The 4 parental control apps that top our list

Keeping tabs on your kid's screen time, location, or internet behavior can be as intense or chill as you prefer, depending on the parental control app you pick.

Apr 8, 2025 - 20:07

The 4 parental control apps that top our list

Screen time is arguably one of the hottest parenting topics of the past 20 years. For some, screen time literally just refers to the amount of time a kid spends looking at a tablet or phone each day. For others, screen time is a catchall term for the beast of an issue that asks what's behind the screen that kids can't seem to stop tapping and swiping on.

Confiscating the phone may have been the only option for parents a couple of decades ago, but caregivers these days have the option to use parental control software instead.

Fortnite may be distracting them from their school work, or maybe you'd just feel more comfortable about this increase in screen time if you knew that your child wasn't landing on any inappropriate sites or scrolling through Instagram at 3 a.m. Maybe you want them to engage more in family time together, sans screens. Whatever your reason, parental control software offers a solution to managing your child’s screen time.

How does parental control software work?

Parental control software lets you monitor your child's device — phone, tablet, or computer — remotely. The corresponding apps let parents monitor the big worries like internet searches and browsing history, block problem apps (or block distracting apps during homework hours), limit screen time altogether, track location, and more.

The nice thing about parental control apps is that they can be as invasive or as chill as they need to be, based on the kid's age, proven level of responsibility, and more — including the ability to customize strictness across different devices in the same household.

If you're an iPhone family, downloading external software for this might not even be necessary. Apple's parental controls that are built into the settings of any iOS device are actually pretty exhaustive, from screen time controls to location services. With apps like TikTok and YouTube also offering their own in-app versions of parental control tools, you may be able to create a safer internet surfing environment without your kid feeling like they're being "watched" on a whole separate app.

Below, we're diving into the pros, cons, and overall strictness levels of the top four best parental control apps in 2025.