Doing chores is a tradition in many families. Chores help kids learn responsibility, and sharing chores gives you help around the house. We have 15 simple household chores appropriate for teenagers. They are simple tasks that take little time to get done. 

teenager sorting clothe for laundry chores

My teenagers have a few chores they do weekly and others that are every other day. This list of chores are not meant to be done on a daily basis. They are meant to be introduced to your teenagers and have them work on the chores as needed. 

For example, both my teenagers take turns doing the dishes. They plan it out amongst themselves and sometimes they do the chore weekly or swap to every other day. If one does the dishes one day, the other would dry them and put them away. 

You could also divide the chores throughout the week, freeing up time during the weekend. 

We all work together around the house. To make sure we have free time for relaxing, having fun and going outdoors more often. 

teenager cleaning around the house, cleaning supplies, cleaning gloves and towel

Household Chores for Adolescents

Getting children into the habit of pitching in around the home can begin as young as age two, by having them put away their toys when they’re done playing with them. 

By age twelve, there are few household tasks a teenager could be a master of, like tidying their own room and around the house. 

Once teenagers earn their driver’s license, it is appropriate to assign them errands such as going to the grocery store or picking up the dry cleaning.

Helping out at home teaches kids the importance of contributing to a team. It also allows them to feel valued and competent, both of which enhance self-esteem.

Household chores: good for children, good for your family

Children can learn a lot from doing household chores. Find out what chores kids can start with per age. You’ll love the list! 

Doing chores helps children learn about what they need to do to care for themselves, a home and a family. They learn skills they can use in their adult lives, like preparing meals, cleaning, organizing and keeping a garden.

Being involved in chores also gives children experience of relationship skills like communicating clearly, negotiating, cooperating and working as a team.

When children contribute to family life, it helps them feel competent and responsible. Even if they don’t enjoy the chore, when they keep going they get the feeling of satisfaction that comes with finishing a task.

And sharing housework can also help families work better and reduce family stress. When children help out, chores get done sooner, and parents have less to do. This frees up time for the family to do fun things together.

dog being bathed on a green bucket

Household Chores Appropriate for Adolescents of Any Age

  • Putting away their belongings
  • Doing the laundry
  • Folding and putting away clean clothes
  • Vacuuming, sweeping, dusting
  • Setting the table
  • Clearing the table
  • Washing and putting away the dishes
  • Feeding, walking family pets; cleaning bird cages and litter boxes
  • Mopping floors
  • Scrubbing the sink, toilet, bathtub, shower stall
  • Preparing their own lunches for school
  • Playing chef and cooking dinner one night a week (this can be breakfast for dinner)
  • Doing yard work
  • Washing the family car
  • Wipe mirrors and windows

You can motivate your child to get involved in chores by:

  • doing the chore together until your child can do it on their own
  • being clear about each person’s chores for the day or week – write them down so they’re easy to remember
  • talking about why it’s great that a particular job has been done
  • showing an interest in how your child has done the job
  • praising positive behavior
  • using a reward chart to track completed chores and give small rewards like choosing a TV program or family meal.

mom and kids - two girls and one boy - looking at a chores list for kids of all ages

Reward charts: what are they?

Reward charts are tools for changing children’s behavior. They come in several forms, including wall posters and apps.

Reward charts name or show a positive behavior or goal you want your child to achieve – for example, saying ‘please’, setting the table or doing up their own shoelaces.

Your child’s chart shows how often your child succeeds in their behavior goals. For example, if you’re using a wall poster, the chart might have spaces for ticks or stickers. An app might have stars that pop up on the screen. Each time your child does well, your child gets ticks or stickers in the spaces or stars in the app. A certain number of ticks, stickers or stars adds up to a reward for your child.

Reward charts are a powerful way of:

  • encouraging behavior you want, like cleaning teeth without fuss
  • discouraging behavior you don’t want, like hitting
  • rewarding your child for practicing new skills, like staying next to the trolley when shopping or putting all the toys in a box when asked.

How and why reward charts work

The rewards themselves reinforce good behavior and make it more likely to happen again.

Reward charts work well for children aged 3-8 years.

Grab the best kids chores list per age and find out what your kids could be helping you with at the age they are at now. 

  • Household chores help children learn important skills and feel good about contributing to family life.
  • Choose household chores that suit children’s ages and abilities.
  • You can motivate children to do chores by praising and encouraging their efforts.
  • Young children can do chores like tidying up toys. Older children can help with setting the table, cleaning, cooking and so on.

teenager cooking, baking, baking flour, egg, rolling pin, kitchen, apron

We hope you find this household chores tips and chore chart ideas for kids- per age helpful. I have implemented them with my kids from an early age, and now as teenagers they automatically work on tidying up around them without much telling. Here are a few ways teenagers can help around the house.

The great thing about these chore chart (or chore list) is you can completely customize them with the chores/responsibilities that work best for you and your family.