Helping your child cope with spending pressure online

Children are growing up in a digital world where spending is often built into the experience. 

From games and apps to influencers and live streams, platforms are often designed to nudge and encourage spending – sometimes in ways that are hard to spot.

By helping your child develop their media literacy skills, you can support them to recognise these tactics and make better decisions online.

What’s the issue with spending pressure online?

Pressure comes in many forms. In games, children might be encouraged to buy items to unlock new levels, improve their performance or personalise their character. Even cosmetic items can carry social value, creating pressure to keep up with friends.

Many games use virtual currencies, like V-Bucks in Fortnite. These can make it harder to connect what’s being spent with real money. And while some games are free to download, they use ‘freemium’ models where progress slows unless the player pays or watches ads. These systems are designed to keep people spending over time.

The same tactics are found in other areas too. From timed offers to exclusive content, platforms are increasingly built to create urgency, nudge decisions and encourage more spending.

Gambling-like features

Some online features mimic gambling websites. Loot boxes, for example, offer random rewards in exchange for payment – with no guarantee of value. This taps into the same reward systems as slot machines or scratchcards, encouraging children to keep spending in the hope of getting something better.

Other design features, such as countdowns or pop-ups, create a fear of missing out. This kind of pressure can be hard for young people to manage, especially as their ability to assess risk and control impulses is still developing.

Spending pressure isn’t just built into games and platforms – it also comes from the people children follow online.

How influencers increase the pressure

Influencer content can blur the line between personal opinion and advertising. 

A child might feel close to a favourite YouTuber or TikTok creator, making their product recommendations feel more genuine. But these creators are often paid to promote items, and that’s not always made clear.

While many platforms have rules around labelling ads, research shows that these rules are often ignored. Young people may not realise when they’re being marketed to, or why they suddenly feel the need to buy something.

Spending for attention: live streaming and tipping

On live-streaming platforms like Twitch, children can pay for recognition – for example, a shout-out or thank you during a stream. This can feel fun and rewarding, but the costs can add up quickly.

Spending for attention, especially in front of others, can create unhealthy habits. It also directly benefits the platform, which often takes a share of every transaction.

Can media literacy help?

The most important thing is to help them build good spending habits – ways of thinking that help them understand how digital content works and who profits from it. 

Here are a few ways to start:

Talk openly about what they’re playing or watching, and encourage discussion about the cost of content and digital purchases. 

Ask them to explain what they’re spending money on and why.

Discuss how games, platforms and influencers make money.
 

Encourage questions like:

• Who benefits if I spend money here?
• Is this something I want, or something I’m being pushed to want?

Help them to manage their pocket money, encouraging them to save up for items they really want and converting virtual currencies into actual money. 

You can support all this by exploring the different platforms and seeing what tools are available to help. For example, some games offer tools to add parental approval or spending limits.

But helping your child to ask questions, think critically and recognise persuasive techniques can reduce the pressure to spend and increase their confidence online.

Want to find out more?

Want to develop your own digital skills and confidence? Everyday Digital has articles and videos to help you support your child in today’s online world.