Guide
Age-appropriate chores by age (UK)
In short
Children can help from a young age if tasks match their stage: tidying and simple jobs at 5–7, table and tidying duties at 8–10, household chores like hoovering and bins at 11–13, and cooking, laundry and shopping at 14–16. Match the chore to the child, keep it consistent, and reward effort.
Chores by age band
Ages 5–7
- Tidy toys away
- Put dirty clothes in the wash
- Lay out cutlery
- Feed a pet (supervised)
- Make their bed
Ages 8–10
- Make their bed properly
- Set and clear the table
- Help load/unload the dishwasher
- Tidy their room
- Water plants
Ages 11–13
- Hoover and dust
- Take out bins/recycling
- Help prepare simple meals
- Walk the dog
- Keep their room clean
Ages 14–16
- Cook a basic meal
- Do their own laundry
- Mow the lawn
- Food-shop from a list
- Help with younger siblings
Frequently asked questions
- What chores should an 8-year-old do?
- Around 8, most children can make their bed properly, set and clear the table, help load the dishwasher, tidy their room and water plants. Keep instructions simple and praise effort.
- How do I get children to do chores without nagging?
- Agree the list together, make expectations visible and consistent, and reward effort rather than perfection. A shared tracker like PocketReady removes the daily reminders by making each child’s tasks clear.
- Should every chore earn money?
- Not necessarily. Many families treat some chores as ‘just helping out’ and reserve points or pocket money for extra effort. PocketReady lets you set point values per task, including zero.
See also: how much pocket money to give by age.
Put these chores on autopilot
Create each child’s chores once and let PocketReady track them, daily, weekly or one-off.
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