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Gender pay gap starts at age 8, pocket money report shows

Joanna Faith
Written By:
Joanna Faith
Posted:
Updated:
15/07/2019

Young boys get more pocket money than girls for chores and good behaviour, a new report reveals.

Research by pocket money app GoHenry found British boys aged 8 earn an average of £279 a year, while girls of the same age receive £265 – £14 less.

On average, boys aged 8-15 earn £440 a year compared with girls who receive £420.

This pay gap peaks at age 11, when boys earn an average annual income of £404 compared to girls who bring in £371.

The figures, based on the financial behaviours of 75,000 children aged 6-18 combined with research from the University College London Consumer Data Research Centre, show a pocket money gender pay gap of 5 per cent, slightly lower than the UK’s median gender pay gap of 9.6 per cent.

British children and teenagers collectively earn £4.5bn from pocket money, ad hoc gifts, and household chores such as tidying their room and washing the dishes.

Walking the dog earns the highest ‘wage’ at £1.50, along with good behaviour (£1.45), and tidying their room (£1.40).

Chores that pay the least are setting the table (70p), making the bed (80p) and brushing teeth (80p).

Spending

According to the research, British kids spend 87 per of the total income, with over half spent in-store.

Most choose to go cashless, with only 14 per cent of 6-18-year olds’ money withdrawn at ATMs.

Online spending among children is booming with kids spending a third of their income online – twice that of adult spending.

Boys spend half of their money (46 per cent) on digital transactions, more than double the amount spent by girls (21 per cent).

Dr Eliza Filby, generational expert and report contributor, said: “I think that this generation is going to be cashless natives, in the way that they are digital natives.

“Although they are going to be the first cashless generation, it’s wrong to assume that because they don’t use cash they’re not as educated, informed or conscious when they spend. This is a much more sophisticated use of money which wasn’t available to millennials.”

When it comes to saving, British children put away over £550m in 2018, an average of £62 over the course of the year, or £5.15 a month.