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- The Coin Counting Book by Rozanne Lanczak Williams. Learn about counting money through vibrant illustrations and engaging activities that encourage children to practice their math skills.
- A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams. In this beloved children’s book, young readers are transported into the heartwarming tale of a family’s journey to save and persevere.
- Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday by Judith Viorst. This book serves as an invaluable resource for parents, educators, and caregivers to introduce children to the principles of financial literacy.
- Lemonade in Winter: A Book About Two Kids Counting Money by Emily Jenkins. Tag along with siblings Pauline and John-John as they learn about counting, earning, and saving money while running a lemonade stand in winter.
- Overview
- Best Overall for Early Readers: The Berenstain Bears’ Dollars and Sense
- Best for Basic Money Lessons: The Four Money Bears
- Best for Preschoolers: The Moneybunny Books
- Best for an Intro to Money Math: If You Made a Million
- Best for Motivating Young Savers: Rock, Brock, and the Savings Shock
- Best for Kids To Read on Their Own: Finance 101 for Kids: Money Lessons Children Cannot Afford to Miss
- Best Overall for Pre-Teens: How To Turn $100 Into $1,000,000
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Talking about money can be hard for lots of people, especially parents and their children. In a 2021 survey by the investment firm T. Rowe Price, 36% of parents with children under age 18 said they were either very or extremely reluctant to discuss financial matters with them. Add in the 26% who said they were somewhat reluctant, and you have a stunning 62% majority of Americans.
Asked about the reasons for their reluctance, 56% of parents said their kids were too young to understand, 41% said they had too many other things to worry about, and 28% admitted being embarrassed by the state of their own finances.
Fortunately for parents who lack the expertise, time, or inclination to discuss money matters with their kids, there are plenty of books on the subject. For younger kids, reading a book together is also an easy way to facilitate a conversation about money, including difficult topics, such as when a parent loses their job or the family can't afford to buy something the child wants.
Sid and Jan Berenstain’s classic Berenstain Bears series, for kids age 3 to 7, includes several titles focused on money, any of which would be worth picking up. In the most recent one,
The Berenstain Bears’ Dollars and Sense
(2001), Papa Bear attempts to teach Brother Bear and Sister Bear about budgeting.
The Berenstain Bears’ Trouble With Money
(1983), the spendthrift siblings learn about working for a living, the importance of saving, and, at the same time, not turning into “greedy, selfish little monsters” obsessed with money. All ends well when they head off to the Bear Country Bank to open a savings account. (The federal
has a parent reading guide for this book on its website.)
What is it about bears and money? Written by Mac Gardner, a
, this book for kids age 3 to 7 features a quartet of them: Saver Bear, Spender Bear, Investor Bear, and Giver Bear.
(2015) was cited as the best book for kids by two members of the
, both certified financial planners themselves.
said it “uses very relatable content to help children learn the basic concepts in finance. The story revolves around different types of money personalities and how they are able to work together.” Likewise,
recommended it as “age appropriate and engaging for children.”
The charming Moneybunny book series, written and illustrated by Cinders McLeod, consists of four titles:
, both published in 2021 and
, published in 2022. Each features a different boy or girl rabbit learning lessons relevant to the book’s title. The action takes place in Bunnyland, where carrots serve as money.
, a member of Investopedia’s Financial Review Board, called the series “an adorable and approachable intro to financial concepts for young children,” adding that her own “4-year-old daughter (at least momentarily) grasped the concept of only having so much money to spend and not being able to buy everything.”
The winner of multiple awards,
If You Made a Million
by David M. Schwartz explains money and counting concepts to 4- to 8-year-olds through Marvelosissimo the Mathematical Magician. Marvelosissimo shows how various combinations of coins and paper money add up, starting with a single penny and ending with a million dollars. He also introduces the concept of interest—both the kind that banks pay on deposits and the kind they charge borrowers on loans.
Readers who enjoy this book, which was first published in 1989 and reissued in 1994, may also want to check out
How Much Is a Million?
, also written by the team of Schwartz and Illustrator Steven Kellogg.
Rock, Brock, and the Savings Shock
, illustrated by Barry Gott, tells the rhyming tale of twin brothers Rock, a spender, and Brock, a saver. The boys, who look to be about 8 or 9, are encouraged to save by their canny grandpa, who gives them a dollar a week to do chores and promises to double their money each week if they haven’t spent it. Eventually, Rock ends up broke, while Brock has $512. Fortunately, Rock takes the lesson to heart and mends his ways. The book closes with a table showing how Brock’s fortune grew, while Rock’s didn’t, and a child-friendly guide to the wonders of compound interest.
If Bair’s name sounds familiar, it may be because she served as chairman of the
from 2006 to 2011 and was often in the media during the
Walter Andal, who has a professional background in the financial industry, says his experiences as a father of four inspired this 2016 book and its 2021 sequel,
Aimed at middle schoolers age 8 to 12, the book is a model of clarity that covers the usual topics, such as earning, saving, investing, and credit, plus some more advanced ones, including the stock market, foreign exchange, and basic economic concepts like supply and demand, inflation, and unemployment.
How to Turn $100 Into $1,000,000
(2016) is targeted to kids age 6 to 12, particularly would-be entrepreneurs and aspiring millionaires. Authors James McKenna, Jeannine Glista, and Matt Fontaine cover financial goal setting, budgeting, saving, investing, earning money from a job, and starting a business, all in an age-appropriate way (although kids at the higher end of that 6- to-12 age range will probably get the most out of it).
To its credit, the book manages to be both inspirational and grounded in reality, emphasizing that building wealth doesn’t happen magically but requires discipline and hard, often unglamorous, work. It includes a one-page business plan, a budget tracker, and a two-page plan for becoming a millionaire.
There is no shortage of good money-related books for kids, from little ones who enjoy being read to by an adult to older kids who can read independently. Because of the large age range we cover in this review, roughly ages 3 to 12, we chose two “best overall” picks. For pre- and early readers, any of the Berenstain Bears books would be an appropriate choice. They have met the test of time, and many of today’s young parents probably grew up with them. For older kids we’d recommend
Book reviewer Greg Daugherty has covered personal finance topics for more than 30 years, including stints as a senior-level editor at Money magazine and Consumer Reports. He is also the author or co-author of two books on personal finance for adults. In addition, he’s the proud father of two financially literate kids, now in their 20s.
To compile our list, Daugherty and his Investopedia colleagues combed the bookstores, both online and off, checked out libraries, consulted publisher websites, and surveyed experts, including members of
We based our final judgments on the authors’ credentials, the quality of advice the books had to offer, and how suitable they would be for children of various ages and levels of sophistication.
While the illustrations are often one of the pleasures of children’s books, our primary focus was the value of their informational content, as assessed by our experts and in the many parent and educator comments we reviewed online.
- Greg Daugherty
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- Money Books for Kids by Age. Just a quick note that this is part of my money books series. You can find the rest of my money book reviews, here: Books about Money for Preschoolers.
- Children’s Stories about Money (Kids Under 5) Looking for financial literacy books for elementary students and children? Keep reading! 1. Sheep in a Shop, Nancy Shaw.
- Money Books for Kids (5 to 10 Years Old) 1. Those Shoes, Maribeth Boelts. Ages: 5-8 years. How to teach kids about money without including this timeless issue: peer pressure.
- Financial Literacy Books for Middle School Students (Aged 10-13 years) 1. The Toothpaste Millionaire, Jean Merrill. Ages: 10-12 years. Originally published in 1972, this book takes place in an era when many authors, including this one, talked about things like race/age/sex discrimination.
- Nicole Dow
- Senior Writer
- One Cent, Two Cents, Old Cent, New Cent’ by Bonnie Worth. The Cat in the Hat uses rhymes and whimsy to explain the history of currency and its many forms in “One Cent, Two Cents, Old Cent, New Cent.”
- The Berenstain Bears’ Trouble With Money’ by Stan and Jan Berenstain. Brother and Sister Bear show how spending carelessly quickly leads to empty pockets.
- The Berenstain Bears’ Dollars and Sense’ by Stan and Jan Berenstain. Mama and Papa Bear teach Brother and Sister Bear about money management and writing checks in “The Berenstain Bears’ Dollars and Sense.”
- Bunny Money’ by Rosemary Wells. When Max and Ruby go out to find a gift for their grandma, they realize just how quickly money can be spent. “Bunny Money” is a good book for teaching kids about how everything has its cost.
Jan 9, 2024 · 1. Finance 101 for Kids: Money Lessons Children Cannot Afford to Miss by Walter Andal is an ideal entry point into financial literacy for kids aged 8 to 11. Covering fundamental concepts like earning, budgeting, and credit basics, this book fosters crucial discussions about money.
Recap of Children’s Books on Financial Literacy. Money Books for 3-6 years old: Earn It; The Missing Money: Money Monsters; Money Books for 4-8 years old: Berenstain Bears’ Dollars and Sense; One Cent, Two Cents, Old Cent, New Cent; Rock, Brock and the Savings Shock; Isabel’s Car Wash; A Kids Activity Book on Money and Finance; Money ...
Jun 14, 2023 · Here are our picks for the best money books for kids from kindergarten through high school. We’ve listed them in age-appropriate categories. But as children’s reading levels vary, you may find there’s some crossover.
