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You can monitor some aspects of your child’s phone for free using its built-in parental controls: Apple Screen Time for an iPhone or iPad, or Google Family Link for a compatible, supervised Android device. These tools help manage screen time, apps, and content settings; Family Link can also show an eligible Android device’s location when it is powered on and online. Neither option is a universal way to see everything a child does or to read all their messages.
Choose the tool for your child’s device
| Child’s device | Free built-in option | What it can help manage |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone or iPad | Apple Screen Time | App and category limits, communication limits, and content and privacy restrictions. A parent or guardian can manage a child’s settings through Family Sharing where available. |
| Compatible Android device | Google Family Link | Apps, screen-time limits and schedules, and location for an eligible Android device. |
Family Link is for supervising a child’s Google Account on a supported device; it does not supervise a child’s iPhone or iPad. A parent can use the Family Link app on a supported iPhone, iPad, or Android phone, but the child’s device must meet Google’s requirements. Apple and Google offer separate platform-specific controls, not one free app with identical capabilities on both systems.
What Apple Screen Time can do
On a child’s iPhone or iPad, Screen Time supports limits for individual apps or categories, communication limits for supported services such as Phone, FaceTime, and Messages, and content and privacy restrictions. Family Sharing lets the family organizer or a designated parent or guardian manage a child’s settings in the group. See Apple’s Screen Time guide and Apple’s Family Sharing parental-control instructions.
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Apple’s documentation describes ways to manage usage and restrictions; it does not establish Screen Time as a tool for reading the contents of a child’s messages. If you do not have your own Apple device or use Family Sharing, Apple documents a direct setup on the child’s device for ages 13–17, subject to age rules that vary by country or region. Consult Apple’s Screen Time setup guidance for the available path and current details.
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What Google Family Link can do
Family Link lets a parent manage apps, set daily screen-time limits or a bedtime schedule, and check time spent in certain apps. It can also show the location of a child’s Android device or compatible Fitbit device. Google requires the child to have a Google Account and a supported device; its listed requirements include Android 6.0 or later and Chromebooks running Chrome OS 71 or later. Parent-app requirements and country availability also apply. Check Google’s Family Link overview for current eligibility details.
Google states: “To use Family Link to supervise your child’s device, the child needs to: Have a Google Account.” Follow Google’s setup instructions to configure supervision, limits, schedules, app controls, or location sharing. Limits apply separately to each Android device or Chromebook the child uses. Some apps cannot be blocked because the device needs them for supervision or basic operation, and an app block may not take effect until the device connects to the internet.
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Location is conditional, not uninterrupted tracking: Google says the child’s Android device must be powered on and connected to the internet for its location to appear in the app. See Google’s Family Link privacy notice for availability and data details.
Set up the controls you actually need
- Check the child’s device and account. Confirm whether the child uses an iPhone or iPad, or a supported Android device, and verify the relevant operating-system and account requirements.
- For iPhone or iPad, configure Screen Time. Set it up on the child’s device or manage the child’s settings through Family Sharing if available. Choose only the app, communication, content, or privacy limits your family needs.
- For Android, configure Family Link. Use the child’s supervised Google Account and install or open Family Link on the parent’s device. Set screen-time schedules, app controls, and location sharing separately as appropriate.
- Review the privacy details. Decide which data and features you are comfortable enabling before turning on supervision.
- Explain the settings to your child and revisit them. Adjust controls as the child’s needs and your family’s expectations change.
Understand the privacy trade-offs
Google’s Family Link privacy notice says the service may collect information about the apps, browsers, and devices a child uses to access Google services; interactions with those services; activity such as searches or watched videos, depending on settings; and location information. Read the notice before enabling supervision so you can decide whether the data involved is appropriate for your family.
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Both products are limited to their documented features and supported setups. Family Link’s app controls work only on compatible Android or ChromeOS devices, and location has the power and internet conditions described above. Apple’s controls apply to its devices. Check the relevant platform’s current guidance before relying on any one control, since features can vary by operating-system release, account, region, and configuration.
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