Start with a basic phone if calls and texts matter more than apps. Choose a supervised smartphone or a reset hand-me-down when the child needs apps and an adult can set up a separate child account and review its settings. Whichever handset you choose, treat SIM content filters and spend limits as additional controls: their coverage has connection and charge-type limits.
If the immediate aim is contact without a full smartphone app environment, a basic phone is worth considering. MoneySavingExpert identifies this route for a child who needs emergency contact but is not ready for a smartphone; check the exact handset’s online functions before choosing it.
A smartphone route suits a child who needs approved apps or other smartphone functions when an adult can manage a separate child account. Apple’s Screen Time and Google’s Family Link offer different controls, each with device and feature limitations stated by its provider.
A hand-me-down can provide smartphone functions if the handset is reset, works with the intended SIM and can support the chosen child-account setup. Check the mobile plan’s content and spending controls separately; they do not replace settings on the device or home Wi-Fi.
Decide how much access the child needs on the handset, then check account controls, connection methods and SIM settings as separate parts of the setup.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Everyday contact | Check calling and texting on the exact handset and intended SIM. MoneySavingExpert advises checking a feature phone’s actual internet and app capabilities rather than relying on its category name. | Calls and texts may be enough for now; I would rather check a basic handset than introduce apps the child does not need. |
| Smartphone controls | For an iPhone, check Apple’s child Apple Account, Family Sharing, device updates and available Screen Time controls. For Android, check the child Google Account and Family Link compatibility; Google says screen-time limits require Android 7 or later and system apps cannot have app limits. | If apps are needed, I can set up a separate child account and revisit permissions as the child’s use changes. |
| Internet connections | Check the mobile-network filter alongside device, app and home-Wi-Fi settings. EE and Vodafone say their mobile content filters do not cover Wi-Fi; O2 directs families to router or broadband settings for Wi-Fi. | My child may connect away from home, so I do not want a SIM filter to be the only control I consider. |
| Charges and purchases | Check which out-of-plan charges the SIM provider can restrict and what its cap excludes. Google says Family Link purchase approvals cover Google Play billing, not purchases through other billing systems; Vodafone lists exclusions from Spend Manager. | I want to manage mobile extras and app purchases separately rather than assume one setting covers both. |
| Reused handset | Back up the previous user’s information and factory-reset the phone, as MoneySavingExpert advises. Confirm the exact handset works with the intended SIM and can run the child-account controls you plan to use. | There is an older phone available, but I need to separate its former owner’s account and check it fits this setup before handing it over. |
| Ongoing setup | Review settings within relevant apps as well as on the device and connection. O2 advises that parental controls are not fail-safe and cannot govern what a child sees on someone else’s device. | I can check settings again when apps, software or the way the phone connects changes. |
A feature phone may still have internet or messaging functions. Its category alone does not tell you which services a child can use.
Check the exact model’s browser, messaging, apps and connectivity against the access you intend to allow.
EE and Vodafone limit their stated mobile content filters to their mobile networks; O2 also directs users to separate Wi-Fi controls. A public hotspot is not covered by the child’s mobile-network filter.
Set up the child account and relevant apps, then check controls on the mobile connection and home Wi-Fi separately.
Vodafone lists charges outside Spend Manager, and Google limits Family Link purchase approvals to transactions using Google Play billing. One control cannot be assumed to cover the other’s charges.
Read the chosen plan’s exclusions and set store-level approvals separately where available.
An account or personal information left on a hand-me-down complicates setting it up for the child.
Back up the previous user’s information, factory-reset the handset and create the child’s own account before regular use.
These device-platform and UK network examples show controls to compare; each has limits that matter to a first-phone setup.
An iPhone route for families able to use Family Sharing and a separate child Apple Account, including on a suitable hand-me-down.
An Android route built around a supervised child Google Account and Family Link.
A UK mobile-network route with Content Lock and controls for selected billable services.
A UK mobile-network route with a content bar and a separately configurable Spend Manager.
A UK network route with settings for age-restricted content on PAYG or an adult-held Pay Monthly account.
These handsets represent the basic-phone route for families considering calls and texts before smartphone apps. Check each model’s online functions and compatibility with the intended SIM; choosing a handset does not settle the separate question of network and account controls.
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Consider this feature-phone route when calls and texts are the priority. Check the exact model’s browser, apps and messaging functions, as well as network and SIM compatibility, before choosing it for a child.
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This is a feature-phone option for a calls-and-texts-first setup. Confirm its browser and app capabilities and whether this exact variant works with the intended SIM and UK network.
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For a basic-phone setup, confirm this exact variant’s browser, app and Wi-Fi capabilities before deciding how to manage online access. Check its compatibility with the intended UK network and SIM too.
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Consider this handset if the child mainly needs calls and texts. Check its exact online functions, required SIM size and compatibility with the intended UK network before ordering.
No. MoneySavingExpert notes that feature-phone capabilities vary, so check the exact handset’s browser, messaging, apps and connectivity before treating it as a calls-and-texts-only device.
Apple’s route uses Family Sharing, a separate child Apple Account and Screen Time; Google’s uses a supervised child Google Account and Family Link. Apple and Google describe different device requirements and control limits: for example, Google says Android screen-time limits require Android 7 or later, while Apple says some controls are unavailable on certain Apple devices.
Do not rely on it there. EE and Vodafone say their mobile content filters apply on their respective mobile networks rather than Wi-Fi, while O2 directs families to separate router or broadband settings for Wi-Fi. Check device and app controls as separate layers.
No. EE describes controls for selected charges subject to plan eligibility, while Vodafone lists charge types excluded from Spend Manager. Check the chosen provider’s exclusions and configure app-store purchase approvals separately; Google says Family Link approvals apply only to Google Play billing.
Controls need revisiting when apps, software or connection arrangements change. O2 says they are not fail-safe and cannot control content on someone else’s device, so discuss online use with the child as well as reviewing the relevant settings.