Screen Time: How to log out of an Apple ID account when Sign Out is unavailable

Image: Apple

When trying to change the account or accounts associated with an iPhone, iPad, or Mac that has Screen Time enabled with a passcode (ostensibly for a child) you will find that the Sign Out option is grayed out. That’s true in System Preferences/Settings in macOS and individual apps, and in Settings> account name> Sign Out and Settings> Media & Purchases in iOS and iPadOS.

The simple solution can be a little difficult to find because there’s no prompt or information about why it’s grayed out. It’s unavailable to prevent a device locked down by Screen Time restrictions from evading them by signing out of the associated Apple ID.

This may seem non-obvious if you are trying to change the account associated with media and purchases–as many people use a secondary account for that–instead of the Apple ID used for iCloud that’s associated with a Family Sharing group or for which you’ve set controls that are synced among a kid’s devices.

In either case, or if there’s a single Apple ID, disable Screen Time for the person in question. For instance, with Family Sharing and an iPhone, go to Settings> account name> Family Sharing> Screen Time> child’s name and tap Turn Off Screen Time. Then Sign Out of the Apple ID, make any changes, and sign back in or with a different account. Now, re-enable Screen Time for that person.

This is an annoying way to solve the problem because it disables all the Screen Time settings, which have to be re-created when it’s re-enabled. It would be nice if Apple allowed you to store a template of Screen Time settings or create a profile that could be loaded.

This Mac 911 article is in response to a question submitted by Macworld reader Benjamin.

Also read: How to unlock an Apple ID that’s locked or disabled.

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