To reset a forgotten Screen Time passcode, open Settings, tap Screen Time, tap Change Screen Time Passcode twice, then tap Forgot Passcode? and enter the email and password of the Apple Account used when the passcode was set. For a child’s iPhone in Family Sharing, the Family organizer does it from their own device.
If no recovery Apple Account was added when the passcode was created, there is no reset. The only way out is to erase the iPhone and set it up as new, without restoring the full backup.
Which reset applies to your situation?
Who set the passcode, and with which Apple Account, decides everything. Find your row before you touch any setting.
| Your situation | How it resets | What you need |
|---|---|---|
| You set the code on your own iPhone and added a recovery Apple Account | In Settings, on that iPhone, through Forgot Passcode? | That Apple Account’s email and password |
| It is a child’s iPhone managed with Family Sharing | From the Family organizer’s device, not the child’s | The organizer’s iPhone or iPad |
| Someone else set the code on your iPhone with their own Apple Account | Same steps as your own iPhone | That person, or their Apple Account password |
| No recovery Apple Account was added, or nobody remembers which one | No reset exists | Erasing the iPhone and setting it up as new |
How do you reset the Screen Time passcode on your own iPhone?
On the iPhone itself, with the Apple Account that was entered as Screen Time Passcode Recovery when the code was created.
- Open Settings, then tap Screen Time.
- Tap Change Screen Time Passcode, then tap Change Screen Time Passcode again.
- When the keypad asks for the current code, tap Forgot Passcode?
- Enter the email address and password of the Apple Account used to set up the passcode.
- Enter a new four-digit passcode, then enter it again to confirm.
If Share Across Devices is turned on, Apple updates the new passcode automatically on the other devices that share your Screen Time settings, so you only do this once.
How do you reset a child’s Screen Time passcode?
From your own device, as Family organizer. Apple is explicit that the reset happens on the organizer’s device, not on the child’s.
- On your device, open Settings, then tap Screen Time.
- Scroll down and choose your child’s name under Family.
- Under Restrictions, tap Manage Screen Time.
- Tap Change Screen Time Passcode, then tap it again.
- Enter a new passcode, then enter it again to confirm.
Once a passcode is set, Apple notifies the organizer each time it is used on the child’s device. A notification you did not trigger means the code is known: reset it the same way.
Why won’t your Apple Account reset the passcode?
Almost always because it is the wrong Apple Account. The reset only accepts the account entered as recovery, and Apple warns that it may not be the one signed in on the iPhone.
- If you have several Apple Accounts, only the one entered at setup works.
- In a Family Sharing group, it can be a family member’s account, or even your child’s.
- If you know the account but not its password, recover the password first through Apple’s Apple Account password page, then come back to Screen Time.
- If no Apple Account is requested and no Forgot Passcode? link appears, the passcode was most likely created without recovery. Skip to the next section.
Guessing is not a plan. A four-digit code has 10,000 combinations, and iOS makes you wait between attempts once the wrong entries pile up: the delay starts after about five failures and reaches roughly an hour after ten, according to the guides from Setapp and Jellies. Unlike the iPhone’s unlock passcode, failed Screen Time attempts do not erase the device.
What if no Apple Account can reset the passcode?
Then it cannot be reset. Apple states that without the recovery Apple Account you won’t be able to remove or reset the passcode, and that Apple won’t be able to provide that information. What remains is erasing the iPhone.
- Make sure what matters is in iCloud or on a computer: photos, contacts, messages, files.
- Open Settings, tap General, then Transfer or Reset iPhone.
- Tap Erase All Content and Settings, enter your iPhone passcode or Apple Account password if asked, then tap Continue.
- During setup, set the iPhone up as new. Do not restore the full backup.
The last step is the one people skip. Apple’s own support text said it plainly, as quoted in the Apple Community: restoring your device from a backup won’t remove your passcode. A backup made while the code was active brings it straight back. Recover your photos, contacts and messages through iCloud instead of restoring everything at once.
Does a Screen Time passcode you set on yourself actually stop you?
Not if your own Apple Account is the recovery account. Anyone who knows that password can replace the code with the steps above, and that includes you, late in the evening, with the limit screen in front of you.
Apple’s support pages introduce the passcode as a way to keep the settings you choose for your child’s device in place. The child does not hold the parent’s Apple Account. When you set the code on yourself, you hold both the lock and the spare key. The fix is to change who holds the key:
| Who knows the code | Recovery Apple Account | What it really stops |
|---|---|---|
| You | Yours | An absent-minded tap. Not a decision to reset the code. |
| Someone you trust | Theirs | You, until you ask them. Having to ask is the friction. |
| Nobody: a random code, never written down | None | You, and every way back except erasing the iPhone. |
The middle row is the only setup that holds against yourself without putting your data at risk. The recovery step accepts an account other than the one signed in on your iPhone, which is exactly what makes it possible.
What does a setup that holds look like in practice?
Say the problem is social apps in the evening, and a friend has agreed to help. The setup takes one conversation and five steps.
- Create an App Limit on the Social category, for example 30 minutes a day.
- Hand your iPhone to your friend: Settings → Screen Time → Lock Screen Time Settings. They enter a four-digit code twice, without you watching.
- When iOS asks for Screen Time Passcode Recovery, they enter their Apple Account, not yours.
- They turn on Block at End of Limit for that limit. The toggle only appears once a passcode exists.
- You get your phone back, and your friend keeps the code.
From then on, minute 31 ends with a locked app and no extension button. Going further means sending a message to a person, and resetting the code means that person typing their own password. Pick someone you will still be able to reach in a year: if they lose track of the account, you are back to the erase route. Our guide to blocking apps on iPhone explains why a limit without Block at End of Limit stays negotiable.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Screen Time passcode the same as the iPhone passcode?
No. The Screen Time passcode protects Screen Time settings, limits and restrictions, and is separate from the code that unlocks the iPhone. Keep them different: a Screen Time code identical to your unlock code is known to anyone who has watched you unlock your phone.
Can Apple Support tell me my Screen Time passcode?
No. Apple states that without the Apple Account used for Screen Time Passcode Recovery, you won’t be able to remove or reset the passcode, and Apple won’t be able to provide that information.
Does restoring a backup remove the Screen Time passcode?
No. Apple’s support text has said that restoring from a backup won’t remove the passcode. To get rid of it without the recovery account, erase the iPhone and set it up as new.
Do too many wrong guesses erase the iPhone?
No. Wrong Screen Time codes add a waiting time between attempts, which reaches about an hour after ten failures according to Setapp and Jellies. It is the iPhone’s unlock passcode that can lead to an erase, not the Screen Time one.
Can someone else’s Apple Account be the recovery account on my iPhone?
Yes. Apple notes that the account used to set up the passcode might be different from the one signed in on the device, including a family member’s. That is what makes a code held by someone you trust work against your own impulses.
What to do next
Three things worth keeping. The reset only works with the Apple Account entered as recovery, so check today which one it is. Never restore a full backup to get rid of a passcode; set the iPhone up as new. And a code you can reset yourself is a pause, not a lock.
If you would rather not hand your phone’s key to someone else, that is the case Relock was built for: rules you decide while calm, a pause before a restricted app opens, a strict mode that cannot be stopped before the rule ends, and an emergency unlock that costs you your rules instead of an erased iPhone. Like every blocker on iOS, it only enforces while you grant it Screen Time access. It is available now on the App Store.
Download on theApp StoreSources
- Apple, If you forgot the Screen Time passcode for an iPhone or iPad, for both reset procedures, Share Across Devices and the Apple Account that may differ.
- Apple, How to set a Screen Time passcode on an iPhone or iPad, for Screen Time Passcode Recovery and what happens without it.
- Apple, Erase iPhone, for the erase steps.
- Apple Community, What if I forgot my screen time passcode?, quoting Apple’s support text on backups.
- Setapp, How to reset forgotten Screen Time passcode, for the Forgot Passcode? path and the delays after failed attempts.
- Jellies, Forgot Screen Time passcode? Here’s how to reset it, for failed attempts not erasing the iPhone and restored backups bringing the passcode back.