Financial Vocabulary and US Teens Spending Habits

Vocabulary terms, idioms, and financial statistics related to spending, saving, and the financial habits of US teenagers.

ATM/cashpoint

A machine used to take money out of a bank account.

Bank charge/fee

An amount of money a bank requires you to pay for their services.

Bargain

Something bought at a lower price than its true value.

Change

The money returned to a customer when they pay more than the cost of an item.

Credit card

A payment card that represents debt, allowing the holder to borrow funds.

Debit card

A payment card that uses money directly from the holder's bank account.

Discount

A reduction in the usual price of an item.

(Bank)note

A piece of paper money.

Receipt

A document provided by a shop to prove that an item has been paid for.

Refund

The money given back if a customer is unhappy with a purchase.

Sale

A period during which shops sell products at reduced prices.

Take out (money)

The act of withdrawing money from a bank account.

Waste (money)

To spend money on things that are not useful or necessary.

Account

An arrangement with a bank to keep and manage money.

Afford

To have enough money to be able to buy something.

Allowance

A sum of money given regularly for a specific purpose, such as for doing chores.

Budget

A financial plan used to calculate how much one can spend.

Cash

Money in the form of coins and banknotes.

Get into debt

The state of owing money to others or a bank.

Purchase

The act of buying something, or the item that has been bought.

Spending habits

The characteristic ways or patterns in which a person spends their money.

Swipe

To pass a card through an electronic machine for payment.

Tax

Money that must be paid to the government, often when starting work.

Value for money

The relationship between the quality of an item and its price.

Piper Jaffray

The American bank that conducted the 37th Annual Taking Stock with Teens Survey.

Average annual teen spending

US teens spend an average of $2,600$ a year on food and clothes.

2018 Teen spending total

US teenagers spent more than $75\,\text{billion}$ in 2018.

Favorite teen purchases

The top items requested by teens are food ($24\%$) and clothing ($19\%$).

Sources of teen money

Teens get money from gifts ($64\%$), allowances for chores ($32\%$), and jobs ($22\%$).

Snap up a bargain

An idiom meaning to buy something very quickly because it is a good price.

Cost an arm and a leg

An idiom used to describe something that is very expensive.

Spend a fortune

An idiom meaning to spend a very large amount of money.

Tighten your belt

An idiom meaning to spend less money than usual.

Throw money down the drain

An idiom meaning to waste money on useless things.