Best Parental Control Apps
Based on In-Depth Reviews

Best for Social Media Monitoring

We chose Bark as the best app for social media monitoring because out of all the apps we tested, it monitored by far the largest number of them--more than 30. In fact, Bark’s specialty is social media monitoring, which addresses one of the chief concerns of parents today.

Bark is easy to install. Once you download the app on your device and connect your child’s account, just select the apps you want Bark to monitor and you’re all set. The app has the ability to monitor text messages, images/photos posted, email content, YouTube videos, and more. The key is to connect each app your child has to the Bark dashboard with your child’s login credentials. By doing so, Bark will also let you know if your child is trying to sign into that app from another device. Bark will also let you know if he/she downloads a new app.

The app uses artificial intelligence to not only flag keywords but also identify the context those words are used in and to learn the nuances of oft-changing slang used by kids, tweens and teens.  If it detects a pattern over time that suggests a potential problem--e.g. bullying, violence or suicidal ideation--it will alert you to it. Otherwise, don’t expect to receive alerts about every little thing your child does on social media. You will, however, get a weekly activity report detailing what apps your child was most active on so you get an idea of how he/she is spending time online.

Screenshot of https://www.bark.us/ 2/19/2020

You can set Bark’s monitoring to flag issues like depression, self-harm, profanity, and others, to alert you about all areas of concern, or only notify you about the most severe potential problems. You can also adjust the app to screen for the severity of your child’s behavior on a sliding scale. If you choose to get alerted to all issues, you may get alerts if your child shows signs of merely being bummed out. If you slide the scale towards only the most severe, you’ll be alerted if the app detects things like continual talk about suicide or self-harm.

Bark also allows parents to control their children's screen time and screen activity. You can set time-outs and bedtimes and block objectionable sites. Parents can customize these controls for each child's devices, too.

We also liked Bark’s blogs and advice content, which provide a number of articles about social media and how to talk to your kids about sensitive topics. Bark’s website also explains how the digital world is changing, what parents need to prepare for, and how to teach your kids about internet safety. Bark Connect is a forum where parents can ask questions and get advice not only from Bark personnel, but also from other parents who may have had similar experiences. The company also hosts a Facebook page, Parenting in a Tech World, where Bark and other parental control app users can communicate with each other about common issues, solutions, and successes.

Bark will work on iOS and Android phones (as with all parental control apps, monitoring can be limited on iOS; more on that later), iPads, MAC, PCs, Kindle tablets and Chromebook. Subscriptions start at $5.00 per month for an unlimited number of children and devices. Bark offers a seven-day free trial period. If you are interested in adding more control features such as time limits and internet filters, Bark can be used with other apps.

Best for Combining with Antivirus Software

Online safety nowadays doesn’t necessarily apply to only your children, but to the whole family. Viruses, hackers, and malware are all problems that can affect all the devices you may have connected to the internet. Since you may already be considering or using antivirus software to protect your home, why not combine it with a parental control app for a seamless solution?

We chose Norton’s Family Premier because of its comprehensive child monitoring features, but also because it can be combined with one of the best antivirus products  on the market today.

Screenshot of https://family.norton.com/web/ 2/19/2020

Norton Family Premier is very easy to set up. Open an account, set up your child’s devices, select their age, and Norton will give you preset blocks on websites, apps, games, and social media. Settings can be customized if necessary and you can decide what kind of alerts you receive. The app allows you to set up house rules, which remind your child of which activities are monitored and which are blocked. You can check on your child’s activities on the Family Premier dashboard or elect to receive email alerts if house rules are broken.

You can set time limits on each device for gameplay or social media access, completely block phone use except for emergency calls, and keep track of the types of activities and interactions your child is engaging in on social media. Family Premier also offers location tracking. You can choose to get daily, weekly or monthly reports on your child’s activities.

On Norton’s Internet Security Center, you’ll find the Kid’s Safety section with articles concerning safety tips, common online threats, cyberbullying, and other topics. You’ll also have access to all of Norton’s articles concerning viruses, malware, online scams, and more.

Norton offers three versions of its 360 protection plans: the Standard, Deluxe and Premium. All plans offer antivirus protection, firewall, secure VPN, SafeCam (alerts and blocks  if someone tries to access your PC camera), and 75GB of Cloud backup. The difference between the plans will be the number of devices covered.

Family Premier works on Windows 7-10, XP, and Vista (Edge is not supported at the moment), Android 4 or later. Parental controls is not supported for Mac. The yearly subscription is $39.99, but if you buy the Norton 360 Deluxe or Premium plans, Family Premier is included. At the time of this writing, Norton 360 Deluxe was on sale for $39.99 (regular price is $64.99) and Norton 360 Premium was on sale for $55.99 (regular price of $89.99). Family Premier offers a 30 day free trial period, the longest of any parental control app we tried.

Best for Monitoring Across Multiple Platforms

We chose Qustodio over other apps because of its versatility. It provides a wide range of control tools that work across multiple browsers and operating systems. It is available worldwide and can be used in eight different languages, making it easy for co-parents to manage.

Installing Qustodio is easy, requiring the parent to install the app on their phone or open an account on a computer and then installing the app on the child’s device. As part of the installation process, you can select from a list of categories what content you want to be blocked and what can be accessed. Parents can also customize the app to meet their own particular concerns and requirements. Qustodio also allows you to block specific apps and games you don’t want your child accessing, as well as block contacts from calling your child’s phone or sending text messages.

Screenshot of https://www.qustodio.com/en/ 12/29/2023

As part of Qustodio’s premium monitoring service, you’ll be able to not only view texts and read your child’s SMS messages but also see what they’re doing on social media apps like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat and WhatsApp. It’s also easy to set time limits for gameplay and interaction on social media, or establish times like dinner, study time, bedtime, or family time where you don’t want the device being used.

A neat feature of Qustodio’s location tracking is the Panic Button. This function allows your child to send a short text to your phone to let you know they need to be picked up. This feature is useful, especially when dealing with teens who may be out on their own late at night and find themselves in an uncomfortable or dangerous situation.

The blog section provides a number of helpful tips and articles related to online safety as well as how to talk to your children about potential dangers online, how to deal with cyberbullying, and other issues. 

Qustodio is a versatile app that can be used on Android, iOS, MAC OSX, Windows, and Kindle devices. It is available worldwide in eight different languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, Deutsch, Japanese, and Chinese. The basic plan starts at $54.95 per year, which is equivalent to $4.58 per month. The complete plan costs $99.95 per year, which is equivalent to $8.33 per month. Both plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Additionally, both plans offer one-to-one customer support service, Care Plus which is available in English and Spanish, to help parents install and configure the app with ease. Qustodio also allows co-parenting by granting access to premium accounts for two parents or guardians, making it easy to share the responsibility of protecting the child's devices.

Sign up now for the 30-day free plan to try out all the premium features, no bank details are required.

Best for Location Tracking

Although many of the apps we tested had location tracking features, we chose Life360 because geotracking is its bread and butter, being the primary focus of the app. It can provide geolocation information in 140 countries and all seven continents.

Setting up Life360 is easy. Set up an account, get an invite code, have your child download the app onto their phone, enter the code, and you're done. You can set permanent locations your child might travel to such as school, the library, or a friend’s house and see when they arrive at that location and when they leave in real-time.

Screenshot of https://www.life360.com/ 2/19/2020

We also liked the concept of creating a family or private circle within the app, where all members of the family are tracked.  A child may not feel he/she is being singled out if everyone, including Mom and Dad, is being tracked as well. All members of the circle have to be invited, download the app and enter the invite code, so it reduces the possibility of the app being installed on a phone without the owner knowing. An in-app chat feature makes it easy to communicate if plans change. The app can even monitor the battery level on a phone and send an alert when it is low.

Life360 also offers a Driver Protect Plan that, in addition to providing location, provides crash detection, emergency response, roadside assistance, and reports on driving habits.

In November 2019, Life360 acquired ZenScreen, a time scheduling parental control app. With this acquisition, Life360 can offer time scheduling capabilities such as scheduling mini-breaks during which your child can’t access social media (other apps will work), reporting how much time is spent on each app, and setting daily use limits. Apps are broken down into three categories: education, entertainment, and productivity. You can set limits for the entertainment category while the educational and productivity apps will still function. ZenScreen works on Android, iOS, and Chrome.

Life360 works on iOS and Android.  It has a free plan that provides all location tracking, battery monitoring, and in-app chat features. The Plus plan costs $2.99 per month and adds Crime Reports, which alert you to crimes reported in specific areas, to its tracking features. The Driver Protect Plan, at $7.99 per month, includes all the driver monitoring, roadside assistance, crash detection, and emergency response features. Life360 comes with a seven-day free trial.

Best for Large Families And Built-In Ancillary Protection

If you're a family of five and each of your family members use multiple digital devices, Aura may be the most economical parental control app choice for you. Aura's service is distinguished by its wide coverage. The company's family plan includes service for up to 5 adults (think grandparents and baby sitters) using up to 10 devices. Aura works across multiple devices including computers, smartphones, and tablets. So no matter how many types of digital devices your family uses, you'll be covered by the app. It costs just $99 per year. That's a little on the costly side, but that's because the Aura app includes many features other parental control apps do not provide.

The Aura parental control app allows you to easily monitor and control your children's digital experience. Parents have the choice of controlling which apps, games, and websites your children have access to. You can set different parameters for each of your children, which allows you to set age-appropriate limits for multiple children. The app also allows you to set limits on your kids screen time. Aura covers various social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube.

Screenshot from Aura.com 01/04/2023

Aura's plan also differs from others because it provides a host of other online safety services that many people pay extra for. The Aura package also comprises:

• A password manager 
• A VPN that hides your location when you're online
• A Safe Browsing feature that warns you before you enter dangerous scam or phishing websites
• Anti-virus protection
• Anti-tracking and ad blocking
• Email alias creation to hide your email address and limit unwanted marketing. This feature also serves to reduce your exposure in data breaches.
• Safe gaming
• Pause the internet
• Cyberbullying and predator alerts

Aura makes it easy to try its services out before making a commitment to purchase. The company offers a 14-day free trial, during which you can evaluate how easy the app is to install and use and verify that it provides the type of control you're looking for. If you purchase an annual plan, you're assured a 60-day money-back guarantee.

We did note that, for parents who don't need all of the ancillary protection a full Aura plan provides—or those who want to limit their tech expenses—Circle parental control can be purchased separately for $99 per year. Circle allows you to filter, block, and monitor websites and apps you don't want your kids exposed to, as well as set screen time limits. It also comes with anti-virus protection and a VPN.