The Best Phones for Kids

We adults are obsessed with our smartphones, so it only makes sense that our kids want one, too. But with social media and open browsers comes a lot of inappropriate content and wider access to the world (which includes friendly and malicious users alike). 

Our favorite phones for kids strike a balance between features they love with age-appropriate guardrails set by parents. 

Of all the phones we looked at, Bark, Gabb, Pinwheel, and Troomi came out on top. But we found a wide selection of phones for kids as young as preschool. For those youngest ones, we recommend checking out our lineup of smartwatches for kids. 

Bark approaches smartphones for kids differently than other brands. It gives your kids a long enough leash to explore technology and communication safely and privately. 

Parents still get a lot of say, but Bark doesn't let you snoop and control everything your child does. For example, you won't be able to view their browsing history or see their location without their knowledge. 

All of this makes Bark a great fit for older kids between middle and high school. They get to explore and use their cool new phone within a digital safe space with limited screen time and parent-approved apps. 

Have a text-happy kid? Worried about cyber bullying? Did you agree to let your kid join Instagram and then instantly regret it? Bark's got your back. It's the best (and often the only) platform for monitoring messages of all kinds — whether it's texts, emails, or social media DMs.

Because this is such a rare feature among other parental controls — even those associated with kids smartphones — we can overlook Bark's high price.

The major disadvantage of a Bark Phone is its high service price. You're required to use a Bark Wireless plan, which costs $49/month for a zero-data plan. That means your child can only use their phone's internet features when connected to Wi-Fi. 

Adding data increases that monthly price, but you can choose their limit with different Bark plans. The 4GB data plan costs $59/month, 8GB of data costs $69/month, and unlimited talk, text, and data lands at $89/month. 

There's no discount for adding a second Bark Phone to your account, and since you can't switch to another service provider, you're not able to shop around for a better price if your circumstances change.

Here's the good news: Your Bark Phone purchase includes a Bark Premium subscription ($99 value), so you can put parental controls on every other device your child uses, like tablets and computers. And at least you don't have to shell out for the cost of the phone.

Learn more in our full Bark Phone Review.

Of those apps, social media is absent. So, if you have kids who are too young or not quite mature enough for Instagram, TikTok, or Snapchat, for example, Gabb completely eliminates the risk. 

Parents won't be able to add Gabb to their family plan, though. Gabb phones and watches all run on their own network, but it's easy to set limits and check your kiddo's activity through the MyGabb app. Parents can set safe zones and limit contacts and apps that kids have access to. 

Check out our deep dive on other products from Gabb to learn more about the Gabb Z2 Phone and Gabb Phone Plus.

We also like that Pinwheel makes it super easy to adjust the parental controls depending on your child's age. 

Let's say you have a 9-year-old, 11-year-old, and 14-year-old — you could get them each a Pinwheel phone and fully customize their settings for the right mix of guidance and independence.

For example, there are three ways to handle contact management: do it for your child, approve your child's additions, or give your child full control. Similar stages of control are available for apps, call and text monitoring, screen time schedules, and group or photo messages.

While other kids phones offer customizations, Pinwheel impressed us the most in this category. With so many adjustments at your fingertips, you don't have to worry about getting a totally new phone for your kid if you need more or fewer restrictions in the future.

Pinwheel phones are compatible with the Bark parental control app. This is excellent news since Bark's message monitoring is the best in the biz. That said, you can read the full content of your child's text messages in the Pinwheel parent portal. Bark gives extra protection for messages that may be sent on other platforms. 

It costs about $5/month to add Bark monitoring to each Pinwheel phone. Just select that option at checkout. We hope this partnership continues even though Bark just launched its own phone. 

The only bummer here is the Pinwheel phones themselves can be pricey, but you do get a discount if you order them in groups of two.

Your child will get the best experience with the $329 Pinwheel Plus 2, since it's the only one compatible with 5G. They'll be stuck with Wi-Fi-only access with the Pinwheel Slim 5 ($199) or the Pinwheel Rugged 3 ($249).

Pay attention to carrier compatibility — you're welcome to use your own SIM card, but only the Pinwheel Plus 2 works with all major carriers. Double-check compatibility if you're a Verizon or AT&T customer. 

Learn more in our full Pinwheel review.

Troomi has three options for kids tech. There's the Samsung A13 LTE (around $150) and the Samsung A14 5G (around $200). For the youngest kids, Troomi has the XG03 smartwatch in several colors. 

Those Samsung phones both come with screen protectors (very necessary for kids), up to 1TB of expandable memory, GPS location services, and advanced cameras to snap pics. The more expensive A14 is the only 5G compatible one of the bunch, extending your child's reach to internet-connected apps and usage. 

Both phones work with all four of Troomi's family plans that range between $14 to $30/ month and add on features like text monitoring, picture and group texting, and the KidSafe browser and apps. 

Like Pinwheel, Troomi's KidSmart OS is designed to grow with your child. It has no internet browser by default, but with the Discover plan (about $30/month) you can add the KidSmart Safe Browser if you feel like your child is ready for a little more online freedom.  

You can also manage their contacts in the beginning and then ease up your involvement as they get older. We like that you can limit the Troomi phone to text-only messaging or allow group chats and photo messages. You get to read the full content of all texts, too.

There's no app store on a Troomi phone, but you can add some kid-friendly apps to your child's phone through the parental portal. There aren't as many apps to choose from compared to Pinwheel, but you can view a full list on the Troomi website before you buy. This feature requires the Discover plan, too.

The Palm Phone is a tiny smartphone with powerful features. Just like an iPhone or Android phone, the Palm has apps, social media, and internet-browsing capabilities. 

You'll need to pair the Palm Phone with a parental control app to protect your child, but it's one of the few options they'll be able to fit in their pockets or hands. 

Learn more in our full Palm Phone review.

The Wisephone caters to adults who need to cut down on their screen time. It calls, texts, takes pictures, and includes only the bare-minimum apps necessary for modern life: maps, a clock, and a calculator. 

There's also a family portal that lets parents monitor their child's call history, texts, and location. But we hesitate to recommend the Wisephone as a kids phone. Kids need guidance, and the Wisephone simply restricts all access.

We also considered the Lightphone for our lineup of kids phones. Like the Wisephone, the Lightphone is mainly for adults to avoid endless scrolling. There are no parent-friendly features, so your child could end up texting and calling anyone and everyone.

But that's the only real mischief they could get into. It does play music and podcasts, so it's not totally boring. But there's no internet, games, or camera on board. 

But for $300 upfront and at least $30/month, you don't get much bang for your buck.

Teracube's claim to fame is its environmentally-friendly smartphone. We tested the Teracube Thrive — which is just the normal Teracube 2e paired with Teracube's parental control app — and weren't impressed.

It has excellent app management, but the SPIN browser did nothing to curb our mature searches. Worse yet, none of our web activity showed up on the parental dashboard. There was a frustrating lack of customization options or reports.

At this point, the Teracube Thrive is just getting a participation trophy. Steer clear.

The VTech KidiBuzz 3 isn't really a cell phone, but your youngster won't know the difference. Designed for kids age 4 and up, the VTech KidiBuzz 3 has a touchscreen, camera, educational and just-for-fun games, and a secure messaging app that works over Wi-Fi.

The VTech KidiBuzz 3 doesn't make phone calls or track your child's location, but it gives your kid a smartphone-like device to use just like their older siblings. Because it doesn't connect to a cellular network, you don't have to worry about paying a monthly fee.

You can set daily screen time limits and download music or videos to the device if you need to keep your kid extra entertained. There's even a headphone jack to give you some peace. 

While phones for kids aren't especially common, the few models that exist are all high quality. We like the Bark Phone best thanks to its laundry list of parental controls and message monitoring, but it's admittedly expensive — especially for more than one kid.

Thankfully, budget-friendly options like Pinwheel and Gabb also shield children from the uglier side of the internet while teaching them responsible device usage. And Troomi introduces some incredible cameras with a kid-friendly operating system. 

We also compared the phones’ technical specifications, such as storage capacity, camera quality, battery life, and mobile carrier options. 

Next, we looked at costs and policies. We preferred phones with no-contract options, no activation fees, and lengthy warranties. More affordable phones earned bonus points, as did those with a discount for multiple lines.  

Finally, we tested the Bark Phone, Pinwheel Phone, Gabb Phone, and Terracube Thrive for ourselves. We considered ease of setup, possible workarounds, and dashboard reports. We also tried to trigger the parental control alerts to make sure they work as expected.

To learn more about how we rank and review products, visit the SafeWise methodology page.

• What Age Should Kids Get a Phone?
• 6 Signs Your Child Isn't Ready for a Phone
• Guide to Parental Controls
• Dangerous Apps for Kids
• How to Keep Your Teen (or Tween) Safe Online
• Best Kids GPS Trackers and Wearables