RoosterMoney reveals what boys and girls really want this Christmas
Disclaimer: I did not receive any form of compensation for this article
A comprehensive new study of 40,000 4-14 year olds in the UK forecasts what’s going to top kids’ wish lists this Christmas – split by boys, girls and age groups.
Sometimes it’s hard to know what children really want for Christmas. My girls both wrote a two page list to Santa this year. They added to it daily and before I knew it, their lists were so long.
One weekend I sat down with them and gave them a green highlighter each. I told them to highlight only 10 things from their lists, and those 10 things should be the top ten things they want.
When they had done this, I asked them to write these 10 down on a new list to Santa. I then gave them a yellow highlight and asked them to highlight anything they didn’t want. To my amazement one only had 5 things left after doing this, and the other only had 7. I then asked them to write these remaining things down on their lists.
Their new lists were so much better and more reasonable then their original two page lists. It just goes to show that sometimes children just write down everything they see without much thought.
What do kids really want?
That’s when I received a press release from RoosterMoney, the pocket money app and debit card, that forecasted what’s going to be at the top of kids’ Christmas lists this year, based on what they’ve been saving their pocket money towards in the last few months.
Unlike most Christmas list predictions, RoosterMoney’s data is based on what kids are actually doing with their own money, and what they’re saving it towards. The statistics are drawn from real wish lists, entered into the RoosterMoney app by children across the UK. Lego & Phones top the list, followed by online games Fortnite & Roblox, and consoles such as Nintendo Switch & PlayStation. The humble bicycle manages to creep in at number 10.
RoosterMoney’s Pocket Money Index, based on 40,000 kids, also looked at preferences by age and gender. High on both agendas are Lego, phones and Nintendo Switches, with boys prioritising Lego and girls prioritising phones. Boys appear to lean towards gaming consoles such as Xbox, PlayStation and Computers, while girls preferred tablets. Of the games themselves, Roblox was the most popular amongst girls, and Fortnite amongst the boys.
I can certainly vouch for this as one of my girls definitely leans towards a tablet more than a games console and has frequently mentioned Roblox too.
Looking at fluctuations by age group, Lego starts to wane in popularity after 10, just as phones, computers & consoles take over. Roblox & Fortnite are most popular between 6 and 12. Nintendo Switch has the broadest age appeal, spanning 4 to 12.
Top 10 wants overall
Other key facts from the Pocket Money Index:
- Average weekly pocket money: £4.81
- Average saved: 34%
- Top 3 chores: Clean bedroom, Make the bed, Do the laundry
Will Carmichael, CEO of RoosterMoney says:
“The Pocket Money Index provides a fun snapshot of the workings of the family pocket money economy, but it can also be a useful tool to help parents ahead of Christmas. Looking at what kids’ are actually saving towards is probably the best insight we have into what’s going to be on their wish lists this year. As parents, there is an opportunity to turn these wants into lessons, for example offering to match kids’ savings once they hit a certain milestone is a great way to encourage them to save towards a goal. Ultimately, for us the important thing is seeing these kids actively engaging with their money, setting themselves goals, earning money towards those goals, and becoming confident with money. Christmas can be a time for a lot of expense and gifting, but it can also be an opportunity to talk about money and start new habits.”
All data taken from the Pocket Money Index, sampling 40,000 RoosterMoney users, covering 01/07/20 to 30/09/20.
