Looking for apps for teenage drivers to help keep them as safe as possible? You are not alone. Luckily, parents of teen drivers now have several options for tracking their kid’s whereabouts, speed patterns, and whether or not they are texting while on the road.
While I am thrilled that this technology was not around when I was a teenager, I am even more thrilled we have it as parents today.
Apps For Teenage Drivers To Help Keep Them Safer
Driving is a rite of passage many teenagers look forward to as much as their parents dread. Getting a driver’s license means more freedom and that is something teenagers tend to value above everything else.
They want to go where they want to go!. Who wants to ask mom for a lift? However, parents are often leery about letting their teen drive on their own… and with good reason.
The good news is that advances in technology can give teens the freedom they want while giving parents a bit more security and safety.
Apps for teenage drivers can monitor everything from their speed to their social media habits in the car. While some apps that monitor teen driving are free, most of them have paid versions.
Teens do not always make the best decisions so these apps can help teach them how to drive responsibly. They can also give parents peace of mind to be able to let teens experience this life stage.
What apps should every teenager have?
While your teenager might tell you the best apps to have are Kik, TikTok, and the latest video messaging apps, parents might disagree. Look for apps for teenage drivers that parents should download below, but there are also some great apps teenagers should have themselves. Here are a few of my favorites for new drivers.
- Happy Not Perfect: This meditation app promotes mindfulness for teens (and adults) so they are calmer and less anxious when they are on the road.
- Jump rope: The Jump Rose app lets users view and create how-to videos to learn as well as show off their own expertise. Teens can learn about the car they are driving!
- Swiipe: Get your teen interested in current events that actually interest him/her. All they have to do is swipe right to show they are interested in that subject and the app will learn their likes. It is my opinion that informed teens are better drivers.
- Skillshare: Learn just about anything from real experts in classes right from your phone. Teen drivers can learn about how to change a tire or the oil in their car or really anything they want.
- Wysa: This artificial intelligence-based chat supports mental health and wellness for teens. (This is not for kids in crisis.) Teens who have a healthy emotional and mental wellbeing are going to make better drivers.
Can I monitor my child’s speed?
Ok, back to your teenager learning how to drive. You can absolutely monitor the speed your child is driving even when you are not in the car. Honestly, you are probably going to want to monitor their speed especially when you aren’t with them! Teens might not like this but parents will love it and that’s what counts.
Once parents can trust that their teens are driving responsibly, not speeding, following the road rules, and basically doing what they are supposed to be doing, then perhaps the monitoring apps will not be necessary.
Life360 Driver Protect is one of best apps for this. It gives you real-time speed monitoring of your teen, whether they are driving, riding as a passenger, or even on public transit. There are also several other apps that also include devices you plug into your car.
Best Apps for Teenage Drivers Parents Should Check Out Today
Life360 Driver Protect Plan
With the paid Life360 Driver Protect Plan, you can see each member’s driving habits including their top speed, if there is any texting while driving, or other issues while driving.
Users can also opt-in for Crash Detection which uses advanced sensors to automatically detect a crash the moment they happen. If a collision is detected, an emergency dispatcher, which is available 24/7, will immediately reach out to the user.
The dispatcher can send an ambulance to the user’s exact location if help is needed and contact anyone on the driver’s emergency contact list.
bSafe Mobile
This bSafe app will automatically detect when a phone is moving and then blocks all incoming texts, emails, phone calls and any other distractions. bSafe Mobile also monitors driving behaviors and details unsafe habits.
Parents will like being able to see if their teen driver is breaking hard, accelerating too fast or driving over the speed limit.
Hum by Verizon
Though Hum is offered through Verizon, you don’t have to be a Verizon cell phone user to use these products. They offer both phone apps and in-vehicle devices.
The novel thing about Hum by Verizon is that it helps to train drivers and rewards them with a good weekly score based on their driving habits. The score plugs into the sense of competition teens tend to have. It allows users to work on increasing their scores by driving responsibly and by minimizing distracted driving.
LifeSaver
The LifeSaver app automatically detects when the user is driving and blocks all cell phone use. Parents can be reassured that their teen is not driving while distracted and lets them know when their child arrives safely. Teens can earn rewards like iTunes gift cards by practicing good driving behaviors.
RoadReady
RoadReady is supported by Toyota and State Farm and is a free app that tracks the users driving experience. It includes a convenient way to log the required supervised driving hours and allows parents to track driving conditions and identify areas of improvement.
Sentinel
Unlike phone-only apps, Sentinel is an actual device you install in your vehicle. It includes a GPS tracker and voice chip that reminds your teen to turn off his/her cell phone. While the car is in motion, the driver’s habits like speeding or quick stops, will be monitored.
Mama Bear
The Mama Bear app is billed as the ultimate parenting app. For those who do not want to give up any helicoptering they have become accustomed to, the Mama Bear app might be for you.
It can track everything from speeding to social media activity to your teen’s location. This is a great all-in-one app that lets you keep tabs on your teen’s life.
Bouncie
Parents can keep track of their vehicle’s location with real-time data from this super small in-vehicle device with app support. It can detect accidents and notify emergency contacts and help with roadside assistance.
Bouncie also gives parents real-time driving insights with notifications on idle time, acceleration, speeding and more.
TrueMotion
The TrueMotion app makes it easier to learn safe driving habits. It gives drivers a driving score which includes the level of distraction. This score may help lower insurance premiums. Out of all the apps for teenage drivers we’ve featured so far, this one might actually save you some money.
Safe Driver
The Safe Driver app is only available for iOS users. It monitors the user’s location and driving speed and lets parents set speed limits and get alerted when those limits are surpassed. However, teens have to open the app on their phone while driving for the app to work.
DriveSafe.ly app
If texting while driving is one of your biggest worries, this DriveSafe app focuses specifically on that. It seeks to eliminate texting while driving by providing text-to-speech capability. It lets users hear their texts and emails while their driving and lets them respond to them without touching their phone. The last thing you need is a distracted driver on the road!
These apps for teenage drivers don’t have to be about parents acting like Big Brother and monitoring each and every move their teenager makes.
If the teens are driving responsibly then parents will have little reason to check up on them. Now, which safe driving apps will you use? Which one is the best fit for your family?
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