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Apple's New Child Safety Tools Are Live. Here's How to Set Them Up.

OS 'N MAC Team

2 October 2026

You know you should have limits on your child's device. You also know the settings are scattered, the wording is unclear, and one wrong tap can lock them out of homework. So the conversation keeps getting put off.

On 14 September 2026, Apple released a set of new child safety tools with iOS 27, iPadOS 27 and macOS 27. They fix most of that friction. Setup is simpler. Screen Time is easier to read. And there are new controls for websites, time and harmful content.

Here is what changed, and exactly where to start.

Do this first: update every device in the family

This is the step most parents will miss.

Every device in your Family Sharing group must be on the new software before the Screen Time update works. That means iPhone, iPad and Mac on version 27, plus Apple Watch on watchOS 27 and Apple Vision Pro on visionOS 27 if you have them.

The catch

One older device in the group and the new controls will not switch on.

An Apple Watch in the family group counts too. It needs watchOS 27.

Step 1. Check each device. On iPhone and iPad, open Settings > General > Software Update. On Mac, open System Settings > General > Software Update.

Step 2. Update the child's device and your own.

Step 3. Do the same for any Apple Watch or other device in the family group.

Some features may not be available in every region, language or on every model. If something is missing after you update, this is the first place to look.

1. A simpler setup, with a recommended set of apps

Setting up a new device for a child used to mean a long list of decisions. Now setup starts from a recommended set of essential apps for new child accounts. You add more later, as your child needs them.

Setup now starts from a short list of allowed apps.

This matters because it flips the default. Instead of switching things off one by one, you begin with a short list and open it up.

How to start

  1. Open Settings, tap your name, then tap Family.
  2. Tap Add Member, then Create Child Account.
  3. Follow the prompts, then sign in to the child account on their device.

Settings, your name, Family.

Check the birthday

Apple builds age-based safeguards from the birthday on the child account. If it is wrong, some safeguards may not switch on. Fix it now, not later.

A child account is what switches the age-based safeguards on.

A child account is required for children under 13 and available up to 18. The minimum age can vary by country or region.

2. Ask to Browse: approve new websites before they open

Ask to Browse lets you require approval before your child opens a new website in Safari. When they try, the request goes to you, and you can take a closer look in Messages before you say yes.

What your child sees when they open a new site.

It works in Safari on iPhone, iPad and Mac, on iOS 27, iPadOS 27 and macOS 27.

The practical benefit is less about blocking and more about conversation. A child asking to visit a site gives you a natural moment to ask what it is and why they want it.

Turn it on from your child's controls under Settings > Family. Apple's child safety site has a walkthrough if you want the steps in front of you.

3. Communication Safety now covers gore and violence

Communication Safety already helped protect children from viewing or sharing detected nudity in Messages and FaceTime. The update widens it. It now also intervenes when it detects gore or violent content in shared images and videos, including in live FaceTime calls.

Check it is on: Settings > Family > your child's name > Communication Safety.

It is worth confirming this one even if you set things up years ago. The widened protection is part of the update, and it is quicker to look than to wonder.

4. Time Allowances: a starting point, not a guess

Most parents set screen time limits by feel. Two hours? One? There is no good reference point.

Time Allowances give you one. They offer age-tailored guidance, informed by clinical and child development research, as a starting point for time in app categories like Social Media, Entertainment and Games. You can change any number.

An allowance for each app category.

A daily total, with Apple's guidance marked.

How to find it: Settings > Family > your child's name > Screen Time > Time Allowances.

Two things sit alongside it.

Schedules

Schedules let you choose which apps are available at which times of day. Find them at Settings > Family > your child's name > Screen Time > Schedules.

A school-hours schedule is a good first one to try.

Editing a weekday schedule.

Request More Time

Request More Time sends your child a notification when they reach the end of an allowance. They can ask you for more, and you decide.

It turns a silent lockout into a short conversation.

What your child sees at the limit.

5. A redesigned Screen Time you can read at a glance

The redesigned Screen Time gives you an at-a-glance view of your child's usage. It also puts one-tap controls where you need them, so you can change access in the moment, like pausing device use at dinner.

The redesigned Screen Time on iPad.

One tap to pause, one tap to open access up.

If you gave up on Screen Time because the reports were hard to read, this is the reason to look again.

A sensible order for getting set up

If you do only the essentials, do them in this order:

  1. Update every device in the family group.
  2. Confirm your child has their own child account and the right birthday.
  3. Set a Screen Time passcode your child does not know.
  4. Check Communication Safety is on.
  5. Turn on Ask to Browse.
  6. Set Time Allowances, starting from the guidance Apple gives you.
  7. Add a school-hours schedule.

Step 3 deserves a pause. A child who knows the passcode can change the settings you just set.

Common problems

The new options are missing. Check that every device in the Family Sharing group is on version 27. It is the first thing to rule out.

Controls are not applying. Your child may be signed in to someone else's Apple Account. Then they may not get the same age-based safeguards. Sign out and sign in with their own child account.

You do not have your own device handy. You can create a child account directly on your child's device. It still enables age-based safeguards and lets you set up Screen Time. Set the passcode before you hand the device back.

A feature is not showing in your region or language. Apple says some features may not be available everywhere. Check apple.com for current availability.

Where the guidance comes from

Apple built these updates with guidance from online safety and health experts, including the American Academy of Pediatrics. Apple is working with the AAP to adapt its Family Media Plan into a guide parents can use alongside Apple products.

Time Allowances on iPhone, with the suggested starting points.

Apple has also launched a dedicated child safety website with details on each tool and how to get started: apple.com/child-safety.

Quick reference

  • Update every device in the Family Sharing group to version 27 first, including Apple Watch and Apple Vision Pro.
  • Use a child account with the correct birthday, so age-based safeguards switch on.
  • Ask to Browse means new websites need your approval.
  • Communication Safety now covers gore and violence as well as nudity, including in live FaceTime calls.
  • Time Allowances give you an age-tailored starting point for Social Media, Entertainment and Games.
  • Set a Screen Time passcode your child does not know.

You do not need to switch everything on today. Update the devices, check the birthday, set the passcode. The rest can follow at the pace your family sets.

You now know which controls matter, and in what order.

Would you rather not do this alone?

We can set it up with you: Family Sharing, child accounts and Screen Time, on every device in the group.

Get help with setup

Tell us which devices your family uses.

Source: Apple Newsroom, 14 September 2026, Apple child safety, and Apple Newsroom, June 2026 preview. Features are available now with the Screen Time update in iOS 27, iPadOS 27 and macOS 27. All devices in a Family Sharing group must be updated to iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27 and visionOS 27 to use the Screen Time update. Some features may not be available in all regions, languages or on all models.

Image credit: all photographs and screenshots in this post, including the cover image, are from Apple's child safety site and are the property of Apple Inc. OS 'N MAC does not own them. They are shown unaltered, for editorial purposes.