The best parental control and content-filtering apps, researched and compared
Independent reviews of screen-time, content-filtering, and monitoring apps for parents not ready to replace a child's phone outright. Each review covers what it blocks, what it alerts on, and what still gets through. Research-based recommendations for parents managing an existing smartphone rather than swapping the device.
See best parental control apps
Reports what was browsed to someone you trust — a parent, spouse, or accountability partner — rather than blocking content itself. No screen-time limits or app blocking, so it's a poor fit if what you actually need is hard restriction.
All parental control apps we've reviewed
| Product | Review | Mechanism | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Covenant Eyes (Victory) | Read review | monitoring | ~$18–20/month (family plan covers up to 10 users); $198/year or $950 lifetime also offered | Buy |
| Canopy | Read review | parental-controls | $8.33–$12.50/month billed annually, depending on plan (1 to 10 devices) | Buy |
| Qustodio | Read review | parental-controls | $59.95/year Basic (~$5/mo); $99.95/year Complete adds call/text monitoring and unlimited devices; free single-device plan also available | Buy |
| FamiSafe | Read review | parental-controls | $9.99/month, or $4.99/month billed annually ($59.99/year, up to 30 devices); no free plan | Buy |
Reviews
Reports what was browsed to someone you trust — it doesn't block anything itself, which is either exactly the point or a dealbreaker depending on what you need.
Filters explicit content in real time inside the apps kids already use, instead of blocking those apps outright.
The broadest mainstream parental-control suite, with real restriction power — and a real gap on iOS.
The closest thing to an all-in-one restriction app on this list — screen time, app blocking, web filtering, and GPS in one dashboard, with real limitations on iOS and mixed support reviews.