The easiest way to set Xbox parental controls is the free Xbox Family Settings app on your phone. It lets you set screen time, filter content and approve purchases for your child’s account on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One, without touching the console.
The Xbox Family Settings app
- Install Xbox Family Settings (Android or iPhone) and sign in with your Microsoft account.
- Create a family group, or add your child’s existing account. If they don’t have one, the app helps you create a child Microsoft account.
- On the console, make sure your child signs in with their own account. Settings follow the account, so a child using a parent’s profile has no limits.
You can also manage the same settings from the console (Settings > Account > Family settings) or from Microsoft’s family website on a laptop.
Screen-time limits
In the app, choose your child, then Screen time:
- Set hours per day of the week, such as less on school days and more at weekends or during the long December holiday.
- Set a time window, for example 4 pm to 8 pm.
- When time runs out, the child can request more and you approve or decline it from your phone.
Screen time counts while they are signed in, so remind them to sign out when they finish.
Content and purchase approvals
Content filters: pick an age, and games and apps rated above it need your approval. You can also restrict web browsing.
Multiplayer and chat: decide whether your child can play online with others and who can message or voice chat with them (friends only is a sensible start).
Purchases: turn on Ask to buy so every purchase sends you a request first. You can also add money to the child’s account and keep it separate from yours. This is the simplest way to stop credit loaded from a gift card (often bought with M-Pesa) being spent in one evening on in-game items.
Older Xbox One and 360 consoles
Xbox One: the app works the same way. To stop anyone using the console without signing in, add a passkey: Settings > Account > Sign-in, security & passkey. Then set your profile to ask for the passkey, so your child can’t sign in as you.
Xbox 360: the app does not cover it. Use the console’s own family settings: Settings > Family > Console Safety, turn family settings on and set a pass code. You can limit games by rating and set daily or weekly play time there.
Have a PlayStation in the house too? Follow our PS5 parental controls guide. For choosing a family console, see PS5 vs Xbox Series X and our beginner’s guide to gaming in Kenya.
Quick answers
Install the Xbox Family Settings app, add your child’s Microsoft account to your family group, then set screen time, content filters and Ask to buy.
Yes: Xbox Family Settings, free on Android and iPhone. It works with Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One.
Create a passkey under Settings > Account > Sign-in, security & passkey, and require it on your profile so others can’t sign in as you.
