Given how closely involved our kids can be with our mobile devices, it is imperative that we hide some aspects of our phones and tablets from them. This is why there are a handful of parental control apps out there that help users in keeping their kids and children out of reach from sensitive applications. These apps use a predefined passcode to help with parental controls. It’s likely that you might have tried a few of these before. All these apps come highly recommended from customers from around the world, so be sure to give them a try.

Best Parental Controls Apps for your Android Phone

AppLock

Just as the name suggests, this app helps you secure your personal apps with a passcode. It works pretty well, as you would expect, and comes with a bunch of other features as well. To make things easier for the customers, the app also comes with fingerprint support for Android 6.0+ devices. You can lock practically any application that you want to, so you will be able to hand over your phones to your kids or friends without worrying much about privacy.

The app’s description mentions that it’s the most downloaded app locking application available on the Play Store, which gives you more reason to try it. Be sure to check out the app from the Google Play Store. It’s a free download, so you won’t be spending a dime to try it out.

Touch Lock

Fundamentally the same as AppLock, Touch Lock works pretty effortlessly on your Android smartphone. With this app, you can even disable the home button, recents, and even the back button. The app also comes with a standalone “My Videos” app which offers child-safe videos such as cartoons and documentaries by browsing through YouTube’s library. This content is designed for kids aged 0-6, which means there will never be a dull moment for your little ones should they start using your Touch Lock enabled phone.

By completely disabling soft keys (from the settings), you can be assured that you do not miss your important calls on the phone. Once the touch lock is enabled, people are unable to perform any functions involving the soft keys. This too is a free app from the Google Play Store, so be sure to give it a try.

Kids Zone Parental Controls

This goes slightly deeper into the customizations aspect of an Android device. Kids Zone lets you set specific profiles and wallpapers for your kids and loved ones. By basically giving them their own profile enabled with a passcode lock, parents can be assured that kids won’t wander off into other apps on the device. You have full control over what apps your kids will see, which makes this a must have for every parent who shares their devices with the little ones.

You can even set a screen timeout limit so that kids will require permission to continue using their profiles after a specified duration. This will ensure that your kids aren’t too involved with your smartphones. Overall, Kids Zone is a great parental controls app and will serve you well should you plan to use it.

Kid’s Shell – Kid Launcher

Coming from one of the top Android developers, Kid’s Shell is yet another application that you would love to have for your kids and children around the house. It is basically a kids-centric launcher, allowing you to set every detail for their home screens and the kind of apps that they will have access to. The app is compatible with both smartphones and tablets, which makes this a pretty versatile offering.

If English is not the only language you speak, the app also gives you the ability to set multiple languages from the Settings page. This, coupled with a handful of other features, makes Kid’s Shell a must have for every parent, especially if they want their kids to have the best experience with a third party launcher.

Kakatu

Featuring a cute little bird as its logo, Kakatu is something that will strike a chord with your kids from the word go. It’s not too different from other parental control apps that you might find elsewhere, but it differs slightly in functionality compared to the others. The level of control offered with this app is immense, letting you know exactly what your kid could be watching at any given time.

You can set usage based timers like with any parental controls app, and only allow the use of educational and learning apps when it’s time for bed. Naturally, adult content is hidden from the kids here, and Kakatu’s algorithms ensure that kids are not offered suggestions to adult or pornographic content. The app cannot be uninstalled while using the kid’s profile as an action like this requires the master password which is set by the primary user (the adult, in this case). The app is a free download from the Google Play Store, so be sure to have a gander.

All of these apps are quite a handful and certainly worth a try if you’ve been struggling to find the best parental controls application out there.