Which Apple apps should I allow on my kid's device?
All device modes let you decide which Apple apps should be allowed on your kid's device. Every family is different, but here's what we've seen work well for different device modes.
- Dumb Phone: keep it really basic, maybe none at all. We typically see FaceTime, Find My, Maps, Weather, and Calculator being allowed, since they honor the spirit of the dumb phone. Others to consider are Apple Music, Photos, Clock, Compass, Notes, and Voice Memos.
- Screen Trainer: for this mode, consider swinging the other way and allowing all of them, particularly since there are no games or social media in the list.
Note that Phone, Messages, and Settings cannot be removed from iPhones or iPads.
How do I select them, and what happens when I do?
- In the Screenable parent app, tap your kid's tile to open kid's device settings.
- Tap Allowed Apple apps (in Dumb Phone mode) or Remove other Apple apps (in Screen Trainer mode).
- Select apps from the list.
Once the setting syncs onto your kid's device, all removed apps will disappear while the others will remain available. (Note that allowing an app on your kid's device will not install it if it wasn't there before, so if you're not seeing one it's possible you need to get it from the App Store.)
What are all the Apple apps in the list?
There are about 50 built-in Apple apps, though which specific ones are built-in depends on the device and how new it is. Here is the list:
- Books
- Calculator
- Calendar
- Clips
- Clock
- Compass
- Contacts
- FaceTime
- Files
- Find My
- Fitness
- Freeform
- GarageBand
- Health
- Home
- iMovie
- iTunes Store
- Journal
- Keynote
- Magnifier
- Maps
- Measure
- Messages (cannot be removed)
- Music
- News
- Notes
- Numbers
- Pages
- Phone (cannot be removed)
- Photo Booth
- Photos
- Podcasts
- Reminders
- Settings (cannot be removed)
- Shortcuts
- Stocks
- Tips
- Translate
- TV
- Voice Memos
- Wallet
- Watch
- Weather
There are about 50 additional Apple apps not built-in on iPhones or iPads, many of which are platform-specific. You can find the full list here.