Screen time
Android's Digital Wellbeing: how to use it well, and why it isn't enough
Digital Wellbeing is already on your Android phone, free, with nothing to install. It measures your screen time, limits apps and turns the screen grey in the evening. It's a good starting point. Here is how to get the most out of it, and why it often ends up not being enough.
Where to find it
In Android's settings, open Digital Wellbeing & parental controls. On some phones, the section is simply called Digital Wellbeing.
The four tools to know
The dashboard
It shows your screen time per day and per app, and the number of unlocks and notifications. Look at it for a week without changing anything: it's often a shock, and that's useful, because we badly misjudge our own screen time.
App timers
From the dashboard, tap an app and give it a daily limit. Once the time is up, its icon turns grey and the app is paused until midnight.
Focus mode
It pauses the distracting apps you choose, on demand or on a schedule. Handy for working or studying.
Bedtime mode
At the times you choose, it can switch the screen to grayscale, silence notifications and dim the wallpaper. It's one of the best settings for using your phone less in the evening.
Its limits
- Everything switches off in a few taps. A timer that's run out can be removed or extended from the settings, and Focus mode turns off with one tap. At the moment the urge is strongest, the barrier is weakest.
- Nothing changes inside the apps. Instagram keeps its Reels, YouTube its Shorts: the timer cuts everything off at once, without removing what makes you overspend.
- The home screen stays the same. The icons are still there, within thumb's reach, and that's where everything starts.
Going further
Keep Digital Wellbeing for measuring, and add what it lacks: a pause before compulsive apps, a time decided before you go in, fewer Reels and Shorts, modes that can't be switched off with one gesture. That's what Livetime does, from the home screen. To compare it with the other options, read the comparison of solutions.
Frequently asked questions
Is Digital Wellbeing available on every Android phone?
On most recent phones, yes, sometimes under another name or with extra features depending on the brand. Search for “wellbeing” in the settings.
Does Livetime replace Digital Wellbeing?
It complements it. Livetime also measures your screen time, counting only the time spent on the apps you consider distracting, and acts before each app opens.
Written by Emile Clement, a student and the creator of Livetime, after two years of testing almost every screen-time solution out there.
