TechRadar Reviews Four Parental Control Apps, Comparing Price, Privacy and Monitoring

FamilyTime is described by TechRadar as an affordable, feature-packed parental monitoring app. Its single-device plan costs $2.41 per month, billed at $29 annually. The My Family 3 plan covers three devices at $4.08 per month, billed at $49 annually, while My Family 5 covers five devices at $5.75 per month, billed at $69 annually. TechRadar says all three plans include the same features, and a three-day free trial is available, though the trial omits some features, including social media monitoring on WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok, Twitch and Signal, and does not allow parents to read texts or view calls. The app includes daily usage limits, individual app limits, Screen Schedule, Scheduled Internet, a Time Bank that lets children carry unused screen time forward, and Family Pause for immediate device locking. It also offers app, game and website blocking, approved-app access, search filters, an SOS Panic Button and PickMeUp Request. TechRadar lists no keyword alerts and limited social media monitoring as drawbacks.

HeyPolo is a privacy-first parental control and location-tracking app launched by the team behind Surfshark VPN, according to the review. It costs $5.99 per month or $1.99 per month on the annual plan, and one subscription covers an entire family with unlimited devices. TechRadar reports a 30-day money-back guarantee; although HeyPolo's website says there is no free trial, the review says users who purchase through the Apple App Store or Google Play Store can get a three-day or seven-day free trial. HeyPolo shows real-time location details updated every five seconds, lets users share exact locations or only a general area, and allows sharing indefinitely or for a set period. It also provides arrival and departure alerts, SOS emergency alerts, low-battery alerts, group location sharing with unlimited groups, and up to seven days of location history. Users can choose Exact Location, General Area or Private Mode, and each group member controls what they share. HeyPolo says it will not sell, monetize or exploit users' location data and encrypts location data in transit. The review notes that HeyPolo lacks screen-time management and app or website blocking.

Bitdefender's parental controls are not sold as a standalone subscription or dedicated app, TechRadar says. They are included in four family plans, with all parental control features available in each. The Total Security Family plan starts at $79.99 for the first year and covers up to 25 devices across five family members, about $16 per member per year, and includes antivirus protection and a password manager. Premium Security costs $99.99 for the first year and adds scam protection, AI-based scam protection and a VPN with more than 4,000 servers in over 50 countries. Ultimate Security Family costs $119.99 for the first year and adds dark web monitoring and identity theft protection features, including an identity protection score and real-time breach notifications. Ultimate Security Plus Family costs $199.99 for the first year and adds $2 million in identity theft insurance, three-bureau credit monitoring and bank, credit card and investment alerts. The parental tools include screen-time schedules, preset routines called Focus Time, Family Time and Bedtime, internet time management, the ability to reward extra screen time, a Stop Internet feature, age-based filtering categories, URL allowlisting and blocklisting, up to five child profiles, location tracking, Safe Search and YouTube restrictions. Content filtering and safe browsing require an active VPN connection, according to Bitdefender's Google Play listing cited by TechRadar. The review says Bitdefender lacks social media monitoring, geofencing and keyword alerts.

Parentaler is a capable parental monitoring app with social media monitoring, content filtering, location monitoring and screen-time management, according to TechRadar. It does not offer family plans, a free trial or a demo, which TechRadar says makes it expensive for households with multiple children. Pricing is not prominently displayed on its website; after answering a series of questions, TechRadar found a monthly plan at $42.69, a quarterly plan at $24.40 per month and an annual plan at $10.17 per month, billed at $121.99 annually. The company offers a 14-day refund policy. Parentaler can monitor WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Telegram, Viber, Kik and TikTok, including messages, calls, links and media, as well as posts and stories. Its SMS and text monitoring works with iMessage on iPhone and includes deleted messages, and it monitors call logs. TechRadar notes that instant-message tracking for Facebook, WhatsApp, Viber and Skype, plus Gmail and Wi-Fi network monitoring, works only on rooted Android devices. Parentaler also provides GPS tracking with address, timestamps and coordinates, geofenced allowed and restricted zones with instant alerts, screen-time limits, downtime scheduling, Focus Mode on Android and time reports. Its content-filtering options can block adult websites and social media. TechRadar lists broad social media monitoring, keyword alerts, robust geolocation and no iOS jailbreak requirement as strengths, and the absence of family plans and a free trial or demo as weaknesses.

Editor's Summary

TechRadar's September 10, 2026 reviews compare four parental control products with different priorities: FamilyTime and Parentaler emphasize monitoring and screen-time controls, HeyPolo focuses on consent-based location sharing, and Bitdefender bundles parental controls with a broader security suite. Pricing ranges from $1.99 per month for HeyPolo's annual plan to $199.99 for Bitdefender's first-year Ultimate Security Plus Family plan, while several products lack social media monitoring, geofencing or family plans.