1
Two PathsOur pick
The only co-parenting app with a licensed family therapist on call.
Every account starts with a 7-day free trial of full Court-Ready access, no credit card. After the trial, Premium is $11.99/month or $119/year (solo), $19.99/month or $199/year (couples). Court-Ready is $18.99/month or $189/year (solo), $29.99/month or $299/year (couples) and adds court-grade exports and a verified PDF audit trail. 1:1 video sessions are a la carte on every plan: $229 per 40-minute session with Cindy Weathers, LMFT ($299 for both co-parents on the same call), or $229 per 40-minute session with co-founder Marc Aaron Jacobs.
Pros
- Licensed family therapist (Cindy Weathers, LMFT) available on demand
- AI Message Insight decodes manipulation tactics, not just tone
- Before You Send draft analysis catches risky messages before you hit send
- Conflict Patterns analytics surface recurring friction points
- Court-grade exports and verified PDF audit trail on Court-Ready
- Premium pricing is the lowest among full-featured co-parenting platforms
Cons
- No native Android app yet (web app works on Android browsers)
- Newer product, not specifically named in court orders the way OurFamilyWizard is
- No permanent free tier, though every account starts with a 7-day free trial of full Court-Ready access
Best for: High-conflict co-parents who want a real human expert plus AI tools at the lowest price.
2
OurFamilyWizard
The established court-recognized standard since 2001.
OurFamilyWizard charges each parent separately on annual plans: Basic $110/year, Essentials $149.99/year, Premium $216/year, and Max $299.88/year. There is no free plan or free trial, but there is a 30-day money-back guarantee. Child, third-party, and professional accounts are free.
Pros
- Founded in 2001, named in many custody orders by name
- Native iOS and Android apps plus full web
- ToneMeter flags tense language, and the Writing Assistant rewrites drafts (Essentials and up)
- GPS-verified check-ins and built-in OFWpay payments on Essentials and up
- Messages can never be edited or deleted; certified records on Premium and Max
Cons
- No licensed therapist included or available through the app
- Each parent pays separately, so a family pays $220 to $600 per year
- Flags and rewrites tone but does not explain manipulation tactics in messages you receive
- Key features (Writing Assistant, check-ins, calling) require Essentials or higher
- Dated interface compared to newer competitors
Best for: Parents whose court order names OurFamilyWizard specifically, or who need a long-established platform.
3
TalkingParents
The court-record specialist.
TalkingParents has three paid plans: Essentials ($7/month), Enhanced ($16/month), and Ultimate ($32/month), each with monthly or annual billing. There is no free plan, but every plan starts with a 30-day free trial, and fee waivers are available for parents facing financial hardship or domestic violence. Every plan includes secure messaging, a shared calendar, Accountable Calling, and Accountable Payments, with more calling minutes and lower payment fees on higher tiers. Enhanced and Ultimate add unlimited PDF copies of the Unalterable Records. Ultimate adds the Sentiment Scanner + Writing Assist pre-send tone tool.
Pros
- Court-certified, unalterable message records
- Some courts name TalkingParents specifically in custody orders
- Shared calendar, calling, and payments included on every plan
- Sentiment Scanner + Writing Assist checks tone before you send (Ultimate plan)
- Low $7/month entry plan, 30-day free trial, and fee waivers for hardship or domestic violence
Cons
- Pre-send tone tool requires the top $32/month Ultimate plan
- Unlimited PDF records require Enhanced ($16/month) or higher
- No GPS check-ins or handoff verification
- No licensed therapist available
- No AI decoding of manipulation tactics in messages you receive
Best for: Parents who need a permanent court-grade communication record above all else.
4
AppClose
Low-cost, all-inclusive, with a long free trial.
AppClose is a paid subscription: $7.99/month on the web, $8.99/month in the app, or $83.88/year, after a 60-day free trial with no credit card. Fee waivers are available for financial hardship and domestic violence survivors, with discounts for military and veterans.
Pros
- Every feature included in one plan, with a 60-day free trial
- Calendar with parenting-time templates, messaging, expenses, and payments
- Co-Parent Assist AI suggests softer wording for your drafts
- GPS-verified pick-up and drop-off check-ins
- Certified business-record exports and recorded audio and video calls
Cons
- No licensed therapist
- AI softens your drafts but does not decode manipulation tactics in messages you receive
- No conflict pattern analytics
- No longer free; a subscription is required after the trial
Best for: Co-parents who want an all-in-one app at a low monthly price.
5
2Houses
European-rooted direct competitor.
2Houses offers a 14-day trial, then one annual plan at $169.99 per year. One subscription covers the whole family, including both parents, children, and a mediator.
Pros
- Shared calendar with custody wizard, swap requests, and calendar sync
- Messages cannot be deleted and can be printed
- Expense tracking with PDF and CSV reports
- One subscription covers the whole family
- Native iOS and Android plus web
Cons
- No licensed therapist
- No AI message analysis or draft review
- No GPS-verified handoffs
- Annual billing only, no monthly option
Best for: Cooperative co-parents who want one family subscription with a clean shared calendar.
6
Custody X Change
The parenting-plan and custody-schedule builder.
Custody X Change focuses on building custody schedules and parenting plans. Bronze is $10 per month or $72 per year. Gold, which adds parenting plans, expense tracking, time calculations, and a journal, is $20 per month or $144 per year. Each parent subscribes separately. There is a 30-day money-back guarantee instead of a free trial.
Pros
- Best-in-class custody schedule builder with visual calendars
- Generates court-ready parenting plan documents
- Tracks actual vs planned time with each parent
- Expense and journal tracking (Gold plan)
- Web app that installs on Windows, iOS, and Android from the browser
Cons
- Primarily a schedule and document tool, less focused on day-to-day co-parenting
- Messaging works only when both parents subscribe
- No licensed therapist
- No AI message analysis or draft review
Best for: Parents drafting a parenting plan or tracking custody time precisely for court.
7
BestInterest
AI message shielding for high-conflict co-parents.
BestInterest has a free plan plus Connect ($9.99/month), Protect ($14.99/month, which adds Message Shield and Tone Guardian), and Protect Plus ($29.99/month). Each parent chooses a plan, and paid plans include a 2-week trial.
Pros
- Message Shield filters hostile incoming messages before you read them
- Boundary Line (Connect plan and up) gives you a dedicated number that documents the other parent even if they never install the app
- Tone Guardian reviews your drafts and offers a calmer rewrite (Protect plan)
- AI coaching that references your actual parenting plan
- Native iOS and Android apps plus web
- Free core tier and court-admissible records
Cons
- No access to a licensed therapist you can actually book (its clinical link is a psychologist endorsement, not 1:1 sessions)
- Message Shield and Tone Guardian require the $14.99/month Protect plan per parent
- Newer brand without the long court-name recognition of OurFamilyWizard
Best for: High-conflict co-parents who want automated message filtering and a dedicated documentation number.
8
Cozi
The intact-family calendar that some divorced parents still use.
Cozi is free with ads, and the free calendar shows the next 30 days in Agenda view. Cozi Gold is $39 per year per household and adds no ads, a mobile month view, calendar search, more reminders, change notifications, a birthday tracker, and Shopping Mode.
Pros
- Free for the core family calendar
- Shared shopping lists, to-do lists, recipes, and meal planner
- Simple and widely used by intact families
- Native iOS, Android, and web
Cons
- Not designed for co-parenting after divorce or separation
- No court-grade message records
- No expense tracking with attribution
- No handoff verification, no GPS, no conflict tools
- No licensed therapist or AI analysis
Best for: Low-conflict shared schedules and grocery lists, not for parents in active custody disputes.
9
FamCal
Simple shared family calendar.
FamCal is free, with an optional FamCal Gold subscription sold weekly or annually in the app stores.
Pros
- Lightweight shared calendar
- To-do lists and grocery lists
- Free for most use cases
Cons
- No messaging built for co-parents
- No expense tracking with attribution
- No court-grade records
- Not designed for custody or separation
Best for: A low-conflict shared calendar when the parents already communicate well.
10
Google Calendar
The default that some co-parents fall back to.
Google Calendar is free with any Google account.
Pros
- Free and already familiar to most people
- Excellent calendar sharing and reminders
- Works on every device
Cons
- Not designed for co-parenting at all
- No messaging, no expense tracking, no documentation
- No record of changes for court
- No conflict tools, no therapist, no AI
Best for: Very low-conflict co-parents who only need to share a calendar.
