Seven best board games to teach your kids about money

Put that screen away and pull out a board game, and you might just learn some new money skills. Here are the games that count.

Electronic games dominate today’s interactive home entertainment but the humble board game has boomed this year as families and friends spent more time inside.

Some board games are not only entertaining – they can also help players improve their money mindset.

Financial adviser and author Helen Baker says board games with a financial focus are great because of their physical element.

“You are touching money and counting money,” she says.

“This is one thing we have lost in society with the whole tap and go trend.”

MONOPOLY

It’s estimated there are more than 2000 different versions globally of Monopoly, where players become property tycoons while grinding their opponents into bankruptcy.

While modern board games tend to avoid this elimination aspect by keeping everyone playing until the end, Monopoly builds financial knowledge ranging from basic counting and math to negotiation and real estate investment.

More than one billion people have played Monopoly since it was created in the 1930s.

Baker says it teaches risk and reward, patience and dealing with uncertainty.

“You don’t know what you will land on when you roll – it’s almost like life,” she says.

Psychologist Phil Slade says the value in many board games is the conversations they spark around money.

“If parents are playing Monopoly with kids they are talking about money, and that’s great,” he says.

You’ll pay about $25 for a basic Monopoly board game but branded versions – including Star Wars, Pacman and Top Gun – cost around $60.

GAME OF LIFE

Similar to Monopoly, and real life, This game has a lot of chance and uncertainty plus plenty of handling cash.

Players also can boost their wealth by studying at university – or night school – for a job that pays more, and the winner is the wealthiest retiree.

However, the game’s idea of making money from each child you have is just weird, as most parents would agree. Game of Life costs less than $30.

Game of Life gives players $50,000 for each child they have. If only that were true for real.

CHESS

What can kings, queens, bishops and knights teach you about money? Plenty, say finance experts.

“Chess teaches you to have a plan, but when something changes you change your plan,” Slade says.

“Finances are unpredictable too.”

Another chess lesson is to take emotion out of your decisions, which is important in investing, Slade says.

Being controlled too much by emotions mean you will lose in chess and with money.

The price of a chess board and pieces starts at $10, while fancy ones can cost thousands.

Chess can teach money lessons. Picture: AAP Image/Rafal Kontrym

Catan has sold tens of millions of copies globally.

CATAN

Originally called Settlers of Catan, this board game’s surging popularity has allowed it to have a single word name, like Elvis or Madonna.

There’s no cash used in this game but players trade wood, grain, ore and other stuff and have to think strategically, negotiate and build relationships.

It teaches economics, patience and the value of saving now for greater rewards later.

The price is around $60.

CASHFLOW

This is more pricey than other games – often around $100 – largely because it’s the brainchild of best-selling author Robert Kiyosaki, whose Rich Dad, Poor Dad books have inspired property investors for more than 25 years.

Author Robert Kiyoaski’s Cashflow board game teaches investment lessons.

The idea of the game is to get out of the “Rat Race”, where most people spend their lives, and onto the “Fast Track” of wealth by making investments that deliver passive income such as property rent or share dividends.

It involves income statements and personal balance sheets, and can be bought on ebay.com.au, amazon.com.au and other online retailers.

POCKET MONEY

A simpler game for a younger age group, this Australian product is available on multiple websites and mentioned on teaching aid sites.

It teaches children how to recognise Aussie cash, count coins and notes, purchase items and collect change, and understand the concept that money is exchanged for goods.

It’s recommended for kids in early primary school and costs just under $40.

@keanemoney

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The Pocket Money board game introduces young players to cash and spending.