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Age-Appropriate Chores for Kids

What can a 4-year-old really do? And a 10-year-old? Here is a chore list for every age, based on pediatric and university guidance, with a free chart you can print.

Updated October 9, 2026 ยท by Riccardo Lapi

Chore list by age

Every child is different. Use these lists as a starting point, and teach each chore before you expect your child to do it alone. The lists combine guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension.

Ages 3 to 4

Ages 5 to 6

Ages 7 to 8

Ages 9 to 10

Ages 11 to 12

Ages 13 and up

Chores for a specific age

Detailed lists, tips and a ready-made chart for each age:

Turn this list into a chart. The free chore chart maker fills in chores for your child's age and prints a weekly chart in one minute.

What changes at each age

Ages 2 to 4: helping, not finishing

Toddlers love to help, and that is the point. Give one-step jobs with a clear end: "Put the blocks in the bin." Expect to help and to redo some of the work. By age 4, many children can serve themselves food or pour water with an adult nearby (CDC milestones).

Ages 5 to 7: the first real routine

By age 5, most children can do simple chores like matching socks or clearing the table (CDC). This is the age to start a daily routine: make the bed, clear the plate, feed the pet. A picture chart helps kids who cannot read yet.

Ages 8 to 10: chores with a result

Kids can now finish a chore without help: vacuum a room, unload the dishwasher, put away groceries. The AAP adds help with dinner and making their own snacks at this age.

Ages 11 to 12: almost independent

Preteens can clean a bathroom, do a load of laundry and cook a simple meal with supervision. The AAP also lists watching a younger sibling while an adult is at home.

Teens: chores of an adult

Teens can do almost anything an adult does at home: their own laundry, cooking dinner, mowing, grocery shopping, babysitting. The AAP notes that a part-time job does not replace household chores. See our chore chart for teens.

Siblings of different ages

With two or more kids, the age list raises a question: is it fair if the 10-year-old cleans the bathroom and the 5-year-old only feeds the cat?

Research says that kids do not need identical chores. They need chores they see as fair. In a study of 385 families, children's sense of fairness mattered more than the actual differences in how parents treated them, including how parents assigned chores (McHale and colleagues, 2000).

In practice:

Our guide to fair chore rotation for siblings shows how to set this up.

Sources: American Academy of Pediatrics, Chores and Responsibility and Household Chores for Teens; University of Arkansas, Appropriate Chores by Age; CDC, Learn the Signs. Act Early.; White, DeBoer and Scharf, University of Virginia, 2019.

Frequently asked questions

At what age should kids start doing chores?

Around age 2 or 3. Toddlers can put toys in a bin and dirty clothes in the hamper. The CDC lists simple chores, like matching socks or clearing the table, as a milestone most children reach by age 5.

How many chores should a child do?

The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests adding one new task at a time, because a long list can overwhelm a child. Two or three short daily chores plus one weekly chore is a good start for most school-age kids.

Should siblings of different ages do the same chores?

Not always. Research on siblings shows that kids accept different treatment when they understand why it is fair. Give older kids harder chores, explain the reason, and rotate chores that both kids can do.

Do chores help kids later in life?

Studies link chores to good outcomes, but they show a correlation, not proof. A University of Virginia study of about 10,000 children found that kindergartners who did chores more often had better social skills and math scores in third grade.

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