Screen Time passcode: set it, change it, reset it

The Screen Time passcode is what stops a child from changing their own limits. If it is guessable, nothing else you set up is secure. Menu names can vary slightly between iOS versions.

What the passcode does

It is a four-digit code, separate from the code that unlocks the phone. It is required to change Screen Time settings, to approve more time and to turn Screen Time off.

Set the passcode

1. On the device (or on your phone for a child under Family Sharing), open Settings.
2. Tap Screen Time.
3. Tap Use Screen Time Passcode (or Lock Screen Time Settings).
4. Enter a four-digit code twice.
5. You may be asked for your Apple ID to help recover it later. Use your own, not your child's.

Choose a good code

• Do not use a birthday, phone number, 1234 or 0000.
• Do not use the same code as the phone's lock code.
• Do not let your child see you type it.
• Write it somewhere safe.

Change the passcode

Go to Settings, Screen Time, then Change Screen Time Passcode. Enter the current code and then a new one. If your child may know the old one, change it now.

Turn it off

Settings, Screen Time, then Turn Off Screen Time or Change Passcode and then Turn Off Passcode. You will be asked for the code or Apple ID.

Reset a forgotten passcode

On recent iOS versions, tap Forgot Passcode on the screen that asks for it, and sign in with the Apple ID you used when you set the passcode. You can then choose a new one. If you did not set an Apple ID, you may need to erase the device, which deletes the data on it, so back up first.

For a child's device under Family Sharing

You manage your child's Screen Time from your own iPhone: Settings, Screen Time, then your child's name. The passcode is separate from your own phone's lock, and you can change it there.

My child worked around it

Children sometimes learn the code or find loopholes. Change the passcode, check Content & Privacy Restrictions are on, and talk about why the rules exist. See our parental controls guide.