Social media, done safe.
OurDot is one private place for your whole family to message, share, play and learn together. No ads, no strangers, no endless scroll. Every choice we made starts with what the research says helps people of every age, and what harms them.
Early family beta from MadCap Associates LLC. Built to become a nonprofit and stay free for every family.
Kids are on apps built for adults, and designed to keep them scrolling.
We wanted the good parts, staying close to family and sharing everyday life, without the parts built to hook kids.
of 13 to 17 year olds use social media, and more than a third say they're on it "almost constantly."
the risk of poor mental health outcomes for 12 to 15 year olds on social media more than 3 hours a day.
the odds of too little sleep for kids using a device at bedtime, across 20 studies of 125,198 children.
Everything a family shares, in one calm place.
Grandparents, guardians, kids, aunts, uncles and close family friends. Nobody joins unless a guardian invites them.
Messages first
The app opens to your people, not a feed. Talk one-to-one, in family groups, by voice or on a video call.
A feed that ends
Newest first, then "You're all caught up." No algorithm, no public like counts. Hearts are private.
Play together
Our own family games: a daily word puzzle, logic puzzles, trivia about each other, drawing, a maze, a quest and more. No ads, purchases or streaks.
Learn
Three-minute lessons on being safe and kind online, plus a library of topics you choose. Every lesson shows its sources.
Family Kitchen
Plan cook-together nights, find a job for every helper by age, and share one shopping list. Never about weight, always about time together.
Guardians stay in charge
School-time and sleep-time locks, daily game time, approvals for who joins. The line to a guardian always stays open.
Every feature starts with the research.
Where the evidence is strong, we say so. Where it's mixed, we say that too. Each choice links to where it came from.
A feed that ends
Newest first, then you're done. No endless scroll, no autoplay, no "For You" page.
The Surgeon General names endless scrolling, autoplay and push notifications as features designed to maximize time on an app.
Private hearts, no like counts
Only the person who posted sees who sent a heart.
Public "likes" are listed among engagement-driving features, and the American Psychological Association advises limiting social media use for comparing yourself to others.
Messages come first
The app opens to conversations with family, not a feed.
A review of 141 studies found "active" use like messaging and posting linked to somewhat better wellbeing and social support. Most effects were small.
Sleep mode
Guardians set it (8:30 pm to 7 am by default). Everything rests except the guardian line.
Across 20 studies of 125,198 children, bedtime device use was linked to about twice the odds of too little sleep. The Surgeon General recommends no devices for at least an hour before bed.
School mode
Guardians choose it, to protect focus in class.
A study of 1,227 students in 30 English schools found phone limits cut phone use during school, but found no difference in wellbeing or total daily use. That's why it's the guardian's call.
"Before you share" check
A gentle "Pause for a sec?" before anything unkind goes out. Kids practice checking their own words.
In a test with more than 200,000 users, a prompt before posting possibly offensive replies led people to cancel 9% and revise 22% of them. It studied adults, so we treat it as one layer, not a fix.
The same open rules for every adult
Trusted adults see family posts and write notes, but never chat privately one-on-one with kids. Guardians can remove anyone instantly.
In national data, 71% of children who were harmed knew the person; 18% were strangers. Being known or related isn't a safety signal on its own. No study tests this exact design.
More privacy as kids grow
Fuller guardian checks under 13, lighter at 13 to 15, optional at 16 and up.
The APA recommends closer guardian involvement in early adolescence (about 10 to 14), then more privacy as kids build skills.
Guardian-set game time
Each guardian picks daily game time per child. Lessons never count against it.
Pediatricians don't set one number for every child. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends each family make its own media plan.
Cook-together nights, no streaks
Family Kitchen counts any shared meal, breakfast or video-call dinner. It never nags about missed nights.
Across 17 studies of more than 182,000 children, three or more shared meals a week were linked to healthier eating. Other research finds family relationships explain much of that, so we focus on connection, not counting.
Nothing is visible unless a rule allows it.
Read the full privacy policy in plain English.
No advertising or outside tracking tools are built into OurDot. We never sell or rent your information.
Every table in our database starts closed. A rule opens exactly what one person may see, and nothing more.
School and sleep mode can't be skipped by changing a phone setting.
Photos and voice clips sit in private storage, never on public links. Photo location data is removed before upload.
You sign in with a one-time code sent to your email.
Automated tests check that strangers see nothing, hearts stay private, locks hold and the guardian line stays open.
Invite-only, from the very first person.
- A guardian sets up the family.
They invite the people their kids already know and trust.
- Everyone signs in with a code.
A 6-digit code comes by email. No password to remember.
- Kids join through their guardian.
Use your own email with a + and their name, like you+leo@gmail.com. Codes always come to you, and we never store a child's own email.
- Tell us what you think.
Tap the 💬 tab on any screen. Every note is read, and nothing changes until we've looked into it.
On your phone, tablet or computer.
Free for every family. You'll need an invite from a guardian to get in.
iPhone and iPad
OurDot is on its way to the App Store. We'll post the link here the day it's approved.
Android
Google Play follows right after. Until then, Android phones can use the web version.
Web
Works in any browser, with nothing to install. On a phone, you can add it to your home screen.
Open OurDotBuilt by a family, for families.
OurDot started with one question: how do we keep our kids close to the people who love them, without handing them to apps built to hook them?
It's made by MadCap Associates LLC and tested first by our own families. The plan is for OurDot to become a nonprofit that stays free for every family, funded by an opt-in marketplace that never shows ads to anyone under 18.
Contact us
Help with the app: help@ourdot.app
Everything else: info@ourdot.app
Questions about a child's information? Email help@ourdot.app and we'll respond within 2 business days.