Jun 2, 2026
Trump Accounts, which will provide $1,000 for every newborn American between 2025 and 2028, will begin distributing money on July 4. But the app parents will use to monitor those funds is already live and attracting plenty of attention.
Released May 29, the app briefly climbed to the top of the finance download charts and reached No.3 overall, trailing only ChatGPT and Claude. By Monday, it had fallen to No. 6 in the finance category and out of the Top 15 overall.
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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has helped promote the app, encouraging parents to download it even if their current children don’t qualify for deposits.
“With the children that are born during Trump’s administration, Treasury will seed those accounts with $1,000, but anyone with children under 18 should open a Trump Account because many of the great philanthropists are also putting money in,” Bessent said.
Some corporations and state governments have also pledged to support the accounts.
How Trump Accounts work
Created as part of last summer’s budget bill, Trump Accounts will invest the $1,000 government contribution in a low-cost index fund. Parents can contribute up to $5,000 annually per child to help boost growth. Those contributions can be made by parents, employers or a combination of both.
Employers can contribute up to $2,500 annually to an employee’s child’s account, tax-free.
Children can access the money at 18 years of age, when the account converts to an IRA. However, the first private contribution cannot be made until after July 4, 2026.
Parents will also need to fill out IRS Form 4547, available through TrumpAccounts.gov.
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Contributions to a Trump Account don’t affect contribution limits on other tax-advantaged retirement accounts, such as IRAs or a 401(k). That means teens with summer or after-school jobs could theoretically maximize contributions to those accounts while still receiving deposits into a Trump Account.
Although the funds become accessible at age 18, the accounts are designed to provide a head start on retirement savings. Withdrawals before age 59 1/2 may be subject to a 10% penalty.
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Growth potential
Bessent has called the accounts “the most important benefit for young people since the GI Bill” and says nearly 6 million children have already been enrolled.
Many companies and business leaders have pledged support. For example, Michael Dell and his wife, Susan, have pledged $6.25 billion to provide $250 deposits for children aged 10 and younger, who are ineligible for the government’s $1,000 contribution and who live in zip codes with median incomes of $150,000 or less.
In addition to the $5,000 annual contribution limit for parents and employers, qualifying charitable organizations, state and local governments can make contributions that do not count toward the cap, potentially accelerating growth.
Charles Schwab estimates that if families contribute $5,000 annually until a child turns 18, the account could grow to more than $191,000. If no additional contributions are made and the money remains invested until age 60, Schwab estimates the account could be worth more than $2.2 million.
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Chris Morris is a veteran journalist with more than 35 years of experience at many of the internet's biggest news outlets. In addition to his activities as a writer, reporter and editor, Chris is also a frequent panel moderator and speaker at major conferences, including CES and South by Southwest.
