The top parental control apps for Android and iOS provide you with information about what your children are still doing online, which should provide you with some peace of mind or at the very least alert you to what is going on. Many also provide Windows and Mac apps for your children’s computers, offering a complete view.
If you have small children or teens, you know how difficult it can be to monitor what they do online. Have they installed Snapchat, WhatsApp, or Facebook Messenger on their phones? Do you even understand what those apps are?
Have you ever seen your children hide their phone displays when you enter the room? If this is the case, they are most likely concealing something from you, and you will definitely want one of the finest parental control apps.
What will you see here?
The best parental control app you can get now:
MMGuardian
On Android phones, MMGuardian includes practically every parental-control function you might desire, including the ability to track, block, and read text messages, as well as log and ban calls. It’s also the only program we’re aware of that can still read SMS and messages on iOS, but not stop them, owing to Mac and PC software that searches through iPhone backups. However, the user interfaces on both platforms are out of date and annoying. The iOS and Android smartphone apps provide location tracking as well as effective online filtration, and MMGuardian now has a synthetic element that detects nudity in stored photographs.
Organizational skills and screen-time scheduling are only available on Android, and there is no location tracking in the separate MMGuardian software for Android tablets. MMGuardian’s app management on iOS is basic, and there is no call blocking. However, MMGuardian is worth investigating if you’re genuinely concerned about what your child is texting, particularly on iOS.
ESET Parental Control for Android
ESET Parental Control for Mobile is limited to a single platform, but it falls short even there, omitting text-message and phone monitoring functions and implementing clunky restrictions on what it does offer. The free edition of ESET Parental Control for Android includes app management and time management, as well as location monitoring and geofencing if you pay for a subscription. We really loved the function that allows a child to send an SOS message to certain phones with a simple press.
Even still, the $30 yearly subscription isn’t worth it until it’s coupled with ESET Smart Security Premium. This is due to the fact that Kaspersky Safe Kids performs better than ESET Parental Control for Android on 4 times as many devices and at half the cost.
Screen Time Parental Control
Screen Time, to not be confused with iOS’s “Screen Time” function, is a great parental control app that will schedule children’s device use. Unfortunately, it does not do much else, at least not on iOS devices. App control and web blocking are only available for Android. Screen Time also offers confusing upcharges like location tracking and site filtration which are clearly necessary and are included with comparable parental-control programs. We liked the way Screen Time allows you to give extra, yep, screen time to children who accomplish chores or good actions. However, you cannot prohibit applications on iOS. There is no call or text tracks, despite the addition of geofencing and location history.
Qustodio
Qustodio is compatible with iOS and Android devices, as well as
However, Qustodio is one of the few parental control apps that can still track a child’s texts and calls, examine text message content, and ban phone numbers, at least on Android. You have to lower voluntary a specific version of the software from Qustodio’s website for it all to function. However, if these features are crucial to you, Qustodio may be the application for you.
Google Family Link
Google Family Link seems to be the only completely free option on this page. You might be amazed at how powerful and beneficial it can be if your children use Android phones or tablets. Google Family Link allows parents influence over the system rights that each individual app has on an Android smartphone for their kid. That feature is not available in any other parental-control software we’ve evaluated. It also allows you to choose which apps if any, your child may download from Google Play.
Although there is no iOS version of the Google Family Link child app. Parents may monitor their children’s gadgets using either iOS or Android. In any case, we suggest Android for kids’ parental control apps since the Mobile versions of all of these apps provide parents with considerably more information and control. There are a few drawbacks: Google Family Link only has one online filter which is against “adult sites,” and it does not operate perfectly. For YouTube, the same single filter is offered. Location tracking is rudimentary, and there is no geofencing. However, the time-management elements are effective.
OurPact
It was formerly the greatest powerful parental control apps software for iPhones. Apple limited its capabilities by briefly removing it from the App Store. It can, however, control or prohibit any iOS app, just as it does on Android. It also involves kids in controlling the daily screen time allocation that you give them, it does a fantastic job of scheduling. Its Premium Plus subscription allows you to take screenshots from the child’s smartphone, even if it’s an iOS device. You can disable messaging and texting applications even if you can’t read the messages.
However, its internet filtering only bans porn, and its time-management interface is a little clumsy. It can tell you when your child is and when they arrive or leave certain places using geofencing. But it cannot tell you where they have been. Despite these flaws, Its well-designed UI and user-friendly features make it a delight to use, particularly if your children have iPhones.
Conclusion
The fast growth of technology endangers youngsters. Several studies have found that using a smartphone at a young age has severe physical and mental effects. Parental control applications allow you to monitor your child’s phone or other smart device activity. You may restrict material and even set a time restriction for your youngster to use the phone.
