How to Turn Off Screen Time on iPhone

How do I turn Screen Time off?

Open Settings, tap Screen Time, scroll to the bottom, and tap Turn Off App & Website Activity. If a Screen Time passcode protects the settings, enter it when prompted. This is the path in Apple's current iPhone guide, retrieved 21 August 2026.

What turns off with it?

Apple says turning off App & Website Activity switches off reporting, Downtime, App Limits, and Always Allowed together. Its current guide does not state that existing history is deleted or that a later report restarts from zero. If you only want to change one control, use that control's own Screen Time page instead.

Can I turn off just one limit instead of all of it?

App Limits, Downtime, and Content & Privacy Restrictions each have their own Screen Time page. Review or remove an App Limit under App Limits. Turn Scheduled off under Downtime. Under Content & Privacy Restrictions, change only the relevant app, feature, purchase, web, or privacy setting. Apple's linked guides document those controls separately.

It's asking for a passcode I don't have — what now?

If you forgot a self-set Screen Time passcode, Apple provides a reset flow using the Apple Account linked when the code was created. A child's Screen Time may be managed through Family Sharing, while an organization may manage a supervised device. Use the matching route instead of assuming who set it.

Turning it off because it never worked?

If you are turning Screen Time off because its reversal path is too easy to reach, inspect that path directly. Apple's settings let an authorized person review or change App Limits and Downtime. A different boundary can instead change who holds the key or which action opens access.

MoveFirst puts that decision somewhere else. A verified session can be camera-counted on your phone, with video never recorded, stored, or sent; step and saved-place routes are the fixed 8,000-step target or a 30-minute saved-place dwell. A rest day taken, the single emergency unlock, or the fixed duration ending can also open the day. The duration is 2 weeks, 30 days, or 90 days and never renews on its own.