FamZoo review
- Monthly maintenance fee
- $5.99
- Signature transaction fee
- $0
- PIN transaction fee
- $0
Our verdict
This customizable kids’ prepaid card teaches financial literacy via chores, family bills, mock loans and more.
With over 17 features built into its platform, FamZoo thinks about more than just savings and spending for kids' financial literacy. It offers unique features like family billing and mock loans that you won't find anywhere else. Even its standard features like chores come with the functionality to customize to your needs. While its platform has a learning curve, you get plenty of customer support through FamZoo's email or Facebook parent group.
Best for: Hands-on teaching about finances from savings to loans.
Pros
-
Create 17+ customizable financial literacy tools
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Mock loans and bill pay
Cons
-
Design not as userfriendly as other kids' apps
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Not all features accessible on mobile
-
Learning curve to maximize using tools
Who is FamZoo best for?
FamZoo’s prepaid cards work best for families who want to teach their kids more than just managing their spending and savings. It works for a variety of ages too with more than 50% of FamZoo’s users are under age 13.
It’s also best for parents who want a platform that lets them customize the app to fit their goals and needs. All in all, FamZoo’s suite of customizable features and ability to work as an envelope budgeting system make it one of the best options on the market.
How much does FamZoo cost?
The month-to-month plan renews automatically until it’s canceled. Advance payment plans are renewed manually.
| Plan | Cost |
|---|---|
| Month-to-month | $5.99 |
| 6 months in advance | $25.99 |
| 12 months in advance | $39.99 |
| 24 months in advance | $59.99 |
Where FamZoo shines: Financial literacy
FamZoo is one of the most robust prepaid debit card platforms for families. Like other debit cards for kids, FamZoo lets you set up parent-paid interest on a weekly, monthly or yearly basis.
You can also instantly transfer money between any of the cards, split allowances between your kids’ various accounts and pay kids when they request money.
Here’s how FamZoo stands out in a slew of kids’ banking platforms:
Customizable tools
FamZoo offers a suite of tools that let you customize each one to your situation. A few examples include:
- Use the chore tool to create other lists for school or groceries.
- Use IOU accounts to track when your kids spend cash.
- Set up mock loans to track borrowed money with interest and teach your kids about paying off debt
- Set up automated bill pay that charges yout teens’ share of expenses like a cell phone or gas bill.
We have yet to see any other kid’s card and platform offer so many customizable tools. And its bill pay and loan tools are unique to FamZoo.
Other features that FamZoo offers:
- Approve chores before paying
- Create a list of unassigned chores kids can choose from
- Create additional subaccounts beyond spending, saving and giving
- Set up allowances according to age or a fixed amount
- Tie chores to payment or penalties that deducts from their account
Envelope budgeting and other tools for adults
FamZoo is so customizable that even adults can use the account for envelope budgeting. Here’s how it works:
- At signup, order an unlimited number of prepaid cards with the first four cards free.
- Then, customize the label for each card according to different budget categories like groceries or fun money. You can’t spend more than what’s on the card, making it ideal for envelope budgeting.
- Load any of the cards directly from your bank account, digital wallets like Paypal or with cash at participating Green Dot or Mastercard rePower stores for a fee.
If you want to track cash that you have on hand, use IOU accounts. These accounts don’t move money around from your FamZoo cards. You simply create the account and enter the amount of cash you have, then deduct from the account every time you spend the cash.
Another use of IOU accounts is borrowing money from someone. Here you would add your negative balance so that you know how much you need to pay back.
Once you join FamZoo , try out its Facebook group to see how other families are using the accounts to learn more about all of its other features.
Where it falls short
Like many kids’ digital banking platforms, FamZoo doesn’t offer phone support. You’ll have to use its contact form to reach customer service, though FamZooclaims to respond to most emails quickly during normal business hours. Compared to other kids’ apps, FamZoo’s main downsides are its design and monthly fee.
Text-heavy design
After trying FamZoo out, we noticed that it doesn’t have the most user-friendly design compared to other kids’ banking apps. The app is limited to basic functions like assigning chores and allowances, so you have to use its desktop version to set up other features.
Although FamZoo updated its look for 2023, its design still relies heavily on text, description fields and dropdown choices. These help you customize how you use the tools but with a learning curve. It takes time to figure out the best way to use the tools. If you want to explore all of the customization possibilities, join its Facebook parent group or access its library of self-help articles for support.
Parental controls
FamZoo doesn’t let you set limits on your kids’ spending the way that competitors Greenlight and Acorns Early (formerly GoHenry) do. For example, Greenlight lets you set spending limits on specific stores and Acorns Early lets you limit how much they spend per purchase and overall for the week.
FamZoo also doesn’t work well if you want to add a second adult and limit their access and controls. Adults on the account get full control of managing the kids’ cards, making it less than ideal for divorced parents who want privacy. You can get around this problem by letting the second adult send ACH transfers to the child’s card.
Monthly fee higher than most
FamZoo has one of the highest monthly fees we’ve seen at $5.99. However, it’s not as expensive as some of Greenlight’s plans, which range from $5.99 to $14.98 per month. Although FamZoo doesn’t offer different plans, it charges less if you buy a one- or two-year subscription. Despite the monthly fee, FamZoo may be worth the cost if you want a card that teaches kids about financial literacy beyond just savings, spending and giving.
Compare FamZoo to other debit cards for kids
Narrow down top kids’ cards by monthly fee and features.
FamZoo’s fees and access
Here’s a rundown of the fees you’ll encounter at FamZoo and how it compares to other kids’ cards:
| Type of fee | Fee details | How it compares to other kids’ cards |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly service |
| Most kids’ banking platforms charge $4–$5 per month, though you can find some that are free. |
| Opening deposit | $5–$50 | Most kids’ prepaid cards don’t require an opening deposit. |
| ATM fee | $0, but ATM owner may charge a fee | It’s common for kids’ digital accounts to allow using any ATM, but some like Acorns Early (formerly GoHenry) charge ATM fees. |
| Card |
| It’s unusual for a digital kids’ account to let you buy an unlimited number of cards. |
| Foreign transaction fee | 0% | Most kids’ cards either don’t allow foreign transactions, or they charge a 1%–3% fee. |
| Overdraft or insufficient funds | $0 — transactions will decline if there’s not enough money | Most kids’ cards won’t let your kids overdraft the account. |
| Wire transfers | Not available | It’s common for kids’ banking platforms to not allow wire transfers. You have to go with a traditional bank account if you want this feature. |
| Inactivity fee | $0 after 12 months of no activity | This is typical of most cards |
| Cash reload fee | Up to $4.95 for loading cash at Green Dot or Mastercard rePower stores | It’s unusual for a digital kids’ account to let you load cash. |
How do I open a FamZoo account?
You can sign up for FamZoo, purchase your subscription and order cards online.
- Select Apply now.
- From the FamZoo website, click Sign up now. Then select Prepaid card accounts.
- Pick your family sign-in name, your sign-in name and password and add your email. Then select Next.
- Choose your subscription plan and click Next.
- Set up your primary funding card by choosing the cardholder, making a label and choosing the initial card load. Then select Next.
- Add any additional parents or children then click Add card next to each one you would like to add a card for, then select Next.
- Enter the legal name, date of birth, Social Security number and address for each cardholder. Then click Verify cardholder.
- Select a payment method then select Next.
- Enter your payment details and select Buy now.
Eligibility
Primary account holders must meet the following requirements:
- Parent or guardian must be at least 18 years old
- Children can be any age, even younger than 13
- American citizen with a US residential address
- $5 opening deposit
Required information
You’ll need to provide the following information for each cardholder:
- Full name
- Date of birth and Social Security number
- Residential address
- Email address and phone number
How long will it take to get my card?
FamZoo states that it takes seven to 10 business days for cards to arrive. Each card is shipped in its own envelope to the address used to verify the cardholder’s identity.
I got the card. Now what?
To start using your card, you’ll want to start with the following items:
- Activate the cards. You’ll first need to activate the primary card online in desktop mode through the parent account under the Store tab and then activate each of the other cards.
- Set up chores. Create checklists of chores and assign values to each task.
- Create allowances. Set up automatic weekly or monthly allowances, and help your kids delegate what percent of funds go to saving, spending and gifting.
- Add cards as needed. You can order multiple cards for each family member for specific purposes — a summer trip, lunch money, clothes, gifts or any other number of situations.
Is FamZoo safe?
Yes. FamZoo accounts are FDIC insured for up to $250,000. Additionally, FamZoo never stores your or your child’s Social Security numbers or card account numbers. These details are processed by FamZoo’s partner, TransCard, which is certified by Mastercard and compliant with the banking industry’s security standards.
Customer experience
Hundreds of customers praise FamZoo with high ratings on the Google Play and Apple app stores. Positive reviews praise the different tools available like automated parent-paid interest on savings and the ability to use the cards for envelope budgeting. Negative reviews complain that the app only includes basic features and that the site design needs updating for userfriendliness.
There are also only two ways to contact FamZoo:
- Call 412-326-9661.
- Fill out the form under their Customer Service or Contact Us page.
How does FamZoo work?
FamZoo works through your mobile device. Download the app through the App Store if you’re an iPhone user or Google Play if you have Android.
Kids’ debit card ratings
★★★★★ — Excellent
★★★★★ — Good
★★★★★ — Average
★★★★★ — Subpar
★★★★★ — Poor
We analyze top debit cards for kids and rate them one to five stars based on factors that are most important to you. We rate kids’ checking accounts by these factors: Monthly fee, features, ATM access, customer support options, and availability. We also consider APY as a factor only for those that earn interest. We rate prepaid debit cards for kids by these factors: monthly fees, features, customer support options and account availability.
Read the full methodology of how we rate Kids’ debit card accounts.
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