Apple Screen Time is great at blocking apps. It just doesn't know what your kids are supposed to be doing. taskr is the layer on top that does — it extends Apple Screen Time with chore-conditional blocks and photo proof, built on Apple Family Controls.
Feature
taskr
Apple Screen Time (alone)
Every task can trigger a Screen Time block on its due time. The block lifts when you approve a photo.
Screen Time has no concept of chores or homework. It runs only on schedules and totals.
Built into every task — kids snap a photo, parents review, and Screen Time updates instantly.
No way to verify a chore was actually finished.
Each task can target different apps. Block social during homework, allow messaging during dishes.
Limits and downtime are device-wide. Adjusting per-chore means manually editing settings every time.
Apps come back the moment a chore is approved. Kids learn cause and effect.
No reward link. Limits reset on a clock, regardless of behavior.
One screen for what's due, overdue, blocked, and waiting on your approval.
Shows weekly device usage. No task or chore context.
Yes — taskr uses Apple's approved Family Controls API.
Yes — it is Apple's framework.
Yes, iOS 16+.
Yes, all supported Apple devices.
Yes — free on the App Store.
Yes — built into iOS.
Screen Time: Set Downtime to 4–6pm and apps go dark whether the homework gets done or not. If your kid finishes early, the limit doesn't care.
taskr: Create a 'Homework' task due at 6pm. Apps stay open. If it's late, games and social lock. The moment the worksheet photo is approved, apps return.
Screen Time: There's no Screen Time setting for 'do the dishes.' You either nag or you set a blanket app limit that hits every day.
taskr: Add a 'Dishes' task due at 8pm. Block YouTube and Roblox if it's missed. Approve the photo and the apps come back.
Screen Time: You'd manually adjust limits Saturday morning, then remember to undo them.
taskr: Recurring task every Saturday at noon. Block the apps that matter. Photo proof handles the rest.
Apple Screen Time is excellent infrastructure. taskr is the missing application layer on top: a chore tracker that uses Screen Time as the enforcement mechanism. Together, they turn screen time from a clock-based limit into a behavior-based reward.
If you've ever opened Settings → Screen Time to manually flip a limit because a chore wasn't done — that's the workflow taskr automates.
No. taskr extends Apple Screen Time using Apple's Family Controls API. The blocks are still Screen Time blocks — taskr just connects them to chores instead of a clock.
Screen Time alone enforces totals and schedules. taskr adds the missing piece: a block that fires when a real-world chore is overdue and lifts when a parent approves a photo. If you're using Screen Time as a chore enforcer today, you're doing it manually — taskr automates that.
No. taskr applies its own rules through Family Controls. Your existing Screen Time downtime, communication limits, and content restrictions keep working as you set them.
Yes — most families do. Use Screen Time for blanket bedtime downtime and content filters; use taskr to make specific chores actually happen.
Free on the App Store. Works alongside the Screen Time settings you already use.