Children can access a variety of entertainment, information and ways to connect with their friends and teachers through e-learning apps and tools more than ever. With such open access, parents are more concerned with how to keep their children safe online, and many are already using block websites with parental control software use the app to track their online activity.
While these are good options to help your kids avoid stumbling across inappropriate websites or content, one of the best ways to keep track of what your kids are doing online is to use Microsoft family.
This guide explains how to set up and use a Microsoft Family account to help your family interact more easily and securely across platforms and devices.
Table of Contents
What is a Microsoft home account?
Microsoft Family accounts help families stay connected and keep kids safer on Windows 10 PCs, Android devices running Microsoft Launcher, and Xbox One devices.
That’s one of the benefits you get if you have a Microsoft account because it’s already built into your Windows 10 and Xbox devices, so there’s no need to install software for the account to work. Plus, you can get reports on your kids’ activity, check their location, set screen time limits, manage privacy settings, and buy/spend limits. You can also set web filtering limits on the games or websites they can visit.
How to set up and manage a Microsoft family account
To set up a Microsoft Family account, you need a Microsoft account for yourself and any other adults or children who will be part of Microsoft Family.
- If you don’t have a Microsoft account, go to account.microsoft.comoption Log in and click Make one!
- Choose Get a new email address If you want to create a new email address, click Next and follow the instructions to create your account.
Once you have an account, log in and access family.microsoft.com. Click Create a family group and follow the instructions to set up a Microsoft Family account.
How to add members to your family group
Now that your Microsoft Family account is ready, you can use your PC or Xbox One to invite members to join.
Each person you invite will receive an email or message asking them to accept your invitation to join your family group.
- Sign in with your Microsoft account and click green Create a family group button as shown above
- inside Add a family member pop-up box, select Member or Organizer.
- Enter the email address or phone number of the person you’re adding and click Send Invitation. If the person is in another family group, they must first be removed from that group before joining your group or getting a new Microsoft account for your family group.
- Click Accomplished.
- If the invitee did not accept your invitation from the text or email they received, you can click Accept now next Pending member inside Notify section. This action will log you out to allow others to log in to their own account and accept the invitation.
Note: For a child, they will have to click My parents can sign in now before they can join the group. Follow the instructions to sign in for your child, select Continue and set up parental controls, such as device time limits, event scheduling, activity reporting, website filtering, etc.
How to remove members from your Microsoft family account
You can remove a member from your Microsoft Family account if you have an adult account and you’ve agreed. The member’s email will still exist, but without the limitations or benefits it has for being in the group.
- If you are removing a child, sign in with your Microsoft account and select Manage my child’s profile information.
- Click View your home settings inside Administered Windows.
- In the new window select the child and then click Remove consent for this child’s account.
- Back to your family’s page, click More options > Remove from family under the child’s name and confirm the action. Do the same to remove the adult under that person’s name.
- If you are the only adult and you want to leave the family account, remove the children first, find your name and click Leaving the family group.
Microsoft family account features
Activity Report
From your Microsoft Family account, you can receive weekly reports via email about your child’s device usage and online activity on Windows 10, Xbox One, or Android devices running Microsoft Launcher.
You can also go online on family.microsoft.com and track things like their browsing history, the games and apps they use, the websites they visit, the terms they searched for on the tool. search and amount of time using the device.
Used Time
With a Microsoft Family account, you can balance your kids’ smartphone device time with other activities, and get a breakdown of how much time they spend on their devices in throughout the week or overall on a day-to-day basis.
Content Filtering
Content filters help you set the type of content your kids can get from the websites they visit, the games they can play, and whether they need your approval before making purchases on the Microsoft Store . If your child needs an exception for certain types of content, they must send a request to you, and you can respond on a Microsoft family account or by email.
Limit apps, games, and media
This feature allows you to set age restrictions on apps, games and media so that your kids don’t use inappropriate apps or play media and games rated above their age limit, otherwise they will need your approval.
Block inappropriate websites
Protect your child from surfing adult, inappropriate content on the internet when using a web browser. After you set an age limit for content, Microsoft will automatically block many websites, and you can also whitelist or choose which ones to block. You also have the option to only allow your child access to websites that you have approved.
Manage purchases on Microsoft Store
Children tend to act impulsively when they see something they like and immediately want it. To make sure your child doesn’t make any purchases on the Microsoft Store without your consent, you can adjust spending or purchase settings on your Microsoft family account and track your habits. shopping habits, payment options and add funds to their accounts in one platform.
Find your child
When your kids use Windows 10 phones or Android devices running Microsoft Launcher (version 4.10 or later), you can see where they are at home or on the go and track them remotely. It also shows you their last known location and time, and gives you extra peace of mind knowing they’re safe and where they’re supposed to be.
Microsoft family account pros and cons
A Microsoft Family account is free, but it may be limited in terms of insights into children’s online activities. If you need more parental control software options, check out our roundup of apps that you can use to monitor your child’s Internet usage.
Advantages
- Free to use for Windows, Xbox One device users
- Configuration is managed online
- The child’s device, current location and last known location can be found
- Can schedule and set device usage time and daily limit
- Inappropriate media, websites, apps and games can be blocked based on age
Defect
- Does not support iOS devices
- Non-browser content filtering – works with Microsoft Edge and Internet Explorer
- Parents must create email accounts for children regardless of their age
Do you use a Microsoft Family account? Share your experience with us by leaving a comment in the section below.
