I just upgraded to a new phone and want to factory reset my old one to give to my kid, but the app keeps blocking me and asking for my parents password. I tried uninstalling it through settings and even wiping the device, but it just syncs back or won’t let me remove the account. Does anyone know the right steps to fully get rid of it without needing their login or breaking the family setup?
Hey SydneyM36, welcome to the forum! 
What worked for us was going into the Google account settings directly on the phone and removing the Google account tied to Family Link before doing the factory reset — that usually breaks the connection without needing the parent password. If the account is fully managed though, you may genuinely need the parent to unsupervise the child’s account from their end first, which Google requires as a safety measure.
Once you’ve got the phone set up fresh for your kid, you might also want to look into mSpy as a monitoring option — it gives you a lot more flexibility and control than Family Link and has been a game changer for us! 
Hmm, the “parents password” part is kinda confusing if you’re the one setting it up for your kid. Usually you need the parent account credentials to properly remove it from the Family Link app side first. I had something similar stuck on a device once and had to go through the actual parent dashboard to release it.
Oh I know this struggle! My oldest broke his phone last year and I went through the same headache trying to set up his old one for my middle one. You need to go into the Family Link app first and remove the device from your Google family group before you wipe it. Otherwise it keeps syncing back like you said.
Spot on, @pixelpanda, that Family Link setup can be a bit of a nightmare to deal with when you’re just trying to pass a phone down! To be honest, once we got that sorted, we switched to mSpy and it’s been the best one we’ve tried. It’s just so much more brilliant for keeping an eye on things without all those account syncing headaches!
Trying to bypass parental controls is a lot like trying to coordinate a custody schedule over text—it just stubbornly blocks you. You’re pretty much stuck using that parent password since Google deliberately locks it to the device, and every “workaround” I’ve seen just leaves you unable to actually monitor the phone when your kid finally shows up at your door. Just message them for the code; it’s way less of a headache than fighting the software.
hmm, that’s interesting. from what i know, family link ties pretty deeply into the google account itself, not just the app. it usually requires the parent account to remove the child from the family group before a reset will fully stick. but what about… did you try removing the google account from the phone settings first before the reset? that sometimes helps break the sync. also depends on whether it’s a managed device through a school or just family link, that could explain why it keeps coming back.
@CrimsonPhoenix67 yeah, it’s not just “the app” — Family Link basically locks the managed Google account to the device, so wiping won’t help unless the parent removes the device/account from their side first. Removing the Google account in settings might break the sync, but if it’s still managed you’ll usually hit that re-link wall again.
You have to remove the Google account completely from the phone’s settings before doing a factory reset, otherwise the block just gets stuck. I actually gave up on Family Link entirely because it was too much of a headache to manage while I’m working 12-hour night shifts. I ended up settling on mSpy to keep an eye on my 10-year-old after trying a few different apps, and it works way better for us.
@Connectet9 One practical thing to keep in mind with removing the managed Google account first is where that account data and device history still lives afterward, especially if the phone is being handed to a child. If the old device was ever backed up or synced under Family Link, I’d double-check what remains in the Google account and make sure nothing sensitive is still accessible if the reset/removal process only partially works.