iOS 27 completely revamps Screen Time and introduces more granular parental controls. Apple has published an official guide, developed together with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), that lays out the whole process in six steps. This guide reproduces that roadmap and translates each step into the real configuration of your child’s iPhone, iPad or Mac.
It is aimed at parents and guardians who have just updated to iOS 27 or who are about to hand a first device to a son or daughter and want to decide which apps, websites, times and contacts stay under their control. If you have just installed this version, it may also help to know how to revert the most annoying iOS 27 settings.
Prerequisites
- Version 27 or later on every device. To use the new Screen Time experience, every device in the Family Sharing group must be on iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27 or visionOS 27. If a watch or a computer is left on an earlier version, the control panel will not turn on.
- Being the Family Sharing organiser or holding guardian permissions within the family group.
- A Child Account for the child, which is required below the age of 13 and available up to 18. The minimum age may vary by country or region.
- When you first set up a child’s device or update it to version 27, the system prompts you to start setting up parental controls.
Steps to set up parental controls
1. Talk with your child about screen time
The first step of Apple’s guide touches no settings: it suggests raising the topic with your child and agreeing on shared expectations so they feel part of the plan. Parental controls usually work better when a child understands why they are there.
2. Create the Child Account
Open the Settings app, tap the Add Child button and choose Create Child Account. Creating a Child Account and adding the child to the Family Sharing group enables age-based protections and gives parents or guardians access to parental controls. If the child’s account already existed with an incorrect birthday, you can correct it and convert it into a Child Account so the age-based settings work.
3. Set up website and app safety
Inside the Family Sharing settings, select your child’s name and tune these sections:
- Ask to Buy: decide which apps, games and in-app purchases they can acquire. When they ask for something new, the request arrives in Messages or is approved directly on their device, and you can review the content before accepting. It is on by default for children under 13 and, in some cases, for teens under 18.
- Apps & Websites: turn on Ask to Browse to decide which websites they visit in Safari. The child sends a request when they want to enter a new site. It is on by default for children under 13; from that age, Limit Adult Websites is on by default.
- Content & Privacy Restrictions: set what they can see and hear across services such as Apple Music or Apple Books based on age ratings. Age-based content and privacy restrictions are on by default for children under 18.
4. Schedule device use
- Time Allowances: manage how long your child can spend in different app categories such as Entertainment, Games and Social Media. The system suggests an age-based starting point, informed by AAP guidance, and lets you adjust the time for each category.
- Screen Time Schedule: decide which apps they can use at different times of day. There are routines for weekdays and weekends with built-in windows such as Before School, School and After School, and you can also create your own schedules for shorter days or extracurricular activities.
- Always Allowed: choose the apps and contacts that stay accessible even when everything else is paused or limited by the time allowances or the schedules. By default, essentials such as FaceTime, Maps, Phone and Messages are always allowed.
5. Manage communications
- Allowed Contacts: decide who your child can communicate with in Phone, Messages and FaceTime, and whether they must ask for approval before connecting with someone new. You can limit it to approved contacts or allow group chats that include at least one trusted contact. It is on by default for children under 13 and can be turned on from that age.
- Communication Safety: when it detects nudity in an image or video a child receives or tries to send, it blurs the content and offers age-appropriate guidance and resources. Violent or gory content is also blurred with a warning. It is on by default for all children under 18.
6. Review the plan as they grow
The last step of Apple’s guide reminds you that controls accompany the conversation rather than replace it: it is worth reviewing the plan regularly and adjusting it to the child’s age and maturity.
How to check it worked
- Ask your child to try to download a new app or open an unreviewed website and check that the request reaches you in Messages or appears on their device for approval.
- Open Time Allowances and Screen Time Schedule on your device and confirm they show the times and windows you defined.
- Check that the essential apps and contacts remain available in Always Allowed and that the Allowed Contacts list matches the one you approved.
- On your child’s iPhone, the Screen Time app should show the activity summary with the limits active and no sync errors.
Caveats and limitations
- The feature requires version 27 on every device in the family. An older watch or computer that cannot be updated leaves the new panel out of reach, something that has already drawn complaints from users.
- Apple’s guide covers only some of the available controls; the rest is documented in the “Apple Devices for Kids and Families” support pages.
- The ages and default values (Ask to Buy, Ask to Browse, age restrictions, Communication Safety, contact management) may vary by country or region.
- No control replaces supervision: the AAP itself recommends keeping open conversations and a network of trusted adults.
