In today’s digital age, children are growing up surrounded by technology, with smartphones, tablets, and computers becoming integral parts of their lives from a very young age. Also after the COVID phase, every single person has become much more habituated to the use of digital platforms.
Whilst even adults have become victims of digital device traps, children are not spared from these. While these devices offer numerous benefits, they also pose risks, exposing children to inappropriate content, online predators, and excessive screen time. In response to these concerns, parental control tools have emerged as invaluable resources for parents striving to maintain a balance between their children’s digital engagement and their safety and well-being.
Every parent today wishes to protect their kids from the unsuitable content available for their kids and also the addiction that follows. But just as the idea of parental control software sounds like a no-fuss solution, it is actually a whole lot on the plate. Many aspects need to be discovered while selecting the best tool to monitor your kid’s digital devices. Ultimately, the goal is to strike a balance between embracing the opportunities presented by technology and mitigating its potential risks, thereby nurturing a generation of informed and resilient digital natives.
We have highlighted 7 best tools that would help you get parental control over your kid’s digital activities. The apps have been chosen considering the features, prices, ratings and reviews of each.
Disclaimer – All app details listed are based on the latest information available at the time this post was published. The list contains tools as per their respective ratings and reviews from highest to lowest.
1. Family Link By Google
Google’s Family Link app is designed to help you set ground rules and guide your child’s experience as they explore online. Your child will become part of your Google family group, which you can use to share Google services with your child and up to four other family members.
It is compatible with Android and iOS devices.
Features
- Allows you to set screen time limits.
- Approve your child’s downloads and purchases on Google Play and Stadia or limit the visibility of content based on maturity ratings.
- You can change the content, access and other settings for YouTube experiences.
- Help your child choose the types of activity that can be saved in their Google Account.
- See the location of your child’s signed-in and active Android devices.
Price – Free
Ratings and Reviews – 4.5/5 with 3.05M Reviews on Google Play Store
2. Kaspersky Safe Kids
Kaspersky is a flexible app that enables you to protect your children on multiple devices. It is comparatively one of the more affordable parental control apps, with payment plan options to suit various users.
It supports Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS devices.
Features
- Get alerts about your child’s device if their battery is low.
- Let your kids view and track rules with the child limit bar.
- Prevent specific apps and websites from being opened.
- You know where your kids are 24/7.
- Prevent device addiction with time-limit controls
Price – Plans starting from £ 23.99*/Yr
Ratings and Reviews – 3.5/5 with 49.2K Reviews on Google Play Store
3. Kidslox
Kidslox parental control app is the perfect way to manage your family’s screen time.As one of the first multi-platform parental controls, Kidslox gives you control over your family’s device usage. Its new Screen Time Rewards feature encourages your kids to do their homework and household chores!
It is available for all Android, iOS and web platforms.
Features
- Switch between unrestricted ‘Parent mode’, custom ‘Child mode’ and fully restricted ‘Lockdown mode’ at the touch of a button.
- You can enable location tracking to make it easier to keep track of your kid’s whereabouts.
- You can add up to 10 devices.
- Stop your clever kids from changing the restrictions with a unique Kidslox PIN.
- Lock your child’s device remotely at any time
Price – Basic plan starts from £2.39/m and the Family plan starts from £3.79/m. To know more click here.
Ratings and Reviews – 4.2/5 with 27.8K reviews on the Google Play Store
4. MMGuardian
MMGuardian is great for tweens or families with kids needing different levels of monitoring and intervention. It is one of the few parental control apps that actually requires parents to approve all new app downloads.
MMGuardian supports Android and iOS devices.
Features
- Alerts you when text messages or web searches are indicative of sexting, cyberbullying, suicidal thoughts and more.
- Alerts you when pictures on your child’s phone, or sent in an MMS message, are of an adult nature.
- You can locate your child’s phone on a map.
- Set up bedtime and school times to control screen time.
- Block or set up usage limits for apps and games.
- Lock or Unlock the child’s phone with a simple button press.
Price – Plans starting from £4.50/month
Ratings and Reviews – 4.1/5 with 25.7K Reviews on Google Play Store
5. Norton Family
Norton Family encourages parents to talk to their children about online safety rather than just spying on their online activities. The company’s approach to parental control emphasises cooperation and open dialogue between parents and children with the House Rules and Request Access features.
It is compatible with Windows, Android and iOS devices
Features
- No limit on the number of monitored devices.
- It is managed from the Family Dashboard, a web portal where you can customise settings and view reports on everything your kids have done recently.
- Automatically blocks websites by category, based on the level of restriction chosen.
- Can check your kid’s location and even filter the list to see where your child was in a specific time range on a particular date.
Price – Subscription starting from £14.99/Yr
Ratings and Reviews – 4.3/5 with 24.9K Reviews on Trustpilot
6. Qustodio
Qustodio, trusted by over 6 million parents, has nearly every feature an anxious parent wants, including robust content-blocking options and a detailed activity log, to keep their kids’ screen time safe and balanced on every device—from one easy-to-use dashboard.
It is compatible with various devices and platforms, including Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and Kindle.
Features
- It has a comparatively well-designed web interface.
- There are additional options for blocking unsupported browsers, blocking uncategorised website domains, and forcing Safe Search.
- It allows you to set daily time limits, which allows you to set a cap on device usage for each day of the week.
- You can search for apps your child has used across any of their supported devices.
- You can choose to lock navigation and lock the device when time’s up, which also prevents your child from getting around the block by changing the system time on the device.
- You can view a timeline of the child’s reported location history pop with up to 30 days of past data.
Price – The basic plan is at £39.95/year and the premium plan is at £69.95/year. To know more click here.
Ratings and Reviews – 3.4/5 with 14.8K Reviews on the Google Play Store
7. Mobicip
Mobicip allows you to easily manage the websites your child accesses by setting permissions for 15+ predefined content categories. It scans web pages in real-time with the help of advanced AI and machine learning technology.
It is compatible with various devices and platforms, including Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and Kindle.
Features
- Set limits on how much free time your kids get on their devices.
- It provides an overview of your child’s device usage including how much time they’ve spent on their device, which websites they’ve visited, what apps they’ve used, and more.
- Find out where your kids are and where they’ve been recently.
- Create geo-fences around school or a friend’s home to be alerted when your child reaches the location.
- You can invite a co-parent or a guardian to manage your family’s digital habits.
Price – Small family plan starts at £4.99/m
Ratings and Reviews – 3.5/5 with 86 Ratings on the Apple Store and 2.4/5 with 2.28K reviews on the Google Play store.
When deciding which parental control app is right for you, it’s important to first consider what your needs are! Ultimately, the most suitable parental control app depends on the individual needs of the users. But while considering the above parental control apps for kids, remember to be clear about the reasons for the restrictions so that the children understand what you are trying to protect them from.
Let your kid be aware of the dangers on the web why you wish to use these parental controls, and how these would help foster a safe and healthy online environment for them.
If you want us to add a suggestion here based on your experience, please get in touch with us!
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- Blogger and Educator by Passion | Senior Online Media & PR Strategist at ClickDo Ltd. | Contributor to many Education, Business & Lifestyle Blogs in the United Kingdom & Germany | Summer Course Student at the London School of Journalism and Course Instructor at the SeekaHost University.
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