Chore Pad: Chores & Rewards

I want to start by saying how much we love this app because of how customizable and intuitive and user friendly it has been for us for years. We use this app for our adult day program, for developmentally disabled adults. It perfectly helps remind them of tasks and check them off when completed, to ensure they are getting the services they are supposed to receive and allows administrators to check the service providers’ records against the client’s records. We have been using it for years and there is nothing else on the market remotely like it. The app allows us to upload client pics for icons, to keep service tasks easily recognisable for clients who don’t read well, and the spreadsheet format of tasks down the side, and days of week across the top is simple and intuitive for staff to follow. We can see get the week of tasks at a glance, and we can scroll back to make sure tasks were done last week, or see if an activity is consistently being refused. Some clients have 20 tasks that are being tracked at different repeating intervals, over the year. The only thing it doesn’t have is reminders for 6 week, quarterly, biannual and annual intervals, as the longest repeating interval is “every 5 weeks.” You would think these would be standard features for chore apps, but they aren’t, and this old standby is getting really glitchy. I just had it get stuck in sync on one iPad and have tried everything from offloading and restarting and reloading, to deleting the old sync files (which was years of data), to erasing all accessible connections to the app from the iPad. Still, when I reload the app, it opens automatically to the last sync that was running when it glitched and crashes. I’m afraid my only hope is to factory reset the iPad, which will cost us even more data. I have searched three days for an alternative app. There is nothing else that does what this app does so simply. It’s down to the last resort, and hopefully that will work, but Chore Pad LLC needs to update this soon, so this app remains relevant. I can’t be the only one who desperately needs it to do the simple stuff it does beautifully at an affordable price. I would pay the purchase price again to keep it working another 5-10 years.

2022 review edit: I’d like to sync devices with my kids, since they are older now. It appears that the only way to do that is using dropbox, which presents significant privacy concerns as well as security concerns. I attempted to email customer support for Chore Pad to see if there was another option and the email bounced back saying the address was no longer correct. The developer website is also unsupported. And there is no privacy policy for chorepad in the App Store. I’m bailing on this app and looking for something that is still supported and more secure. A shame. First tried this app when the kids were four and six and it didn't work so well. Sticker charts with immediate tangible rewards worked better then. But now the kids are eleven, nine, and five, and it's working great as a summer chore chart. They're old enough to appreciate the value of saving up for the rewards they really want. And I finally have help with the mess! I wish they would add and an icon library or a way to access emoticons for the rewards chart. And I wish they would add badges, like Fitbit offers. I use this chart for myself to keep track of my chores as well. It would be fun to get a badge for competent adulting!

So I work at a behavior school and we use a token economy system...that gave me the idea to use this chart at home with my sons. They all work for (stars) quarters, and when we go to the store, they are required to use their own money for anything they WANT in the store. I only buy what they need and what I want to buy for them. Believe it or not, they "get it" at 5, 6 and 9. This works extremely well when I follow through. They like getting their allowance and they love being able to go in the stores and interact with the cashier. Other people in the store always comment about how great it is they they are learning responsibility and the value of money at such an early age. I have boys that will grow to be men one day, and I want them to form good habits, learn responsibility, and be financially savvy adults. This app is great, and I have no complaints that I can think of at this time. I recommend it to friends and other parents all of the time. It is worth every penny of the $4.99...if for no other reason that getting my kids to do chores are A LOT less frustrating. *Now I just have to figure out how to use it at work...🤷🏽‍♀️🤦🏽‍♀️