GardionAndroid · parental controls
Your child’s phone is a separate world, and parents aren’t invited
Android parental controls usually start with free Family Link. Here is an honest map: what it covers, where it ends — and how Gardion builds the rest with per-app limits, reports, and uninstall protection.
start with the free option
First, Family Link. It’s free
Google gives parents Family Link at no cost, and for a younger child it often does the job. We won’t sell you what Google gives away, so try Family Link first.
What it covers
- Screen-time limit and bedtime
- A younger child’s phone locks for the night and when the daily allowance runs out.
- App-install approval
- A new app from Google Play won’t install without a yes from the parent’s phone.
- Location on the map
- You see the child’s dot while the phone is with them and online.
Where it ends
- Age 13
- From 13, a teen can start turning supervision off themselves. Until 18 the parent still has the final say, but the rules now get negotiated with the teen. More about age 13 →
- The computer
- Among computers, Family Link supervises only Chromebooks — a Windows PC with games stays out of sight. Controls on Windows →
- A second-hand phone
- Someone else’s Family Link on a used phone can only be removed by the previous owner. A factory reset locks the phone with FRP. Buying a used phone →
honest about workarounds
Why control slips on Android
The phone is always with the child, and every setting lives on that same phone. A teen spends more time with it than the parent does, so they find the workarounds: uninstall the control app, add a second profile, install a VPN.
We publish these methods openly: the how controls get removed guides walk through each popular app. A parent should know what a teen will try, and Gardion is built to withstand exactly these tricks.
what gardion adds
What Gardion adds on Android
Gardion manages time and access: we don’t read messages, and there is no hidden spying.
A limit on a single app
Give a game or a social app 40 minutes. Textbooks, calls and maps keep working after game time runs out.
A schedule from your phone
School hours and the night close in advance. One toggle blocks entertainment right now.
A report instead of guesses
Minutes per app, browser history and location are collected in the parent dashboard.
Uninstall protection
Gardion runs as a device administrator. It interrupts an attempt to open the uninstall screen and alerts the parent right away.
Phone and computer together
Android and Windows live in one account: limits and reports apply on both, and the parent sets them from their phone.
Questions parents ask
Family Link is free. Why pay for Gardion?
If your child is under 13 and an overall time limit is enough, stay on Family Link. Parents pick Gardion when a Windows computer appears at home, the teen turns 13, or they need limits and reports for individual apps.
Won’t the child just uninstall the app?
Not quietly. Gardion runs as a device administrator: it interrupts an attempt to open the uninstall screen and immediately alerts the parent.
Is this spying on the child?
No. The child sees on screen that protection is on. We don’t read messages and don’t watch the screen — the dashboard shows time per app, browser history and location.
Does it work on the computer too?
Yes. The Windows agent joins the same account: limits, schedule and reports work on the PC the same way as on the phone. Family Link can’t do that — among computers it supervises only Chromebooks.
To keep control from switching itself off, check the manufacturer settings: Honor and Huawei, Samsung. For specific games, see Roblox and Minecraft.
Finish the setup in one evening
14 days free, no card needed. Android and Windows.
Family Link facts come from Google’s official family help pages; the age-13 rule and the Chromebook-only rule were checked there in July 2026.