The advancement in technologies has taken a significant toll on modern parenting. The kids are much more intelligent than their parents in terms of technology. And they are being subjected to too much age-inappropriate material, whether consciously or unconsciously.
It is safe to say technology has a two-way effect on parents. On the one hand, technology is essential to keep up in this new era and makes our life so much easier. On the other hand, it has its own set of adverse effects like online addiction, bullying, stalking, harassment, etc.
Despite all of the adverse effects of technology, it is still true that it is an absolute necessity in today’s fast-paced world. So, it is the parent’s duty to ensure that their children are entirely safe and healthy and are not hooked to any electronic devices.
Parental Control apps are a straightforward way to find out all the details about your kid’s online activities. It ensures your children’s safety and also ensures you have a complete record of their application use, screen time, chat data, and call logs.
There are so many parental controls available all over the market, but Bark and Qustodio are two of the best and most trustworthy parental controls.
Today, in this article, I’m going to take you through the comparison between Bark and Qustodio:
Features Comparison
Location Tracking
Nowadays, a parent’s primary worry is the whereabouts of their child. Growing children, especially adolescents, do not feel the need to keep their parents up to date with their locations, leading them into trouble, which is a significant concern for all parents.
Fortunately, both Bark and Qustodio are exceptional at monitoring locations. Once the app is installed on your devices, you can easily track the location of your kids.
However, Qustodio outperforms Bark in location tracking because Qustodio also supports geofencing, which Bark does not. Geofencing is like creating a virtual boundary for your child. You should add a list of locations to the geofencing list, and you will be alerted when your children enter or leave those specific areas.
Social Media Monitoring
Social media is regarded as the new and most effective way to communicate and sustain a social life. All, from children and parents and the elderly, are addicted to social media.
There are several online issues like online harassment, bullying, threats, etc. that occur due to improper social media use, so it is essential to be cautious when using social media.
Both applications provide robust and up-to-date features that help monitor social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
However, Bark is a bit ahead in social media monitoring as it tracks 30 social networking sites, including chat details, shared pictures, and videos altogether.
Web Content Filtering
The internet contains a wide range of materials like educational, adult, entertaining, and inappropriate ones. Some explicit content on the web may be particularly damaging for fragile minds. So, intelligent web filtering is essential in every parental control app.
You can manually block any platform, from sports, games, and social media to adult content, based on your child’s age and needs.
Both of these apps scan all the sites and give a detailed report about whether the sites are safe or not. It also has an in-built function that automatically blocks the content if it is not appropriate for the children’s age.
Limiting Screen Time
Another critical issue that almost every parent faces is the amount of time their children waste on their computers. Once a kid begins to use their devices or laptops, it is challenging to pull them away from it.
Excessive screen time has also been a significant problem in the child’s proper development as it causes irregular sleep, migraines, eye pain, short-sightedness, etc.
However, you no longer need to be concerned because parental controls are here to address this problem. Both Bark and Qustodio have great screen control features.
In both these apps, you will get to set a time limit for your children to access the internet in any of the applications. If they continue to use it for more than the allotted time, you will be alerted automatically.
Call and Text Monitoring:
Teenagers spend most of their time on their computers, either texting or calling their peers. To ensure that their children are not in the wrong company and will not get into any trouble, every parent must be aware of who their children are talking with.
So, to fulfill this purpose, both of these parental controls have call and text monitoring features. In this way, you will still be sure that your children are being led in the right direction and are in safe hands.
Both applications have excellent text tracking, but only Bark provides call monitoring.
Pricing Comparison
The pricing of Bark comes in two variations which are Bark and Bark Jr. The first version, Bark, costs $14 per month or $99 per annum. While the second one, Bark Jr, costs $5 per month or $49 per annum. Both these versions provide top-notch features with a good value for money.
The pricing of Qustodio has three variations that are small plan, medium plan, and extensive plan. These variations have been designed to meet the needs of different family sizes. The small plan costs $49.46 per year, the medium plan costs $87.26 per year, and the large plan costs $124.16 per year.
Pros and Cons
Pros of Qustodio
- It has three plans and protects up to 15 devices
- Can monitor both calls and texts
- Blocks all inappropriate contents
Cons of Qustodio
- Track Calls & SMS only on Android
- Limited social media tracking
Pros Of Bark
- Provides 24-hour monitoring
- Has alerts for text messages and emails
- Supports more than 30 social media platforms
Cons Of Bark
- Setting up the app can be tricky
- Lacks geofencing
Installation and Setup
Installation of Qustodio
- Go to the Qustodio website and start the download process.
- Once downloaded, double-click on the Qustodio installer.
- Click Accept and Install.
- If you don’t already have an account, enter your name, email address, and password.
- If you do have an account, then enter your Qustodio credentials and click next.
- Choose the child profile you wish to be applied on the device and click next.
- Read the instructions carefully, click next and then finish.
Installation of Bark:
- First, go to the official site of Bark. Add your credentials, and then you can download the app after the payment or use a free seven days trial.
- Go to the installation file, agree on the license term and then click on install.
- To complete the installation, restart the device.
- Opp the app and sign in to the app using your username and password.
- Then on your kid’s device, open the app, log in, and connect to your account on the bark’s interface.
- Customize all the necessary features, and the app is ready to be used.
Comparison Table
To make it any simpler, here’s a table that summarizes all of Bark and Qustodio’s main features. By consulting this table, you’ll be able to determine which features are apt for you and your family and then choose the app wisely.
| Specifications | Qustodio | Bark |
| Free version | Available | Available |
| Number of devices | 5/10/15 | Unlimited |
| Social Media Monitoring | Less than 5 | 30 platforms |
| Web Filtering | Available | Available |
| Text Monitoring | Available | Available |
| Call Monitoring | Not Available | Available |
| Geofencing | Available | Not Available |
| Price per annum | $49.46, $87.26, and $124.16 for 5, 10, and 15 devices respectively. | $49 and $99 for unlimited devices |
Final Word
As you can see, both these parental controls, Bark and Qustodio, are significantly superior to others available in the market. There are plenty of features that help to safeguard your kids from online dangers and predators.
I hope that after reading this article, you have a better understanding of both the parental controls and your choice between the two. Both the parental controls have some fantastic features like location tracking, social media monitoring, content filtering, screen time monitoring, and much more.
Both the apps are exceptional in their rights, but I prefer Bark to Qustodio. The only two reasons I think Bark is better than Qustodio are its unlimited devices facility and monitoring of 30 different social media platforms.
However, both the apps are secure, exceptional, and loaded with power-packed features.
