This is expected, and it's worth understanding. Balanced Play doesn't reach into a console directly — it drives each platform's own parental controls. Those reach the device on the device's check-in schedule, and only while it's online. So a limit can take a few minutes to land, and a console that's offline won't apply it until it reconnects.
If a limit hasn't landed after a while on a device that's definitely online, email us — that's a real bug and we want it.
Each platform reports play time its own way, and some round or batch it. Small differences are normal. Large ones aren't — send us the child, the platform, and roughly when, and we'll go look at the actual records.
Console and store links (Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, Steam) are set up in the mobile app, not on the web — the sign-in has to happen in the app's browser window to capture the connection. If a link keeps failing, it's usually an expired sign-in on the platform's side: disconnect it in the app and link it again.
The PC agent pairs with your household using an activation code from the app. If a PC stops reporting, confirm the agent is still running and still paired — re-pairing with a fresh code is safe and won't lose history.
Balanced Play is $6.99 a month. You can cancel yourself online at any time — no email, no phone call — and you'll never be charged without agreeing to the terms first.
New accounts start with a 7-day free trial, wherever you subscribe. The exact terms are shown to you before you agree to anything.
If you subscribed on an iPhone or iPad, Apple handles the billing: cancel under Settings › your Apple Account › Subscriptions. Everywhere else, cancel from your account settings. Our refund policy is short: ask and you get your money back.
Same address — support@getbalancedplay.com. Balanced Play is small and actively built; a good bug report tends to turn into a fix quickly, and your feedback genuinely shapes what gets built next.