Questions parents ask about Earnest

Yes, Earnest is free during early access. Long-term pricing is not finalized yet, and we have committed to no ads and no selling your data. If we introduce paid plans later, we will be upfront about what they include.

Earnest is Android first. It runs on Android phones and tablets today. There is no iOS version yet, so it does not work on iPhone or iPad at this time. If that changes, we will say so on the roadmap.

Earnest supports Android 8.0 and newer. It is built and tested on current Android, and some background and enforcement behavior depends on how your specific phone maker handles apps.

Earnest is in early access now and being built in the open. It is version 0.1.0 and is not yet on the Google Play Store. Join the early-access list and we will tell you the moment the first release is ready to install.

A parent writes quests such as reading, homework, or a chore, each worth minutes, coins, or both. The kid marks a quest done, the parent approves it with a PIN, and the earned minutes land in the Time Bank. The kid then spends minutes to open the reward apps the parent chose.

They are two currencies earned the same way, by finishing quests. Minutes buy screen time and unlock reward apps. Coins buy real-world rewards a parent sets up, such as a movie night or ice cream. Kids can save coins and cash them in later.

No. Earnest needs no account, email, or password. There is no profile to create for your child. Everything runs on the device, and you can use it fully offline.

You can set bedtime and school windows. During those windows Earnest locks the reward apps, with an easy parent override for the moments when you need it. The bedtime lock is part of the enforcement work on our roadmap toward the first release.

Yes. Each child has their own quests, time bank, coins, and progress, with an age-tiered interface for younger and older kids. Deeper multi-kid management is one of the items we are still polishing toward launch.

It depends on the mode. Basic mode works on any non-rooted phone with no special setup: it locks the screen at bedtime and bounces a kid out of a locked app back to the home screen. Truly blocking an uninstall and enforcing a system-wide app allowlist needs an optional Max protection mode that uses Device Owner. We are honest that this is the ceiling every non-enterprise parental app hits.

No. Earnest never requires rooting. Basic mode works on a normal phone. The optional Max protection mode uses Android Device Owner, which is set up through a factory-reset provisioning flow, not by rooting the device.

Usage access lets Earnest see which app is open so it can count time accurately. The accessibility service detects when a locked app opens and returns to the home screen. Earnest uses these only for enforcement and does not read your screen content. The security page explains each permission in plain terms.

No. The Earnest app collects nothing. It stores quests, balances, and settings on the device, and the build ships with no networking libraries, so it has no way to send your data anywhere. There are no ads and no trackers inside the app.

The website is separate from the app and does use analytics, Google Analytics 4 with consent denied by default and cookieless Clicky, plus a waitlist and contact form. We disclose all of that on the privacy page. The app itself still collects nothing.

Earnest is designed for kids roughly ages five to thirteen, with two interface tiers: a simpler, more playful one for younger kids around five to eight, and a more detailed one for older kids around nine to thirteen.