How to teach kids about investing with a pretend market
Cent's Market Year is a free investing game for kids ages 9 to 14. Players get $10,000 of play money and run a pretend market for one year, month by month. Each month a news card flips over, prices move and the player decides whether to keep the plan or change it. Everything in the game is made up: the companies, the news and the prices. No real money is involved and nothing in it is a recommendation.
There are three levels. Seedling (ages 9 to 11) lasts six months with three companies and the Piggy Bank. Sprout lasts twelve months with six companies, a fund and a small fee for moving money. Oak adds a second fund, rumors and a 10-year fast-forward. A grown-up can sit beside the child or play on the same device in "Play together" mode, with a separate board for each player.
What kids learn
What a share is
A share is a tiny slice of a company. If the company does well, the slice can become worth more, and if it does badly, the slice can lose value. In the game each shop on Market Street stands for a pretend company, and the tower of coins shows how much money sits in it.
Risk and reward
The pretend companies range from steady (a grocery and an electric company) to bumpy (a travel company and a video game maker) to wild (a space start-up with big jumps up and down). In general, a bigger possible reward comes with a bigger chance of a bad year. About a third of pretend years end below the start even for a steady mix, and the game shows that openly.
Diversification
Spreading money across many companies means one bad month hurts less. The Spread out star rewards a plan where no single company holds more than half of the money.
Index fund or high-fee fund
The Whole-Town Basket holds a little of every company for a tiny yearly fee, like a low-cost index fund. The Fancy Pick Fund (in the Oak level) holds exactly the same companies but charges 2% a year. On the same pretend year, the Fancy Fund always finishes behind the Basket, and the results screen shows why.
Trading fees
In Sprout and Oak every block of money you move costs $5. That is a teaching shortcut: many real apps charge no commission, but funds charge yearly fees and trading can still cost money through spreads and taxes. The Fee saver star rewards keeping total fees low.
Why dips happen, and staying calm
Once in every game, "the whole market sneezes" and most prices fall. The game asks what the player will do. Staying calm, keeping the plan and moving a little, or running to the Piggy Bank are all allowed and nobody is scolded. Later the results show how each choice played out. The Calm captain star rewards not abandoning the plan in a panic.
Rumors and hype
In the Oak level a Rumor Bird shouts things like "Psst! this company will triple!" The rumors have no effect on prices, and after the month the game shows what really happened. Players learn that a rumor is a guess, not a promise.
Long-term thinking
The "10 years fast-forward" chart shows that a patient, spread-out mix usually does better than all-in bets over a long time, while still showing the range of possible outcomes. The numbers are pretend, and real markets can go up or down.
How the stars work
Stars reward habits, not luck. Players earn a star for spreading out, a star for staying calm and a star for keeping fees low (in Seedling, for finishing with money in at least two companies). A sensible player can earn three stars in any pretend year, while all-in gambling, constant trading and panic selling do not earn three. The "Beat the piggy" badge is labeled as partly luck.
How to play together
- Let your child decide first, then ask why before you share your own view.
- When the market dips, ask how it feels before asking what to do.
- Talk about habits, not winners. A lucky year does not prove a good plan.
- Use the quarter check questions to start a short chat after months 3, 6 and 9.
- Replay the same market code to compare a different plan on the same pretend year.
Ready for more? Try the investment calculator or the compound interest calculator together, and see the lemonade stand game for a first look at profit and costs.
Not advice. This is a pretend game with play money and made-up companies. It is for learning only. It does not recommend buying or selling anything, and real investing can lose money. For general investor education, see Investor.gov from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Frequently asked questions
Is this real money?
No. All money in the game is play money, there is nothing to buy and no prizes. Nothing you do in the game touches a real account.
Are the companies real?
No. Every company, fund and news story is made up for the game, and any resemblance to a real company is a coincidence. The game does not use real stock symbols, real indexes or real logos.
What age is the game for?
It is made for kids about 9 to 14. Seedling is the shortest level for ages 9 to 11, Sprout and Oak are for older kids, and younger children can play with a grown-up in Play together mode.
Why don't the stars count money?
One pretend year is a lot of luck. Even a good plan finishes below the start about a third of the time, so stars reward habits a player controls: spreading out, staying calm and keeping fees low. The final money is shown, but it is not what earns stars.
Does the game teach gambling?
No. Going all-in on one wild company never earns three stars. The game rewards spreading money, low fees and calm decisions, and it shows how often a risky bet ends badly.
Does it give investing advice?
No. It is a learning game with pretend companies. It does not tell anyone what to buy or sell, and it is not financial advice. For real decisions, talk with a trusted adult or a licensed professional.
Does the game collect data?
The game asks for no names or personal information and uses no cookies. Your best stars and your current game are saved only on your own device. We keep an anonymous count of finished rounds (the level, the star count and how long it took), with no cookie, no IP address and nothing that identifies a child.
Can kids invest for real?
In general, a person under 18 cannot open an investment account alone, but an adult can open a custodial account for a child. Rules, fees and taxes vary, so ask a licensed professional and read the general guides at Investor.gov. This game does not recommend any provider.