How long before bed should screens go off?

An hour is the UK advice. The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health calls no screens for an hour before bedtime a sensible rule of thumb, and the UK's 2026 guidance for young children says to keep screens out of the hour before bed.

Should my child's phone be in their bedroom at night?

The evidence says it's better not. A 2016 review in JAMA Pediatrics found that children with access to a device at night, even when they weren't using it, were more likely to sleep too little and to feel sleepy during the day. Charging phones outside the bedroom is the simplest fix.

Is it just the blue light?

Probably not. Researchers suggest several things at work together: screens pushing bedtime later, content that's hard to switch off from, and messages arriving at night. That's why the advice is to stop screens before bed, not only to dim them.

What if my child uses their phone as an alarm?

A cheap alarm clock solves it. It's one of the most common reasons phones end up in bedrooms, and one of the easiest to remove.

Guides · The research

Screens before bed: when should they go off, and how do you make it stick?

Bedtime is where most screen arguments happen. It's also where the evidence is clearest.

4 min read · Published 28 September 2026 · Last reviewed 28 September 2026

Roo asleep under a knitted blanket beside a glowing lantern

In short

Keep screens out of the hour before bed. That's the advice in the UK's 2026 guidance for young children, and the rule of thumb from the UK's paediatricians for children generally. A review of 20 studies covering more than 125,000 children linked using a device at bedtime to too little sleep, poorer sleep and daytime sleepiness, and found that simply having a device in the bedroom at night was linked to worse sleep too. So: screens off an hour before bed, and phones charging outside the bedroom.

Key facts

UK advice: no screens in the hour before bed.
Using a device at bedtime was linked to more than double the odds of too little sleep (JAMA Pediatrics, 2016, 125,198 children).
Even an unused device in the bedroom was linked to poorer sleep.

What does UK guidance say?

The advice is consistent: keep screens out of the hour before bed.

The UK's March 2026 guidance for under-5s says to keep screens out of mealtimes and the hour before bed.
The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health calls no screens for an hour before bedtime "a sensible rule of thumb", and in 2019 said it would keep recommending it "since there are other reasons beside mental health for children to need a good nights' sleep".
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends screen-free time before bed as part of a family media plan.

What does the research show?

The biggest review of the evidence was led by Ben Carter at King's College London and published in JAMA Pediatrics in 2016. It brought together 20 studies covering 125,198 children, with an average age of 14.5.

Using a device at bedtime was linked to more than double the odds of not getting enough sleep, as well as poorer sleep quality and more daytime sleepiness.
Just having a device in the bedroom at night, without using it, was linked to poorer sleep too.

These are associations, not proof that devices cause every lost hour. But the direction is consistent, and it matches what most parents see.

Why is bedtime the hardest stop?

Because everything is against it. Your child is tired, the thing they're watching or playing doesn't have an end, there's nothing in particular to go to next, and the stop has to come from you, at the end of your day as well as theirs.

How to make it stick

The same time every night. Weekends can be later, but agree it in advance.
A heads-up before screens go off, so stopping doesn't come out of nowhere.
A charging spot outside the bedroom, ideally for everyone's phone, yours included.
Something to go to. A bath, a book or a chat makes stopping easier than an empty gap.
Decide it in daylight. Bedtime is the worst moment to negotiate bedtime.

If the stop still ends in "five more minutes", read what to say when your child won't stop.

Kairoo

Bedtime, without being the bad cop.

Kairoo rests their screens at the time you both agreed, with a calm heads-up first. Their phone says it's time, not you, and calls always work.

Get Kairoo on iPhone Start with the free agreement Or start with the free agreement Tell me when Android is ready

Two apps, no adverts. iPhone now, Android soon.

Questions parents ask

How long before bed should screens go off?: An hour is the UK advice. The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health calls no screens for an hour before bedtime a sensible rule of thumb, and the UK's 2026 guidance for young children says to keep screens out of the hour before bed.
Should my child's phone be in their bedroom at night?: The evidence says it's better not. A 2016 review in JAMA Pediatrics found that children with access to a device at night, even when they weren't using it, were more likely to sleep too little and to feel sleepy during the day. Charging phones outside the bedroom is the simplest fix.
Is it just the blue light?: Probably not. Researchers suggest several things at work together: screens pushing bedtime later, content that's hard to switch off from, and messages arriving at night. That's why the advice is to stop screens before bed, not only to dim them.
What if my child uses their phone as an alarm?: A cheap alarm clock solves it. It's one of the most common reasons phones end up in bedrooms, and one of the easiest to remove.

Sources

New advice for parents on screen time for young children, Department for Education (The Education Hub), 27 March 2026
What the experts say (the RCPCH's guidance for families), Childnet
New screen time research published: RCPCH responds, Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, 5 April 2019
Association Between Portable Screen-Based Media Device Access or Use and Sleep Outcomes: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis, JAMA Pediatrics (Carter and colleagues), 31 October 2016
Understanding the New AAP Digital Media Guidelines for Screen Time and Social Media, American Academy of Pediatrics, last updated 20 January 2026

Last reviewed 28 September 2026. Kairoo checks these pages when the rules or the research change; if you spot something out of date, tell us at hello@kairoo.family.