Whether or not a grown child should pay rent depends on the situation. If you’re looking for work and can’t find any and have to move back in with your parents, then you shouldn’t have to pay rent since family should help family. If you have a job and are living with your parents, you should ideally pay rent. That being said, if your parents don’t want to accept rent money, that’s okay since they’re not actually losing money unless they kicked a renter out to let you stay. But your food, toiletries, and utilities do cost money, so if at all possible, grown children should at least pay their share of those expenses. And if you live at home and are physically capable of pushing a mop or drying a dish, you need to be doing chores. Adults need to contribute to the household wherever they live. You should not be a drain — monetarily or labor-wise — on the people and resources where you live. You don’t get a free pass to slack just because your Mommy will still wash your clothes.