AppClose vs TalkingParents
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
AppClose
This platform simplifies co-parenting by providing tools for organized communication, scheduling, and expense tracking. It offers secure messaging, call recording, and court-trusted documentation to help families stay connected and compliant with legal requirements.
- Secure messaging and call recording
- Shared calendars and parenting schedules
- Expense tracking and reimbursements
- Court-trusted, unalterable records
- Parenting time tracker
- Secure file storage
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AppClose is the world's most widely used and court-ordered co-parenting platform, trusted by parents and professionals and, based on user supplied data, court-ordered in every U.S. County, as well as Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. Selected by Apple for its “Parenting Essentials” collection, AppClose helps co-parents stay organized, connected, and compliant with court-ordered communication without complexity. AppClose, Inc. is also honored to be named to Inc.’s 2024 Best in Business list for Operational Excellence, which recognizes our innovative approach to simplifying co-parenting and our dedication to supporting families while prioritizing their children’s well-being. Simplify your parenting schedule, make and record unlimited audio and video calls, share expenses, make payments, and maintain secure unalterable text communication by using the #1 Co Parenting App recommended by courts and family law professionals in all 50 states. App & Web Access - Work seamlessly on phone, tablet, or computer. All records, schedules, and communications are synced across devices. Stay Organized & Connected • Secure, unalterable one-on-one and group messages • Make and record unlimited audio and video calls without disclosing phone number & location. With mutual consent, calls can be recorded, transcribed, and securely stored • Co-Parent Assist™ provides optional, real-time guidance designed to help you review tone and clarity before sending a message • Multi-functional shared calendars for events, appointments, and parenting schedules • Parenting-time tracker (planned vs. actual time) • Add stepparents, grandparents, childcare providers, guardians ad litem, attorneys, and other family law professionals • Save and share important child details (allergies, medications, school-related info, emergency contacts) • Unlimited secure file storage for photos, receipts, and documents • Private, non-trackable Check-In for accurate arrival and departure logs • Quick pick-up, drop-off, and switch-day requests • Track expenses and organize receipts by category • Send and receive reimbursements via ipayou® • Calendar notes • Pet management Court-Trusted Records Every message, call, request, and payment is securely stored, time-stamped, and unalterable for court-ready documentation. With AppClose, exporting records is simple. Whether you need them for personal use, to share with a professional, or for litigation and court proceedings, you can easily export the following: Export: • Unlimited Certified Records • One-on-one or group messages • Call logs, call recordings, and transcripts • Expense and reimbursement records • Pick-up and drop-off requests • Check-ins • Notes • In-app session logs AppClose Solo Use AppClose Solo when your co-parent or other third parties don’t use the app. Send requests, events, and information via text, email, or social media, and keep all records organized inside AppClose. Military Friendly Military parents can stay connected during deployments, special trainings, or limited-access situations. AppClose ensures they can still receive requests and updates via email when app access is restricted. Built for Real-World Co-Parenting AppClose supports all parenting situations, co-parenting, parallel parenting, joint custody, supervised visitation, blended families, and shared scheduling across complex households. AppClose brings together communication, scheduling, expense tracking, and court-trusted documentation into a single, secure platform helping families stay organized, accountable, and connected every day. Supported by a responsive, U.S. based support team comprising family law-experienced professionals, AppClose empowers families with technology that promotes accountability, privacy, and positive outcomes for children. Our TERMS OF SERVICE AGREEMENT https://appclose.com/terms/
TalkingParents
This app facilitates communication and coordination for divorced or separated parents. It offers secure messaging, a shared calendar, accountable calling, and payment tracking to simplify co-parenting and keep interactions documented for legal purposes.
- Secure messaging with timestamps
- Sentiment scanner and writing assist
- Accountable calling with recordings
- Shared custody calendar
- Accountable payments for expenses
- Info library for child details
- Unalterable records for court
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Parents who are divorced, separated, or were never legally married use TalkingParents to manage all communication regarding their children. Whether your co-parenting situation is amicable or high conflict, our cutting-edge tools make joint custody easier to navigate, while keeping interactions saved to a court-admissible Record. TalkingParents is here to help you coordinate more seamlessly, set boundaries, and focus on what matters most: your children. Secure Messaging: Send messages that can’t be edited or deleted and easily organize them by topic. All messages and read receipts are timestamped, allowing you to see when your co-parent sent or viewed a message. Sentiment Scanner + Writing Assist: Scan messages for sentiment before you send them to understand how your words may come across. Rewrite messages using professionally developed communication methods designed to reduce tension and minimize conflict. Accountable Calling: Make phone and video calls, complete with recordings and transcripts, without ever having to share your phone number. Shared Calendar: Manage custody schedules and your child’s appointments and activities all on a Shared Calendar that both parents can access. Create single events for things like doctor’s appointments and repeating events for your child’s extracurriculars and custody transition days. Accountable Payments: Make payment requests and securely send or receive money, allowing you to keep track of all shared parenting expenses. Requests and payments are timestamped, and you can also schedule monthly recurring payments. Info Library: Share important details about the kids with customizable cards that both parents can access without having to contact each other. This feature is a great place to store frequently used information like clothing sizes, medical information, and more. Personal Journal: Keep private notes about thoughts and interactions you want recorded for later. Whether it’s in-person discussions with your co-parent or child behavior observances, journal entries are just for you and can include up to five attachments. Vault File Storage: Store photos, videos, and important documents. Your Vault cannot be accessed by your co-parent, but you may choose to share files with any third party by copying or emailing a link, which can be set to expire. You can also download files to your device. Unalterable Records: All interactions within TalkingParents are stored to Unalterable Records that are trusted by legal professionals and accepted in courtrooms nationwide. Each Record includes a Digital Signature and unique 16-digit Authentication Code that verifies the Record is genuine and has not been modified in any way. PDF and Printed Records are available for Secure Messaging, Accountable Calling, Shared Calendar, Accountable Payments, Info Library, and Personal Journal. FAQs: Do I have to be on the same plan as my co-parent? No, you can communicate through TalkingParents no matter what plan your co-parent is on. We offer three different plans—Essentials, Enhanced, or Ultimate. Is TalkingParents court-monitored? No, though Unalterable Records are court-admissible and can be used as evidence in family law cases, no one monitors interactions between you and your co-parent. This is for the privacy of our users. Can I change plans? Yes, TalkingParents offers monthly subscriptions that make it easy to modify your plan at any time. If you don’t think your needs will change throughout the year, we also offer annual plans that include an 8% discount. Can my account be deleted? No, TalkingParents does not allow the deletion of accounts once created and matched. This ensures that neither co-parent can remove an account and clear messages, call records, or other details within the service. To review our terms and privacy practices, please visit our Terms of Service at https://talkingparents.com/terms-of-service and our Privacy Policy at https://talkingparents.com/privacy-policy.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: AppClose at 4.7 against TalkingParents's 4.4. AppClose also leads on device support (4 vs 2) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and update cadence there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. AppClose sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $8.99 per month and TalkingParents sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.00 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
AppClose holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 39K and 29K respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 13% and 12% positive.
AppClose ships an update monthly, TalkingParents every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on September 26, 2026.
| Parameter | AppClose | TalkingParents |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (39K ratings) — better | 4.4 (29K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 13.1% of reviews — better | 12.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 39K — better | 29K |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #50 | #24 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 161 MB | 126 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | AppClose, Inc | Monitored Communications LLC |
Customer experience
AppClose
TalkingParents
User reviews
AppClose
From 39K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Easy to use
- 🔒 Secure communication
- 💡 Helpful for co-parenting
- 👍 Customizable schedules
- 👍 Useful for court documentation
Room to improve
- 🐛 Calendar issues and bugs
- 🐛 Glitchy app performance
- 🐛 Unreliable notifications
- 🐛 Lost data and documents
- 🐛 Complicated user interface
TalkingParents
From 29K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great for documenting communication
- 🔒 Keeps conversations secure and uneditable
- 👍 Helpful for high-conflict co-parenting
- 📅 Useful calendar feature
- 🗒️ Helpful journal for personal notes
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and glitches
- ⏱️ Slow performance and loading times
- 💰 Expensive subscription fees
- 🔑 Requires both parties to sign up
- 🤖 Inaccurate transcription and translation
Bugs and requests
AppClose
Reported bugs
6 issues- Calendar events not saving properly
- Shared schedules not displaying correctly
- Inability to delete or edit calendar entries
- Notifications not working as expected
- Uploaded documents/photos not loading
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- App crashes and freezes frequently
Requested features
7 requests- Improved calendar functionality
- Better syncing between parents
- Group chat feature
- Call recording option
- Integration with other calendars
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- Notes section for documentation
- Expense tracking improvements
TalkingParents
Reported bugs
5 issues- Constant sign-in issues
- Unable to download audio/video recordings
- Calendar events not syncing properly
- Keyboard issues when sending messages
- Inconsistent time/date stamps
Requested features
5 requests- Shared calendar that syncs with devices
- Option to print/export individual conversations
- Ability to block specific contacts
- Improved notification system
- Better integration with other communication apps
In-app purchases
AppClose
- Monthly Unlimited Subscription$8.991 Month
- One Year Subscription$98.991 Year
- 30 Days of Call Recording$12.99
TalkingParents
- TalkingParents Essentials$9.001 Month
- TalkingParents Enhanced (Old)1 Month trial$12.001 Month
- TalkingParents Enhanced1 Month trial$19.001 Month
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- TalkingParents Ultimate1 Month trial$39.001 Month
- 30 Calling Minutes$16.00
- 100 Calling Minutes$24.99
- 40 Calling Minutes$25.00
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- 100 Calling Minutes$46.00
- 300 Calling Minutes$64.99
- 1200 Calling Minutes$249.99
Questions
Is AppClose free?
Is TalkingParents free?
Which has better reviews, AppClose or TalkingParents?
Do AppClose or TalkingParents have ads?
Which is updated more often, AppClose or TalkingParents?
Which is more popular, AppClose or TalkingParents?
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