Comparison · Updated August 2026

taskr vs. Greenlight

Both attach a reward to chores. Greenlight pays money; taskr gives back the apps. Which one works in your house comes down to a single question — what does your kid actually want badly enough to empty the dishwasher for?

The short version

Greenlight is a much larger product than taskr — a kids' debit card with savings, investing and family safety features, rated 4.8 stars from roughly 488,000 App Store ratings. Chores are one feature inside it, and they pay out allowance. taskr does not do money at all. It does one thing: a chore has a deadline, and if that deadline passes the apps you picked lock until you approve a photo of the finished job.

  • Pick Greenlight if you want your kid learning to manage money, and allowance for chores is the lesson you are trying to teach.
  • Pick taskr if the chore not getting done is the actual problem, and your kid shrugs at money but not at losing Roblox.

Side by side

Greenlight details are from its App Store listing, checked in August 2026. Both products change — verify anything that would decide it for you.

What a finished chore earns
taskr

Their apps back — access is restored the moment you approve

Greenlight

Money, paid automatically into the child's Greenlight account

What happens when a chore is skipped
taskr

The apps you chose lock automatically at the deadline

Greenlight

The allowance simply is not paid — nothing changes on the device

Screen time and app blocking
taskr

Core feature, via Apple Family Controls

Greenlight

Not offered — its parental controls cover spending, not devices

Photo proof of the chore
taskr

Required, and you approve or reject it before apps unlock

Greenlight

Child checks the chore off; approval is trust-based

Money features
taskr

None — taskr does not touch allowance or banking

Greenlight

Debit card, savings with interest, investing, and spending controls

Price
taskr

Free, no subscription for core chore and Screen Time features

Greenlight

Free app with a required $5.99–$19.98/month plan

Platforms
taskr

iPhone and iPad only, iOS 16 or later

Greenlight

iOS and Android

Where Greenlight is simply better

It is not close on money. Greenlight gives each child a real debit card with parent-set spending limits, savings goals that earn interest, an investing account that needs your approval on every trade, and direct deposit for teens with jobs. It also bundles location sharing, SOS alerts and crash detection. taskr has none of that and is not trying to.

If you are weighing the subscription, weigh it against the whole product rather than the chore tracker. Judged only as a chore app, $5.99 a month is a lot — and Greenlight's own reviewers say the chore section is the weakest part. Judged as a first bank account with chores attached, it is reasonable.

Money vs. screen time as a motivator

Paying for chores works while the rate is worth it. The failure mode is familiar to any parent who has tried it: a kid with birthday money in the account has no reason to take the bins out this week, and the rate you set at nine does not motivate anyone at fourteen.

Screen access does not inflate the same way. There is no balance to run ahead on and nothing to save up — the chore is due at six, and at six the apps go. That is a harsher mechanism, which is exactly why taskr requires a photo and an approval from you rather than locking on a timer alone. More on that in how taskr works.

taskr vs. Greenlight FAQ

Is Greenlight worth it just for chores?

Greenlight's chore tracking is bundled into a paid money product that runs $5.99–$19.98 per month as of August 2026. If you want the debit card, the savings goals and the investing features, the chore tracker is a useful extra and the subscription buys a lot. If chores are genuinely all you need, you are paying a monthly fee for the smallest part of the product — and a common complaint in its own App Store reviews is that the chore feature is clunky and lacks time-sensitive reminders.

Does Greenlight control screen time or block apps?

No. Greenlight's App Store listing describes parental controls over spending — limits, purchase approvals, real-time notifications — not over devices. It does not block apps or manage screen time as of August 2026. If you want a chore to affect app access, that needs a different tool.

What is a free alternative to Greenlight?

It depends which half you want. For chores without the subscription, taskr is free on iOS and rewards chores with app access rather than allowance. For the banking side there is no true free equivalent — the card, the interest and the investing features are the product, and those cost money to run.

Can I use taskr and Greenlight together?

Yes, and it is a reasonable setup. They do not overlap or conflict: Greenlight handles allowance and money lessons, taskr handles whether the chore actually got done on time. Some families pay allowance weekly through Greenlight and use taskr for the daily chores that never get done without a deadline.

Which one works better for teenagers?

Money tends to motivate older teens, especially ones with something to save for — that favours Greenlight, and its investing and direct-deposit features are genuinely aimed at that age. Younger kids and early teens often care far more about their apps than about a few dollars, which is where a screen-time consequence lands harder.

Comparing others too?

See how taskr stacks up against Bark, Qustodio, Cozi, BusyKid and OurHome, or read the ranked roundup of chore apps for kids.

Try the free half of the problem

Free on the App Store. iOS only. Runs alongside whatever you use for allowance.