How should I set good daily limits for screen time?

Good screen time limits are important for building tech-healthy habits – and that goes for both kids AND adults. It's especially important for kids, since their brains haven't yet developed as strong executive functions. (Brains don't finish developing in this area until our mid-twenties, and even then building good habits requires lots of practice.)

Get some tips below, and also read our guide on how to think about different types of devices.

How do I set daily limits in Screenable?

1. In the Screenable app, go to your kid's device settings.
2. Tap Daily Limits.
3. Choose different times for weekends vs weekdays, or alternatively for each day individually.
4. When you save, it'll take a few minutes to update on your kid's devices.

What happens when daily limits run out?

Kids see a full-screen notice that their time has run out. If Overtime is on, they're allowed to choose whether to keep going, at which point you'll be notified. Learn more about what kids will experience with Screenable.

What are good daily limits to set?

Every family is different when it comes to screen time limits, so there's no one size fits all. With that said, there are patterns we see that seem to work well:

1. First, make sure you've clearly set device bedtime and schooltime, so that it's clear that those take precedent.
2. Next, make sure you've established the apps with no time limit, so that it's clear that daily limits are for more fun, discretionary app usage.
3. Ideally establish any daily limits with your kid, not for them. This will increase buy-in and relationship connection tremendously. Help kids understand why limits are important, how there's an opportunity cost because of what our screen usage is making us miss out on, and how it's even hard for adults to resist being sucked into our devices.
4. In terms of time limits, we recommend starting more conservatively. It's much easier to increase time later than it is to pull back on established habits. For instance, you might even start by only allowing screen time usage on weekends, with zero minutes allotted to weekdays.
   • But don't choose something that's unrealistically low. (We parents sometimes select what we aspirationally want, not what's realistic!) Like, if your kid is already using devices for 2 hours a day, don't suddenly implement 30-minute limits, because – unless you've both aligned that you really want to make a drastic change – it'll be hard to stick to, and kids will quickly learn to ignore the warning screens and just keep plowing ahead.
5. Adapt in age-appropriate ways. A younger kid should probably get less time allotted, since they're more likely to fully lose track of time and end up using all of it. Older kids usually get more time, because they're being trusted to balance it against their other responsibilities, whether that be for family, school, sports teams, interest groups, or various communities.
   • As a truly simple starting schedule, you might allow 30 minutes on weekdays and 60 minutes on weekend days. Again, every family will be very different, so choose what makes sense.