First phone checklist for parents

Apple Screen Time

Changing right now: Apple's 14 Sep 2026 support page describes new controls in iOS 27. If a family device is on an older system, the earlier Screen Time is what you get.

Find My was not part of this research, so location on an iPhone is not listed.

Set these from your own phone, in the child's Screen Time settings inside Family Sharing.

1. Turn on Ask to Buy

   On your phone · about 3 min · On by default under 13.

   Purchases wait for your approval. Apple says this is on by default under 13, and in some regions it cannot be turned off before 18.

   1. Settings, Family, your child, Apps & Websites, Restrictions, Ask to Buy, Require Purchase Approval.
   2. Leave it on if your child asks to disable it. In some regions Apple does not allow that before 18.
   Apple Screen Time parental controls

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

2. Set a Screen Time passcode on your phone

   On your phone · about 3 min

   With Family Sharing, set the Screen Time passcode from your own device. Apple says a parent managing a child through Family Sharing must set it on their own device, not the child's. Choose one your child can't guess.

   1. On your phone: Settings, Family, the child, Manage Screen Time, Lock Screen Time Settings.
   2. Choose a four-digit passcode, then set up passcode recovery with your Apple Account.
   Apple Screen Time passcode

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

3. Decide which apps can be installed

   On your phone · about 3 min

   You can block or allow App Store installs. This is the backstop for any app you have not set up, including ones still being checked on this site.

   1. Settings, Family, your child, Apps & Websites, App Store, Installing Apps, Allowed or Blocked.
   2. If you are unsure about an app, leave new installs off until you have looked at it together.
   Apple Screen Time parental controls

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

4. Set the web and search filter

   On your phone · about 4 min

   This is the device-level control for Safari and for supported browsers. Ask to Browse is on by default under 13. Limit Adult Websites is on by default under 18. On iOS 27, Ask to Browse also applies in Safari and in supported browsers.

   Ask to Browse is the default under 13. Keep it.

   1. On your phone: Settings, Family, the child, Apps & Websites, Restrictions, Filtering.
   2. Set Web Content to Approved Websites Only. That's what turns on Ask to Browse, so your child can send you a request for any site that isn't on the list.
   3. For a teen, confirm Limit Adult Websites is still on, or switch to Approved Websites Only.
   Apple Screen Time parental controls

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

5. Set Allowed Contacts

   On your phone · about 4 min

   On iOS 27 this is Allowed Contacts. On earlier iOS, Apple's guide still describes restrictions on who your child can communicate with. A message from someone new stays hidden until you approve the contact.

   1. On iOS 27: Settings, Family, the child, Allowed Contacts, During Screen Time.
   2. Choose Contacts Only, Contacts and Groups with at least one contact, or Everyone.
   3. Use Manage Contacts to approve people. Leave Allow Contact Editing off so a new contact has to be requested.
   4. On earlier iOS, use the communication limits in Screen Time. The iOS 27 names above will not be on that screen.
   Apple Screen Time parental controls

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

6. Limit Game Center friends and private messages

   On your phone · about 3 min

   You can block Connect with Friends and Private Messaging in Game Center.

   1. Turn off Connect with Friends if you do not want new game friends.
   2. Turn off Private Messaging.
   Apple Screen Time parental controls

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

7. Leave Communication Safety on

   On your phone · about 3 min

   It blurs and warns about nudity, gore, and violence in Messages, AirDrop, contact posters, FaceTime video messages, shared albums, and some other apps. It is on by default under 18. Communication Safety also works on live FaceTime calls. Under 13, opening the blurred content needs your Screen Time passcode.

   1. Settings, Family, the child, Communication Safety. Leave it on.
   2. On iOS 27, when you enter your Screen Time passcode to review a blurred item, a slider lets you reveal it gradually before you decide. Nudity detection also covers live FaceTime video calls.
   3. Tell them a blurred image is a reason to come to you, not something they have to open.
   Apple Communication Safety

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

8. Set age ratings for apps, music, and movies

   On your phone · about 5 min

   Content & Privacy Restrictions can limit apps, music, movies, and similar media by age rating. The same area can limit Siri features, including image creation, and other privacy switches.

   1. Set the ratings to match your child's age.
   2. Review the Siri and privacy restriction switches on the same screen.
   Apple Screen Time parental controls

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

9. Set Screen Time Schedules and Time Allowances

   On your phone · about 5 min

   On iOS 27, set Screen Time Schedules and Time Allowances. Schedules can use windows such as Before School, School, and After School. Time Allowances is a daily budget by category. The child can ask for more time. These controls need every family device on iOS 27. On earlier iOS, the guide still says Downtime and limits for specific apps. Use the names on the screen you have.

   1. On iOS 27: Settings, Family, the child, Screen Time Schedule. Turn on Schedule, then Add Schedule, and pick the days.
   2. Set Time Allowances for the categories you care about, such as Entertainment, Games, or Social Media.
   3. On earlier iOS, set Downtime and the limits for specific apps. Those older names are what that system still shows.
   Apple Screen Time parental controls

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

Google Family Link

Limits apply per device. An iPhone cannot be supervised with Family Link.

Set these in the Family Link app on your phone. The parent account has to be 18 or older.

1. Require approval for app downloads and purchases

   On your phone · about 3 min

   You approve downloads and purchases. This covers Google Play billing only, not a purchase made inside another store.

   1. In Family Link, turn on approval for app downloads and purchases.
   2. Remember this does not cover spending inside a console store or a gift card.
   Google Family Link

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

2. Block or allow apps, and review permissions

   On your phone · about 4 min

   You can block an app outright and review the permissions it asks for.

   1. Block any app you do not want on the device.
   2. Review permissions for the apps you leave on.
   Google Family Link

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

3. Set Chrome's site filter

   On your phone · about 5 min

   Family Link can allow all sites, try to block explicit sites, or allow only sites you approve. Incognito is off while they are signed in with the supervised account. On a computer or an iPhone they can sign out of Chrome, and then these controls do not apply.

   1. Family Link, the child, Controls, Google Chrome and Web.
   2. Choose Try to block explicit sites, or Only allow approved sites.
   3. Remember a signed-out browser, or a different browser, is outside this filter.
   Family Link Chrome controls

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

4. Leave SafeSearch locked on

   On your phone · about 2 min · Locked on for supervised children.

   For a supervised child, SafeSearch is on and locked by default. You can set Filter, Blur, or Off. It is not enforced if they are signed out or use another search app.

   1. Family Link, the child, Controls, Google Search.
   2. Leave Filter on unless you have decided otherwise.
   Family Link SafeSearch

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

5. Decide whether device location is on

   On your phone · about 3 min

   Family Link can show the location of a supervised Android device or Fitbit, including Family places. Supervised children under 13 can share real-time Maps location only with parents. This does not cover an iPhone.

   1. Family Link, Location, Set up location. Turn on “See your child's location” if that is what you both agreed.
   2. Add Family places if you want arrival and departure notes.
   3. This is not Apple's Find My. That lock is still being checked, so it is not listed.
   Family Link location

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

6. Restrict mature content on Google Play

   On your phone · about 3 min

   Family Link can limit mature apps, games, and other media on Google Play.

   1. Set the Play content restriction to match your child's age.
   Google Family Link

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

7. Set a daily limit, a weekly schedule, and bedtime

   On your phone · about 5 min

   Family Link can set a daily limit, a weekly schedule, bedtime, and bonus time. The limits apply separately on each device.

   1. Set a daily limit and a bedtime.
   2. If the child has more than one Android device, set the limit on each one.
   Google Family Link

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

8. Optional: lock SafeSearch on the home network

   In a browser · about 10 min

   A supervised account already locks SafeSearch. A network lock covers Google Search even when someone is not signed in on that Wi-Fi. It does not cover other search engines.

   1. On the router, set the DNS name for www.google.com to a CNAME for forcesafesearch.google.com.
   2. Google also documents a hosts-file method for a single computer. Use that only if you know how to edit that file.
   Lock SafeSearch on a network

   Checked 30 Sep 2026

9. Review the supervised Google Account settings

   On your phone · about 4 min

   Family Link also manages settings on the Google Account itself, separate from any one app.

   1. Open the account controls in Family Link and review what the child can change.
   Google Family Link

   Checked 30 Sep 2026