Are subscription services for kids worth it?

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NY) - The days of doing your back-to-school shopping at the mall or a neighborhood store are dwindling down as more and more people use online subscription services. Now, your kids can get in on the act too, but are they worth it?

There are multiple subscription services targeting children, like Rockets of Awesome, Collective Child and KidBox, which all provide clothing, while Nike has gotten into the game with it Adventure Club for shoes. Companies like Yumble even offer bespoke boxes filled with healthy meals tailored to your child’s taste buds. 

“Kids follow trends so actively, especially in the tween and teen years, for them to have something new every quarter for instance, can be really exciting for them and allow them to choose their own style as they go,” said Trae Bodge, a smart shopping expert.

The online subscription industry is a hugely profitable one, worth over $2.6B with subscriptions having jumped 1,000% since 2014. But it can be quite expensive for any parent, especially if you’re on a budget.

Nike’s Adventure club, for instance, allows your child to get 4 new pairs of shoes each year for $20 a month. $30 a month gets you six pairs a year, and $50 a month gives you 12 new pairs every year. 

“If you are on a very tight budget, I don’t think a subscription box is necessarily the way to go, so just be very mindful of what you’re paying versus what you would pay to go out and shop on your own,” Bodge said.