Forgot Your Screen Time Passcode? How to Reset or Turn It Off

The short version: If you forgot the Screen Time passcode on your child's iPhone or iPad, reset it from your own device: open Settings > Screen Time, tap your child's name under Family, tap Manage Screen Time, tap Change Screen Time Passcode twice, and enter a new one. On iOS 27 you can also reach Manage Screen Time from Settings > Family and your child's name. For your own iPhone, go to Settings > Screen Time > Manage Screen Time > Change Screen Time Passcode, tap it again, and sign in with the Apple Account you used for passcode recovery. To turn it off, tap Change Screen Time Passcode, then Turn Off Screen Time Passcode, and enter the current code.

It is a Sunday night, the limits need changing before school tomorrow, and your thumb hovers over the keypad while your brain offers four digits that might have been right in March. Two wrong tries in, your child is watching with real interest.

We have been that parent, with that audience. We set the code in a hurry the day the iPad came out of the box, chose something clever, and forgot it within a month. The good news is that Apple built a proper way back, and it does not involve erasing anything if you set up recovery.

What is a Screen Time passcode?

The Screen Time passcode is a four-digit code that guards Screen Time settings. Anyone who wants to change a limit, unblock an app, or loosen a content restriction has to enter it first.

It is separate from the code that unlocks the phone. Apple's passcode guide is clear on that point: your child can know their unlock code and still be unable to touch the Screen Time settings. Without the Screen Time passcode, your child can look at their activity and settings but cannot change them, according to Apple's family guide for version 27.

A few more things Apple says about it:

  • You set a child's passcode on your own device. When you manage a child through Family Sharing, the organizer or a parent or guardian sets and resets it from their own iPhone, iPad or Mac.
  • You hear when it is used. When a Screen Time passcode is on for a child's device, you get a notification any time it is entered on their device. The Manage Screen Time screen also shows when it was last used.
  • Recovery is optional, and important. When you set the passcode, Apple asks you to add Screen Time Passcode Recovery with your Apple Account. That is what lets you reset it later.

How to reset a forgotten Screen Time passcode on your child's device

This is the common case: you set the code for your child and cannot remember it. You fix it from your own device, not theirs. These steps follow Apple's reset guide.

  1. On your own iPhone or iPad, open Settings and tap Screen Time.
  2. Scroll down and tap your child's name under Family.
  3. Tap Manage Screen Time.
  4. Tap Change Screen Time Passcode, then tap Change Screen Time Passcode again.
  5. Enter a new passcode, then enter it again to confirm.

On iOS 27, Apple's family guide also reaches the same Manage Screen Time screen from Settings > Family: tap your child's name, then Manage Screen Time. Use whichever route your phone shows.

You need to be the family organizer, or a parent or guardian in the Family Sharing group. Apple also recommends updating every device in the group to the latest software first, so the new code syncs across them. On iOS 27, the redesigned family controls only work when every device in the group is on version 27, per Apple's Screen Time overview.

How to reset a forgotten Screen Time passcode on your own iPhone

If you set a Screen Time passcode on your own phone, maybe to keep yourself out of an app after 10pm, the reset uses your Apple Account.

  1. Open Settings and tap Screen Time.
  2. Tap Manage Screen Time.
  3. Tap Change Screen Time Passcode, then tap Change Screen Time Passcode again.
  4. If asked, enter the email address and password of the Apple Account you used to set up the Screen Time passcode.
  5. Enter a new passcode, then enter it again to confirm.

If you use Share Across Devices, Apple says the new passcode updates on your other devices automatically. The same steps work on an iPad.

If the reset does not work

The most common reason, according to Apple, is the wrong Apple Account. Recovery uses the account you entered when you set up the passcode, which might be different from the one signed in to the phone now. In a Family Sharing group, it could even be a family member's account or your child's.

So the first thing to try is every Apple Account the household has. If you have more than one yourself, use the one you entered when you set up Screen Time Passcode Recovery.

Apple is direct about the limit here. Without that Apple Account, its passcode guide says, you won't be able to remove or reset the Screen Time passcode, "and Apple won't be able to provide that information." If you are stuck, Apple's reset page links to Apple Support from its "Need more help?" section, and that is the route we would take next.

You will find plenty of other tricks online. We are not going to repeat them. Some put your data at risk, and the ones that work on a parent's code work just as well for a child who wants their limits gone, which is a good reason for us not to spread them.

How to change your Screen Time passcode

Changing a code you still know is quicker, and worth doing if you think your child has seen it. These steps follow Apple's version 27 family guide.

  1. Open Settings, tap Family, then tap your child's name.
  2. Tap Manage Screen Time.
  3. Tap Change Screen Time Passcode.
  4. Enter the current passcode, then enter and confirm a new one.

On iOS 26 and earlier, start from Settings > Screen Time and tap your child's name under Family, then follow the same steps.

The "last used" time on that screen is a quiet clue. If it shows a moment when you were nowhere near your phone or theirs, the code has probably leaked.

How to turn off the Screen Time passcode

Turning off the passcode leaves Screen Time running but removes the lock on its settings. Anyone holding the device can then change limits.

  1. Open Settings, tap Family, then tap your child's name. For your own device, go to Settings > Screen Time.
  2. Tap Manage Screen Time.
  3. Tap Change Screen Time Passcode, then tap Turn Off Screen Time Passcode.
  4. Enter the current passcode.

If you have forgotten the code, reset it first using the steps above, then turn it off.

In some countries and regions, Apple notes that certain settings for children under 18 are on by default and cannot be removed. If an option is missing on your child's account, that may be why.

How to choose a passcode you will remember (and they will not guess)

Apple's guide warns against birthdays, phone numbers and patterns like 1234. We would add anniversaries, house numbers, and the code you use for everything else, because a child who knows your phone code will try it first.

What worked for us:

  • Set up recovery the moment Apple offers it. It takes thirty seconds and turns a forgotten code from a crisis into a small chore.
  • Write it somewhere your child will not look. A password manager is ideal. A note in a kitchen drawer is not.
  • Type it with your hand over the screen. Kids learn codes by watching thumbs, and they are patient.
  • Change it if you shared it once. Read it out over the phone to your partner while the kids were in the car? Change it that evening.

When your teen asks you to turn it off

Some days the real question is whether the code should be there at all. A fifteen-year-old who has used their phone sensibly for a year has a fair case for more freedom, and a code they cannot see can start to feel like a verdict.

There is a middle step between the passcode and nothing. Sit down together and agree on which apps and hours still need limits. Our guide to reducing screen time for teens covers how to have that conversation without it turning into a negotiation over a keypad, and the pillar guide on reducing screen time without battles covers the younger years.

Unglue is built for that stage. It blocks the apps your teen chooses until they earn minutes with real-life habits, and on iPhone it uses Apple's Screen Time framework. With Selection Lock, your teen picks the list, and nothing comes off it without a Buddy Code that you hold. The parents page explains how families set it up. It is still an app on a phone, which we are aware of.

If your phone has stopped showing your child's Screen Time reports while you sort the passcode out, our 7-day fix walks through the usual causes.

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Common questions

What is the Screen Time passcode?

A four-digit code that protects Screen Time settings on an iPhone, iPad or Mac. It is separate from the code that unlocks the device, and without it nobody can change limits, blocked apps or content restrictions.

What happens if I forget my Screen Time passcode?

You can reset it with the Apple Account you used for Screen Time Passcode Recovery. For a child's device, reset it from your own device under Manage Screen Time > Change Screen Time Passcode. Without that Apple Account, Apple says you won't be able to reset or remove it.

Can I reset my child's Screen Time passcode from my phone?

Yes, and Apple says you should. If you manage your child through Family Sharing, the organizer or a parent or guardian resets the code on their own device, not the child's.

Is the Screen Time passcode the same as my iPhone passcode?

No. The unlock passcode opens the phone. The Screen Time passcode only guards Screen Time settings. Keep the two different, since a child who knows the unlock code will try it first.

How do I turn off Screen Time without the passcode?

Reset the passcode first with your Apple Account, then turn Screen Time or the passcode off with the new code. Apple does not offer a way to turn it off without the passcode or the recovery account.

Will I know if my child uses the Screen Time passcode?

Yes. When a Screen Time passcode is on for a child's device, Apple sends you a notification any time it is used on their device, and the Manage Screen Time screen shows when it was last used.

Sources

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