Many parents are skeptical nearly giving a smartphone to their young child or teen every bit information technology can have many negative uses. Nevertheless, if y'all set up the telephone the right way, y'all can suppress nigh of the negative sides of a smartphone.

I can't fifty-fifty imagine leaving my kids at home or any other identify without giving them a fashion to communicate whenever needed.

On tiptop of that, a smartphone similar an Android telephone opens a whole new earth of fun and learning opportunities for children and other benefits like tracking their exact location to keep them safe.

Nevertheless, how can your kids reap these benefits of a smartphone without the negative sides affecting them?

All you accept to do is

  • Restrict the websites they can admission
  • Limit types of apps they can download
  • Control the amount of time they spend on the phone
  • Lock phone on command whenever needed
  • Rail all of their activity on the phone and proceed a tape
  • Runway their location when the phone is with them

What? A scrap too much? It's not, trust me. All the things mentioned to a higher place can be easily washed in a few simple steps, and you lot won't even need to use more than one app to make it happen.

Below you'll find the consummate guide to set an Android phone for child apply whether y'all bought a new phone or want to kid-safe an old one.

#1. Create a child'south Google account

The first matter y'all need to do is create a defended Google account for your child, which will be under your supervision. This special account will have child-safety restrictions by default, and you tin control its activeness remotely. Here's how to create one:

If it's a new telephone, then Google volition enquire y'all to create a Google business relationship on startup. You can go to Settings > Account & Sync > Accounts and select Google to create a new Google account for erstwhile phones.

Here select Create business relationship pick and select For my child from the drib-down bill of fare.

Google volition inquire for the regular account creation details, like standard accounts, including proper noun, date of birth and username, etc.

Provide the required information and sign in with your personal Google account to qualify the child account creation.

Once done, Google volition recommend you to download the Google Family Link app on your telephone and Family Link Child app on the child's phone. It's a parental command app by Google that is entirely free to use, so make certain you permit the app to download as nosotros volition be using information technology to consummate all the tasks.

Creatte child's Google account

If the automatic download doesn't work, you can always manually download the parent and kid app from the links I provided above.

#2. Set Family Link app

One time the Google account is set up, you demand to prepare Family unit Link app on your child'south phone.

To do and so, open the Google Family unit Link app on your child'south phone, and it will inquire you to Activate Family Link Manager. Actuate the link manager, and Family Link will show a listing of currently installed apps to review and delete if needed. Every bit Family Link tin can't delete already installed apps, and so you lot have to do this manually yourself.

Check installed apps

Once the apps are reviewed, the Google Family Link app will be ready to accept commands from the parent app.

At that place is no particular setup required for the Family Link app on the parent's telephone. As soon as you open the app, it volition show the child'south account for yous to view and control.

Now let's see how you lot tin can use Google Family Link to set upwardly parental controls and tracking to keep your child's action in check.

#3. Add parental controls

The offset affair you want to do is control the content your child is going to view. This includes apps, videos, and website your child tin access. To do this, open up your child'due south profile in the Family Link app and tap on the Manage settings push at the peak. This will show a bunch of ways to filter content that I will be explaining below.

open-child-account-settings

#4. Control app installation and purchases

Google uses an historic period rating organization to control apps your child tin can download. Tap on the Google Play option and so tap on Apps & games to select the type of apps and games yous desire to allow. You can choose from apps rated for ages 3+ to upward to 18+. You can even remove the restriction entirely if you wish.

On the previous page, there is also an option of Purchases & download approvals that you can employ to restrict purchases of apps/games, both new ones and in-app purchases. I volition recommend you lot make certain your kid has to go approval for every purchase every bit games and apps can be very tricky at enticing children to tap a push button or ii to buy content.

Parental controls for Google Play Store

#v. Manage YouTube content

Going into the YouTube content filter will inquire you whether you want to use the YouTube Kids app or the principal YouTube app. If your child is younger than eight years, I recommend y'all disable the main YouTube app and just permit YouTube Kids. YouTube kids app is much safer and has plenty learning and fun content for younger kids.

Nonetheless, if your child is older than that, using the regular YouTube app is recommended (with restrictions, of course). This is because the YouTube kids app lacks many educational YouTube channels that are really expert for older children.

Brand your choice, and the app will prove further options to manage both YouTube apps. You lot can set age limits for both YouTube Kids and YouTube apps, and there are links to remove access to whatever of these apps on demand.

You lot can also pause watch and search history, and then YouTube doesn't recommend new content based on the child's search and watch history. If you lot don't desire the child to stray away from the type of videos you allowed them to come across, I'll recommend enabling these options.

Control YouTube content

#6. Command which websites kid tin access

In the Google Chrome filter, you tin can manage the websites they can access in it. By default, this setting blocks all types of known sexually explicit and violent content for your child's account. If you want to give your child a free hand to search the web, so this default setting is more than than enough to keep them safe.

If you desire to farther block whatever websites, tap on the Manage sites button under the Attempt to cake explicit sites department and select Blocked. A new page will open where you can add the URL of the websites you want to block.

Block websites in Chrome

However, if y'all want to completely block the kid from searching for anything other than the preset allowed websites, select the Simply permit canonical sites pick.

Once selected, tap on Manage sites under it and select Approved. On the next folio, add the websites yous desire to allow the child to admission.

Allow websites in Chrome

#7. Control individual apps

The higher up three settings volition help y'all control the apps, videos, and websites your kid can access. Nonetheless, if you want complete command, you need to know how to control every app installed on the telephone individually. This will also preclude kids from using alternative apps to evade the restrictions imposed above.

On the main profile of the child, the App activity section will be at the top. Here tap on More under the list of apps used recently. This will open up the listing of all the default and third-party apps installed on the telephone with an hourglass icon side by side to them.

Tap on this hourglass icon, and you will encounter options to block the app, set a time limit on its usage, or always let it so information technology may non bear on the daily fourth dimension limit (more on this beneath). You can utilize this section to block any app you lot don't want your child to use or at least put a limit on it to minimize the use.

Manage individual apps

#eight. Set daily screen time limits

Probably the nearly frustrating thing for parents is the child'south continuous use of the phone. Controlling content inside the phone is essential, only putting limits on allowed content is important too. Google Family Link will enable yous to set hours daily during which your kids can employ the phone.

The set hours will only touch on screen time and consumption when the child is using the phone. Once consumed, the phone will lock with a bulletin that your parents have locked it, but they tin still use the phone call characteristic for emergencies.

Here'south how to set upwards daily limits:

On the main profile page, scroll downwardly to the Daily Limit section and tap on Edit limits.

Hither you lot will see a whole week's schedule where you can tap on each solar day to fix a number of hours to permit screen fourth dimension. Yous tin set up to 8 hours of screen time or no limit at all (like for weekends). You tin as well subtract the number to nil to lock the telephone for the whole day.

Set up screen time

There is also a Bedtime department at the pinnacle where y'all can schedule bedtime every day, so the phone is automatically locked during bedtime even if the daily limit hasn't been exceeded. Furthermore, you can likewise give some extra fourth dimension manually if the kid pulls out the puppy domestic dog optics pull a fast one on once their daily limit exceeds.

#9. Rail telephone usage and location

Fifty-fifty though restrictions have been put on telephone content and screen time, y'all all the same need to track what they are doing on the phone. What types of apps they are using, and if they have installed whatsoever new app, you disapprove.

On the same contour page, tap on More under the App activity section. You will see a list of all the apps with recently used apps listed at the top. Below each app, the total usage fourth dimension is mentioned.

There is also a bar nautical chart at the superlative that shows the child'south phone action on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis.

If you want to come across the newly installed apps, go back to the main contour page once again and gyre down until y'all attain app installs department. Here y'all will see all the newly installed apps.

Track child app activity

You can also rail the location of your child's phone. Although, think of it as more than of an extra benefit rather than controlling your child's telephone activeness. You can see the verbal location of your child's phone to rail your child's location (if it'southward with them).

To do and then, scroll down on the main profile page until you achieve the location section. If the location tracking is enabled on the child's telephone, you should see their verbal location on a map with the address at the bottom. At that place are buttons to add labels to the location, get directions to information technology in the Maps app, and refresh to get the latest location.

Track location

Final thoughts 👩‍🏫

I am personally delighted with the Google Family Link app as information technology offers almost everything parents demand to keep a check on their child's smartphone activity. A few years back, I used iii unlike third-party apps and some built-in Android functions to practise precisely what Google Family Link offers in a single interface.