Family Link Works From an iPhone. Screen Time Needs Apple

A parent with an iPhone can supervise a child’s Android phone, because Google’s Family Link app runs on an iPhone or iPad with iOS 16 or later. The reverse is not offered: Apple describes Screen Time for a child as set from a parent’s iPhone, iPad or Mac, or on the child’s own device, and Family Link cannot supervise an iPhone at all.

So in a mixed family, the child’s phone decides which system you use. An Android child means Family Link, whatever the parent carries. An iPhone child means Apple’s Screen Time and Family Sharing, and Apple’s instructions assume the parent has an Apple device to run it from.

What each one controls

Both cover the same ground in broad strokes. The clearest difference is in time limits: Family Link sets them app by app, while iOS 27 sets them by category of app.

Control	Apple Screen Time (iOS 27)	Google Family Link
App time limits	Time Allowances per category (Entertainment, Games, Social Media) plus an overall daily budget; apps can be moved between categories	A time limit per app; daily limit per device; system apps can’t be limited
Downtime	Screen Time Schedules with time windows such as Before School, School and After School, separate for weekdays and weekends	Bedtime, downtime and school time schedules; lock the device remotely; bonus time
Content ratings	Age ratings for content in Music, Apple TV, Books and more; the child can ask for an exception to an app’s age rating	Google Play content restrictions by maturity level
Purchase approval	Ask to Buy, on by default under 13	Decide which apps the child can download or buy; approval covers Google Play’s billing system only
Location	Family location sharing in Find My; parent can lock the Share My Location setting	Location of the child’s Android device or compatible Fitbit
Web filtering	Ask to Browse (on by default under 13) and Limit Adult Websites (on by default under 18), in Safari and supported browsers	Chrome content filter, “Try to block explicit sites”, allow and block lists; Incognito off
Parent can be on the other platform	Not described: Apple names iPhone, iPad and Mac	Yes: iPhone or iPad on iOS 16 or later
Child can be on the other platform	No: Apple’s controls are for Apple devices	No: “iPhones, iPads, and computers other than Chromebooks can’t be supervised”

Apple adds two controls the table does not cover: Allowed Contacts, which decides who the child can reach in Phone, FaceTime and Messages, and Communication Safety, which steps in when the child sends or receives photos and videos detected to contain nudity, gore or violence. Defaults on both systems also vary by country and by the child’s age; Apple says that in some places Ask to Buy and content restrictions for apps can’t be turned off for a child.

Parent on iPhone, child on Android

This is the combination both makers support. Google’s requirements for the parent are a Google Account, being 18 or over (or the local age), living in the same country as the child, and a phone or tablet to run Family Link on: Android 6.0 or later, an iPhone or iPad on iOS 16 or later, or a Chromebook that runs Android apps. Some settings also work in a browser at familylink.google.com.

The child needs a Google Account and an Android device on 6.0 or later, a Chromebook on ChromeOS 71 or later, or a compatible Fitbit. Screen time limits need Android 7 or later. Google also counts daily limits per device: set two hours, and the child gets two hours on each Android device or Chromebook they use.

Parent on Android, child on iPhone

Apple’s help pages describe one route for a parent: Settings, then Family, then the child’s name, on the parent’s own iPhone or iPad, or System Settings on a Mac. None of the Apple pages we read describes managing Screen Time from an Android app or a web dashboard. Apple does say a parent can “adjust the parental controls directly on the child’s device”, which is the route left to a parent with no Apple device, but it does not set out how much of the system works that way, so we do not claim it all does.

Two more details matter in that household. Apple says a child’s requests reach a parent in Messages and can also be approved on the child’s device, and Ask to Buy offers to “approve in person”. And a Family Sharing group needs an adult organizer, whose setup steps Apple gives for an iPhone, iPad or Mac.

Family Link offers a partial bridge. If the child signs in to Chrome on the iPhone with a Google Account that Family Link supervises, its content filter, site lists and site permissions apply in Chrome. Google is plain about the gap: the child can sign out of Chrome, or open another browser, and the filters stop applying.

Before you set up a first iPhone

Apple’s new Screen Time arrived with iOS 27, and Apple says it needs every device in the Family Sharing group on version 27; families that can’t update everything keep the previous version. iOS 27 runs on the iPhone 11 and later, so check a hand-me-down against which iPhones get iOS 27 first.

If the phone was someone else’s, it must be clear of their account before your child can set it up: a gifted phone with Activation Lock still on will not switch on until the previous owner removes it. And if you are the one handing a phone down, sign out of your accounts before you wipe it, the same steps as for a trade-in.

Questions people ask

Can I use Family Link on an iPhone to control my child’s Android phone?

Yes. Google lists an iPhone or iPad on iOS 16 or later as a parent device for the Family Link app, beside Android 6.0 or later and Chromebooks. You also need to be 18 or over and live in the same country as your child, and some settings work at familylink.google.com.

Can I use Family Link to manage my child’s iPhone?

No. Google states that iPhones and iPads can’t be supervised with Family Link. If your child signs in to Chrome on an iPhone with a supervised Google Account, Family Link’s Chrome filters apply there, but Google says the child can sign out of Chrome or use another browser.

Can an Android parent use Apple Screen Time?

Not from the Android phone. Apple’s pages describe managing Screen Time from the parent’s own iPhone, iPad or Mac, and name no Android app or web dashboard. Apple does mention adjusting parental controls directly on the child’s device, which is the route open to a parent with no Apple device.

Does Screen Time have app limits like Family Link?

In iOS 27, Screen Time limits time by category through Time Allowances — Entertainment, Games and Social Media come set up — and you can move an app to another category or give uncategorised apps their own allowance. Family Link sets a time limit for an individual app.

Do I need iOS 27 for the new Screen Time controls?

Yes, and so does everyone else in the family group. Apple says every device in your Family Sharing group needs version 27 for the new controls; otherwise you keep the previous version of Screen Time. iOS 27 runs on iPhone 11 and later and iPhone SE (2nd generation) and later.

Can Family Link see where my child is?

Yes, for a child’s Android device or compatible Fitbit, in the Family Link app’s Location tab. Apple does it differently: location is shared with the family through Find My, and a parent can stop the child changing their Share My Location setting.