Bark vs Screenable
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Bark
This service helps families manage their children's digital lives by monitoring online content, managing screen time, and filtering websites. It alerts parents to potential issues like cyberbullying or adult content, offering peace of mind.
- Content monitoring for texts, email, YouTube, and social media
- Alerts for cyberbullying, adult content, and threats
- Screen time limits and scheduling
- Website filtering by category or specific sites
- Monitors 30+ apps and social media platforms
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Bark provides families with all the tools they need to raise kids in the digital age. Our comprehensive service lets you monitor content, manage screen time, and filter websites so you can get peace of mind while your child is online. CONTENT MONITORING Bark monitors your child’s texts, email, YouTube, and 30+ apps and social media platforms for issues like cyberbullying, adult content, sexual predators, profanity, suicidal ideation, threats of violence, and more. Parents receive alerts only when something potentially problematic occurs online. You won’t have full access to everything on your child’s phone — just the things you might need to know about. SCREEN TIME MANAGEMENT Families can set healthy time limits and create schedules for when their children’s devices can connect to the internet (through both cell service and Wi-Fi). WEB FILTERING Our web filter lets you select which websites your child can access on their devices. You can allow or block specific sites — or even whole categories like streaming services, online gaming, sexual content, and more. BARK TESTIMONIALS • "My wife and I LOVE Bark. We've had some tough but productive conversations with our 13-year-old son. It's proving to be extremely valuable." — Josh L. • “It’s just another set of protections we as parents give our kids for the digital environment (or as my 10-year-old calls it, a “cell phone seat belt”). My oldest is a 9th grader, and while I trust her, I’ve come to realize through the alerts that some of her friends aren’t truly her friends. It’s led to some amazing conversations about choosing friends wisely and recognizing toxic people. While she wasn’t for Bark at first, she’s since said she’s grateful that I saw those messages because it reaffirmed what she was feeling but didn’t know how to verbalize without sounding sensitive.” — Bark Parent • "Bark notified me that my young daughter had unknowingly revealed her phone number to strangers on Twitter. The fact that Bark notified me was impressive and led to an informative discussion with her the same day." — Jon B. • “Since Bark alerted us to the suicidal language used in the Google doc that was being used in a chat document with a friend, we have seen both a pediatrician and a licensed counselor. We are hopeful for a positive outcome. Thanks to Bark for letting us peek into our child’s mind!” — Bark Parent • “This app is a lifesaver! It has allowed us to catch so many “red flags” in the content my kids have accessed on their devices and in their interactions with friends and other people online that I wouldn’t have ever known about otherwise. The big difference between Bark and other “Parental Control” software is that Bark allows your kids to have so much more privacy. It doesn’t show you everything they do, but sends an instant alert regarding any activity that might be concerning. Highly recommended!” — Bark Parent With Bark, you can help keep your kids safe both online and in real life. Try it out for seven days absolutely free! Our Family Online Safety Specialists are standing by to help answer any questions you may have. Email help@bark.us or visit help.bark.us to get answers and advice from the Bark Team. Terms of Use https://www.bark.us/terms
Screenable
This app offers modern parental controls to make any iPhone or iPad suitable for children. It features customizable modes like 'Dumb Phone' and 'Screen Trainer' to manage device usage and promote self-control, with guided setup and remote management.
- Dumb Phone mode
- Screen Trainer mode
- One-tap focus features
- Guided setup
- Remote settings updates
- Transforms existing devices
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Screenable makes any iPhone or iPad kid-ready. The app is designed with simple modes to lock down devices for each stage as kids grow, from shared iPads to a kid’s first phone. Research-backed and family-tested, Screenable’s modern parental controls make it easy for parents to follow all major screen time advisories, such as from the U.S. Surgeon General, Dr Becky (Good Inside), and Jonathan Haidt (The Anxious Generation). ▶ Feature highlight: DUMB PHONE mode ◀ The anti-smartphone. Convert any iPhone into a classic “flip phone” with nothing more than Phone, FaceTime, Messages, location sharing, and any other apps you choose. A great alternative to an Apple Watch. ▶ Feature highlight: SCREEN TRAINER mode ◀ The new, collaborative approach to parental controls that helps build kids’ self-control. Best for kids starting the transition to independent use of an iPhone or iPad (usually ages 9-14, but you know your kids best!). ▶ Feature highlight: ONE-TAP FOCUS ◀ With a tap, remove the App Store, the camera, Safari, or any other internet browsers from your kids’ devices. Take away distractions until kids are ready for them. ▶ Feature highlight: GUIDED SETUP ◀ Get guidance and parental advice at every step. Read best practices and learn what’s worked for other families so that you feel confident things are set up just right. HOW IT WORKS ▶ 1. Create an account. ◆ Install the parent app, and set up your family profile. ▶ 2. Sync kids’ devices. ◆ Install the kid app on each kid's iPhone or iPad (2014+). ▶ 3. Choose a mode. ◆ Instantly convert each to a Dumb Phone or Screen Trainer (Media Player and Social Trainer coming soon). ▶ 4. Stay in the know. ◆ Get notifications and reports. Update settings remotely. WHY SCREENABLE ◆ No new devices or data plans required. ◆ Don’t get a new Apple Watch or phone – just add Screenable to any ol’ iPhone or iPad. Whether on WiFi only or added to your existing family plan, setup is easy peasy. ◆ All things Apple, for you and the kids. ◆ Use FaceTime, message them with blue bubbles, and see their location in Find My. Share family services like iCloud storage or Apple Music. You and the kids stay within Apple. ◆ Dummy-proof and one-tap easy. ◆ In just a tap, fully convert a device to a dumb phone, media player, and more. Fully guided setup, easy to change as kids grow. Fantastic customer service if things go sideways. ◆ Pro tip... ◆ Screenable is built on the same technology as Apple’s Screen Time, but without the annoyances & instability – and instead providing a bunch of new and easier-to-use features! :) ONE-FOR-ONE SUBSCRIPTIONS Screenable is proudly a one-for-one subscription service. For every subscription that is purchased, we give one to a family who would struggle to afford it. We try to keep the monthly costs low so everyone can access it, but if you can’t justify the cost, please reach out to us at 1for1@getscreenable.com. A NOTE FROM US Hello parents! We’re a family business (two techie brothers, our wives, and 6 kids) and just getting started. We welcome your feedback, truly! Please let us know what you think at getscreenable.com/contact. ~The team at Screenable //// ▶ SUPPORTED KIDS’ DEVICES ◆ iPhone 7 or later (with iOS 15+) ◆ iPads from 2014 or later (with iPadOS 15+) ◆ Compatible with certain other parent apps like Bark and Life360. Details at help.getscreenable.com. ▶ SOME LINKS We are sensitive to your privacy and that of your kids, and we only collect and retain data needed to provide the Screenable service. Privacy Policy ◆ https://getscreenable.com/legal/privacy Terms of Service ◆ https://getscreenable.com/legal/terms ▶ VERY LASTLY If you are a parent and still reading this, bravo! You have self-qualified as PERFECT for Screenable. :) No seriously, if you still have hesitations, please reach out to our CEO (Tom) personally, at tom@getscreenable.com – he’d love to hear from you.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Screenable at 100% against Bark's 13%. Screenable also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.2) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months). Bark's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (35K vs 37). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support 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. Bark sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and Screenable sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Screenable holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Bark has 35K ratings behind it against 37, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 13% of Bark's written reviews are positive against 100% of Screenable's.
Bark ships an update every 2 months, Screenable fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and August 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Bark | Screenable |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (35K ratings) | 4.9 (37 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 12.9% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 35K — better | 37 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #71 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 30 MB | 63 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Bark Technologies, Inc. | SCREENABLE LLC |
Customer experience
Bark
Screenable
User reviews
Bark
From 35K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💯 Solid recommendation
- 🔒 Helps keep watch over family
- 🔒 Necessary for child safety
- 🚀 Disturbingly good app so far
- 🚀 Unique helpful tracker
Room to improve
- 🐛 Very hard to navigate
- 🐛 Can't install
- 🐛 Annoying features
- 🐛 Useless, don't waste money
- 🐛 Confusion during setup
Screenable
From 37 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💡 Transforms old iPhones into kid-friendly devices
- 👍 Easy setup and customization for parents
- 🚀 Effectively manages and monitors kids' screen time
- 👍 Encourages responsible digital habits in children
- 👍 Provides a safe and controlled smartphone experience for kids
Bugs and requests
Bark
Reported bugs
4 issues- Frequent disconnections and reconnections required
- Inability to monitor certain popular apps like TikTok and Snapchat
- Delayed alerts and notifications
- Unexpected phone performance issues like slower speeds and battery drain
Requested features
4 requests- Improve compatibility with iOS devices
- Provide cloud-based backups instead of manual device backups
- Add password protection to prevent app uninstallation
- Improve sensitivity settings and notification management
Screenable
No bugs or feature requests surfaced in reviews.
In-app purchases
Bark
- Bark Jr Monthly7 Days trial$5.991 Month
- Bark Monthly7 Days trial$14.991 Month
- Bark Jr Annual7 Days trial$49.991 Year
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- Bark Annual7 Days trial$99.991 Year
Screenable
- Screenable Plus - Launch Promo1 Month trial$4.991 Month
- Screenable Plus1 Month trial$5.991 Month
- Screenable Plus - Launch Promo1 Month trial$47.901 Year
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- Screenable Plus1 Month trial$54.991 Year







