How to set up Bark on your child's phone

To set up Bark, you put the Bark parent app on your phone and the Bark Kids app on your child's phone. On iPhones and iPads, checking texts and photos also needs an optional charger called Bark Sync. The Bark app costs $14 a month or $99 a year for all your kids and devices.

Last checked: . Prices and features can change. Always check the company's site before you buy.

Facts on this page come from Bark's official pricing and FAQ page. Bark's guide does not list exact button names, so we say "look for". Menus can look different on your phone. Check Bark's website for help.

Words you'll see on this page

Parent app
The Bark app you put on your own phone. You see alerts here.
Bark Kids
The app you put on your child's phone or tablet.
Bark Sync
An optional charger for iPhones and iPads. It checks the device each time it charges.
Alert
A message to you when Bark finds something worrying.

What this means for your family

Pick a plan

The Bark app is $14 a month or $99 a year. Bark Sync for iPhone and iPad is an extra $6 a month or $49 a year. [Source: Bark pricing]

Steps

  1. Download the Bark parent app on your phone.
  2. Open it and add your child. (Look for an option to add a child. Menus can differ.)
  3. Install the Bark Kids app on your child's phone or tablet.
  4. Follow the on-screen steps to connect the two apps.
  5. If your child has an iPhone or iPad, plug it into the Bark Sync charger. It checks the device each time it charges.
  6. Connect your child's social media accounts. For some apps, you will need to type in your child's login. Bark will tell you which ones.
  7. Choose which alerts you want. (Look for alert or notification settings. Menus can differ.) For example, you can skip alerts for swearing but get every alert about drugs.

When you connect a device, Bark also checks up to 60 days of past texts. [Source: Bark pricing]

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