Apple's Screen Time and parental controls have grown into a genuinely powerful system for families, and in 2026 there are more tools than ever to help parents set healthy boundaries across all their children's Apple devices simultaneously. Whether you're setting up a first iPad for a young child or trying to create healthier tech habits for a teenager, this guide walks through everything you need to know.
We'll cover setup for both iPhone/iPad and Mac, how to use Family Sharing to manage everything from one place, and practical recommendations for different ages.
Start Here: Set Up Family Sharing
The most important thing to do before configuring any parental controls is set up Family Sharing. This creates an Apple family group that lets you manage Screen Time settings for all your children's devices from your own device — no need to physically touch each child's phone.
How to Set Up Family Sharing
- On your iPhone or Mac, go to Settings (or System Settings) > [Your Name] > Family Sharing
- Tap Add Member
- Choose Create a Child Account if your child doesn't have an Apple ID, or invite an existing Apple ID
- Follow the prompts — you'll need to verify your identity for child accounts
Once your child is in your family group, you can manage their Screen Time from your own device at any time, see their activity, and make changes remotely. This is the foundation everything else in this guide builds on.
Important: For Screen Time parental controls to work properly, your child must use their own Apple ID, not share yours. If they've been using your Apple ID, create a separate child account for them.
Setting Up Screen Time on iPhone and iPad
Screen Time is accessed at Settings > Screen Time on any iPhone or iPad. If you're managing a child's device through Family Sharing, you'll see your child's name in the Screen Time section on your own device — tap it to manage their settings remotely.
Always On: Content & Privacy Restrictions
This is the master control for parental controls. Enable it first by tapping Content & Privacy Restrictions and toggling it on. From here you can:
- App Store Purchases: Require Ask to Buy so you approve every app download and in-app purchase
- Allowed Apps: Toggle off access to individual Apple apps — Camera, Safari, Siri, FaceTime, AirDrop, and more
- Content Restrictions: Set age ratings for Movies (G, PG, etc.), TV Shows, Music, Books, Apps, and Websites
- Web Content: Choose Unrestricted, Limit Adult Websites (automatic filtering), or Allowed Websites Only (a whitelist)
- Privacy restrictions: Control whether apps can access Location Services, Contacts, Microphone, Camera, etc.
- Passcode Changes: Prevent a child from changing the device passcode
- Account Changes: Prevent changes to Apple ID, cellular data settings, or VPN configurations
The most important one to set immediately for younger children: Content Restrictions > Web Content > Limit Adult Websites. This isn't foolproof, but it filters the overwhelming majority of inappropriate content from Safari automatically.
App Limits: Setting Daily Time Budgets
App Limits let you set daily time caps for categories of apps or specific apps. When the limit is reached, the app gets greyed out and displays a time limit screen.
- Go to Screen Time > App Limits > Add Limit
- Choose categories (Social, Games, Entertainment) or tap All Apps & Categories and search for a specific app
- Set the time limit (e.g., 1 hour per day for Games)
- Optionally select which days the limit applies
- Enable Block at End of Limit to prevent them from asking for "one more minute"
You can also set limits on all apps combined — useful for an overall daily screen time budget.
Downtime: Screen-Free Periods
Downtime schedules a period each day when only specific apps and phone calls work. All other apps are blocked.
- Go to Screen Time > Downtime > Turn On Downtime
- Set a schedule — typically bedtime (e.g., 9PM to 7AM)
- Go to Always Allowed to choose which apps can still be used during Downtime (Phone and Messages are typical choices)
Enable Block at Downtime (under Downtime settings) so that children can't bypass it without your Screen Time passcode.
Communication Limits
Under Screen Time > Communication Limits, you can control who your child can call, text, and FaceTime — both during normal hours and during Downtime. Options include:
- Everyone
- Contacts Only
- Contacts & Groups with at Least One Contact
- Specific Contacts
For younger children, setting this to Contacts Only means they can only communicate with people already in their contacts — which you control.
Screen Distance
On iPhone 12 and later with Face ID, Screen Distance (under Screen Time) uses the TrueDepth camera to detect if the device is held too close and shows a warning to move it back. This is designed to help reduce eye strain and is particularly relevant for children. Enable it in Screen Time > Screen Distance.
Setting Up Parental Controls on Mac
Screen Time on Mac works similarly to iPhone/iPad but through System Settings. If you're managing via Family Sharing, go to System Settings > Screen Time and select your child's name from the family members listed at the top.
Mac-Specific Content Controls
- App Usage and App Limits: See exactly which apps your child uses and for how long. Set time limits for specific apps or categories.
- Downtime: Same as iPhone — schedule screen-free periods
- Content & Privacy: Filter web content in Safari, restrict App Store access, and control which apps can be installed
Safari Web Content Filtering on Mac
Go to System Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy > Content Restrictions > Web Content and set it to Limit Adult Websites or Allowed Websites Only. This applies specifically in Safari. Note that other browsers (Chrome, Firefox) bypass this — if you want consistent web filtering, either restrict the App Store so those browsers can't be installed, or remove them from the Mac.
Communication and FaceTime on Mac
The same Communication Limits you set on iPhone also apply to FaceTime and Messages on Mac when using the same Apple ID, which is one of the best reasons to ensure your child uses a consistent Apple ID across all their devices.
The Screen Time Passcode
Everything above is undermined if you don't set a Screen Time Passcode — a separate 4-digit code that controls the Screen Time settings, distinct from the device passcode. Without it, children can simply turn off restrictions themselves.
Set it in Settings > Screen Time > Change Screen Time Passcode. Choose a code your child doesn't know, and do not use your device passcode. If you forget your Screen Time passcode, recovery requires your Apple ID, so make sure your Apple ID account is secure.
Monitoring Activity Reports
Screen Time's activity reports show you exactly how a device is being used. On your own device, go to Settings > Screen Time and tap your child's name to see:
- Daily and weekly app usage breakdowns
- Which apps they used most
- How many times they picked up the device
- How many notifications they received (and which apps sent them)
This data is more useful for conversation than confrontation — it gives you facts to talk about with your child about their habits rather than speculation.
Ask to Buy: Approving Purchases Remotely
For any child under 18 in your Family Sharing group, enable Ask to Buy. When your child tries to download an app or make a purchase, they're prompted to request approval. You get a notification on your device with a description of what they want. You can approve or decline from anywhere with a tap.
Enable it in Settings > [Your Name] > Family Sharing > [Child's Name] > Ask to Buy.
Age-Based Recommendations
Ages 4–7 (Young Children)
- Web Content: Allowed Websites Only (whitelist only pre-approved sites)
- Communication: Specific contacts only (family)
- App limits: 1–2 hours total per day
- Downtime: All evening and nighttime hours
- No social media apps allowed
Ages 8–12 (Elementary/Middle School)
- Web Content: Limit Adult Websites
- Communication: Contacts only
- App limits: Set per category (e.g., 1.5 hours Entertainment, 30 min Social)
- Downtime: After 8 or 9PM until morning
- Ask to Buy: Enabled
Ages 13–17 (Teenagers)
- Involve your teen in setting the limits — co-created agreements work better than imposed rules
- Web Content: Limit Adult Websites
- App limits: Focus on social media rather than blanket limits
- Downtime: Bedtime hours — sleep quality is significantly impacted by phone use
- Screen Distance: Enable this
- Continue using Ask to Buy
Common Sense Media's Screen Time resource center has excellent age-by-age guidance that goes beyond the technical — including conversation guides for talking with kids about healthy tech habits.
Limitations to Know About
Apple's Screen Time is a strong system but has a few gaps to be aware of:
- VPN bypass: A determined teenager can install a VPN from the App Store to route around web filtering. Restrict the App Store or use Ask to Buy to prevent unauthorized app installs.
- Other browsers: Safari content filtering doesn't apply to Chrome or Firefox. If you're filtering web content, restrict other browsers via Screen Time or just delete them.
- iMessage and AirDrop: Communication limits apply to phone calls and FaceTime, but group iMessages with unknown contacts can still appear. Consider restricting AirDrop to Contacts Only in Settings > General > AirDrop.
- Screen Time on Mac is less granular than on iPhone/iPad — some features available on iOS don't have Mac equivalents yet.
Conclusion
Apple's Family Sharing and Screen Time ecosystem gives parents a genuinely powerful set of tools to help children build healthy relationships with technology. The key is using these tools as a starting point for ongoing conversation rather than a set-and-forget solution — and involving your children in the process as they get older.
The setup takes about 30 minutes to do thoughtfully. Once you've done it, managing limits and checking reports takes just a few minutes per week from your own device.
Apple's official Screen Time support page has detailed step-by-step instructions for every feature mentioned in this guide — bookmark it as a reference.
Have questions about a specific Screen Time scenario or challenge? Drop them in the comments — I'm happy to help troubleshoot.
