How do I set up Screen Time on my child's iPhone?

You set up Screen Time for your child from your own iPhone, through Apple’s Family Sharing: open Settings, tap Family, tap your child’s name, then tap Screen Time and follow the steps. Once it’s done, you can change everything later from your phone, without having to take theirs off them.

Below is what to have ready, the settings worth doing first, and what Apple already switches on for you. Apple sometimes moves menus between software versions, so if something looks slightly different on your phone, Apple’s own guide has the current wording.

Before you start

Apple asks for three things first (Apple):

1. Family Sharing set up, with you as the organiser or a parent or guardian in the group.
2. Your child’s own Apple Account (a Child Account) in that family group. Apple warns against sharing your account with your child.
3. Up-to-date software. The newest version of Screen Time arrives with iOS 27 (and iPadOS 27, macOS 27 and so on), and every device in the family group needs to be updated to use it. If one device can’t be updated, you can keep using the previous version of Screen Time or change settings on your child’s device directly.

One small extra step that saves a lot of hassle: add yourself (and any other parent) to your child’s contacts, so their requests for more time or a new app actually reach you (Apple).

Step 1: Turn on Screen Time and set the passcode

1. On your iPhone, open Settings and tap Family.
2. Tap your child’s name, then Screen Time.
3. Follow the on-screen steps.

If Family Sharing manages your child’s account, you set their Screen Time passcode on your own device, not on theirs (Apple). Pick one your child won’t guess and that’s different from your phone’s unlock code.

Step 2: Decide when, and for how long

Apple now offers two main time tools (Apple):

• Time Allowances set limits by type of app, for example games or social apps.
• Screen Time Schedules control which apps are available at different times of day, such as overnight or during school hours.

Older versions of Screen Time, and many guides online, call these Downtime and App Limits, so don’t worry if you see those names.

Internet Matters, the UK online safety charity, suggests starting with generous limits and reducing them gradually, and keeping learning apps separate from games and social media so homework doesn’t eat into fun time (Internet Matters). On iOS 26 and later, your child can also send you a request for extra time, which you can approve or decline (Apple).

Step 3: Approve purchases and downloads

This is the setting that prevents surprise bills.

1. Settings > Family > your child’s name.
2. Tap Apps & Websites and enter your Screen Time passcode if asked.
3. Tap Restrictions, then Ask to Buy, and turn on Require Purchase Approval.

When your child wants an app or in-app purchase, they tap Ask and the request comes to you, or you can approve it in person if you’re beside them (Apple). You can also block a particular app from the same Apps & Websites screen. Blocked apps aren’t deleted; they’re just dimmed on the Home Screen (Apple).

Step 4: Set content ratings and website filters

Films, music, books and apps:

1. Settings > Family > your child’s name.
2. Tap Content & Privacy Restrictions.
3. Under Content Restrictions, pick a type (such as films) and choose an age rating, “Don’t Allow” or “Allow All”.

Websites:

1. Settings > Family > your child’s name > Apps & Websites.
2. Tap Restrictions, then Filtering under Websites.
3. Choose Limit Adult Websites, or for younger children, Ask to Browse with Approved Websites Only.

(Steps from Apple.)

Step 5: Choose who they can talk to

Allowed Contacts and Always Allowed controls who your child can message, FaceTime and call (Apple). Internet Matters recommends keeping it to contacts only until around 16 or 17, and choosing a few specific people, such as parents and siblings, for overnight hours (Internet Matters). Apple is clear that this lets you choose who your child talks to, but you can’t read their messages or listen to their calls (Apple).

What Apple already switches on

Depending on your child’s age and where you live, some protections are on from the start (Apple, Apple):

• Under 13: Ask to Buy and Ask to Browse are on by default.
• Under 18: Limit Adult Websites and Communication Safety (which gives a pause and offers help if a photo or video with nudity or violence is detected) are switched on for new accounts or after updating.
• In some countries, some of these can’t be turned off at all.

So if you’ve only got ten minutes tonight, you’re not starting from zero.

What to do next

• Tonight: check Family Sharing is set up and your child has their own account, then turn on Screen Time and set the passcode from your phone.
• This week: switch on Ask to Buy, then sit down with your child and agree a schedule together. Internet Matters notes that explaining the reasons, and letting older children have a say, means less pushback.
• In a month: look at the Screen Time report together and adjust. Settings work best alongside regular, relaxed chats about what they’re doing online, not instead of them.

Every family’s rules will look a bit different, and that’s fine. The aim isn’t a perfect set-up; it’s one that works for your house.