Methodology for kids’ prepaid card ratings
You’ll find scores and ratings on some of our kids' card reviews. Here’s how we came up with them.
You may have noticed (you did, right?) that our kids’ prepaid card pages, tables and reviews come with scores. They’re there to help consumers figure out how good a company and its products are, at a single glance. But they wouldn’t be fair, and we wouldn’t be transparent, if we didn’t tell you how we came up with them.
We publish 2 types of score:
- Finder’s expert score. Our experts look at the features of a product (in this case, a kids’ prepaid card), how much it costs and what it offers to users, then rate it.
- User reviews. We ask you to tell us about your experience as a customer of the brands we cover. You can submit a comment directly through the relevant review, and each year we gather more user reviews through a customer survey. We show the results of this survey in an annual league table, and use it to determine our annual customer satisfaction awards, too.
What is the Finder score?
Our expert team evaluates various products in our database, assigning each one a score out of 10. A higher score means the product is more competitive and may offer better value.
If you want peace of mind, this rating will give it to you. These products offer the best value and outcomes considering various product features, terms, conditions and price.
Well-balanced products that provide what you need, offering a healthy mix of competitive features at a good price. However, they’re not quite the best in class.
Bottom line: You can find better, but these products still offer reasonable value and have the basics sorted.
These products may not offer much value in the long run, and there are better options available.
What factors do we take into account?
We assess products across a number of key areas:
- Fees. We consider whether these is a monthly fee for the card and whether it charges you for things like top-ups or ATM withdrawals. If there are charges for making purchases abroad or taking money out from a foreign ATM, that is also taken into account.
- Controls and safeguards. We score this based on what controls or safeguards the card as in place, like ability to freeze and unfreeze the card, age-restricted sales and ATM withdrawal limits.
- App features. We look at what educational features the app has, whether or not you can set savings goals and what type of earning functionality is in place.
- App rating. This is calculated by averaging the banking app’s score in the Google Play Store and the App Store.
We average all these scores to come up with an overall Finder score.
Your reviews and our customer survey
In January 2025, we ran a customer satisfaction survey on kids’ prepaid cards. The survey asked 500 respondents how satisfied they are with their provider on a scale from 1 to 5, and also whether they would recommend it to a friend or not.
You can see review stars at the top of our review pages, if we’ve received more than 10. These are from consumers just like you who use our site and want to review the products and providers they use. We include ratings out of 5 and responses we’ve received in our annual customer satisfaction surveys.
★★★★★ – Excellent
★★★★★ – Good
★★★★★ – Average
★★★★★ – Subpar
★★★★★ – Poor
We also show the percentage who would recommend each provider in a league table in guides and on our awards pages.
More resources on Finder
More guides on Finder
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Best bank cards for kids: Debit and prepaid cards
Support your child’s financial knowledge and teach them important real-life money skills in a safe and controlled way with a kids’ debit card.
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RBS child account review: Revolve and First Saver
Help your child get better at managing money with the RBS child accounts.
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HyperJar Kids Card review
If you are looking for a free prepaid card to teach your kids about finance while retaining full control, HyperJar is certainly a competitive option. Here’s how it works.
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Metro Bank child account review
Metro Bank’s accounts for kids and teens are pretty straightforward and offer good flexibility. Here’s what you need to know about them.
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Lloyds child and teenager account review
Already banking with Lloyds but not sure whether it’s right for your kids? Here we look at all its accounts for children and teenagers, to help you figure out whether they are suitable for you and your family.
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NatWest child and teenager account review
If you’re tired of using cash for your kids’ pocket money or want to put money aside for when they’ll go to uni, NatWest has dedicated account options for both cases.
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Santander child account review: 123 Mini Current Account
While Santander doesn’t offer much in terms of savings accounts for children, its 123 Mini Current Account is a solid option for kids and teenagers. Here’s how it works.
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HSBC child and teenager account review
HSBC’s child accounts are suitable for a range of needs, from day-to-day pocket money management to long-term saving. We look at what options are available.
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How old do you have to be to get a debit card?
Discover the pros and cons of getting a debit card as a child.
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GoHenry alternatives: A list of prepaid cards for kids
Don’t think GoHenry is quite what you’re looking for? Here are some other money services for children that might be right for you.