How Much for First Tooth Falling Out?

Hi L.,

As some of the other mom's have done. We stock up on gold dollars and .50 cent pieces. You can either give 2 half dollars or one gold dollar. Believe it or not my kids friends are envious and want to know why they don't get gold for their teeth. It's a great way to keep the cost down especially when they loose a couple very close together. We also tell them the tooth fairy only gives money for healthy clean white teeth. She won't take yucky ones with cavities.

When I was a kid the tooth fairy always gave me a silver dollar when I lost a tooth. It was pretty special, and I would always save them. I think that is probably what I will with my daughter.

When I was a kid, I always got a dollar, so that's what I do for my kids....I've heard $5 even $10 for a tooth, and sorry, I just think that is ridiculous!!! :-)

Well sometimes we do money, usually the change at the bottem of my purse, though dollars are easier to slide under the pillow. We also do books or a $ store type fun thing, neck lace, (haven't gotten to a boy type gift yet for a tooth he's only 2yo).
Also an idea that would be nice now, cus my kids wake at the drop of the hat at night (though I can't get them up in the morning for school, go firgure) Is to put the tooth in a glass of water in the bathroom and in the morning the tooth fairy takes the tooth and leaves change in the glass of water. (my nieghbor does that trick)
I recived books as a child under my pillow sometimes, and to this day I still remember one of those books, (It was a picture book dictionary)I think that was for 2 teeth I had lost :)

I have also done this, we had a mix of money from around the world and we gave our 4yo at the time, a stack of coins from different countries, she thought it was pretty cool, though she couldn't spend it on anything, more of a token.

Though I have to say w/ 4 children I have forgetten to put something under the pillow. And I used the excuse "Oh my that is so not fair I can't believe she forgot!, She (tooth fairy) must have been so busy last night , or well maybe the tooth came out too close to bed time and she didn't get it on her list in time./

Anyways have fun with it!!!
P.s. Just remember if you give alot of money $5 then they will expect that or more next time too. We made that mistake w/ our 1st daughter. But she learned there was no rhym or reason to the tooth fairy's giving/payment factor.

Also My dad saved all our teeth and when we grew up (college) he gave us allll our teeth back LOL.

My son has lost four teeth he received a dollar per tooth. A golden dollar. Then the tooth fairy has to much weight to carry anymore than a dollar per tooth, and a golden dollar is different.
My aunt used to give my cousins old coins to collect. I know there are golden dollar books out there to collect them. Then maybe you could buy her something for a dollar so she can keep her coin.

I just played tooth fairy last night and my 5 yo got a quarter. My original intention was $1 but I didn't plan ahead so I had no change. He was happy with the quarter and woke me up at the crack of dawn to show me.

My 5 year old has two front teeth loose as well and I've heard some really high prices so far. For us I was thinking no more than $3 maximum. I think $5 is a bit high for a tooth. We always tell our 5 year old that what other people do in their house is their business and what we do in ours is ours and it's not ok to compare (even though we realize it's a natural tendency to do so). I/we do not want to keep up with The Jones' if you know what I mean. Additionally, if you teach your child to expect the stars and then they don't get it they'll be disappointed. They're teeth for cryin' out loud! Unless they're covered in gold I'm not paying top dollar, no matter how much I love my child. We can go get a good book for $5 thank you very much. Good luck, don't know if that helps you at all.
T.

I only give my daugther one dollar per tooth if we take it out together or it falls out. If the dentist pulls it out she gets three dollars.

As a child I got fifty cent pieces or a two dollar bill. Except for once when I didn't get anything, because my mom forgot to put anything in my tooth pillow, and then told me that the tooth fairy got caught in a hurricane. Next night I had a five dollar bill.

Good luck on your choice. Remember it is the choice of each individual parents on what to give their child.

Hi L.,

When my son's teeth started to fall out, I stocked up on gold dollar coins and very fine (nearly powdered) glitter ... The tooth fairy left him a piece of 'gold' and fairy dust all over his pillow and bed. It thrilled him every time!

As for comparing amounts received, that may be a challenge, but I believe it's the magic in the visit from the fairy that is much more important than how much cash she gets. If she wakes up to gold and fairy dust, she'll likely be enchanted and not care that her friend got a boring paper bill - even if it is $5.

As a side note ... $5 for a tooth? Really? Yikes. Celebrate our differences, I guess! :^)

~Tracy
PS: A lint roller works well to remove the fairy dust!

I was a little shocked when I found out how much the tooth fairy was handing out...nothing like when I lost my tooth. For my daughters first tooth she did get $5 but for the remaining teeth she has been getting $1 for all of her other teeth. She is in second grade now and if this wasn't what all of her friends were getting I would have heard by now....

I gave my daughter $1.... I wouldn't go above that. =)
Oh and have her put it in a baggie, it is easier to find under the pillow. Then just put the money back in the baggie. =)

I will give my son $100 for his first tooth.

Just kidding. I only read this post for fun, but now I'm alarmed - everyone's talking about their 5-year-old's loose teeth. Is it that time already? My son's four and a half, and I feel like they just came in!

*sigh*

I like the fairy dust idea that someone mentioned, though. I'll keep that in mind for later...

I gave my son $2 for the first tooth, cause it's special, then $.50, wrapped in foil, for the next three teeth. Some of his friends get more than that, but my hubby and I think that's just crazy!!

My kids get a gold dollar for each tooth. One of the kids I did child care for got $5 and when she bragged to my son I think he stopped thinking the fairy was real. It really stunk! I actually think it only came up because I was the one who pulled her tooth out, so all the kids asked her about it the next day.
ps... once the tooth fair forgot for 2 nights, so he (yes, our tooth fairy is a guy) left $3 instead.
I give my kids money for their teeth even when they don't believe anyway. (Like my 12 year old)

My daughter has always gotten a different amount each time. The first time she got $5 and the next time she got $2. This was kind of comical because my daughter uexpectedly lost her tooth and between my husband and I the smallest bill we had was a 20. So we gathered up some change in the amout of $2. She was very excited because she thought it was a lot of money because there was so much of it. She called grandma and said she got a lot of monies and when asked how much she yelled TWO DOLLARS!!

Hi this is fun but can get expensive if you let it as I have already gone through three sons.
A good way to explain this to her is to say the tooth fairy shops around for teeth from many boys and girls every month, but checks closely to see where it can find the prettiest white teeth. because there are so many new babies going to be born who will need them. This will help to encourage her to brush more often also, you just need to remember to remind her after dinner, and bedtime, at at wake up in the morning for a few times she will catch on and be doing it to surprise you. For the pay out amount keep track of her brushing times with a stick on star or other cuter stamp then when a tooth comes out and she has been brushing well add them up a quarter for each week or how you can afford it. When my first son turned eight I played a game with him I wrote a little note with all the letters backward so you had to put it near a mirror in order to read it I put the money with it,when he showed it to me I acted surprised and at first was puzzled how to read it to him even though I knew what it said, ( We took it to a mirror) I wrote this on it THis is where I live in side your mirror and I am writing to tell you I am watching you brush your teeth everyday.. He thought that was the coolest thing I acted so innocent. What beautiful no cavity checkups good brushing happy future. S.

You also don't want to give them $5 for the first tooth and then less for each tooth afterward, and have to yield the question about why they got more for one than the other. I've heard of giving them $1 each time then $5 for the last baby tooth or a special gift. But it seems like they'd wonder why they got $5 once and less the rest of the time, setting them up maybe for disappointment the next time, or maybe they'll start trying to pull their teeth out, thinking, wow! I got $5 for the first one! Good luck either way, you know what's best for our family.

my niece and nephew get 5 dollars and sometimes 10 dollars.. I was shocked!! my brother said it was because they really don't get money any other time of the year and then they can buy something fun with it.. I guess he had a good point.. I'm not sure what I'll do for my kids..

when I was a kid my brother claimed he got 5 dollars from the tooth fairy and we all fell for it.. until my grandma found 5 dollars missing from her purse! haha :) needless to say he got in big trouble!!

I don't think we ever compared how much we got from tooth to tooth.. it was more of counting to see how much we got this time! and very excited!! I think my dad just pulled out his pocket change because it was always a different amount.. we loved it..

I must be really crazy then! Our daughter got a new bike from the tooth fairy! She also got a note from the tooth fairy explaining the "rules" of fairyville.. (hehe) The main rule was the 1st tooth paid the most. Any tooth lost due to the 1st payment was not a payable loss :-) Plus the tooth fairy also told her that any tooth with a cavity will not be paid for either. It is important to brush your teeth. LOL!

Right after she lost her first tooth her Dad broke one of his. He left it in a glass of water for the tooth fairy. He got a bill! HAHA.. for bringing the fairy on false terms :-) My daughter thought it was funny!

When I was a kid I think I got a quarter for each lost tooth, but that was long ago! When my kids lost their teeth I think the tooth fairy gave them .75 to $1.00 per tooth! Recently our 5 y/o granddaughter lost her first tooth and she got $5.00.

I'm thinking maybe more for the first tooth, then what ever the tooth fairy can afford after that!! It's all good for the little ones, they haven't quite grasped the value of money yet and whatever they get is exciting! Good luck!!

S.
Lynnwood, Wa

Give her the dollar for all her teeth that fall out. If she asks tell her that there are more then on toothfaries and some give more and give less but most give a dollar

I think a dollar is good enough. I mean come on they are getting paid to lose thier teeth for goodness sake. I give my son a dollar.

Well L., my son is 6 and he lost his first tooth 2 days before he turned six and just like your daughter he knew all about the tooth fairy from kids at school. I decided to give him 6 dollars. He was sooooo excited and he really felt like a big boy because that was the most money he had ever had of his own at one time. He saved his 6 dollars and on his birthday he took that money and his birthday money and was able to shop for what ever he wanted. So make it worth it after all it is her VERY FIRST BABY TOOTH.

The tooth fairy gave my granddaughter $1 each for her first 2 teeth. The plan is for it to always be a $1.

There are always some families that pay more for a variety of reasons. Think of a reason that your daughter's tooth fairy gives $1. My first thought was to explain that just like people not all tooth fairies have the same amount of money to give but that's too practical and not much fun. I think I'd make up a story about the tooth fairy that would have a fun reason for the amount that she gives. Weave the money issue in among other fun "facts." There probably is a book about the tooth fairy that you could get in the library to help you with the story.

My granddaughter is nearly seven and finishing the 1st grade. I don't think the amount that the tooth fairy gives has been an issue. She doesn't know the value of money. For her the number of coins and not their value is what impresses her. She is impressed with $ bills because she has so few of them. They're special. Her other grandma sent her 3 $ bills in a purse one Christmas and that was the "best" present. She keeps misplacing the bills and is then frantic to find them again.