Do you often try to take care of private things on your phone before giving it to someone else? Do your friends constantly ask for your phone and you’re not comfortable with giving them the phone with all your personal information on it?
If you answered yes, then continue reading to find out how you can add guest mode on your Android smartphone. Since getting my first Android phone, we’ve had to take care of several things before giving it to others, especially clearing up some text messages before letting my parents use my phone.
Why Use Guest Mode?
Guest mode is basically a special profile that you can enable on your Android device for guests. You can choose the apps that you want to enable in guest mode and the guest will only be able to access those apps. So for example, if you want the guest to use only the Phone app, you can enable it and all other apps won’t be accessible.
Here are the reasons why you should use guest mode on your Android device.
- Hide apps and other features on your phone without setting individual passwords.
- Use guest mode as a special profile for kids, enabling only games.
- Easily switch between regular mode and guest mode using a password lock.
Method 1: How to Use the Built-in Guest Mode
Some Android phones have a built-in option for creating a Guest Mode, or a Second Space. If your phone doesn’t have this option, please go to the next method.
Go to Settings and select Second Space/Guest Mode
If you don’t know how to go to your Settings, feel free to check our guide that presents you with 20 methods to do so. Then select Second Space or Guest Mode, according to what your option is named as. If you don’t know where it is, you can also search for it in the settings menu.
Select Second Space
Turn on Second Space
You will be prompted with a screen that lists the benefits of this seconds space and a button that you have to press to turn on guest mode.
Turn on Second Space
Customize Your Space
Now you will be asked to set up a password and decide how you want to switch from one space to another, either by entering a different password or by a home screen widget.
This Second Space is like having a different phone, that you can customize any way you want, and not include whatever you don’t want other people to see.
Method 2: How to Add Guest Mode with Third-Party App
There are many apps that can help you with this. However, we’ve chosen Safe: Protect Your Privacy for exemplification. At the time of publishing this article, the app was in Early Access, thus a bit unstable, but it shows great potential and good features, thus we decided to show it to you. You can download the app by clicking the Google play button below.
App Logo
Select Guest Mode
Open the app and select Guest Mode on the right side of the screen.
Main Interface
Select Apps to Be Blocked
You will be presented with the list of all the apps installed on your device. Check the ones you don’t want to appear in Guest Mode. Then tap Set Pin.
Select Blocked Apps
And you’re done! All you have to do now is tap the slider on the main interface to turn on the feature. Next time you unlock your phone, you will be asked a password. If you enter the password you set for Guest Mode, the phone will Guest Mode.
Add Guest Mode on Android – Protect Your Privacy
While there are many security and privacy apps available on the Google Play Store, they are quite similar and you can only set up a password and block certain apps. We think default Android lock screens are better than using such apps.
However, you can set up a special guest mode for others in order to allow only specific apps, such as games or the phone app. This is not only a great way to maintain privacy on your phone, but this is also a great way to give your kids the phone without worrying about them accidentally making calls.
If you have an LG G2 or G3, we recommend you read our guide on using the built-in guest mode.
So what method did you use? What was your experience? Let us know in the comments down below!
Angie V. on
I would really really enjoy having the ability to have a guest mode on my galaxy S5 but it is not the type that your listing above LG it is a Samsung
Dani on
Angie
Update your S5 to Kitkat. You can use guest mode.
Manjunath on
Thanks a lot for such a nice explanation.
Do have any other app which gives same feature as LG G2 guest mode ??
Method 2 is close but i need something more better.
Dani on
Manjunath,
I have listed the 2 best apps that I feel are perfect and closest to LG’s guest mode.
mitesh on
Me guest mode ka password bhul gaya hu ab…….
Billa on
Mitesh,
This is unfortunate. Bhai gee kaheen safe jagah likh lia karo ya password manager app use kar lo.
anonymous on
Does guest mode for either app allow the owner to track which apps the guest accessed?
Judy on
I don´t think they do since the only apps they are able to use are the ones you allow.
aryeh on
links are down
Judy on
Thanks for the heads up. We´ll take care of that as soon as possible.
Michael on
Hello,
Thank you for the tutorial.
I’ve a dilemma:
I’m in the process of selecting a pair of phones for my 12 and 14 year olds. I don’t want them accessing the web without permission, but want them to have good cameras, and I’m sure they’d like “cool” flat screen phones rather than slide/flip phones.
I can turn off talk, text, and data to each phone line via my account (fully configurable on my current Verizon acct, and 19/24 hours per day on possible switch to T-Mobile). And I can block the kids’ phones from my router. But that would still leave them able to download who knows what from any other WiFi link.
Your suggestions may allow me to “dumb” down smartphones.
As I understand it, the first option you mention from the Google Play store, “Guest Mode” has only a password for the owner/administrator, and is intended for temporarily loaning a phone to a friend or child while the owner is close by.
The second option from Google Play, “App Locker” with “Guest Mode”, allows the parent to have full access via a regular/parent password, and the child/guest to have restricted access via different child/guest password. This latter option would seem viable for our situation, so that my kids phones would be locked so that third parties could not gain access.
Also, I’m mulling getting budget LG smartphones, the Aristo, K20+, or Stylo 3+, because they have purportedly good cameras. I note that you deem the LG “Guest Mode” useful.
How does LG “Guest Mode” compare with the first and second options?
I’d like to be able to block ALL access to the web via ALL routes, including WiFi and wireless, in browser(s) and social networking apps., etc.
Do and of the three options you mention, (1) Google “Guest Mode”, (2) Google “App Locker” with “Guest Mode”, or (3) LG’s “Guest Mode”, have this ability to de-select all apps that link to the web?
If so, I could get smartphones, “dumb” them down for now, and in time, and as kids’ earn trust, allow prudent access to the web to, say, download games or stream videos, all the while having the ability to take great photos.
Thanks for fielding my multi-part query.
Regards,
Michael
megan on
Hi, Michael!
LG’s Guest Mode works very similarly to App Locker, in that one password allows access to Guest Mode, while another gives full access to the phone. However, LG’s Guest Mode is only intended for temporary use. While in Guest Mode, users cannot access the notification shade nor can they access contacts through the dial screen. By default they are only able to access the gallery, calculator, music, and camera apps, but you can grant them access to more in the regular mode settings.
You should be able to block web access with any of these methods, but with so many different apps that link to the web in various ways, it will be difficult to catch them all. Rather than relying on Guest Mode, I suggest browsing or posts on parental controls:
How to Use Android Parental Controls to Keep Your Children Safe Online
Best 8 Android Parental Control Apps to Check Up on Those Pesky Kids
Please let me know if I can help you further!