Google Family Link

Zuheeb Zakria

The best controlling app I've used so far. I can set schedules for different days and multiples things. I can locate the phone as well as track the exact location, when it's lost in the home I just use the find my device button to ring the phone to find it. You can give them extra time or lock it whenever you feel like. You can block each app you want and change the rating for the age as well. I just wish there was something to locate the exact position of the phone like finding an apple air tag

A Google user

Wow, this is exceptionally bad experience design to be coming from Google. This app deletes all accounts on a device except the one being monitored! We don't have a dedicated device for each child. This app also locks whichever account is being used to the device. So I can't let my child use my tablet while I use my phone! Also, during setup, there is no easy way to cancel. The cancel button gives you the option of resuming setup or starting over, but not exiting completely. Terrible!

Bethany Keeler

There are no perfect parental control systems, but Family Link is quite good, as long as everyone is on an android device. The only feature I feel is truly missing is the ability to set certain apps to be always available, even if the phone is locked down for the night. I would like to allow my kids to listen to their music or have access to certain school apps, even if everything else is shut off. Overall, it's easy to use and functions pretty intuitively.

A Google user

Overall, it's ok and gradually improving, but one of the most important features is unreliable. When I go to ping the location of her phone, 4 times out of 5 it just won't update. It acts like the passive sharing that Google maps does, rather than actively giving me her current location at the moment I hit the button. It used to, but they changed something and now it doesn't. Big problem that I hope they fix asap.

Fernando Lima

Doesn't look like Google is even trying. It's very hard to get any type of support and experience is very limited and buggy. I can't manage individual devices times and I can't stop monitoring or remove one specific device. We use a Chromebook for learning from home and that is also limited with screen time that cannot be different than other devices used for playing time. I have encountered several issues when trying to setup Classroom and Meet, the error descriptions are enigmatic at best.

Henry Woodbury

Very painful to customize for different kids, especially if you just want to limit the settings to a few features like screen time or automatic shut down. There really needs to be an ability to turn off all features and only enable only the ones you want. Instead, perfectly normal apps stop working on the managed phone and the lousy UI and poor documentation on the parent phone makes it almost impossible to figure out why. UPDATE: It's worse than I reported before. Settings don't stick. For some utterly mysterious reason, the desktop interface has different functions than the phone interface. And let me emphasize: THE SETTINGS DON'T STICK. It's worse than useless.

A Google user

It isn't bad as there are plenty of things to help guide children in healthy electronic use. One of the biggest issues that I have with this app is that when their device is locked (due to bedtime or screen time spent) they can not communicate through calls. They can make and receive calls but they can't communicate through the call. If this feature was fixed then I would really have no issues at all.

A Google user

An update to Google's reply: I worked with 2 support personnel as well as a google specialist without success. I ended up deleting the child's account and making a new one. and that worked. still...very frustrated! (we cannot get the location to work on my daughter's phone. have tried adjusting all settings, uninstalling/reinstalling, etc...no success. This is all very frustrating as this is the whole point of her having a phone.)

A Google user

Used to love this app. I can no longer see my child's location, screen time or activity. I am also unable to go in and change the hours of use, etc. The only way I can get it to work is to completely uninstall and reinstall on both phones as well as deleting my child from the app and setting it back up again. It's ridiculous and frustrating and has wasted so much of my time. I have even contacted support two times and they are of no help at all. Very dissappointed in this app!

A Google user

I have loved this app! It's been a great way for me to monitor the usage of my children's media devices. I can control what time the device turns off and on-so no worrying about usage during homework/bedtime. I can even individually control what apps they're allowed to access. If they try to download a new app, system waits until I've approved it. All monitoring done from my phone! I only wish I could view browsing history, so that I could allow them access to things like you tube, ECT.