While plenty of paid, subscription-based parental control apps are available, we recommend using the free, powerful parental controls built into the Apple or Microsoft devices your child uses daily. Google has a free app for desktop and mobile devices, too. If you want to control kids' screen time, filter media, or keep family members from racking up big bills on games and movies, the free tools on this list can help. But which one is right for your family? Read on to learn more about the specific features of the best free parental control apps, followed by tips on how to use them.

Getting Started With Parental Controls

The internet is a fantastic tool for educating, entertaining, and helping kids stay connected with their friends. But there are corners of the web you'd rather they stayed out of and people you'd rather they didn't engage with. The most important takeaway from all our research into parental control tools is that you shouldn't rely on any of them as a total solution to impose on kids without their cooperation and consent.

That's why we recommend talking to your children about why you're limiting their internet usage. All of the parental control measures mentioned in this article work best when combined with communication with your kids about taking personal responsibility. The tools also require a degree of trust on your part because tech-savvy children could eventually get around them, whether by outsmarting the software or simply borrowing a friend's unprotected device.

Once you've had "The Talk" with your child about using the internet responsibly, it's time to put some house rules in place. Maybe your kids can only stay glued to their screens for a few hours each day. Maybe they have more freedom regarding time limits, but they can only access certain sites during certain times of the day or night.

You can use the free parental controls on this list to establish screen time limits so certain apps aren't accessible during homework or school hours. You can also filter out adult content on certain browsers and search engines. Check out our guide to kicking your kids off the home Wi-Fi if you get desperate to limit screen time and enforce rules.

Apple, Google, or Microsoft: Who Wins?

The right parental control plan depends on the devices your kids are using. These apps work best (or even exclusively) on the devices they were created to protect. You could combine two programs, like Google Family Link and Microsoft Family Safety, and get protection across both Edge and Chrome browsing, but that seems more trouble than it's worth. Just block other browsers and monitor your child's preferred browser app.

Screen Time is the best parental control app of the three solutions we've tested here, though it's only available for Apple's iOS and macOS devices. It's an effective tool for parents who want to establish flexible screen time limits. Screen Time is not the best option for keeping tabs on your child's location, but Apple's built-in location features on its devices should suffice.

For more tips on being a good parent to online children, you can read our story about 10 things every parent with a connected kid needs to know.