How to Disable Kids Mode or Uninstall Kids Mode App on Samsung Galaxy?

Kids Mode on a Galaxy phone or tablet is the Samsung Kids app, made by Samsung. You leave it with More options, then Close Samsung Kids and the PIN, and you can uninstall it completely. If nobody knows the PIN, Samsung's own way out is to restart in Safe mode and uninstall Samsung Kids from Settings.

Facts checked on 14 October 2026. Steps written for Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets with Android 9 or later (One UI) and Samsung Kids 12.8.01.9, read against Samsung's support pages in the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland and the Caribbean, the Galaxy Store listing and Google's Help Centers. Menu names vary by model and carrier.

What Kids Mode on a Samsung Galaxy is, and whether you need it

Samsung Kids is Samsung's own child mode for Galaxy phones and tablets. It replaces the normal home screen with a child's home screen, usually a coloured background with Crocro the crocodile and his friends, and it blocks everything you did not allow. Samsung's US support page says it is available on devices with Android 9.0 and above, and that availability may vary by carrier.

Name on the device

Samsung Kids. On Galaxy devices from before Android 9: Kids Mode, with helper apps such as Kids Parental Control and Kids Store.

Package name

com.sec.android.app.kidshome, the ID of its Galaxy Store page. The small installer for tablets is com.samsung.android.kidsinstaller.

Publisher

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. The Galaxy Store listing is free and offers in-app purchases.

Where it starts

The Kids button in the Quick settings panel (swipe down with two fingers). Optionally also an icon on the Apps screen.

What it contains

My Phone, My Camera, My Gallery, My Browser, Crocro's Friends Village, Lisa's Music Band, My Magic Voice, Crocro's Adventure, Bobby's Canvas.

Parental controls

Up to 6 child profiles, Screen time, Bedtime, Allowed content, Frequently contacted, My kid's creations, More apps for kids.

Does Android need it

No. Nothing outside Samsung Kids depends on it.

The PIN is the whole point of the app. Samsung's Canadian support page puts it plainly: the PIN "prevents kids from exiting Samsung Kids without parental consent". That is why a curious child who opens the Kids button and types a PIN of their own can lock a parent out of the tablet. On Android 9 and later the app was not downloaded by the child: it is built into the Quick settings panel on many Galaxy models.

Samsung Kids, Google Kids Space or Family Link: which one locks your device

Many readers search for "kids mode" or "parental controls on Samsung" when they mean one of three different things. Each is made by a different company and each is switched off in a different place, so check which one you have before you try any step below.

Before you start: what you lose and what to check first

Closing Samsung Kids with the PIN loses nothing. Uninstalling it loses everything stored inside the app, and a factory reset loses everything on the device. Pick the lightest way that works for you.

• Find out which lock it asks for. Samsung Kids uses either its own 4-digit PIN or the phone's normal screen lock. If the Close screen shows your usual PIN, pattern or password screen, try that first.
• Save the child's creations. If your child's drawings or photos made in My Camera or Bobby's Canvas matter, open Parental controls > My kid's creations while you still can, and move them out. We could not confirm whether they survive an uninstall.
• Charge the device. Safe mode and a reset need several restarts. Keep at least half the battery or plug it in.
• Know the Google Account on the device. It is only needed for a factory reset, but then it is required: Samsung says a device reset with the buttons asks for that Google password.
• Do not root the device. No step on this page needs root, a computer or a third-party tool.

How to get out of Samsung Kids and remove it, step by step

Do the steps in order and stop as soon as you are out. Step 1 is the normal exit. Step 2 recovers a forgotten PIN. Step 3 is Samsung's own way out when nobody knows the PIN. Step 4 removes Samsung Kids for good once the device works normally, and Step 5 is the last resort.

Step 1. Close Samsung Kids with the PIN

1 minuteNo riskYou know the Samsung Kids PIN or the phone's screen lock, or can ask the person who set it.

Samsung designed the PIN as the only normal way out. Closing the app returns the normal home screen at once and keeps the profiles and rules for the next time.

1. Make sure you are on the Samsung Kids Home screen, the one with the characters. Press the Back button if a game is open.
2. Tap More options, the three vertical dots at the top right.
3. Tap Close Samsung Kids.
4. Enter the Samsung Kids PIN. If the device uses Phone's screen lock for Samsung Kids, enter your normal PIN, pattern or password.
5. The normal home screen comes back. Samsung Kids stays installed and can be opened again from the Kids button in Quick settings.

To keep the child from opening it again by accident, remove its shortcut. In Samsung Kids open More options > Settings, enter the PIN, and turn off Add Samsung Kids to Apps screen. Hiding the Quick settings button is shown in Step 4.

Step 2. Reset a forgotten Samsung Kids PIN with the temporary password

5 to 15 minutesNo riskYou do not know the PIN, but you can read the email inbox that was registered with Samsung Kids.

Samsung's US support page describes a reset by email after five wrong PINs. It keeps the child profiles and rules, which the uninstall in Step 3 would delete.

1. On the Close Samsung Kids screen, enter a wrong PIN five times in a row. Samsung says you are then told to send an email.
2. From the email address registered with Samsung Kids, send a blank email to [email protected]. Use that same address, not another one.
3. Wait for the reply with a temporary password. Samsung asks you to check the spam folder if it does not arrive.
4. On the tablet or phone, enter the temporary password where Samsung Kids asks for it.
5. Set a new PIN when you are asked, or open More options > Settings > Change Samsung Kids PIN and set one.
6. Close Samsung Kids with the new PIN as in Step 1.

If Samsung Kids uses the phone's screen lock and that is what was forgotten, this email does not help, because the lock belongs to the device. Samsung Ireland says it is no longer possible to unlock a phone remotely with SmartThings Find. Step 3 also needs that screen lock after the restart, so without it Step 5 is the way out.

Step 3. No PIN at all: restart in Safe mode and uninstall Samsung Kids

5 to 10 minutesLow riskNobody knows the PIN and the email reset did not work, for example after a child set a random PIN.

This is Samsung's own advice for a forgotten Kids PIN: in Safe mode Samsung Kids does not take over the screen, so Settings opens and the app can be uninstalled. Samsung warns that its settings return to defaults.

1. Open the power menu: press and hold the Power key. On newer Galaxy phones and tablets press the Side key and Volume down together, or swipe down from the top right and tap the Power icon.
2. Touch and hold Power off until the Safe mode icon appears, then tap Safe mode. The device restarts.
3. Check that Safe mode is written at the bottom left of the screen. If it is not there, repeat the first two steps.
4. Open Settings, tap the search icon and type Samsung Kids. Or go to Settings > Apps > Samsung Kids.
5. Tap Uninstall, then OK.
6. Leave Safe mode: open the power menu again and tap Restart, or swipe down and tap the Safe mode is on notification, then Turn off.

If the power menu asks for the PIN or does not open, use the button method from Samsung's Safe mode page. Turn the device off completely, which may mean letting the battery run down. Turn it on, and when the Samsung logo appears, press and hold Volume down until the home screen shows Safe mode.

Step 4. Remove Samsung Kids for good and hide the Kids button

3 minutesLow riskThe device works normally again and you do not want Samsung Kids on it at all.

Samsung documents two ways to uninstall the app and one way to hide its Quick settings button. The button stays because Samsung keeps a small installer behind it, so hiding it is what stops a child from starting Samsung Kids again.

1. Open Settings and tap Apps.
2. Tap Samsung Kids. On older models with Kids Mode, tap Kids Mode and then the same for Kids Parental Control, Kids Sleep Screen and Kids Store if they are listed.
3. Tap Uninstall at the bottom of the screen, then OK. If Samsung Kids has an icon on the Apps screen, you can also touch and hold it and tap Uninstall.

1. Swipe down from the top of the screen with two fingers to open the full Quick settings panel.
2. Tap the More options icon (three dots) or the pencil icon, then Edit buttons or Edit. The name depends on the One UI version.
3. Drag the Kids button out of the active panel to the area of unused buttons, then tap Done.

Now remove what Samsung Kids brought with it. Open Settings > Apps and look for kids apps that you or the child downloaded through More apps for kids. Uninstall the ones nobody uses. Samsung's pages do not list which apps these are, so judge by name and install date.

Step 5. Last resort: factory reset the Galaxy phone or tablet

30 to 60 minutes with setupRead the warningSafe mode cannot be reached or Settings stays locked, and no other step worked.

A factory reset returns the device to the state it left the factory in, so Samsung Kids is no longer set up. It is the only way left when the device itself cannot be opened, but it erases everything.

If the device is signed in to a Samsung account and has remote control turned on in its Find settings, you can erase it from another device without the buttons. Go to SmartThings Find, sign in, select the device and choose Erase data. Samsung says the device must be online and signed in.

1. Turn the device off. If the power menu asks for a PIN you do not know, let the battery run down.
2. On a tablet: press and hold Volume up and Power (and Home if the tablet has one) until the recovery menu opens. On a phone the combination differs by model; Samsung's factory reset page lists them, and some models need a USB cable to a computer.
3. Use Volume down to highlight Wipe data/factory reset, then press Power to select it.

   

4. Highlight Yes or Factory data reset and press Power.
5. When Data wipe complete appears, select Reboot system now.
6. Set the device up again and sign in with the Google Account that was on it.

What Samsung Kids leaves behind after you uninstall it

Samsung Kids is an Android app, so it has no registry keys or loose folders to clean. What remains is a short list of things on the device and in your accounts. Samsung's own help confirms the first row; the others follow from how the app works.

How to turn off Family Link parental controls or Google Kids Space instead

If the steps above did not apply because your device shows the normal Samsung home screen with restrictions, the controls come from a Google Account. Google's help says only a parent can turn these off, and a child under 18 needs a parent's approval to stop supervision.

1. Family Link, from the parent's device: open the Family Link app, select the child's profile at the top left, tap Controls > Account Settings > About supervision, follow the instructions and tap Stop supervision.
2. Family Link, from the child's Galaxy device: open Settings > Digital Wellbeing & parental controls, tap More at the top right > Stop supervision, then sign in as the parent or use the Parent Access Code.
3. Google Kids Space: on the child's device touch and hold the Parent menu in the lower right corner, tap Exit Kids Space > Turn off, enter the parent's password and tap Confirm.
4. Samsung child account: on the parent's phone open Settings > your Samsung account > Family, tap the child's profile and change the web, app, download and purchase controls there.

When Samsung Kids will not close or will not uninstall

If none of this works and you can prove the device is yours, Samsung Kids' own Contact us link and Samsung support chat are the official help. Samsung's Galaxy Store page also lists [email protected] as the seller's contact address for the app.

How to check that Samsung Kids is really gone

• Restart the device. It must start on the normal Galaxy home screen, without the Kids screen and without the word Safe mode at the bottom.
• Look in Settings > Apps. Search for Samsung Kids or Kids. After Step 4 it is no longer listed, or only listed as disabled if your model offered Disable.
• Open Quick settings. The Kids button should not be among the active buttons. If you tap it there, it offers to set Samsung Kids up again, which shows the app itself is gone.
• Check the downloads. Look through Settings > Apps once more a day later, and make sure no kids apps you removed have come back.
• Check the account controls. On the parent's phone open Family Link and confirm the child's profile is no longer supervised, if you stopped supervision as well.

How to set up Samsung Kids again later, safely

Removing Samsung Kids is not final. When the child is ready to use the device again, you can bring it back in a minute and set it up so the same lock-out cannot happen twice.

1. Put the Kids button back: open Quick settings, tap the three dots or the pencil > Edit buttons, drag Kids into the panel and tap Done.
2. Tap Kids, then Start or Continue. The installer downloads Samsung Kids again. On some tablets install Samsung Kids Installer from the Galaxy Store first.
3. When asked, keep Phone's screen lock as the lock type if your device has a screen lock. Then only your own unlock closes Samsung Kids, and a child cannot invent a PIN.
4. Write down the Samsung Kids PIN if you choose a custom one, and check which email address is registered for the reset in Step 2.

Samsung notes that if the device has no screen lock, a Samsung Kids PIN is required. Setting a normal screen lock first is therefore the simplest way to keep control of the exit.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get out of Samsung Kids mode without the password?

First enter a wrong PIN five times. Samsung's US help says you are then told to send a blank email from your registered address to [email protected], and a temporary password comes back. If that is not possible, restart the device in Safe mode, open Settings > Apps > Samsung Kids and tap Uninstall, then restart. This is Samsung's own advice for a forgotten Kids PIN. It removes the child profiles and rules but keeps your own apps and files. Only when Safe mode cannot be reached is a factory reset needed, and that erases the device.

Can I delete the Samsung Kids app, or only disable it?

You can delete it. Samsung's help shows two ways: Settings > Apps > Samsung Kids > Uninstall, or touch and hold the Samsung Kids icon and tap Uninstall. What stays is the Kids button in Quick settings, because Samsung keeps a small installer behind it so the app can be set up again. You hide that button in the Quick settings edit screen. If your model offers only Disable or Uninstall updates, use that: the app then no longer runs, which has the same effect for you.

How do I remove Kids mode on a Samsung tablet like the Galaxy Tab A?

The steps are the same on a tablet as on a phone, because both use the same Samsung Kids app. Close it with More options > Close Samsung Kids and the PIN, then uninstall it in Settings > Apps > Samsung Kids. Older tablets from before Android 9, such as early Galaxy Tab A models, have the Kids Mode app instead, together with Kids Parental Control and Kids Store; uninstall all of them. Some tablets got Samsung Kids through the Samsung Kids Installer app from the Galaxy Store. Kids edition tablets use the same app.

How do I turn off Kids mode on a Samsung phone?

On a Samsung phone, Kids mode is Samsung Kids, started from the Kids button in Quick settings. Open the three-dot menu on its home screen, tap Close Samsung Kids and enter the PIN or your screen lock. To stop it for good, uninstall Samsung Kids in Settings > Apps and remove the Kids button from Quick settings. If your phone shows the normal home screen but blocks apps or downloads, it is not Kids mode but parental controls from Google Family Link or a Samsung child account, which a parent switches off from their own phone.

Why does Samsung Kids remove apps or keep losing games?

Samsung's help does not describe Samsung Kids uninstalling apps on its own, and we found no official explanation. Users report that games disappear from the Kids home screen after a restart. What Samsung documents is that apps appear on the Kids home screen only after a parent adds them with Add and edit apps, and that Delete there removes the app from that screen. Reset Samsung Kids in its settings also returns everything to defaults. Check Settings > Apps first: if the game is still installed, add it again through Add and edit apps.

What is the yellow screen with a crocodile on my Galaxy?

It is the home screen of Samsung Kids, or of the older Kids Mode app on Galaxy devices from before Android 9. The crocodile is Crocro, one of the Samsung Kids characters, who also appears in the games Crocro's Friends Village and Crocro's Adventure. The screen is not a virus and not a fault. Someone tapped the Kids button in Quick settings and set a PIN. Leave it through the three-dot menu and Close Samsung Kids, or follow Step 2 or Step 3 if the PIN is unknown.

Is Samsung Kids the same as Google Family Link?

No. Samsung Kids is an app by Samsung that replaces the home screen with a child's screen while it runs, and it is closed with a PIN. Google Family Link supervises a child's Google Account on any Android device, including Samsung, and works on the normal home screen by blocking apps, limiting screen time and locking the device. Samsung's own support links to Family Link as a separate parental control option. Uninstalling Samsung Kids does not stop Family Link; a parent stops supervision in the Family Link app under Account Settings > About supervision.

Will a factory reset remove Kids mode, and do I lose everything?

Yes, a factory reset removes the Samsung Kids setup, but it also deletes all personal data, settings, downloaded apps, messages, contacts and photos on the device, so Samsung recommends a backup first. After the reset the device asks for the Google Account that was on it, so recover that password first. Use a reset only when Safe mode cannot be reached and no PIN or email reset is possible. In most cases Step 3 removes Samsung Kids without erasing anything else.

Apakah Samsung Kids boleh dihapus, and how do I exit it (cara keluar dari Samsung Kids)?

These Indonesian searches ask whether Samsung Kids may be deleted and how to exit it. Yes, Samsung Kids can be deleted safely: Settings > Apps > Samsung Kids > Uninstall. To exit, tap More options (three dots) on the Samsung Kids home screen, then Close Samsung Kids and enter the PIN. Without the PIN, restart in Safe mode and uninstall the app there. Menu names on an Indonesian Galaxy follow the same order in your language. This page is in English only.

Can a child turn off Samsung Kids or Family Link by themselves?

Not without the PIN or a parent's approval, which is the purpose of both. Samsung says the Samsung Kids PIN prevents kids from leaving without parental consent. A child who knows the Safe mode trick can still uninstall Samsung Kids, because it is a normal app. Family Link is stronger: Google says a child under 18 needs a parent's approval to stop supervision, and cannot stop it before age 13 or the local age. If you want a lock the child cannot remove, use Family Link together with or instead of Samsung Kids.