Kids' Screen Time: Family Link and iPhone Setup Guide

Kids’ screen time is easier to control than most parents think: Google’s free Family Link app (for Android) and Apple’s built-in Screen Time (for iPhone and iPad) let you set a daily limit, a bedtime lock and app approvals from your own phone. Setting either one up takes about 15 minutes.

The harder part is deciding what the limit should be, and knowing where these tools quietly fail. India’s paediatricians say so themselves, and their warning is in section 6.

⚡ Key takeaways

Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP): no screens under 2, at most 1 hour a day for ages 2 to 5, and under 2 hours for ages 5 to 10.
Android child: install Google Family Link on your phone and supervise the child’s Google account. It’s free.
iPhone or iPad child: use Settings > Family > your child > Screen Time. Family Link can’t supervise iPhones.
Turn on 4 things first: a daily limit, a bedtime lock, app download approval and a content rating.
Settings help, but IAP warns children can get around them. House rules matter more.

Table of Contents

How Much Screen Time Is Right for Your Child’s Age

Before you open any app, pick the number. The Indian Academy of Pediatrics guidelines, published in Indian Pediatrics in March 2022, are the clearest Indian reference.

Age	IAP guidance	What it means at home
Under 2 years	No screens	Skip cartoons during feeds. Many families still allow video calls with grandparents
2 to 5 years	Max 1 hour a day, supervised	You watch with them, and you pick the content
5 to 10 years	Under 2 hours a day	Schoolwork on a screen is separate from fun screen time
10 to 18 years	Balance, not a fixed cap	8 to 9 hours of sleep and 1 hour of outdoor play come first

The WHO’s 2019 guidance for under-5s lines up: no sedentary screen time for 1-year-olds, and no more than 1 hour for ages 2 to 4, with “less is better”.

Real life is far off this. A meta-analysis by researchers at AIIMS Raipur, reported by The Week, found Indian children under 5 average 2.22 hours a day on screens, and under-2s about 1.23 hours. So if your toddler watches rhymes at dinner, you’re not the only one. Now you at least have a number to aim for.

kids' screen time: grandmother and toddler looking at a smartphone together in a garden — Co-viewing counts: the IAP wants a grown-up with under-5s whenever a screen is on. · Photo: Pragyan Bezbaruah / Pexels

Which Tool to Use: Family Link or Screen Time

This depends on the child’s device, not yours.

Child has an Android phone or tablet: use Google Family Link. The parent’s app runs on Android or on an iPhone with iOS 16 or later, so a parent with an iPhone can still manage a child’s Redmi or Samsung.
Child has an iPhone or iPad: use Apple’s Screen Time. Google’s help page says plainly that iPhones and iPads “can’t be supervised with Family Link.”
Shared family phone: it’s harder. Both tools work best when the child has their own account. A shared phone usually means you fall back on rules plus the phone’s own Digital Wellbeing or Screen Time timers.

Both are free. You don’t need a paid parental control app for the basics, and I’d avoid the random “spy” apps on the Play Store, which ask for far more access than they need.

One more thing to decide upfront: Family Link works through a Google account made for your child. For a child under 13 you can create one from the Family Link app. For an older child, you can add supervision to the Google account they already have.

Also readFree Fire India Is Back: The 3-Hour Rule Every Parent Should Know

Set Up Google Family Link on an Android Phone

Keep both phones with you and on Wi-Fi. The steps below follow Google’s help pages.

On your phone, install Google Family Link from the Play Store or App Store.
Open it and choose to create a new Google account for your child, or link their existing account.
On the child’s phone, sign in with that account and accept supervision when asked.
Back on your phone, tap your child’s name, then go to the Controls tab.

The 4 settings to switch on first

Screen time: turn on a daily limit and a schedule for each day of the week. You can give bonus time for one day without changing the rule. Limits apply to every Android device or Chromebook the child uses.
Bedtime (downtime): set the hours when the phone locks, say 9 pm to 7 am on school nights.
App approvals: under Controls > Google Play, tap Require approval for and pick All content, Paid content only, In-app purchases only or Never. For a primary schooler, choose All content.
Content rating: in the same Google Play menu, set the highest app and game rating your child can download.

💡 Pro tip

Content ratings don’t remove apps already on the phone. Google’s help page says apps downloaded before you set the rating stay visible, so open the child’s app list in Family Link and block the ones you don’t want.

Location

Under Location, turn on See your child’s location. Google lists the cases where it won’t work: the phone is switched off, offline, or hasn’t been used recently. It works best with a mobile data plan, so a Wi-Fi-only tablet won’t help on the school bus.

Set Up Screen Time on a Child’s iPhone or iPad

Apple’s version is built into every iPhone. It works best through Family Sharing, with a separate Child Account for your kid, so you can change things from your own phone.

On your iPhone, open Settings > Family and add your child (or create a Child Account).
Tap your child’s name, then Screen Time, and follow the steps.
Set a Screen Time passcode that your child doesn’t know. With Family Sharing, Apple says the parent sets it on the parent’s device.

Names changed in iOS 27

Apple’s Screen Time page now uses new names for the iOS 27 versions. If your child’s phone runs iOS 26 or older, look for the older labels.

What you want	iOS 27 name	Older iOS name
Daily time budget by app type	Time Allowances	App Limits
Phone locked at night	Screen Time Schedules	Downtime
Control who can call or message	Allowed Contacts	Communication Limits
Apps that always work (phone, maps)	Always Allowed	Always Allowed
Approve downloads	Ask to Buy	Ask to Buy

Also check Content & Privacy Restrictions, which set age ratings and stop the child from turning off Share My Location. Apple says Ask to Browse is on by default for children under 13, and Limit Adult Websites is on by default for under-18s.

kids' screen time: mother and daughter on a sofa looking at a tablet together — Set the limits with your child, not behind their back. They are more likely to stick to rules they helped make. · Photo: Nicola Barts / Pexels

Also readShare Live Location Safely on Diwali Trips: 4 Apps, 1 Rule

YouTube Is Where Most of the Hours Go

For many Indian kids, “screen time” really means YouTube. Family Link lets you hand them a supervised YouTube account instead of the regular app, for a child under 13.

In Family Link, select your child, then Controls > YouTube > YouTube & YouTube Music, and follow the steps. You’ll pick one of three content settings, per YouTube’s help page:

Older kids: generally matches content rated 9+.
Teens: generally matches 13+.
Older teens: generally matches 16+.

For under-9s, the separate YouTube Kids app is the gentler option, since the 9+ setting is the lowest one on regular YouTube.

Honestly, the setting matters less than one habit. Turn off autoplay if you can. A 10-minute rhyme video turning into an hour of “up next” is how the daily limit gets blown. Watch the first few minutes together and you’ll learn what your child actually likes.

What These Apps Can’t Do

Here’s the catch I promised. The IAP guidelines say to set privacy settings and safe search on apps and browsers, “but do not depend on them as children can easily hack around them.” That warning comes from India’s own paediatricians. Think of the software as a seatbelt: useful, but nobody lets a seatbelt drive.

⚠️ Watch out

Parental controls stop at the account. A child who logs into a cousin’s phone, a school tablet, a friend’s account or the family smart TV is outside your limits. Restricted apps can also still show up in Play Store search, Google notes.

A few more limits worth knowing:

Family Link only covers Android and Chromebook. An old iPad at home stays unsupervised unless you set up Apple’s Screen Time on it too.
Location isn’t live tracking. It fails when the phone is off, offline or unused for a while.
Teens get a say. When a child turns 13, Google emails both of you about updating the account. The child still can’t remove supervision alone until 18, but a teen who feels watched will look for a workaround. Explain why each rule exists.
Video calls and WhatsApp need their own rules. Apple’s Allowed Contacts helps on iPhone; on Android, talk about who they chat with.

If you’re unsure whether an app on your child’s phone is behaving badly in the background, our guide on how to tell if a phone is hacked covers the checks.

House Rules That Work Better Than Any App

The IAP guidelines spend more space on family habits than on software, and their list is practical for Indian homes:

No screens during meals, in the hour before sleep, or on short car and bus rides. Blue light suppresses melatonin, the guidelines note.
Screen-free zones: bedroom, dining table, kitchen and bathroom, for every family member.
A daily “digital fasting” slot when nobody, parents included, uses a device.
Homework time means other screens off, and the 20-20-20 rule for eyes: every 20 minutes, look 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
Sleep and play first: 9 to 12 hours of sleep for ages 5 to 10, plus an hour of active play.

Rule 3 is the hard one, because kids copy us. If you scroll Instagram at dinner, a lock on their phone won’t feel fair. Charging every phone in the living room at night, yours too, is a simple start. If your own sleep has drifted, our sleep schedule reset guide helps.

✅ Our verdict

Set up Family Link (Android) or Screen Time (iPhone) this weekend: a daily limit, a bedtime lock, app approval and a content rating. Use the IAP hours as your target. Then spend more effort on phone-free meals and bedrooms than on tweaking settings, because a determined child can get around the software.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Google Family Link free in India?

Yes. Family Link is a free app from Google. The parent needs a Google account and the child needs their own Google account on an Android phone, tablet or Chromebook.

Can I use Family Link on my child’s iPhone?

No. Google says iPhones, iPads and non-Chromebook computers can’t be supervised with Family Link. Use Apple’s Screen Time through Family Sharing instead. A parent with an iPhone can still use Family Link to manage a child’s Android phone.

How much screen time is okay for a 7-year-old?

The Indian Academy of Pediatrics recommends less than 2 hours a day for children aged 5 to 10. That doesn’t include online classes or homework on a screen.

Can my child turn off Family Link?

Not alone. Google’s help page says children need parent approval to stop supervision until they turn 18. You’ll both be notified if supervision is stopped.

Does Screen Time work if my child knows my iPhone passcode?

Use a separate Screen Time passcode that your child doesn’t know. With Family Sharing, you set it from your own device, so the child’s phone never shows it.

The Bottom Line

The tools are free and quick to set up, so there’s no reason to wait. Pick the IAP limit for your child’s age, switch on the four basics tonight, and then talk with your child about why. The rules they understand are the ones they’ll keep when you’re not looking.

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Sources

Kids’ Screen Time: Set Up Family Link or iPhone Limits Today