Screen-free bedtime · Ages 1 to 12
4.9 from 36 beta testers
★ Starring Tim
Dinner ran long, bath ran longer, and the moment you sit down, your phone is already in your hand. Making up or reading another story feels impossible. So it's "not tonight, buddy," and a dopamine-fueled cartoon does bedtime. Same at our house.
You care. You're just tired. And your phone feed and their cartoons are made for the same thing: to keep you watching. So right when kids should calm down, the screen gets them more excited.
Bedtime Hero is the quiet opposite: a calm story, audio only, starring your child. You stay close. It does the making up and the telling.
How it works · Sample story
He's 5, and not a fan of the dark.
1Tim picked a little green dinosaur and the backyard at night.
2His mom picked the life lesson: being brave in the dark.
★ Starring Tim3The app made Tim's story. His mom pressed play and locked the phone.
Life lesson: being brave in the dark
So far: Pickle, a little green dinosaur, has lost his bear somewhere in Tim's dark backyard. The flashlight isn't helping.
"Pickle," said Tim, "let's turn the light off."
"OFF?" squeaked the little green dinosaur. "But then it will be dark."
"Two kids, one of me after 8 pm. I used to bargain my way out of story time. Now I lie down with Theo, the story plays, and I rest my eyes. I'm still there. I'm just not performing."
Megan R.Mom of Theo (4) and June (1)"Ava doesn't ask for 'a story' anymore. She asks for 'my story.' Her newest one is her, a three-legged cat and the bottom of the sea. She's heard it every night this week, and she still called her grandpa to tell him the whole plot. Twice."
Jess T.Mom of Ava (5)"Bedtime used to be 'one more episode,' then a meltdown. Now cartoons end at dinner, and bedtime is lights off, Mateo's story on. He stopped arguing after a week. His sister pretends she isn't listening. She is."
Daniel K.Dad of Mateo (7) and Sofia (9)"Sam's teacher said he'd been left out at recess. He didn't say a word. That night I picked 'being left out' and didn't say why. When it ended, in the dark, he said, 'That happened to me today.' We talked until he fell asleep."
Priya S.Mom of Sam (9) and Anika (6)"Recording my voice sounded cringey, so I skipped it. The narrator is warm, and Ella cares more about being in the story than who tells it. My wife recorded hers before a work trip, so Ella still heard Mom. I'm sticking with the narrator."
Ben A.Dad of Ella (6)A story instead of a screen
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As many as you pick: 1, 3 or 7. With more than one child, you can split them, and each story stars one of them by name. Stories never expire, and any story can be replayed as often as you like, and younger kids often ask for the same one night after night.
Nothing to watch. The screen goes dark and the story plays as audio only. No video, no animation.
It works on any phone, iPhone or Android, and on tablets too. It's a web app, so there's nothing to install from an app store: open it in your browser and, if you like, add it to your home screen. Press play, lock the phone, and the story keeps playing.
Ages 1 to 12. Every story is written for your child's age, so a 2-year-old and a 10-year-old get very different stories. With the youngest, you do the picking.
Everyday ones: sharing, being brave in the dark, a new baby, saying sorry. For older kids: being left out, losing a game, nerves before a test. You pick it, alone or with your child, and it comes through the story, never as a lecture.
Only if you want. A warm narrator can tell every story. For nights you're away, or because it's the voice they know, read a few sentences off the screen: about 30 seconds, nothing to memorize. Stories then play in a voice that sounds like yours.
Yes. Every story also comes as an e-book you can read aloud. Open it on your phone or iPad, or send it to an e-reader like a Kindle, where there's no bright screen at bedtime.
Yes, and that's how every story can star your child. AI writes each one from your picks, the life lesson and your child's age, within rules we set: gentle, calm, nothing scary, always ending in sleep.
No. You pay once for 1, 3 or 7 stories. Nothing renews and there's nothing to cancel. The stories are yours to keep and replay, and if you want more, you can get another pack anytime.
Lie down next to them. Bedtime Hero makes it up and tells it, with your child in it and a small life lesson at the end. The rest, you've already got.
Make my kid's first storyA gift before you go
Any pack, starring your kid, for half the price. We'll add the discount at checkout.
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