Visit Website See Pricing
Bark

Bark

Protecting your child online with AI-powered monitoring and controls.

#3 dans Parental Control
2 min read · Updated 11/17/2025
Bark homepage screenshot

At a glance

Quick overview for Bark: rating, pricing summary, key features, and highlights.

Ciroapp review

4.5
Comprehensive AI Safety For Modern Families

We find Bark offers an essential, modern solution for digital parenting, leveraging advanced AI to monitor threats without excessive surveillance. The platform provides comprehensive coverage across various devices and social media platforms, including tamper-proof device options. Overall, Bark delivers robust protection and specific, actionable guidance for handling complex online safety issues.

Pros

  • Pro:AI monitors 30+ social media platforms for severe issues like self-harm and bullying.
  • Pro:System focuses only on potential threats, preserving a child's general privacy.
  • Pro:Comprehensive controls cover screen time management, app blocking, and GPS location tracking.
  • Pro:Specialized options like the Bark Phone offer tamper-proof, built-in controls for a first device.

Cons

  • Con:Users have noted some complexity or inconsistency with the mobile app's user interface.
  • Con:The varied product line (App, Phone, Watch, Home) creates a complex overall pricing structure.
  • Con:The mandatory free trial registration requires a credit card and auto-enrolls into a paid subscription.
Free trial
Yes — 7 days
Range: $49–$99/yearFree trial, Monthly subscription, Yearly subscription, One-time payment
This section is a summary. Detailed sections about features, use cases, pricing, and reviews follow below.
Visit WebsiteSee Pricing
Read full review

Bark review, pricing, features, pros & cons

Parents often worry about what their children encounter online. Threats like cyberbullying, self-harm risks, and inappropriate content are very real, and monitoring every conversation is impossible. Bark uses advanced AI to continuously monitor your child's online world, giving you peace of mind and timely alerts.

This helps you address potential dangers quickly and effectively. ✨

What is Bark?

Bark offers a comprehensive suite of digital safety tools designed for modern families. The system provides monitoring and parental controls across various device types, including phones, tablets, and home internet networks. Whether you need an optimized safety phone or just the software for existing devices, Bark offers solutions tailored to your needs.

Their robust systems actively scan texts, emails, web browsers, and over 30 social media apps for concerning content. They have already covered 7.4 million children, indicating a strong commitment to digital protection. ✅

Bark Key Features

✨ Advanced AI Monitoring Across 30+ Platforms

Protecting your child starts with visibility into their complex digital world. Bark uses advanced artificial intelligence to continuously monitor communication across a wide range of devices. This system scans texts, emails, web browsers, and over 30 social media apps for content that might be concerning.

Our AI focuses on critical issues, detecting threats in 29 specific behavior categories. This includes serious dangers like cyberbullying, self-harm risks, and pornography. When a potential issue is found, Bark immediately sends you a timely alert, helping you address problems quickly and effectively. You can also customize alert sensitivity, ensuring you only receive notifications about the risks that matter most to your family.

✨ Creating Healthy Screen Time Boundaries

You can easily manage your child’s device usage and establish balanced digital habits. Bark allows you to set custom schedules for when certain apps can be used, such as limiting social media during school hours.

Need a quick break from technology? You have the option to pause internet access for all connected devices at any time. This powerful control system lets you create consistent screen time limits that fit your family’s specific needs, encouraging focus and rest.

✨ Comprehensive Website and App Blocking

Keep inappropriate content away from your children with powerful filtering tools. Bark lets you decide exactly which applications and websites your child can access, easily blocking specific unwanted destinations. Our robust web filter works by blocking whole categories of content, not just individual sites.

For families with devices like smart TVs or gaming consoles, the Bark Home device extends these controls. It plugs into your router, allowing you to set screen time schedules and filter content across everything connected to your home Wi-Fi network.

🧭 Location Tracking for Peace of Mind

Worry less when your children are exploring away from home thanks to integrated location features. Bark uses live GPS tracking to show you your child's whereabouts on a real-time map.

This feature also allows for location-based alerts, notifying you when your child arrives at or leaves certain places. You can also use the check-in feature, giving them an easy way to confirm they are safe upon arrival. Location tracking is included with the Bark App, Bark Watch, and Bark Phone.

✨ Tamper-Proof Controls and Device Exclusives

The Bark Phone and Bark Watch ensure that the safety settings you implement cannot be easily disabled. These dedicated devices use built-in, non-removable software, guaranteeing that your controls stay active. This design prevents children from deleting the software or bypassing established rules.

The Bark Phone includes several exclusive features that provide deeper control. These are helpful for managing accountability and ensuring safer communication early on.

Use Cases

🛡️ Comprehensive Protection Against Hidden Threats

It's impossible to monitor every text or social media interaction your child has. Bark's advanced AI solves this by continuously scanning over 30 popular platforms for concerning content. This includes checking texts, images, videos, and comments for issues like self-harm, cyberbullying, pornography, or drug references.

You gain peace of mind because you only receive an alert when a real potential danger is found. Bark filters out average noise, allowing you and your child to maintain privacy while ensuring serious risks are never missed.

⏳ Establishing Healthy Screen Time Boundaries

Managing how often your child uses their device can be a continuous struggle. Bark simplifies this by allowing you to set customized rules that fit your family’s routine. You can build specific schedules, ensuring apps or social media are unavailable during school hours or bedtime.

Should you need an immediate device break, the ability to pause the internet instantly across all controlled devices is available. This helps you enforce boundaries easily and consistently.

🏠 Gaining Control Over The Home Internet

Standard parental controls often only apply to phones and tablets. However, devices like gaming consoles, smart TVs, and desktop computers connect through your central home network. If you use Bark Home, you extend your controls to these devices.

Process Flow:

  1. Connect the Bark Home device to your router.
  2. Assign connected devices (like a Nintendo Switch) to your desired profile.
  3. Apply screen time limits and content filters to ensure safe, scheduled use for the whole family. Expected outcome: You manage all internet-connected devices, not just mobile ones.

💡 Intervening with Expert Guidance

When Bark detects a serious issue, you receive more than just a notification. The system sends a personalized report regarding the specific content. Crucially, this report includes expert recommendations on how to approach the sensitive situation with your child.

This actionable guidance helps you move past the initial shock and start a productive, supportive conversation immediately. It ensures you have the tools to help your child safely, especially concerning complex issues like anxiety or bullying.

🔒 Ensuring Tamper-Proof Safety with the Bark Phone

The biggest fear is that your child will simply disable the safety software you install. When you choose the Bark Phone, the monitoring and controls are non-removable and built into the device itself. This dedicated hardware solution ensures the settings remain effective.

Exclusive features include preventing text message deletion and requiring contact approvals before new numbers can communicate with the phone. This integrated solution provides maximum peace of mind because the controls cannot be bypassed by your child.

📍 Tracking and Monitoring Location

Worry less when your child is away from home. Every Bark application includes robust location tracking features. You can view their whereabouts using live GPS tracking whenever you need to check in on them.

Additionally, you can receive location-based alerts directly to your phone. Use the check-in feature so they can instantly let you know they have arrived safely at their destination.

Pricing Overview for Bark

Pricing range
$49–$99/year
Pricing types
Free trial, Monthly subscription, Yearly subscription, One-time payment

Bark offers core parental control app subscriptions starting at $5 per month or $49 annually, which covers unlimited devices and children. Specialized hardware products like the Bark Phone and Bark Watch are also available, bundling the device, service plan, and monitoring features into a single monthly cost.

Plans & Pricing

Bark Jr

Monthly$5
Yearly$49
Standard parental controls and location tracking only; lacks comprehensive content monitoring across social media.
  • Gain control over screen time
  • Block unwanted websites and apps
  • Filter inappropriate content
  • Track your child's whereabouts with live GPS, location alerts, and check-in features
  • Covers every child and device in the family
Try for free

Bark Premium

Monthly$14
Yearly$99
No limits mentioned on accounts or devices.
  • Monitor and receive alerts for social media, phones, tablets, and computers
  • Manage screen time
  • Block specific websites and apps
  • Track location
  • Alerts for potential dangers (Parent’s top choice for comprehensive coverage)
  • Covers every child and device in the family
Try for free

Bark costs between $49 and $99 per year, offering two main app subscription plans: Bark Jr at $49/year and Bark Premium at $99/year. Bark also offers devices like the Bark Watch and Bark Phone in device installment plans.

You can protect your family with Bark's powerful monitoring and parental controls through several options tailored to your needs. Note that the prices listed below for the App plans reflect the software subscription cost only.

Bark Jr

Price: $5/month or $49/year Websites Supported: Unlimited devices & accounts Best For: Families focused on basic control and location tracking Refund Policy: Not explicitly stated Other Features:

  • Gain control over screen time
  • Block unwanted websites and apps
  • Filter inappropriate content
  • Track your child's whereabouts with live GPS

Bark Jr provides essential controls and location features for budget-conscious families or those with younger children. It's a great choice if you primarily need to manage screen access and know where your kids are located.

Bark Premium

Price: $14/month or $99/year Websites Supported: Unlimited devices & accounts Best For: Families needing comprehensive social media and app monitoring Refund Policy: Not explicitly stated Other Features:

  • Monitor and receive alerts for social media, phones, tablets, and computers
  • Manage screen time effectively
  • Block specific websites and apps
  • Location tracking
  • Alerts for potential dangers

Bark Premium offers complete coverage, making it the top choice for parents who want deep insights into their child's online world. This plan monitors content across dozens of platforms, giving you peace of mind about complex online safety issues.

Bark Watch

Price: $7/month for 24 months + $15/month service = $22/month total Websites Supported: Unlimited devices & accounts (monitoring) Best For: Younger kids who need tracking and basic communication without a smartphone Refund Policy: Not explicitly stated Other Features:

  • No games, browsers, or social media allowed
  • Location tracking and alerts
  • Text, photo, and video monitoring
  • Remote alarms; contact management

The Bark Watch provides a safe, simple introduction to a connected device, focusing purely on safety and communication. It's built for parents who want maximum control and tamper-proof settings for their child.

Bark Home

Price: Starts at $6/month or $79 one-time purchase Websites Supported: Unlimited devices & accounts (at home) Best For: Managing internet access and screen time on devices like smart TVs and gaming consoles Refund Policy: Not explicitly stated Other Features:

  • Powerful website and app blocking
  • Custom screen time schedules
  • Filters for inappropriate content
  • Works with smart TVs, gaming consoles, and tablets

If you need parental controls for devices that connect to your home Wi-Fi—beyond just phones—the Bark Home is your solution. It plugs into your router to manage connected devices and set limits for the whole family.

A 7-day free trial is available for both the Bark Jr and Bark Premium app subscriptions, so you can test which fit is best for your family. Since money-back guarantees are not explicitly stated, we recommend reviewing cancellation policies before purchasing a monthly or annual plan.

User Reviews

Bark receives generally positive feedback, especially concerning its effectiveness in digital safety. Users frequently praise the AI monitoring system, noting that it provides helpful alerts only when concerning content is detected.

This strikes a crucial balance between essential protection and maintaining a child's privacy. Many families feel safer using the service, often highlighting the reliability of location tracking and comprehensive screen time scheduling features.

Products like the specialized Bark Phone and Bark Watch are considered "game-changers" and excellent first devices for children. However, some users reported initial friction concerning the user interface of the mobile app and complexities when canceling a free trial.

Early complaints about the Bark Watch’s spotty GPS and initial poor battery life have been largely resolved through recent software updates ⚙️, indicating the company actively addresses user feedback. Overall, the sentiment across reviews is that Bark delivers essential peace of mind and robust controls across multiple devices and platforms.

What users say elsewhere

Alex T.
· Trustpilot
5.0 / 5

The Bark Phone is excellent security. It’s better than the parental controls on a standard iPhone. Bark has truly saved my teenager’s life three or four times by alerting us to severe dangers. You get to monitor everything that matters, which provides essential peace of mind.

Mark V.
· Trustpilot
5.0 / 5

I’m a cybersecurity engineer, and I'm genuinely impressed with the Bark phone and watch. Their robust firewalling and smart alerting systems are excellent. I can easily scale usage and notification settings for my kids of different ages, which is incredibly valuable and versatile.

No reviews yet.

Write a Review

Write a Review for Bark
0/100 characters
0/2000 characters

Why use Bark?

Choosing a digital safety partner today means finding a reliable system that empowers you without invading privacy. Bark stands out because it uses advanced AI to protect your children across dozens of platforms. The primary goal is providing specific, actionable insights, focusing on threats rather than every single detail of their communications. This focused approach fosters trust while maintaining essential boundaries.

Here is why countless families trust Bark for their children's protection:

  • Advanced AI Monitoring: Bark scans texts, 30+ social media apps, images, video, and audio for deep threats like self-harm or cyberbullying. Their AI looks for issues across 29 behavior categories, and you can customize alert sensitivity.
  • Proven Results: The platform boasts impressive metrics, having detected 4.4 million self-harm risks and 7.2 million severe bullying incidents across its monitored user base.
  • Actionable Guidance: When a threat is found, you immediately receive a personalized report, complete with expert recommendations on how to handle that sensitive situation.
  • Comprehensive Controls: Easily manage screen time by creating custom schedules for app use or pausing internet access entirely. Blocking inappropriate websites and filtering content is simple and efficient.
  • Tamper-Proof Solutions: Devices like the Bark Phone include built-in, non-removable software. This ensures that the controls and settings you implement remain effective and cannot be disabled by your child. 💡
  • Location Tracking: Worry less when your child is away from home using live GPS tracking, location-based alerts, and check-in features.

Ready to transform your workflow with Bark?

Try it nowView pricing

Frequently Asked Questions

Does one Bark App subscription cover my whole family and all our devices?

Yes, absolutely. Both Bark App plans, Jr and Premium, cover every child and device in your household. There is no stated limit on the number of accounts, devices, or kids you can protect under one subscription.

How do I take advantage of the free trial period?

You can try both the Bark Premium and Bark Jr app subscriptions with a 7-day free trial. This allows you to fully test the monitoring and parental control features before you commit to a monthly or annual paid plan.

What is Bark’s refund or cancellation policy for the app subscription?

Not explicitly stated on the official site. We highly recommend reviewing the full terms of service regarding cancellation and refund options before purchasing any monthly or annual plans.

Which languages does the AI monitoring system support?

Bark’s algorithms are specifically trained to identify potential threats in English, Spanish, and Afrikaans. They are working hard to expand this language support in the near future.

Does the monthly Bark Phone plan include the software subscription cost?

Yes, it does. All Bark Phone plans include a full Bark Premium subscription for the entire family. You do not need to buy the app subscription separately.

If I choose the unlimited data plan for the Bark Phone, are there any usage caps?

The unlimited plan includes high-speed data only up to 35GB per month. After reaching 35GB, data speeds will be reduced, and they may be restricted further if usage exceeds 50GB in a billing cycle.

How complicated is it to monitor my child’s data on an existing Apple iPhone (iOS)?

Monitoring iOS devices requires installing the Bark Kids app on the child's device, plus a desktop application on a Mac or Windows computer. Alternatively, you can use the Bark Home device instead of the desktop computer for monitoring.

Where is the Bark App currently available for use?

The Bark App is accessible to customers in the United States, including its territories, South Africa, and Australia. Bark looks forward to bringing its services to more global regions soon.

Can I purchase the specialized Bark Phone or Bark Watch devices internationally?

No, the Bark Phone and the Bark Watch devices are currently only made available for sale to families located within the U.S. only.

How does Bark keep my child’s activity data secure and private?

Security is extremely important at Bark. Their website uses SSL encryption, and all the analyzed activity data is safely stored within an encrypted database.

What kinds of devices can the Bark Home product manage in my house?

The Bark Home plugs into your router and controls internet use on many Wi-Fi devices. This includes smart TVs, computers, tablets, and common gaming consoles like Xbox and PlayStation.

How is the Bark Phone different from simply using the Bark App on an existing device?

Because the Bark software is built-in, it’s completely tamper-proof and cannot be deleted by the child. The phone also offers exclusive features like contact approvals, app install approvals, and remote alarms.

Ready to try Bark? Check out the official site or pricing.
Visit Website See Pricing