How to limit screen time on iPhone (and Android)

Updated November 11, 2026 · 6 min read · Screen time

To limit screen time on an iPhone, open Settings, tap Screen Time and set a daily limit. On iOS 27 that's Time Allowances, which caps whole categories like Social Media or Games and your total time on the phone. On iOS 26 and earlier it's App Limits, which can cap a single app. Then add a Screen Time passcode, so nobody can change those settings without it. Android has the same idea under Digital Wellbeing.

1. Turn on Screen Time

Limits only work once Screen Time is tracking what you use.

iPhone on iOS 27: open the Settings app, tap Screen Time, then tap Time Allowances (or Screen Time Schedule) and tap Turn On App & Website Activity.

iPhone on iOS 26 and earlier: in Settings, tap Screen Time, tap App & Website Activity, then Turn On App & Website Activity.

Apple’s guide says the new Screen Time Schedules and Time Allowances need version 27 or later on all your Apple devices, including an iPad or Mac on the same account. If you see App Limits and Downtime instead, follow the iOS 26 steps below.

To see where your time goes before you pick a number, tap Daily Average on iOS 27 (or See All App & Website Activity on iOS 26), then Week or Day.

Android: open Settings and tap Digital Wellbeing. The first time, you set up your profile. The chart shows which apps you’ve had on screen today and for how long. Google notes that some steps vary by device.

2. Set a daily time limit

iPhone on iOS 27: Time Allowances

1. Open the Settings app and tap Screen Time, then Time Allowances.
2. Drag the slider to set how much time you can spend on the phone each day.
3. Under Time Allowances, tap a category such as Social Media, then drag its slider to set its daily limit.
4. If the category you want isn’t there, tap Manage Categories, tap the add button and select it.

You can use the apps in a category until they hit either the category’s allowance or your daily total. If an app declares a website, the allowance covers that website too. To see which apps sit in a category and how long you use each one, tap Manage Categories, tap the category, then tap an app.

Apple’s iOS 27 guide sets limits by category and doesn’t show a limit for one app on its own. If you only want to cap one app, how to block apps on iPhone covers the other routes.

iPhone on iOS 26 and earlier: App Limits

1. Open the Settings app and tap Screen Time.
2. Tap App Limits, then Add Limit.
3. Select one or more categories. To limit a single app, tap the category name and select the app.
4. Tap Next and set the time allowed. Tap Customize Days to give weekends a different limit.

Everything you select shares one limit. And Apple’s iOS 26 guide says that by default, Screen Time limits can be ignored once you reach them. The guide’s fix for that is Block at Downtime (section 3), which you can only turn on once you’ve set a Screen Time passcode.

Android: App timers

1. Open your phone’s Settings app.
2. Tap Digital Wellbeing, then App timers.
3. Next to the app you want to limit, tap Set timer.
4. Choose how much time you get and tap OK.

When the time runs out, the app closes and its icon dims. Timers reset at midnight. Some work and school accounts might not work with app timers.

Samsung Galaxy: open Settings and tap Digital Wellbeing and parental controls. Under App timers, select an app, tap Set timer, pick your time and tap Done. For a cap on the whole phone rather than one app, tap Set goal under Screen time goal.

A daily limit is the easiest thing here to get around. On Android, you can delete the timer and keep going before midnight. On iOS 26, a limit you’ve reached can be ignored by default.

3. Set hours when apps are off

A daily limit still lets you spend it all at 1 a.m. A schedule decides when apps are available at all.

iPhone on iOS 27: Screen Time Schedule

1. In Settings, tap Screen Time, tap Screen Time Schedule, then turn on Schedule.
2. Tap Add Schedule, tap the days you want, then confirm.
3. Tap a time window to rename it, change its start and stop times, and pick which Time Allowance categories you can use during it.

To tie your allowances to that schedule, go to Time Allowances and turn on Match Screen Time Schedule. Apps and contacts you add under Always Allowed stay available no matter what.

iPhone on iOS 26 and earlier: Downtime

1. In Settings, tap Screen Time, then Downtime.
2. Tap Scheduled, select Every Day or Customize Days, and set the start and end times.

During downtime, only calls, messages and the apps you allow are available. You get a reminder 5 minutes before it starts. Once you have a Screen Time passcode, turn on Block at Downtime so apps can’t be opened at all: they show dimmed with an hourglass icon. With it off, you see a reminder and can keep using the app.

Android: Focus mode and Bedtime mode

1. Open Settings and tap Digital Wellbeing, then Focus mode.
2. Choose the apps to pause. While Focus mode is on, you can’t use them and their notifications stop.
3. Tap Set a schedule to have it turn on by itself, or Turn on now.

For nights, Bedtime mode → Bedtime routine lets you set your sleep hours and options like Grayscale, which turns the screen black and white.

Downtime and the iOS 27 schedule switch off groups of apps, not one app. Focus mode has a Take a break button that unpauses your apps for a while.

4. Lock your Screen Time settings with a passcode

• iOS 27: Settings → Screen Time → Passcode & Management → Lock Screen Time Settings, then enter a four-digit passcode twice.
• iOS 26: Settings → Screen Time, scroll down and tap Lock Screen Time Settings.
• Android: Settings → Digital Wellbeing → App limits → App limits PIN, turn on PIN for app time limits, unlock the phone, then enter a 4-digit PIN and confirm it.

After that, the passcode has to be entered before your Screen Time settings can change. It guards the settings, not the limit itself. On iOS 26, it’s also what lets you turn on Block at Downtime. And whoever knows the passcode can change a limit. If you set up Screen Time Passcode Recovery, your Apple Account can reset a forgotten passcode, so you can still get past your own code. A passcode someone else picks holds better.

If your limits still don’t stick, why Screen Time limits stop working goes through the usual causes.

5. Limit screen time on an iPad

The steps on an iPad are the same: Settings → Screen Time, then Time Allowances and Screen Time Schedule on iPadOS 27, or App Limits and Downtime on older versions.

You don’t have to set everything twice. On iOS 27, tap Screen Time → Manage Screen Time and turn on Share Across Devices. Your limits and schedules then apply to your iPhone, iPad and Mac signed in to the same Apple Account. With it off, each device keeps its own settings.

Setting limits for a child is a different setup that runs through Family Sharing: Settings → Family, tap your child’s name, then Screen Time, and follow the onscreen steps.

6. Block apps on a schedule with OpLoop

Built-in limits are easy to wave away when you’re tired. OpLoop is an app blocker for iPhone and Android: you choose which apps to block and when, and it’s free to start. On iPhone it works through Apple’s Screen Time API.

• Routines: pick the days and times once, like study hours or a wind-down at night, and blocking switches on and off by itself. On iPhone, websites can go on the list too.
• Passes: a few short passes a day for when you really do need the app. When they’re gone, the block holds.
• Lockdown (Pro): a Sprint you can’t end early. It holds until the timer runs out.
• Challenges: in the Circles tab, everyone in the challenge blocks the same apps for 1 to 7 days.

Open a blocked app and you get a card instead of a gray wall: a calm line, a gentle poke, sometimes a joke. On Android, Pro can also block just Shorts or Reels and keep the rest of YouTube or Instagram. On iPhone, OpLoop blocks whole apps.

Which one should you use?

Start with a daily limit and a passcode someone else picks. If you still spend the whole allowance late at night, add set hours.

Questions

How do I adjust Screen Time on iPhone?

On iOS 27, go to Settings → Screen Time → Time Allowances and drag the slider for your total or for a category. To remove a category’s limit, tap Manage Categories, select the category and delete it. On iOS 26, add or change limits under App Limits. To remove one, swipe left on it and tap Delete. If you set a passcode, you’ll need it first.

Can you set screen time limits on an iPad?

Yes, the same way as on an iPhone. Section 5 covers it, including how Share Across Devices copies your iPhone limits to your iPad.