The age that kids are getting phones is getting younger and younger. While it’s been 9 years since I gave my 8 year old a cell phone, that statement is almost common now! Since I’ve been writing this blog for almost 17 years now, I have seen several “kids safe” smartphones come and go.
The market may not have been ready for these options 9 years ago, it is definitely ready for it now, and these companies are seeing some real success. I think we are getting some really great options as well!
To write this guide, I obtained and set up the parental control portals for all four devices. I personally tested the various controls and restrictions firsthand and evaluated how easily a tech-savvy child could bypass the built-in guardrails. I’ve included all of my findings across all four devices below.
There are 4 major players in this space right now. Troomi, Pinwheel, Bark and Gabb. So, how do they stack up against each other?? Here is a a TLDR; breakdown for you. If you want the nitty gritty details though, keep scrolling!
| Feature/Metric | Troomi | Pinwheel | Bark | Gabb |
| Cellular Network | Own Service (AT&T Powered) | Carrier Agnostic (add to your own plan) | Own Service (T-Mobile Powered) | Own Service (Verizon Powered) |
| Monthly Service (see below for more details) | $25 – $45/month | Add to your family plan ($15/month for software) | $30 – $80/month | $25 – $35/month |
| Web Browser | Filtered or Safelist only browser with browsing history reports | No | Yes (enable any from the Google Play Store) | No |
| App Store Type | Full Google Play Store (some apps like social media are blocked) | Full Google Play Store (some apps like social media are blocked) | Full Google Play Store | Limited curated list of apps |
| Message Monitoring | Full message threads visible in Parent Portal | Full message threads visible in Parent Portal | Alerts for concerning messages | Alerts for concerning messages |
| Contact Management | Yes (with 72 hour grace period window option) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| YouTube viewing | Safe list specific YouTube channels | Approve full access to YouTube app | Approve full access to YouTube app | No |
| Message filtering | Blocks inappropriate words and photos from being sent and received. | No | No | No |
| Best fit for | Young kids through teenagers (8-15 years old) who need to use a web browser or love specific YouTube channels. | Young kids through teenagers (8-15 years old) who need strict scheduling capabilities. | Older teens (14-18 years old) who need social media monitoring. | Very young children (8-10 years old) who need a super basic phone that can call and text with a few limited apps. |
Pricing Breakdown
Troomi:
- Do Plan ($24.95/mo): Unlimited talk/text
- Dream Plan ($29.95/mo): Unlimited talk/text + SMS (photo messages and group messages)
- Discover Plan ($34.95/mo): Unlimited talk/text + SMS (photo messages and group messages) + Ability to install additional apps, including the safe web browser.
- Add On Data ($4.95/mo): Use apps when disconnected from Wi-Fi, up to 1 GB
- Add On Data ($9.95/mo): Use apps when disconnected from Wi-Fi, up to 3 GB
Pinwheel:
- Caregiver Portal access ($17.99/mo): Connect the phone to your own wireless plan (separate fee). This gives you access to control the phone through the caregiver portal.
Bark (Bark plans include a Bark subscription for other devices):
- $29/mo: Unlimited talk/text – NO APPS
- $39/mo: Unlimited talk/text (apps available on wifi only)
- $49/mo: Unlimited talk/text + 4 GB Data
- $59/mo: Unlimited talk/text + 8 GB Data
- $79/mo: Unlimited talk/text + Unlimited Data
Gabb:
- Starter Plan ($24.99/mo): Unlimited talk/text
- Standard Plan ($29.99/mo): Unlimited talk/text + SMS (photo messages and group messages) + Gabb Music
- Discover Plan ($34.99/mo): Unlimited talk/text + SMS (photo messages and group messages) + +Gabb Music+ + Some 3rd party apps
What do all the Kid Safe Phones have in common?
These devices are very similar, but there are definitely distinct features that you will need to evaluate which ones are more important for you. Let’s start with where they are similar though
All devices allow for contact approval, which means you will be able to approve who can call or text the device. They also all have message monitoring, so you can see the text messages your child is sending and receiving. Although, Bark and Gabb will only show you snippets of what is flagged as concerning.
The four companies also allow you to create time schedules to limit how long specific apps are able to be used, or what time frames they can be used. Pinwheel does take this a step further, which will be explained further in the Pinwheel specific section below.
All four also have GPS tracking, and the ability approve specific apps to download and install, but there are some differences here. Troomi and Pinwheel have access to the Google Play Store, so you can download and install any apps available. There is a limitation here, though. Both companies block the ability to approve social media apps or otherwise inappropriate apps. Bark allows access to the full Google Play Store, including social media apps. Finally, Gabb allows you to approve apps only from a list of curated applications. All 4 platforms require that an app is approved by a parent in order to install it on the phone.
Choose Troomi if…
You want a phone that can really grow with your kid. You can lock down the phone to where it is only able to call and text approved contacts and no one else. Or you can open it up to have full access to the internet and thousands of apps. Troomi is also a great choice if your child needs access to a safe web browser, and safe listed YouTube channels.
One huge benefit of Troomi is the KidSmart Web Browser. The browser has 3 different modes. The first allows your child to only access websites you have manually entered and allowed. This is the “Safe-List only” option. Next up allows you to search for anything within specified categories, but then only access sites that have already been allowed. They can request a site that they are not able to access right from the search results. Finally, there is a setting that allows your child to search and access websites from the results, as long as they are in an already approved category.
The web browser also allows parents the ability to approve a specific YouTube channel. When they access the videos from the approved channel, they are unable to see ads or comments on the videos. This allows them to watch their favorite YouTube shows without falling down a rabbit hole or getting recommended videos or channels that you do not approve of.
Browsing history is also displayed in the parent portal, so you know exactly what videos they are watching, what websites they are visiting and what kinds of searches they are performing inside the browser.
Troomi also has content filtering for its messaging platform. If a child tries to send an inappropriate image or text message, the inappropriate content would be blocked from being sent AND received. You can customize what is flagged and blocked to match what is appropriate for your own family.
Discount for Troomi – https://troomi.com?mct=A7pW5Yry
Choose Pinwheel if…
You need a phone that has robust scheduling options, and you want to control exactly what is available to use on the phone and when. You may also want to choose Pinwheel if you need a lot of guidance as to what apps you should approve for your child. Finally, Pinwheel is perfect if you need to choose your own cellular carrier.
Pinwheel is carrier agnostic, so if you want to add a kid safe phone to your family plan, whether you are with Mint Mobile, Verizon or literally anyone else, this is going to be the best solution for you. This is huge if you live outside of the United States, as most of the other providers only work within the US. The choice to put your own SIM card in the phone allows you to have international access to a kid safe phone.
Pinwheel has the ability to create various “modes” that allow different categories of apps during different times of the day. For example, during school hours you can set it so only educational apps are available, or during bedtime, only music apps are available. This allows you to create a highly customized profile for each day that will allow your child access to the applications they need to use, and reserve the more fun applications for other times.
These modes also feature a routine feature. During the specific mode like “homework time” you can create a checklist for your child to complete. This makes the tasks they need to complete easy to find. Every morning it can show tasks like “brush teeth” and “make bed”. At night it can show things like “read a story”.
Pinwheel has also reviewed a ton of apps and gives you clear direction on what their team found inside the applications. This can really help parents know if they should approve a specific app or not. It takes the guesswork and research burden off the parents.
Discount for Pinwheel –https://pinwheelkidsandteensphone.pxf.io/YV4xOO
Choose Bark if…
Your kid is ready for social media. The Bark phone is a great option for you since it does allow you to install any apps available from the Google Play Store, including social media apps. Bark will still work for alerting on concerning content in specific social media apps, and you can allow or deny access to any apps or set time frames during which the apps can be available.
The phone plan includes the Bark Family plan, too, so you can install and use Bark on other devices in your home that are able to use Bark. Your subscription would not be limited to just the Bark Phone.
The Bark phone does have a similar feature to the Pinwheel, where you can set what can be available during different time frames, but they only have 3 to choose from, Bedtime, School Time, and Free Time. There is also a 4th mode that is called default that will be in effect if none of the other 3 are scheduled.
While the app does alert on concerning content in text messages, it does not allow you to view all of the messages remotely. However, you have the option to enable the deletion of texts, so if you need to dig further into a concerning text, you can grab your child’s phone and see the full messages, and can then delete anything inappropriate that they’ve been sent so they won’t have to see that message again.
Discount for Bark – https://barkparentalcontrols.pxf.io/FamilyTech
Choose Gabb if…
You just need a way to get a hold of your child, and you don’t need it to grow with your kid. You know this is going to be an option for just a limited amount of time and you love having the most restrictive option for just starting out.
The main thing Gabb has that the others don’t, though, is Gabb Music. This is a safe music streaming service that only allows access to a very curated list of artists and songs. If you want your kid to be able to browse through songs and listen without worrying about what they might come across, this might be a good option for you.
Final Recommendations
As kids start on their journey to using communication devices, many parents are tempted to just hand over an old iPhone or Android device and set up the parental controls on that. I HIGHLY recommend against doing this. Most of the parental controls on iPhones and Android devices are actually extremely easy to circumvent. Plus they don’t give you the safety capabilities that are available on these kid-safe phones. With the “safe” operating system built into the device, it is difficult for a kid to remove or bypass the security.
Even worse would be a flip phone. Most flip phones also have internet capabilities, so it doesn’t have the management or monitoring, plus an open window to the unfiltered internet.
As you can see, there are key differences in the four main options. What is right for my family, might not be the right one for your family, so take a look at the various features and decide for yourself which one is right for you.
Discount for Pinwheel –https://pinwheelkidsandteensphone.pxf.io/YV4xOO
Discount for Bark – https://barkparentalcontrols.pxf.io/FamilyTech
Discount for Troomi – https://troomi.com?mct=A7pW5Yry
Frequently Asked Questions about safe phones for kids:
Unfortunately, these devices build their operating system into the phones that they sell, so you are not able to just put the Troomi or Pinwheel operating system on a device you already own. The one exception here is Bark. There is Bark software that can be installed on Android devices and iPhones, but it is much easier to bypass the restrictions when it’s just an app on the phone as opposed to the Bark phone where it is built into the operating system.
The best part about purchasing a kid safe phone is that it is extremely difficult for kids to bypass the restrictions. That isn’t to say it is impossible. Most of the time kids find loopholes through things that have been approved on the device. For example, if you, as the parent, allow the Google Chrome app to be installed on the phone, it may have access to the complete unfiltered internet. Similarly, if you allow access to the Settings application on the phone, they could adjust the time on the device to circumvent any time schedules in place. Most of these options give you the ability to lock access to things like settings to prevent this loophole.
For younger kids (ages 8–10): Gabb is ideal because they offer absolute simplicity, keeping the focus entirely on safety, basic communication, and zero social media pressure.
For tweens & early teens (ages 8–14): Pinwheel and Troomi shine here because of their ability to install apps, but still prevent access to harmful applications. They both allow you to gently introduce digital responsibility (like school or music apps) without opening up a full browser.
For teens (ages 13+): The Bark Phone is the natural choice as a final bridge to a traditional smartphone. It allows parents to approve mainstream apps and social media, while providing deep AI monitoring to keep an eye out for cyberbullying or explicit content.
Pinwheel allows you to add their phone to your family plan, so you aren’t paying for cell service from two different providers.
No, most of the phones do allow you to approve apps and websites that are not monitored or vetted. Typically, they will warn you if you are going to approve something that could contain access to inappropriate content or loopholes to get to the unfiltered internet.
Disclosure: I am currently employed with Troomi, but I originally wrote this post prior to my employment. The company does not tell me what I can and cannot say on my Family Tech platform. I earn a commission for any sales purchased through my links.
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I receive compensation if you make a purchase using the links.
This was insanely helpful, thank you!! Trying to figure out how to ease my kids into a phone has been so stressful and this makes the decision a lot clearer.