Looking for a Kid-Safe Phone? Bark Plans Start at $49/Month (Include Phone, Case, + Parental Controls!)

Hip2Save may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you via trusted partners and affiliate links in this post. Prices and availability are accurate as of time posted. Read our full disclosure policy here.

More Kids

Have you heard of the new Bark Phone for kids? Learn about it here and see some Bark Phone reviews!

Girl holding up a Bark Phone for kids

Parent to parent 💕 –  the Bark Phone for kids is a safe solution for your minors.

Let’s face it, keeping kids safe in a technology-driven world can be challenging! After being hesitant for quite some time over getting my preteen daughter a phone, it was Bark’s award-winning software and child-safe design that eventually led my husband and I to choose a Bark Phone for kids.

If you’re a concerned parent who wants to help protect your children from online predators or cyberbullying, keep reading to find out why I’ve trusted Bark Phone for my 11.5-year-old daughter for almost two months.

Get a Bark Phone for your kiddo! Plans start at just $49 per month!

A woman unboxing the Bark Phone For Kids

Here are the Bark parental controls and security features that impressed us most:

  • Track her location and get alerted if she isn’t where she is supposed to be
  • Monitor her activity on 30+ platforms like social media, text messages, web searches, and apps
  • Block websites and apps I don’t want her to use
  • Set app time limits and approve app downloads
  • Manage her contacts and calls so she can’t speak to anyone I don’t think is safe
  • Set remote alerts if I need to remind her of something
  • The ability to remotely lock her phone if I don’t want her using it

And, most importantly…

  • Kids can’t circumvent the parental controls or change the settings which means they don’t have the ability to delete their text messages either! 🙌🏼 – (This was a HUGE plus for me, as Bark seems to be the only competitor on the market that does this!)

Plus, Bark’s award-winning software was designed with specific parental controls that help us keep her away from content and interactions we want to restrict; I have complete control over everything she does. As a mama bear, there is nothing more important to me than doing my best to protect my child’s mental health and physical safety!

Girl showing the approved apps on her Bark phone for kids

What is a Bark Phone for kids, you ask?

The Bark Phone is a high-quality Samsung phone with Bark Premium software built-in. My daughter loves it because it doesn’t look “kiddish.” It’s not clunky and it won’t be obvious to any of her friends that this is actually a special phone used to monitor her activities. In fact, her screen is even bigger than the one on my smartphone! It’s no wonder the Bark Phone reviews all seem to be positive.

As a mom, I am really impressed with the parental controls. I can monitor her social media, text messages, web searches, and also see her location.

Plus, I have the ability to customize which parental controls I think are necessary and age-appropriate. I think that’s a really cool feature that doesn’t come with many other kid-safe devices. As she gets older, I want her to have some level of independence, so I like that I can remove the parental controls when that time comes.

woman with a white apple watch holding a samsung bark phone in her hand

The best part is that I also receive alerts on my device if my child is exposed to cyberbullying, internet predators, or harmful content. I also would be notified if she sneaks out at night (she better not try this! 🤪) or is in a location I’ve set to receive alerts for. The peace of mind I get from this feature is priceless.

The phone is super easy to control on my end.

Whenever she wants something, I get an alert just like any other app. I can approve or deny what she wants to do like adding a contact or downloading a new app. She isn’t allowed to have many social media apps, but it was simple and fast to sync the ones she does have to her new phone. I can also control her screen time which is another great feature.

The Bark Phone monitoring really works too! One day her brother was on a family iPad and she was on her Bark Phone using the Facebook messaging app for kids. They were messaging each other and jokingly said something that didn’t come across very nice (I’m not proud of that!), but the Bark Phone immediately sent me a message alerting me that possible bullying was detected. I was so surprised and impressed! 🙌

Browsing the chat messages in the Bark Phone For Kids

How much does a Bark Phone cost?

Bark Phones are really affordable and the shipping is FREE. Plans are reasonably priced, starting at just $49 a month, and along with wireless service, includes a phone with Bark software. Each phone comes with a protective case and USB charger, too. Plus, you can transfer your child’s phone number to a Bark Phone for no extra charge. There are also unlimited talk and text plans that fit a variety of needs and budgets!

Best of all, the whole family gets access to Bark Premium ($14 monthly value), an app that allows me to set my parental controls, monitor my daughter on 30+ online platforms, manage her screen time, and even see what types of photos she is taking.

Even better, there is no contract required!

Bark Phones are No–Contract, and they can be returned at any time making it a great first phone to start with. There is no commitment with fully baked-in parental controls = way less risk!

The Home Screen on a child safe smartphone

My final thought on Bark Phones.📱

I’m glad that my husband and I made the leap to allow our daughter her first phone. So far we are having a great experience. We love that she can’t download any apps, add contacts, text, make a call, or other activities without our permission.

Bark is a great stepping stone and feels like a safe way to allow my child to have a mobile device. Most kids in her class have a phone, so now she doesn’t feel left out. It also shows her that we see she is maturing and have given her a little extra responsibility. 🥰

Overall, I feel like the Bark phone for kids is pretty fantastic. If you’re a concerned parent like me, I highly recommend this kid-safe phone. I knew the time would come when my daughter would be asking for a mobile device and I’m very happy to have found a solution that makes my whole family feel comfortable.

hands holding phone with bark schedule

What if you already have devices for your kids?

If you love the idea of monitoring your child’s screen time & online interactions but aren’t looking to buy a device, you can use the Bark App on all of your current devices instead!

You can get a FREE 7-Day Trial of the Bark App to test it out first. When you are ready to sign up, use our exclusive promo code, HIP20 to save 20% off the Premium Monthly Bark App Subscription.

We’ve tested the Bark App too and you can read our full review here.

Premium Monthly Bark App Subscription
Get 20% Off with Promo Code HIP20

A girl talking on her cellphone

Check out these other Bark phone reviews…

“I have loved our bark phone for my 10 year old. Great starter phone. Establishes healthy phone habits and I can rest assured that I don’t have to hound/search her phone! It actually provides freedom for my kids.”


“It’s the most helpful tool. Bark is like the Swiss Army knife of my parenting tool box. I find a new benefit of having it constantly. It’s the most helpful tool I have in keeping my teenagers safe and helping me stay in the know with their crazy world of technology.”


“Bark is the best decision my husband and I made. We have a 15 year old and although that may sound a bit old for monitoring, it is the best thing for us and our teen because it alerts us on potentially dangerous situations and it holds her accountable for how she conducts herself online. I can’t see why anyone would discourage this. Thanks Bark!”

See our other great deals for kids –>>


About the writer:

Melinda has over 6 years of experience working in the frugal living and lifestyle online space. She has a BA in Journalism from the University of Connecticut and paid off over 50k in student loan debt with the help of couponing!


Join The Discussion

Comments 2

  1. Ana

    If you’re unsure about this follow them on Instagram first.
    This is an excellent company and they keep parents informed of what your children are talking about online and hidden apps.

    • Amber (Hip Sidekick)

      Thanks so much for the recommendation, Ana! ❤️ Good to know how helpful you’ve found them to be! 🙌

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

It's not your Grandma's coupon site!

Sign up for a Hip2Save account (it's free) to access all of the awesome features!

Forgot Password?

Don't have an account? Register

Forgot Password

Don't have an account? Register

Become a Hip2Save Insider

Don't Miss Out! Join our large community of insiders - it's totally free! Once you join, you'll be able to save & share your favorite deals, rate posts and recipes and add items to your HipList and Cookbook! What are ya waiting for?!



Already have an account? Login

Thank you for rating!

Would you also like to leave us a comment?