📚 How to Set Screen Time Limits for Games (iPhone, Android and Family Accounts)

On iPhone and iPad, open Settings, then Screen Time, then App Limits, and add a limit for the Games category or for individual apps. On Android, Digital Wellbeing lets you set an app timer that greys the icon out for the rest of the day. For a child account, Google Family Link applies daily limits and per-app rules from the parent phone. Set a Screen Time or Family Link passcode that is different from the device unlock code.

A daily allowance works better paired with a schedule. Downtime on iOS and bedtime mode on Android block games during homework hours and after a set time at night, no matter how many minutes are left in the budget. Allow essentials like phone and messages through, so the restriction never blocks something genuinely needed. Reviewing the weekly report together is often more persuasive to a child than the limit itself.

Sudden cut-offs cause the biggest arguments, so give a five-minute warning and pick games with natural stopping points. Short-session puzzle, word and arcade games end cleanly; games built on daily streaks, energy timers and live events pull hard against any limit. Instant browser games help here too, since closing the tab is a real ending. Agree the rules in advance, and apply a version of them to your own phone as well.