Teaching kids about money early in their life is very important. But talking to kids about money can be challenging at first. If you introduce personal finance concepts through a board game, kids are likely to get interested.
Here is a list of the best board games for every age. These games will teach kids to handle money, budgeting, saving and investing, and managing debt.
Buy It Right
Skills: Handling dollars and coins, making change, understanding prices
Age range – 6 through 10
Players – 2 to 4
Buy It Right board game helps kids understand the value of money. They get to handle dollars and bills. The game also introduces them to the concept of prices and helps them think whether a particular item is cheap or expensive. Kids get to set their prices, and buy and sell items while moving the pieces around the board.
Game of Life
Skills – Budgeting, insurance, taxes
Age Range – 8+
Players – 2 to 6
Game of Life is a classic board that been around since 1969. This game introduces kids to stocks, budgeting, insurance, and taxes. Though updated editions are available, I keep going back to the original classic edition when I buy gifts because the older edition allows kids to make more money decisions.
Pay Day
Skills – Managing a paycheck – saving and handling financial obligations
Age Range – 8+
Players – 2 to 4
Pay Day is a great game to introduce kids to the concept of saving. Kids get a paycheck every month but like adults have bills to pay. They also receive interest on the money they save. The player with the most cash and savings is the winner of the game. Again, I prefer the classic edition of the game which focuses on the core personal finance and budgeting concepts. The newer version has too many bells and whistles and distracts from learning core principles.
Monopoly
Skills – Investing and managing money
Age Range – 8+
Players – 2 to 8
Monopoly is one of the classic American board games. Monopoly was launched in 1904 and is still popular today. The game allows kids to strategically think about whether to hold cash or purchase properties. Classic monopoly works great for older kids. If you have young kids, consider getting Monopoly Junior.
Thrive Time For Teens
Skills – Building wealth, passive income, managing income and expenses
Age Range – 12+
This is a great game to teach teens about money. The game takes on financial challenges at various stages of life – being a student, having a part-time job, investing, entrepreneurship, and accumulating debt and wealth. Teens will learn the importance of having passive streams of income Participants can build portfolios of real estate assets, apartment buildings, or even an oil well.
Act Your Wage
Skills – Reducing debt, managing expenses
Age Range – 10+
This board game is based on the money principles of personal finance guru Dave Ramsey. The game includes Ramsey’s seven steps to attain financial freedom. The game drives home that point that having debt is not worth it and must be paid off. It also teaches the importance of having an emergency fund. It is a great family bonding game if played with family.