The best parental control app for iOS
Bark scans your child’s online activities and sends you alerts for online dangers. You can also track location, block websites, and manage screen time.
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Monitor texts, social media, search, and more
Bark scans your child’s text messages, social media apps, web browsers, emails, and other online activity on their iPhone or iPad.
AI-powered safety alerts in over 29 categories
Bark goes beyond device mirroring, using advanced AI to scan texts, social media, images, videos, and audio on your child’s iOS device for threats like cyberbullying and pornography.
“I love this app so much. It’s such a peace of mind for my family. Reassurance as well that not only are we protecting our child but raising them well by monitoring what they’re engaging in. It doesn’t miss a thing!”
–KATIE K.
Get alerts for what actually needs your attention
Bark doesn’t flood you with every message — instead it’s advanced monitoring that flags potential issues you need to know about.
Change parental controls easily with one tap
Adjust settings on the fly, or take quick action when you need to. With the Bark Assistant, you can manage everything effortlessly from your parent dashboard.
iPhone or Android, Bark has you covered
Bark works across iOS and Android — no need for your family’s devices to match. Manage everything easily from the Bark parent app, whatever phone you’re on.
You can also…
Track location
Worry less when your kid is out and about with our live GPS, location alerts, and check-ins.
Block websites & apps
Decide which apps and websites your child can use and filter inappropriate content.
Manage screen time
Create custom schedules or pause the internet altogether to create healthy boundaries.
Apple is built for privacy, not for protecting kids
iPhones and iPads are designed so that no third-party app can read your child’s messages, photos, or files. That’s great for security — but it leaves parents without visibility.
Meet the Bark Sync – our solution for iOS families
The Bark Sync is a smart charger that gets around Apple’s monitoring limitations — quietly scanning for danger every time the device plugs in and charging it at the same time.
What Bark monitors on iOS
See everything Bark can monitor on iPhones & iPads.
Bark monitors the following directly on your kid's device:
- Texts
- Photos & videos
- Notes
- Voice memos
Bark monitors this browser on Apple/iOS:
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Safari
- Website visits
- Searches
Bark monitors these email clients on Apple/iOS:
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AOL Mail
- Sent emails
- Received emails
- Image attachments
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Comcast
- Sent emails
- Received emails
- Image attachments
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Gmail
- Sent emails
- Received emails
- Image attachments
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Outlook
- Sent emails
- Received emails
- Image attachments
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Yahoo! Mail
- Sent emails
- Received emails
- Image attachments
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iCloud Email
- Sent emails
- Received emails
- Image attachments
Bark monitors these apps on Apple/iOS:
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Discord Restricted
No coverage on iOSDiscord doesn't let Bark (or any other service) monitor its content.
The Bark Phone: Parental controls that come built in
We designed the perfect phone for kids from the ground up. Bark's software comes built into a sleek phone, along with parent-focused features like app and contact approval, real-time location tracking, and more.
Learn more -
TikTok Restricted
No coverage on iOSTikTok doesn't let Bark (or any other service) monitor its content.
The Bark Phone: Parental controls that come built in
We designed the perfect phone for kids from the ground up. Bark's software comes built into a sleek phone, along with parent-focused features like app and contact approval, real-time location tracking, and more.
Learn more -
Skype Restricted
No coverage on iOSSkype doesn't let Bark (or any other service) monitor its content.
The Bark Phone: Parental controls that come built in
We designed the perfect phone for kids from the ground up. Bark's software comes built into a sleek phone, along with parent-focused features like app and contact approval, real-time location tracking, and more.
Learn more -
Snapchat Restricted
No coverage on iOSSnapchat doesn't let Bark (or any other service) monitor its content.
The Bark Phone: Parental controls that come built in
We designed the perfect phone for kids from the ground up. Bark's software comes built into a sleek phone, along with parent-focused features like app and contact approval, real-time location tracking, and more.
Learn more -
Instagram Restricted
No coverage on iOSInstagram doesn't let Bark (or any other service) monitor its content.
The Bark Phone: Parental controls that come built in
We designed the perfect phone for kids from the ground up. Bark's software comes built into a sleek phone, along with parent-focused features like app and contact approval, real-time location tracking, and more.
Learn more -
Roblox Restricted
No coverage on iOSRoblox doesn't let Bark (or any other service) monitor its content.
The Bark Phone: Parental controls that come built in
We designed the perfect phone for kids from the ground up. Bark's software comes built into a sleek phone, along with parent-focused features like app and contact approval, real-time location tracking, and more.
Learn more -
Coverstar
- Comments left on posts
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Dropbox
- Documents
- Images
- Videos
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Facebook
- Posts on your child's timeline (texts and images)
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Flickr
- Photos
- Comments on photos
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Google Drive
- Google Docs, documents, and text files
- Comments and replies (in Google Docs)
- Photos and videos
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GroupMe
- Group messages
- Direct messages
- Images and videos in both
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Kik
- Message attachments
- Chats
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OneDrive
- PDFs, Office documents, and text files
- Comments and replies (in Office documents)
- Photos and videos
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Pinterest
- Your child's profile
- Images and descriptions they pin
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Reddit
- Direct messages
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Slack
- Individual direct messages
- Group direct messages
- Private channels
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Spotify
- Song lyrics
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Tumblr
- Photos
- Chats
- Links
- Photo posts
- Quotes
- Answers
- Blog posts
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Twitter/X
- Direct messages
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WhatsApp
- Chats
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YouTube
- Videos your child posts (Age 13+)
- Comments on their videos (Age 13+)
- New videos from your child's channel subscriptions (Age 13+)
Bark for iOS
- Monitor texts, email, YouTube, and 26+ apps and platforms
- Monitor web searches and saved photos & videos
- Receive parental monitoring alerts for issues like cyberbullying, online predators, suicidal ideation, and more
- Get insights into your child’s digital activities
- Learn how to address issues with child-psychologist advice and tips
- Manage screen time
- Block websites and apps
- Keep up with kids with location alerts and check-ins
Starts at
Over 19,000 5-star reviews
“Brilliant & simple way to help keep my kids safer online.”
Setting up iOS devices
FAQs
We offer two plans — Bark Premium and Bark Jr — a single subscription covers every child and device in your family, with no limit on accounts, devices, or kids.
Bark Premium ($14/month or $99/year)
- Parent’s top choice for comprehensive coverage.
- Monitor and receive alerts for your child’s social media, phones, tablets, and computers.
- Manage screen time, block specific websites and apps, and track their location.
Bark Jr ($5/month or $49/year)
- Gain control over screen time, block unwanted websites and apps, and filter inappropriate content.
- Track your child's whereabouts with live GPS, location alerts, and check-in features.
The Bark app is compatible with iPhones, iPads, Android phones, Android tablets, laptops, computers, Chromebooks, and Amazon Fire tablets. Check out our full list of everything Bark can monitor on each device.
Content Monitoring
Bark uses advanced machine learning and statistical analysis techniques to recognize potential problems. Simple keyword searches are not enough to detect the majority of issues, which is why our parental control app uses contextual analysis and natural language processing to determine when something serious might be happening.
For example, Bark knows the difference between a kid saying “This homework makes me wanna kill myself,” versus “Nobody cares about me!! I wanna kill myself.” Our algorithm also keeps up with the latest in teen slang.
Screen Time Management and Website Blocking
Families can manage not only when their kids can access the internet on their devices, but also which sites and apps they can visit.
You can create custom profiles for each child in your house, create screen time schedules, and manage access to a wide variety of websites — including video streaming, gaming, adult content, and more.
To get started, simply visit our sign-up page or download our app for parents (iOS, Android). From there, you’ll be able to select the product (Bark Premium or Bark Jr) that’s right for your family and get step-by-step instructions.
If you’re interested in the Bark Phone, learn more about it and choose the plan that’s right for your family and place your order.
As for the Bark Home, you can order one here.
The Bark app is currently available in the United States (including U.S. territories), South Africa, and Australia. We’re continually working to bring Bark to more families around the world.
Yes, click here to download our iOS app for parents. This app allows you to review alerts, add children, connect accounts, update notification settings, and more.
The Bark Kids app will need to be installed on your child's iOS device to block apps and sites.
The Bark Desktop App will need to be installed on a Windows or Mac computer to monitor the iOS device texts, photos, videos, WhatsApp, and Kik for issues. (Don't have a computer? You can use the Bark Home in place of a computer for iOS monitoring).
Yes, click here to download our Android app. The app allows you to review alerts, add children, connect accounts, update your notification settings, and more.
The Bark for Kids app will need to be installed on your child's Android device to allow Bark to monitor content, manage screen time, and block websites on the device.
Add one of your child's devices or social media accounts to be monitored. Then — thanks to our comprehensive AI, we'll start sending you alerts about potentially harmful activities on those devices and accounts.
You can also customize how sensitive you would like the alerts to be. Don't care about profanity but want all alerts about drugs? No problem.
With Bark, you can manage your children’s screen time from your own phone via the Bark app or website, regardless of whether you have an iPhone and your kids have an Android (or vice versa).
In terms of web filtering, Apple's Screen Time and Google Family Link web filters only block general content. Bark, on the other hand, breaks down a wide range of categories and exceptions to enable a more customized and refined level of protection.
No, you do not need to jailbreak your child's iOS device or root your child’s Android phone in order for Bark to work. As a third-party service, we strive to provide a program that keeps phones working properly and that does not void warranties or terms of service.
Apple is strict when it comes to security and doesn’t allow any third-party solutions (including Bark) direct access to monitor iOS devices. You’ll need a computer to set up Bark Premium if your child has an iPhone, iPad, or iPod (you can see step-by-step instructions for how to do setup on iOS devices here). If you don’t have a home computer, that’s also okay! You can order a Bark Home, which is a small device that plugs into your home Wi-Fi router, and Bark Home will analyze the texts, photos, and videos on your child’s iOS device and send you alerts for potential issues. For Androids, you won’t need a computer at all.
Bark can be installed on most phones, but the setup and features vary depending on the device. On Android phones, users can easily download the Bark app to enable monitoring, set screen-time limits, filter web content, manage apps, track location, and receive alerts.
On iPhones and iPads, Bark operates slightly differently due to Apple’s privacy restrictions. Bark devices like the Bark Phone and Bark Watch come with Bark’s safety features built right in, so parents don’t need to install anything separately.
Popular products
Easy setup and tamper-proof coverage with Bark built in.
Bark Phone
$29/mo + device
Bark Watch
$15/mo + device
