How to stop in-app purchases on your child's phone

Most surprise charges from kids' games are not sneaky. A child taps a shiny button, the phone already knows the card, and the purchase goes through in a second. The fix is not to watch every tap. It's to make the phone ask you first.

iPhone and iPad

Apple puts purchase controls inside Screen Time. If you've never used it, turning it on takes a minute and doesn't change anything else by itself.

1. Open Settings and tap Screen Time. Turn it on if it's off.
2. Set a Screen Time passcode that your child doesn't know. Without it, the settings below can simply be switched back.
3. Tap Apps & Websites, then App Store. On older versions of iOS this lives under Content & Privacy Restrictions → iTunes & App Store Purchases.
4. Tap In-app Purchases and choose Blocked (older versions say Don't Allow).
5. On the same screen you can also require a password for every App Store purchase, which helps if you sometimes want to allow one.

With in-app purchases blocked, games still open and play normally. The store simply refuses to sell anything until you change the setting.

If your child has their own iPhone or iPad

For a child's own device, Family Sharing with Ask to Buy is usually better than blocking everything. Every time your child tries to buy or download something, a request appears on your phone and you approve or decline it. You don't have to be in the same room, and you stay in charge of every charge.

Set it up from your own phone: Settings → Family (on older versions, Settings → [your name] → Family Sharing), add or create your child's Apple Account, and turn on Ask to Buy for them.

Android phones and tablets

On Android, purchases go through the Google Play app, and that's where the control is.

1. Open the Google Play app and tap your profile picture in the top right.
2. Tap Payments & subscriptions, then Purchase verification.
3. Set Verification frequency to Always (or "for all purchases" on some phones).
4. If you see Verification requirement, choose All payment methods.
5. Confirm with your Google password.

One catch that surprises many parents: if biometric verification is on, any fingerprint or face saved on the phone can approve a purchase. If your child's fingerprint is registered to unlock the tablet, they can approve purchases too. Either turn biometric verification off in the same menu or remove their fingerprint.

Good to know: Google Play always asks for verification before an in-app purchase in apps designed for children aged 12 and under, whatever your settings. Setting it for everything also covers the games outside the kids' section.

If your child has their own Android device

Google Family Link is the Android counterpart of Ask to Buy. With your child's Google Account managed through Family Link, you can require your approval for purchases and downloads from your own phone, along with screen time limits and app approvals.

Two small habits that help

• Don't leave a card saved on a shared tablet. A gift card balance caps what can ever be spent.
• Check receipts. Apple and Google email a receipt for every purchase. A filter that sends them to a folder you actually read makes surprises rare.

What if something was already bought?

Payments go through Apple or Google, so refunds do too. The developer of the game can't refund a store purchase directly.

• iPhone and iPad: go to reportaproblem.apple.com, sign in, find the purchase and choose "Request a refund". Pick the reason that fits, such as a purchase made by a child.
• Android: on play.google.com, open Payments & subscriptions → Budget & history, find the order and request a refund. Google handles requests faster when you ask soon after the purchase.

Then set up the controls above so it doesn't happen again.

What to look for in the game itself

Settings are your safety net, but a well-made kids' game shouldn't rely on them. Look for games that put a grown-up check (often a simple question a young child can't answer) in front of every purchase, show prices clearly, and don't use countdown timers or "only today" offers to rush a decision.

That's how Tibblo works: every coin pack sits behind a grown-up check, there are no timers or lives to refill, and nothing in the game needs to be bought to keep playing. Our parents' guide covers the details.