Greenlight's rivals, our roundup of the best allowance apps for kids ranks every major card and app by price and age range.

Till Financial vs Greenlight: worth a look

One option outside the main list is Till Financial, worth knowing if your kids are younger. Where most free cards here are teen-only, Till opens accounts for kids of any age once a parent sets it up. The core app and a digital card are free, a physical card costs $5, and a paid Premium tier ($7.99 a month or $79 a year) sits on top. Till focuses on spending and saving rather than investing: you get automated allowance that can be tied to chores, plus savings goals where a parent can add a match or interest. Next to Greenlight, Till is lighter and cheaper to start, but Greenlight still does more once you want investing or a polished all-in-one app.

Free debit cards for kids: which ones are actually $0

"Free debit card for kids" is the most searched version of this whole question, and the honest answer comes with a catch: the free cards skip most of the chore and allowance features that paid apps charge for. Teens have the most no-fee choices, and several free options now start at age 6.

Card	Ages	Monthly fee	The catch
Step	Any age (sponsor under 18)	$0	No chore tracker
Current	13-17	$0	A parent needs their own Current account
Cash App Families	6-17	$0	Parent-managed under 13, light controls, no chore system
Capital One MONEY	6 and up	$0	A teen checking account, not an allowance app
Chase First Banking	6-17	$0	Requires a parent Chase checking account
Modak	Kids and teens	$0 (basic plan)	Chores and allowance need the $2.99 plan; card loads cost from $0.50

For kids under 13, two free options come from major banks: Capital One MONEY accepts kids from age 6 with no fees and no minimums, and Chase First Banking covers ages 6 to 17 at no cost if a parent already banks with Chase. Modak is the main free standalone card, though loading money by card costs at least $0.50 per load (bank transfers are free), and its chores and allowance plan is $2.99 a month. Apart from Chase's basic chores, none of the free options include a real chore-to-allowance system, so if that is the feature you actually want, pair a free card with our chore chart with prices and handle payouts yourself. That combination costs $0 and covers what most families pay Greenlight $5.99 a month for. If the no-fee route is what you are really after, the no-card options in the next section break down the truly free route and the catch behind each one.

Free alternatives to Greenlight (no card, no monthly fee)

Every pick above is still a card, and the free ones skip most of the chore and allowance tools. If your child is under about 12, the honest answer is you may not need a card at all. The allowance and chore lessons that paid apps charge for run for $0 without one.

Free web tools. Set a fair weekly number with our allowance calculator, print a chore chart, sort spending with wants vs needs, and plan it in the budget planner. No signup, no card.
The three-jar method. Save, spend, and give jars plus a five-minute weekly money talk. Kids ages 5 to 9 tend to hold onto budgeting better with physical coins than a screen balance.
Your bank's youth account. Many credit unions and banks offer a free kids account (Capital One MONEY from age 6, Chase First for existing customers), though without the built-in chore and allowance layer.

That covers the same ground families pay Greenlight for, without the monthly fee. Once your kid outgrows cash and starts buying things on their own, that is the moment to revisit a paid card from the list above.

Which one is actually right for you

If you have kids under 13 and want a card plus a real chore system, BusyKid is the value pick. If you want investing, Fidelity Youth is free for teens 13 to 17, and Acorns Early adds a custodial account for younger kids on its $12 Gold plan. If you do not need chores, Step is free at any age with a sponsor. Greenlight is still the most polished all-in-one app; what you pay for is having chores, allowance, investing and safety features in one place. If you are weighing whether that premium holds up, our breakdown of what Greenlight actually costs each month goes plan by plan and covers the complaints parents keep raising.

The chore-to-allowance link is the single most important feature for younger kids, and it is also the one most apps get wrong. Before subscribing to anything, try our free chore chart tool and our allowance calculator to see what amounts and structures actually fit your family. Then pick the card app that matches what you already know works.

Greenlight starts at $5.99 a month for the Core plan and runs up to $19.98 for the top Family Shield tier, the cost that sends many parents looking for free debit cards for kids or cheaper alternatives.

Sources

Prices, ages and features checked on each provider's own site on September 28, 2026. Greenlight, Acorns Early, BusyKid, Step, Fidelity, FamZoo and Chase prices re-checked on October 14, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

: No. Every Greenlight debit card plan has a monthly fee, from $5.99 (Core) to $19.98 (Family Shield). New families get a one-month risk-free trial: the first fee is charged on day seven and refunded if you cancel within the month. Greenlight's Level Up money game can be used without a card plan.
: Sometimes, through a bank or credit union. DCU members can get Greenlight SELECT at no cost with DCU as the funding source (the offer ends November 12, 2026), and U.S. Bank covers Greenlight Select for clients who keep an eligible checking account as the funding source. The bank pays, not Greenlight, and normal fees apply if the offer ends or you switch funding.
: Step, Chase First Banking (with a parent's Chase checking account), Capital One MONEY, Cash App Families and Modak's basic plan all cost $0 a month. Among paid options, Modak's chores plan is $2.99 a month, BusyKid is $48 a year (about $4 a month) for the whole family, and FamZoo is about $4.99 a month when prepaid for a year. Greenlight starts at $5.99 for Core and goes up to $19.98 for Family Shield.
: Yes. Step has no monthly fee and no minimum age (a parent sponsors kids under 18), Cash App Families is free from age 6, and Capital One MONEY and Chase First Banking are free from age 6 (Chase needs a parent with Chase checking). Modak's basic card is free too. The tradeoff is that free cards skip most of the chore and allowance features that paid apps like Greenlight and BusyKid charge for.
: BusyKid has the strongest chore-to-allowance system: parents set chores, kids complete them, and parents approve payday. FamZoo is a close second because of its IOU accounts and parent-as-banker controls. Greenlight is competitive but costs more for the same core features.
: Greenlight is still the most polished all-in-one family finance app, and the $5.99 to $19.98 monthly fee is worth it if you will use its chores, investing or family safety features. If you mainly want a card, Step and Cash App Families are free and BusyKid is $48 a year. Acorns Early ($8 a month) is the pick if you want built-in lessons.
: Greenlight, Step and FamZoo have no minimum age, and BusyKid starts at 5. Acorns Early, Chase First Banking, Capital One MONEY and Cash App Families start at 6. Fidelity Youth and Current are for teens 13 to 17. For kids under 6, a paper chore chart or our chore chart tool usually works better than a card.
: No, it was renamed. GoHenry's US service became Acorns Early on November 18, 2024, so existing US customers carried over automatically. The UK GoHenry brand still operates, and Barclays agreed in June 2026 to buy it. If a 2026 article recommends GoHenry as a US product, it has not been updated.

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