Best Co-Parenting App for High Conflict: 3 Options

Successful co-parenting is built on cooperation and communication. But high-conflict co-parents struggle to get on the same page, making co-parenting especially difficult.

A co-parenting app acts as an intermediary between high-conflict co-parents so they can see past their personal conflicts and focus on raising their kids.

The best co-parenting app for high conflict depends on what you need.

If you need parenting time tracking: Custody X Change

Custody X Change tracks parenting time to give you an accurate calculation of how much time each parent actually spends with their child.

Use the actual time tracker to plug in deviations from the schedule, like late drop-offs and missed visits, to see how they impact parenting time.

Print out a parenting time report to present in court. It can help you prove a parent has wrongfully denied visits or is not showing up for visits. This could help you change the custody order. Parenting time reports also ensure you get an accurate child support order.

Custody X Change also helps you track expenses, take notes about your parenting situation, and more.

If you need call recording: Talking Parents

Talking Parents has an accountable calling feature that allows parents to keep a record of phone and video calls. This gives you evidence for court — plus, calls often go more smoothly when both parents know they're being recorded.

The feature also lets you hide your phone number so the other parent can't contact you outside the app.

With a paid account, you can make and receive calls. You'll get a recording and transcript of every call. The amount of call time you get depends on your plan.

With a free account, you can only receive calls.

Video calling is allowed in any country where the Talking Parents app is available. Phone calling is limited to the U.S. and Canada.

If you need email moderation: Civil Communicator

Civil Communicator has a staff member review and approve your co-parenting emails.

After subscribing, you'll have two weeks of communication coaching. A coach will review your emails to make sure they're in line with the communication guidelines. The coach will give you suggestions on how to improve your communication if it doesn't meet the guidelines.

After the first two weeks, the review team will read every email to determine whether it should be forwarded as is, revised or rejected. You'll receive notice of the status of your emails, and the recipient will get a notification when an email is forwarded to them.

This hands-on approach can be a game-changer for co-parents who are unable to discuss their child without vitriol. But Civil Communicator is the most expensive of the three best co-parenting apps for high-conflict, so many parents don't go this route unless a court orders them to.

Why use a co-parenting app when there's high conflict?

Parents in high-conflict need a way to manage co-parenting that involves very little person-to-person contact.

The best co-parenting apps for high-conflict have:

• Parent-to-parent messaging: Messaging tools like the one from Custody X Change highlight destructive language and let you print conversations for court. Insults and belittling are common signs of inappropriate co-parenting.
• Parenting plan template: Creating a high-conflict parenting plan means you won't need to talk to one another about how to handle many parenting matters — it's all spelled out in the plan.
• Expense tracker: Enter child-related expenses so you know how much you've spent and how much the other parent owes you. Upload receipts as proof of purchase.

A co-parenting app is a vital tool for parents at all conflict levels as it makes working together easier. An app could spare high-conflict co-parents years of fighting and help them maintain a healthy environment for their children.