Mac

Screen Time on macOS works much like iPhone, and syncs across devices signed in to the same Apple Account.

Menu names shift between software versions and between phone makers. If a name here does not match what you see, look for something close by rather than assuming the setting is gone.

1. 1

   Give them their own login and add them to Family Sharing

   Screen Time applies per account. On a shared login it does nothing useful.

   System Settings → Users & Groups / Family

   1. Create a separate user account on the Mac for your child.
   2. Add their Apple Account to your Family Sharing group.
   3. Sign them in to that account on the Mac.

   Who holds this: You set this from your own account, and your child cannot change it back.

   Already done this?

   If you already gave them an adult Apple Account, you probably do not need a new one. The old advice that an adult Apple ID can never be converted is out of date. Edit the birth date at Settings, your name, Personal Information, or at account.apple.com. Apple's rule: to change a birthday to any age below 13, the account must be a member of a Family Sharing group, and the Family Sharing organizer must approve the change. It is the same account throughout, so purchases, photos and Messages all survive.

2. 2

   Turn on Screen Time and set a passcode

   The passcode is what stops them switching it off.

   System Settings → Screen Time

   1. Open System Settings, then Screen Time.
   2. Select your child under Family.
   3. Turn on Lock Screen Time Settings and set a passcode they don’t know.

   Who holds this: You set this from your own account, and your child cannot change it back.

   Already done this?

   If your child already knows the passcode, or you never set one, you can reset it without losing your settings. Do it from your device, not theirs: Settings, Screen Time, your child's name, Manage Screen Time, Change Screen Time Passcode. When this fails it is almost always because you are signed in to the wrong Apple Account. Apple's article covers iPhone and iPad only, so we cannot confirm the steps on a Mac.

3. 3

   Set content and privacy restrictions

   Covers web content, app ratings and store purchases.

   Screen Time → Content & Privacy

   1. Turn on Content & Privacy.
   2. Under Content Restrictions, set web content to Limit Adult Websites, or Only Approved Websites for younger children.
   3. Set app and media age ratings.
   4. Under Store Restrictions, turn off in-app purchases and require a password for every purchase.

   Recommended by age

   Under 7	Only Approved Websites
   7–11	Only Approved Websites
   11–12	Limit Adult Websites
   13–15	Limit Adult Websites
   16–17	Limit Adult Websites

   Apple renamed this one. If you are following older guidance that says Allowed Websites Only, Only Approved Websites is the same setting.

   Who holds this: You set this from your own account, and your child cannot change it back.

4. 4

   Set Downtime and App Limits

   Homework on a laptop makes a blanket limit unrealistic, so limit the categories that actually run away.

   Screen Time → Downtime / App Limits

   1. Set Downtime for the evening and overnight.
   2. Add App Limits for Games and Social rather than everything.
   3. Add anything they need for schoolwork to Always Allowed.

   Who holds this: You set this from your own account, and your child cannot change it back.

Menus move. If something on screen does not match these steps, check the official link above.