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Best Parental Control Apps
If you want to monitor your kid’s online activity in the modern age, there is no better way than using a parental control application for PCs, smartphones and tablets.
Kids can get into all kinds of mischief on their PCs, smartphones or tablets either deliberately or by accident.
Maybe they spend too much time staring at their device screens or visiting websites inappropriate for children.
A good parental control application will restore your control over your kids by helping you track anything inappropriate for them.
Also, ensure you have open and ongoing conversations with your kids about using their gadgets responsibly.
The conversation is handy so they don’t scheme their way around whatever measures you use to control their device and online activity.
Let’s look at some of the top parental control applications.
1. Cocospy
Best Parental Control Apps – Cocospy
Cocospy makes it to this list because of how easy it is in terms of functionality and usability.
In just three steps, this application will convey all the info regarding your child’s device activity from virtually all smartphones.
Once you’ve installed the app on your kid’s device, you can track calls (incoming and outgoing), messages (received and sent) and online web activity in real time from your web-based Cocospy dashboard.
This application has an outstanding stealth mode feature that allows the app to run discreetly in the background of your kid’s device so they don’t notice it.
Key Features
- Call log and SMS Tracking
- Geo-fencing
- GPS Location Tracking
- Social Media Spying
- Stealth mode
Plans
- Free Trial: Yes
- Premium: Android ($9.99/Mo), iOS ($10.83/Mo)
- Basic: Android ($39.99/Mo), iOS ($99.99/Mo)
- Family: Android ($69.99/Yr.), iOS ($399.99/Yr.)
2. FamilyTime
FamilyTime
Family Time is one of the best parental control apps for smartphones. It has a user-friendly interface allows you to configure and monitor multiple gadgets.
The application’s user-friendliness allows you to monitor multiple devices from a PC web dashboard or smartphone application.
This app supports app usage monitoring, web filtering, contact and call blocking etc.
Key Features
- App Blocking
- Geofencing
- Panic Button
- Screen Time Limiting
- Web Filtering
Plans
- Free Trial: Yes
- MyFamily1: $2.25/Mo
- MyFamily2: $1.46/Mo
- MyFamily3: $1.25/Mo
- MyFamily5: $1.15/Mo
3. MobileSpy
MobileSpy
MobileSpy is a parental control application packed with a host of features.
However, the application can remotely grant you access to your kid’s device camera and microphone that puts this app in a league of its own.
This makes it easier for you as a parent to quickly take a photo from your kid’s phone and check the nature of their surroundings.
Not only that, but MobileSpy is also a great key-logger, whereby it tracks keywords registered on your kid’s PC or smartphone.
MobileSpy is also a brilliant device locator, thanks to its real-time GPS location monitoring feature.
Moreover, it doesn’t drain and strain the battery of the device it’s installed on, so there is no clear-cut way for the device user to realize that they are being monitored.
Key Features
- App Blocking
- Calls and SMS Tracking
- Geofencing
- SIM Tracker
- Social Media Monitoring (All Apps)
Plans
- Free Trial: Yes
- One Month: $19
- Three Months: $16
- 12 Months: $156
4. Net Nanny
Net Nanny
Net Nanny is another parental control application handy in monitoring your kid’s mobile and PC activity. This app can block apps, filter content and shut down your kid’s device.
It also offers instant alerts when your kid accesses inappropriate content online. This is one of the most accurate apps for blocking calls, texts and web-based activity.
Key Features
- App blocking
- Content filtering
- Digital footprint monitoring
- Real-time notifications on
- Screen time management
Plans
- Free Trial: Yes
- 1 Device: $4.17/Mo
- 5 Devices: $6.16/Mo
- 20 Devices: $10.83/Mo
5. Qustodio
Qustodio
Qustodio is perhaps the best parental control app for PCs and smartphones. This app allows you to check and control your kid’s access to apps and the web.
It also features extended activity reports allowing you to track your kid’s device activity in more detail.
Qustodio offers relatively affordable pricing for its plans which cover PCs (desktops and laptops), smartphones and tablets.
Key Features
- App Blocking
- Calls and SMS Tracking
- Child Locator
- Facebook and YouTube Monitoring
- Panic Button
Plans
- Free Trial: Yes
- Small Plan: $4.58/Mo
- Medium Plan: $8.08/Mo
- Large Plan: $11.50/Mo
Final Thought
Many parental control applications are available for you to keep an eye on your kids and how they browse the web on their PCs, smartphones and tablets.
We believe the apps illustrated above are the most comprehensive, so feel free to check them out.
See Also
How to Setup Parental Control on Wifi Router