Family screen-time rules that everyone understands
The best family screen-time rules are few, written down and agreed together: a daily allowance, different school-day and weekend limits, protected bedtime hours, and one clear rule for asking for extra time.
A five-rule template
- Daily allowance: e.g. 60 minutes on school days, 90 at weekends.
- Protected hours: no entertainment apps during homework and after bedtime.
- Extra time: ask a parent; extra today comes out of tomorrow, never more than 15 minutes.
- Always allowed: calling family, emergencies, school tools.
- Weekly review: adjust together on Sunday.
Print the agreement with the plan generator (choose "Agree family rules").
What Time Debt's family mode does, precisely
- Family mode runs on the device where it is set up, using Apple's Screen Time permission on that device.
- Parent-only settings are protected by the parent's Face ID, Touch ID or passcode on that device.
- Requests and parent approvals happen on the same device. There is no cloud dashboard and no remote monitoring.
- Points are optional, never money and never random.
For restrictions a child cannot remove, use Apple's Family Sharing with Screen Time managed by the parent organizer.
Questions
Can Time Debt approve requests from another phone?
No. Requests and approvals happen on the same device. There is no remote approval or remote monitoring.
How many rules should a family have?
Fewer is better. Around five clear, written rules are easier to keep than a long list.
Extra screen time today costs time tomorrow.
Set your limit, borrow deliberately when you need to and see exactly how tomorrow adjusts. Free core plan, no account.