Set a bedtime or screen time limit on Android TV
By The TameTV team · Updated November 3, 2026
On Google TV, you can set a screen time limit and a bedtime in a kids profile, on the TV itself, if kids profiles are available where you live. Plain Android TV has no built-in screen time limit at all. The closest thing is a sleep timer, which turns the TV off once and doesn't stop anyone turning it back on.
If every evening ends in an argument about switching the TV off, a limit the TV enforces on its own takes you out of the role of the bad guy. Here's what each option does today and where it leaves gaps.
Android TV screen time limit options today
Which option you have depends on whether your TV runs Google TV or plain Android TV. Chromecast with Google TV, the Google TV Streamer and Google TV sets from Hisense, Philips, Sony and TCL run Google TV. The Mi TV Stick and older Android TV sets from Xiaomi, TCL, Hisense and Philips run plain Android TV.
Google TV: a daily limit and bedtime in a kids profile
A Google TV kids profile has the only built-in daily limit and bedtime. These are set on the TV only. Google's Family Link help says they can't be set through Family Link on your phone.
- Add a kids profile if you don't have one yet. If the option is missing, see why a Google TV kids profile isn't available.
- Open the kid's profile settings on the TV. The exact menu names vary by device and software version. Google's help page for kids profiles has the current path.
- Set a daily screen time limit. Choose the days it applies to, then pick a limit from 15 minutes to 8 hours, in 15-minute steps.
- Set bedtime. Pick a start time and an end time, in 30-minute steps, and the days it applies to.
- Choose the apps that appear in the profile.
Here's what your kid will see. As the limit gets close, the TV shows three countdown warnings, then a "Time is up" screen. If you want to give a bit more, bonus time needs your PIN or password. Leaving the kids profile also needs your PIN or password, which Google calls kids lock, so switching to an adult profile isn't a way around the limit.
TCL and Sony: a sleep timer
If your TV has no kids profile, a sleep timer is the nearest thing to bedtime mode.
On TCL Google TV sets:
- Open Settings → System → Sleep timer.
- Pick how long until the TV turns off.
The countdown runs once. Tomorrow you set it again.
On Sony TVs, look in the power settings for an option to turn the TV off after a set time, and for idle shut-off. Names and menus vary by model and year.
A sleep timer turns the TV off. It doesn't keep it off. A kid can press the power button and carry on.
TCL's Settings → System → Parental Controls menu doesn't help with time either. It covers channel lock, broadcast ratings, inputs lock, TV buttons lock, channel-scan lock and maximum volume. It doesn't lock apps, and the sleep timer is the only time setting.
Plain Android TV: almost nothing
Plain Android TV has no screen time schedule in the system. The restricted profile, where your model has one, is an allow-list of apps with no time limits. Your best option is the sleep timer, if your TV has one. Check your TV's settings.
YouTube's own timers
The YouTube Kids timer exists in the Kids app for phones and tablets. We couldn't find it in the Kids mode of the YouTube app on TVs. "Take a break" and bedtime reminders are documented for YouTube's mobile apps, and we couldn't find those on the TV app either. Our guide on limiting YouTube time on Android TV covers what you can do with YouTube specifically.
Getting the most from what you have
If you have a Google TV kids profile, set both the daily limit and bedtime. The limit caps the total, and bedtime covers the evening even on a day when some time is left. Keep the app list short, because the profile can't limit one app on its own.
On plain Android TV, pair a restricted profile with a sleep timer. The profile narrows what your kid can open, and the timer ends the evening once. Remember the restricted profile's PIN: if you forget it, the only way back is a factory data reset, which erases your apps and channels.
On any TV, tell your kid about the limit before it starts. A warning they expected is easier to accept than a screen that goes dark.
Where today's options fall short
| What you want | Google TV kids profile | Plain Android TV | Sleep timer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily screen time limit | Yes, 15 min to 8 h | No | No |
| Bedtime on chosen days | Yes | No | No, one-off |
| Set or change it from your phone | No, TV only | No | No |
| Limit one app, such as YouTube | No | No | No |
The gaps, in plain terms:
- Outside kids profiles there's no schedule. Adult profiles on Google TV and every plain Android TV set have no daily allowed hours, weekday or weekend. If your region or device has no kids profiles, you have no built-in screen time limit.
- You can't change it from your phone. The daily limit and bedtime live on the TV. If your kid asks for 20 more minutes while you're at work, or you want to switch the TV off from upstairs, there's no way to do it remotely.
- No per-app limits. A Google TV kids profile limits total time. It can't give YouTube 30 minutes and Netflix 90. See per-app time limits on Google TV for what does and doesn't exist.
- Sleep timers are one-off. You set them each evening, and they only turn the TV off.
- Reported counting problems. In 2022 and 2023, parents reported that time spent in YouTube didn't count toward the kids profile's daily limit. We don't know whether that's still the case.
How TameTV will handle bedtime and screen time limits
TameTV is in development. It will run on Android TV and Google TV, Android 9 and up, including sets with no Google kids profiles. Each kid will pick their profile on a "who's watching?" screen, and you'll have a parent PIN to override it.
For each kid you'll be able to set:
- A daily budget for total screen time, set per day of the week. A school day can have an hour and Saturday two.
- Per-app limits: YouTube 30 minutes, Netflix 90, or whatever you decide.
- Allowed hours: the TV works when you say and locks when you don't. Monday to Friday from 4 to 7 pm, for example, and different hours at the weekend. Outside those hours the TV will stay locked for that kid, even if some budget is left.
- Changes from your phone, anywhere: adjust limits, lock the TV now, or add bonus time.
For evenings in particular:
- A bedtime shortcut: one toggle that blocks everything after a set time until morning.
- Warnings at 5 minutes and 1 minute before a limit, so the end of an episode doesn't come as a surprise.
- Set once, repeated every day. Unlike a sleep timer, the schedule won't need setting again each evening.
A few honest limits:
- Locking apps on Android 10 and later needs the Accessibility permission, which you grant during setup. Without it, TameTV can only count time.
- Some Sony firmware refuses the Usage Access permission TameTV needs.
- TameTV can't see inside the YouTube app. It can limit YouTube time or block the app for a kid, not choose which videos play.
- Compatibility is expected, not yet confirmed on real devices. See the pages for TCL, Sony and Xiaomi.
How it works shows the lock screen and the phone dashboard.
If you'd like bedtime to happen without the nightly argument, you can join the waitlist.