Screen time for toddlers and preschoolers: what the guidelines actually say (ages 2–6)

Few parenting topics come with as much guilt as screen time. One article says screens are harmful, the next says educational apps are wonderful. Here is what the two most-cited sources actually recommend, and what you can do with it on a normal, busy day.

The short version

• Under 18–24 months: avoid screens other than video calls with family.
• Ages 2 to 5: no more than about one hour a day of high-quality content, ideally watched together. Less is better.
• From about 6: consistent limits that protect sleep, physical activity and family time.

What the World Health Organization says

The WHO's 2019 guidelines for children under 5 look at the whole day: plenty of active play, good sleep, and less time sitting still. For 2- to 4-year-olds, sedentary screen time should be no more than one hour a day, and less is better. For 1-year-olds, sedentary screen time is not recommended at all. (WHO: To grow up healthy, children need to sit less and play more)

What paediatricians say

The American Academy of Pediatrics' statement Media and Young Minds recommends, for children aged 2 to 5:

• limiting screens to one hour a day of high-quality programmes
• watching together, and helping children understand what they see
• avoiding fast-paced programmes, apps with lots of distracting content, and violent content
• keeping meals, bedrooms and the hour before bedtime screen-free

(AAP: Media and Young Minds). The AAP's free Family Media Plan helps you write down your own family's rules.

Quality matters as much as minutes

An hour of calm, well-made content you talk about together is very different from an hour of random autoplay. Look for:

• a slow, clear pace rather than constant flashing and noise
• no ads, so your child isn't being sold to
• a natural ending instead of an endless feed
• content that connects to real life: letters, numbers, animals, songs you can sing later

Watching with your child, even for part of the time, turns watching into learning. "What colour is that bus? Can you find something red in the room?"

Practical ways to keep screen time calm

1. Decide when and where screens happen. For example, after nap time, never at meals. Predictable rules mean fewer negotiations.
2. Prefer short videos with a clear end over endless feeds.
3. Give a warning before the end: "Two more, then we stop."
4. Let a timer be the bad guy. When the app or timer says time's up, it's not you against them.
5. Keep screens out of the hour before bed. Light and excitement make falling asleep harder.
6. Lock the phone to one app so a short video doesn't turn into wandering through your phone. Here's how to lock your phone for kids.
7. Show them what you'd like to see. Children copy what we do with our own phones.

Don't aim for perfect

Some days will have more screen time: a sick day, a long journey, a deadline. That's normal. What matters is the overall pattern, with plenty of play, conversation, sleep and time outdoors around it.

Where Child Runway fits

We built Child Runway around these guidelines: calm story lessons of a few minutes with no ads, a daily time limit you set, and a gentle "time to land" screen when time is up, so the end of screen time doesn't have to be a battle.