Phones

iPhone Parental Controls: How to Set Up

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Last updated:

October 17, 2024

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Without the right iPhone parental controls, your child's Internet experience could get out of hand — spending hours a day watching influencer videos on YouTube, accessing inappropriate websites, or viewing TikTok content unsuitable for their age.

The good news is that if your child uses an iPhone, Apple has many native features specifically designed to help you manage your child's online experience. Here, we'll cover ways to protect your family online and how to put parental controls on iPhone devices.

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Family Sharing

Apple's Family Sharing feature is the central command for managing your child's online experience. You, the "organizer," can add up to five family members, where everyone can share access to games, content, and data from Apple's services like:

Apple Music
Apple TV+
Apple News
Apple Arcade
Apple Card
iTunes
Apple Books
The App Store
iCloud storage

Rather than each person having to purchase their own personal data plan, Family Sharing provides a cost-effective way for a family to share access to iPhone apps. While it's a group plan, everyone over 13 has their own Apple ID and password for privacy assurance.

However, for children under 13, you can create a unique Apple ID with age-based parental controls. For example, you can monitor screen time and add limits, require approval for app downloads and purchases, set restrictions on content they can view online, and track their child's iPhone location. All in all, Family Sharing is the best parental control app for iPhone.

Below, we’ll get into all the different ways you can use Family Sharing to manage your child’s phone use.

Set Up Screen Time on iPhone

A huge issue that's gained momentum is the unhealthy amount of screen time children experience today. Many spend countless hours on their phone — preventing them from playing outside with friends or staying focused on school work. Unfortunately, all these stimuli also impact their sleep cycles and can even lead to phone addiction.

However, through Family Sharing, you can create a healthy activity balance by setting up screen time on your child's iPhone and limiting how much time they spend on their iPhone. Here's how:

Go to Settings.
Select Family.
Click the child's name for which you want to set up screen time.
Tap Screen Time.
Select either Turn On Downtime Until Tomorrow or Schedule Downtime in Advance.
Click to have settings for Everyday or Customize Days.

Once the settings are in place, your child will receive a five-minute warning when screen downtime begins.

Set App Time Limits

If you want to set up more granular controls, it’s also possible to set up app-specific time limits for time-sucking apps like Netflix, YouTube, TikTok, and others. These are just a few of the apps your child constantly emerges themselves in — distracting from family time and homework while making it difficult to sleep. That's where iPhone parental controls like app time limits come in.

Like capping your child's screen time, you can set limits for individual app use based on categories such as Games, Social Networking, or Streaming. Here's how to put parental controls on iPhone apps:

Go to Settings
Select Family.
Click the child's name for which you want to set up app limits.
Tap App Limits.
Select Add Limit.
Decide and tap on either individual apps or entire app categories.
Tap Next in the top right corner.
Set the amount of time allowed per app or category.
Click Customize Days and tailor time limits per each day of the week.
Finish by tapping Add.

Hide Built-in Apps

When you first access an iPhone, you'll find many default Apple apps already downloaded. These are your Messages, Safari, Camara, Phone, Facetime, and so on. While most are harmless, others could be unsafe for a child. For example, without Internet search controls, Safari provides unlimited online access where your child can view or share things they shouldn't.

Luckily, you can hide built-in iPhone apps, so it never becomes an issue. To manage your Allowed Apps:

Go to Settings.
Select Family.
Click the child's name for which you want to hide apps.
Tap Screen Time.
Select Content & Privacy Restrictions.
Tap Allowed Apps.
Decide and select the built-in apps you'll allow.

Prevent App Store Purchases

So you got your end-of-month bill, and you spot an unexpected line item — a surprise purchase! It looks like your child bought a bunch of mobile games without you knowing. Even worse, some of them are definitely not age-appropriate.

Preventing app store purchases is vital to protecting your wallet and keeping children from inappropriate content on their iPhones.

As a Family Sharing organizer, you can either restrict purchases altogether or require parental approval. For turning off in-app purchases:

Go to Settings.
Select Family.
Click the child's name for which you want to hide apps.
Tap Screen Time.
Select Content & Privacy Restrictions.
Click iTunes & App Store Purchases.
Select Don't Allow for In-App Purchases.

To require parental approval on purchases:

Go to Settings.
Select Your Name.
Tap Family Sharing.
Select the child for whom you want to restrict app purchases.
Click Ask to Buy.

Block Websites

The Internet is vast. Full of inappropriate content and dangerous online users, you never know where your child could stumble upon next. With iPhone parental controls like website blocking, however, you can protect your child with control restrictions for websites deemed harmful or that may have adult content.

And like the other parental controls, it’s overseen via Family Sharing settings:

Go to Settings.
Select Family.
Click the child's name for which you want to restrict web content.
Tap Screen Time.
Select Content & Privacy Restrictions.
Tap Web Content.
Choose and click whether you want Unrestricted, Limit Adult Websites, or Allowed Websites.
(If you choose Allowed Websites) Add specific websites from which you wish to restrict your child. You can Always Allow or Never Allow specific websites you list.

Restrict Age-Inappropriate Content

Of course, you don't want your child getting exposed to explicit material, either intentionally or by accident. That's why you should safeguard your children from content through age-based restrictions to ensure they can only view and listen to appropriate online content. For setting controls on your iPhone:

Go to Settings.
Select Family.
Click the child's name for which you want to set age restrictions.
Tap Screen Time.
Select Content & Privacy Restrictions.
Tap Content Restrictions.
Adjust the sliding age bar to adjust content for your child's age.
Click Turn On Restrictions.

Everything, including apps, books, music, shows, movies, and website content, will now be filtered according to your child's age.

Guided Access

Imagine you want to entertain or educate your child while you're out and about or busy with something. In that case, you might put on a show, movie game, or educational app on your iPhone to keep them occupied. But aren't you worried they might leave the app and get into sensitive material like work files, photos, or messages? That's where guided access comes in.

Guided access is a parental control that locks your iPhone into a single app — making a child unable to exit or navigate to other apps. It's super helpful for busy parents and easy to enable:

Go to Settings.
Tap Accessibility.
Select Guided Access.
Toggle Guided Access to turn on.
Toggle Accessibility Shortcut on (lets you triple-click your side button to enable Guided Access while in an app).
Set a PIN or enable Touch or Face ID to secure Guided Access.
Open the app for your child.
Triple-click your side button and turn on Guided Access.

Restrict Siri Web Search

While convenient for finding quick answers online, Siri can accidentally lead your child into the unknown. Without realizing it, they could get curious and find themselves on websites loaded with inappropriate, misleading, or downright incorrect content. Although Siri can't detect a child's voice to restrict content that way (though that would be cool), you, as a parent, can set controls that restrict Siri web searches on their iPhone. Here's how:

Go to Settings.
Select Family.
Click the child's name for whom you want Siri restrictions to be set.
Tap Screen Time.
Select Content & Privacy Restrictions.
Tap Content Restrictions.
Scroll down to Siri options.
Select Disallow for Web Search Content and Explicit Language.

Restrict Access to Games

Is your child constantly distracted by Angry Birds, Fruit Ninja, or other iPhone games? Is it getting in the way of family interactions or their school work? Yes, App Store games are fun and fine in small doses. However, too much time spent playing iPhone games ultimately interferes with crucial childhood development activities and sleep. Here's how you can restrict access to games:

Go to Settings.
Select Family.
Click the child's name for which you want to set game restrictions.
Tap Screen Time.
Tap App Limits.
Select Add Limit.
Decide and tap on the iPhone games you want to restrict.
Tap Next in the top right corner.
Set the amount of time allowed per app or game.
Click Customize Days and tailor time limits per each day of the week.
Finish by tapping Add.

Turn Off Ad Tracking

Is my phone listening to me? How about my child? Everyone wants to keep their privacy intact. But, of course, targeted advertising makes iPhone privacy seem like a pipedream. As a parent, you aim to limit exposure to targeted ads powered by your child's app usage and browsing history. And with parental controls, you can turn off ad tracking and remove personalized ads:

In your child's iPhone, Go to Settings.
Select Privacy & Security.
Click Advertising.
Toggle on Limit Ad Tracking.
(To remove personal ads) Select Privacy & Security, then Toggle off Personalized Ads.

Develop Healthy App Habits

You can add all the technical safeguards you want to protect your family, but with enough time and effort, children will eventually bypass any iPhone restrictions you put in front of them. It's as easy as a blog post search on "how to turn off parental controls on iPhone."

That's why you need to have an open dialogue about iPhone and online safety. Explain why these limits are necessary to protect their development, mental health, and relationships. Discuss how children can ruin their lives because of irresponsible Internet activity. And don't just preach it! Be a model parent by limiting your own screen time and being more present in your children's lives.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I put Parental Control on my child's iPhone?

To set up parental controls on your child's iPhone, go to Settings, tap on Screen Time, and then select Turn On Screen Time. From there, you can set app limits, restrict content, and enable Downtime to control when the phone can be used.

How can I control my child's iPhone from mine?

To control your child's iPhone from your own, you can use the Family Sharing feature. Set it up by going to Settings on your iPhone, tapping on your name, and selecting Family Sharing. Once set up, you can manage their screen time, approve or deny app purchases, and set restrictions on content directly from your device.

What happens to Apple Parental Control when child turns 13?

When a child turns 13, they are considered to be of age to manage their own Apple ID and parental controls under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). At this point, the parent’s ability to manage certain features may change. For instance, the child will gain more control over their Apple ID, including the ability to make their own purchases and manage their account settings without needing parental approval.