There's only one way to manage kids' screen time: parenting. It's up to parents and caretakers to establish rules, guidelines, and habits that lead to an appropriate amount of time with computers, video games, tablets, and phones. While it's entirely feasible to regulate screen time using nothing more than words, some parental control tools make it easier. In some circumstances, they're essential.
Let's say you set a rule that your child may only use a particular app on your iPad for 10 minutes. If your kid is very young or developmentally different, they may not yet have the skills needed to participate in following this rule. In this instance, you can use a feature called Guided Access to set a timer so that the app freezes after 10 minutes; I'll explain how to do that below.
Another example: Now let's say your child is ready to take an active role in limiting their screen time. They're still new to it, though, and they need you to step in from time to time. In this case, you can enable a tool that monitors how much time your kid spends in various apps and reports it back to you. That way you can build trust with your kid while still having oversight.
Below, we look at three different ways to manage screen time. One relies on tools built-in to Apple devices. The second uses an app from Microsoft to monitor Xbox, Windows, and Android devices. The third involves using third-party apps and software designed for complete parental control.
How to Manage Screen Time on Apple Devices
With Apple devices, you have two good methods for monitoring or limiting kids' screen time (and your own for that matter). The first option involves Family Sharing settings, which lets you put time limits on apps or categories of apps for each day, as well as receiving reports of each person's screen time usage. The second method lets you set a time limit for an app right before you hand over an iPhone or iPad—ideal with very young children.
Method 1: Use Apple Screen Time
Apple's Family Sharing settings lets you manage devices, purchases, and screen usage across a household. After you set up Family Sharing by adding your children to the account, you can then set daily time limits on the apps they can use or the category of apps they can use.
The Screen Time feature creates a log of each person's device usage and generates a daily and weekly report showing how much time they spent in different apps.
The images here are from a macOS device, but the same features are available on the iPhone and iPad. Just go to Settings > Screen Time.
Apple's Family Sharing and Screen Time features give you great tools for monitoring screen time, setting limits, and otherwise managing your household's Apple devices. If your family has non-Apple technology, however, such as video game consoles or Chromebooks, it doesn't cover those devices. Chromebook users might try using Google Family Link.
Method 2: Use Per-Session Time Limits on Apple Devices With Guided Access
This next method of controlling screen time is good for when you want to give your iPhone or iPad to a child and put a precise limit on how long they can use it right now. You can do this using a feature called Guided Access.
To use it, first turn on Guided Access by going to Settings > Accessibility > Guided Access.
Once it's enabled, open the app you want your child to be able to use and triple-click either the side button or the home button for devices that have it. In the lower-left corner, tap Options. The bottom option says Time Limit. Enable that and select the number of minutes you want the child to be able to use the app.
Guided Access has other features that can help you kid-proof your iPhone or iPad. If you have small children, I highly recommend learning more about Guided Access.
How to Manage Screen Time for Windows and Xbox (and Games on Android)
Microsoft just recently released a new app called Family Safety. It's available for both iPhone and Android. You use it to limit screen time across Windows and Xbox devices, as well as games on Android.
The app lets you set limits on how much time your family members can spend across Xbox and Windows devices. You also have the option to set time limits on specific apps or games on Xbox, Windows, and Android. Your kids can request time extensions too, which you can approve or deny in real time via the app.
Microsoft's new tool has other features, too, such as sending requests to you before your kids can make app purchases on their devices.
One shortcoming is the app only monitors one web browser, Microsoft Edge, so if your kids use Chrome, Firefox, or another browser, they can get around some of the limits. You could block them from installing other browsers, but depending on what kind of browser support they need for schoolwork, that might not go over well.
For more advice on how to manage console-gaming time in particular, you can read our story on how to enable parental controls on every video game platform.
How to Manage Screen Time With Parental Control Software
Parental control tools have been around for decades. You can now buy excellent parental control software to control and monitor all the devices in your home or stick with parental control mobile apps if your family only uses tablets and phones.
Any app in this category will let you put restrictions on screen time, block certain apps or websites during hours that you set, and monitor device usage overall. Many of them work across platforms (though not every feature will necessarily work on every platform), so if you use a mix of Apple, Windows, and Android devices, parental control software or apps might be the way to go.
These apps and tools give you a broad range of options, depending on how much control you want over your household's screen time, whether you want extra features (such as location detection), and how much you're willing to spend. A few that earned top ratings in our tests are Editors Choice Qustodio, Kaspersky Safe Kids, and Norton Family Premier. Qustodio enables you to set daily time limits, create device usage schedules, and place time limits on individual apps. Kaspersky Safe Kids matches those first two capabilities and includes a monitor-only option, but cannot set time limits on a per-app basis. Norton Family has similar time-management capabilities to Kaspersky Safe Kids and also has a monitor-only setting, but it does not work with macOS devices.
Not All Screen Time Is Equal
Before you put strict limits on how much screen time your kids can have, keep in mind that not all screen time is created equal. Some experts say you shouldn't count schoolwork or homework done on screens toward kids' total daily allotment. Additionally, the quality of the screen time may not be what the parent assumes it is. For teens, in particular, socializing is an important aspect of their lives that may happen in video games, on social media, and elsewhere.
Common Sense Media recommends paying attention to how children act after various media experiences as one way to judge the quality. Another is to ask how they feel about their most-used video games and apps. "What do you like about it?"
With the right tools, you can work with your family to figure out the right limits for screen time. It may change over time, and there may be days or weeks with exceptions, but with the right tools and information, you can do it in a way that makes sense for everyone.
Further Reading
- How to Kick Your Kids Off the Wi-Fi
- Get Organized: How to Kid-Proof Your iPhone or iPad
- 10 Essential Google Classroom Tips
- How to Create and Manage Digital Family Documents
- More in Get Organized
- More in Parental Control