Chores for 5-Year-Olds: 20 Kindergarten-Ready Jobs
20 chores a 5-year-old can do, grouped by where they happen, with time, points and how to build a kindergarten routine. Includes boys, girls and a sample week.
By Famiyo Editorial Team5 min read
Kindergarten changes the day. A 5-year-old comes home tired, has a bag to keep track of and is suddenly asked to do things on their own at school. Home is the easiest place to practice that independence. Here are 20 chores that fit this age, grouped by where they happen, with a sample week and what to do when they do not go to plan.
What changes at 5
Compared with a 4-year-old, a 5-year-old holds a three-step instruction in their head, can tell left from right more or less, and wants jobs that feel real. They carry things with both hands, pour small amounts, and sort by color or size with few mistakes. They also care about fairness, so expect "but she didn't have to do it" and plan an answer.
The usual range is 10 to 15 minutes of chores a day, with two or three daily jobs to start. If you are coming from our list of chores for 4-year-olds, you can keep every job on it and add a few. The difference at 5 is less hand-holding and a clearer finish.
20 chores for a 5-year-old
Points use the Famiyo default of 5 for a small job and 10 for a medium one. Treat the times as a guide for a child working with you close by.
In the bedroom
| Chore | Minutes | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Make the bed (pull up the blanket, straighten the pillow) | 3 | 5 |
| Put dirty clothes in the hamper | 1 | 5 |
| Choose tomorrow's clothes and lay them out | 5 | 5 |
| Put clean clothes in the right drawer | 5 | 10 |
| Tidy the room with a three-picture checklist | 10 | 10 |
In the kitchen and dining room
| Chore | Minutes | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Set the table for the whole family | 5 | 5 |
| Clear their own place and scrape the plate | 3 | 5 |
| Put non-breakable items from the dishwasher in a low cupboard | 5 | 10 |
| Wipe the table with a damp cloth | 3 | 5 |
| Help put away groceries that go on low shelves | 5 | 5 |
Around the house
| Chore | Minutes | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Match and fold clean socks | 5 | 5 |
| Sort laundry into lights and darks | 5 | 10 |
| Water plants with a small can | 3 | 5 |
| Feed the pet (a scoop, then you check) | 3 | 5 |
| Dust low shelves with a sock on the hand | 3 | 5 |
| Take recycling to the bin | 3 | 5 |
For school and outings
| Chore | Minutes | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Put the school bag by the door each evening | 1 | 5 |
| Hang the coat and put shoes in their spot | 1 | 5 |
| Pack the water bottle and a library book | 3 | 5 |
| Put toys away before dinner | 5 | 5 |
You do not need all 20. The jobs that matter most at this age are the ones tied to school, since a bag by the door in the evening saves a scramble in the morning.
Which ones to start with
Choose three, and make them different in kind: one for the body (getting dressed, hamper), one for the home (setting the table) and one for care of something (a pet or a plant). Variety keeps a 5-year-old from getting bored, and a pet or plant gives them a reason to come back tomorrow.
Say your child is in kindergarten with a 3 p.m. pickup and an early bedtime. A workable starter set is: hamper and bed in the morning (4 minutes), school bag by the door after snack (1 minute), and set the table before dinner (5 minutes). That is 10 minutes, with no job at bedtime when they are cranky.
A sample week
| Day | Jobs | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Bed and hamper, bag by the door, set the table | 10 minutes |
| Tuesday | Bed and hamper, bag by the door, water plants | 10 minutes |
| Wednesday | Bed and hamper, bag by the door, set the table | 10 minutes |
| Thursday | Bed and hamper, bag by the door, feed the pet | 10 minutes |
| Friday | Bed and hamper, bag by the door, clear their place | 10 minutes |
| Saturday | Bed and hamper, sort laundry, tidy the room | 20 minutes |
| Sunday | Bed and hamper, match socks, set the table | 15 minutes |
Rotating one job per weekday is a good habit. It keeps the load light, and the child does not feel nagged by the same item five days running. If you are looking for a more complete plan, see our chore schedule for kids.
How to teach a 5-year-old a chore
Five-year-olds copy first and listen second. Do the job in front of them, slowly, and say the steps in a short phrase each: "Plate on the left. Fork next to it." Do it together twice, then let them do it while you watch from across the room. Finish by saying what they did right.
Keep the words short and concrete. "Put the cars in the red bin" works. "Tidy up your toys" does not, because to a 5-year-old that could mean anything. When one job has several parts, pictures on the fridge at their eye level help more than reminders from you.
Praise the work, not the child. "You put every fork in a row" tells them what to repeat. "You're so good" tells them to perform.
Boys, girls and fairness
For chores for a 5-year-old boy or girl, use the same list. A 5-year-old does not need a different set of jobs for a different gender, and splitting them teaches the wrong lesson early. If you have siblings of different ages, the fair rule is "everyone does jobs that fit their age," not "everyone does the same jobs." Our chores for 6-year-olds page shows what an older sibling can take on.
Rewards and what to avoid
At 5, a reward that arrives within two or three days works. A small one costs 30 to 50 points (choose dessert, 15 extra minutes of a favorite show), a medium one 100 (pick the family movie). Aim for a child to afford a small reward every two to three days.
Avoid threatening to take rewards away for a bad day, and avoid paying for jobs that are part of being in the family. Points track progress. Allowance, if you use it, is a separate conversation: a common range for ages 5 to 7 is $3 to $7 a week.
Running this list in Famiyo
Famiyo is a free family app for iPhone and Android that combines a shared family calendar, chores with points and a rewards shop; kids join with a code, no email needed. For a 5-year-old, you add the three starter jobs once, set them to repeat every day, assign them to your child and give each one points. They get a notification about a new task and tick it off on their own phone, or you approve it first.
You can give siblings different point values for the same job, and the statistics show points this week and the last 7 days of chores per child. To compare it with other tools, see our list of the best chore apps for kids.
Adding more when they are ready
If three jobs are happening most days with only a nudge, add a fourth after two to three weeks. When almost everything on this page is easy, move on to the 6-year-old list, where the jobs get longer and more independent.
Frequently asked questions
How many chores can a 5-year-old do a day?
Two to three daily jobs, about 10 to 15 minutes in total. Kindergarten already tires them out, so keep the list short on school days and add one or two extra jobs on weekends if they want them.
What are good chores for a 5-year-old boy or girl?
The same ones. Making the bed, setting the table, feeding the pet, watering plants and tidying toys suit any 5-year-old. Avoid splitting jobs by gender, because the skills are the ones every child needs later.
Should a 5-year-old get an allowance?
It is optional. The usual range for ages 5 to 7 is $3 to $7 a week, but many families prefer points toward a small reward at this age, since a 5-year-old understands 'two more days' better than 'save for a month'.
How do I get a 5-year-old to do chores without a fight?
Give one clear step at a time, attach the job to a daily moment like before dinner, and let them choose between two jobs. Praise what they did ('you put every fork in the right spot') instead of saying 'good job'.
Try Famiyo With Your Family
Chores with points, a rewards shop for kids and one shared family calendar. Set it up in a couple of minutes.
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