10 Great Reasons for Kids to Have a Phone (No Smartphone Needed)
Independence, grandparent calls, safety check-ins and more — ten honest reasons a kid might need a phone, and why not one of them needs a smartphone.
The phone conversation with kids usually gets stuck on the wrong worry. Parents picture a smartphone, with the apps and the scrolling and the whole internet in a small pocket, and understandably think "not yet." But that picture skips over something. There are genuinely great reasons for a kid to have a phone, and almost none of them involve a screen at all.
Once you separate the reasons from the device, it gets a lot easier. Here are ten good reasons for kids to have a phone, and why not one of them needs a smartphone to happen.
1. They can walk or ride places on their own
The walk to school, the ride to the park, the trip to a friend's house. A phone is what turns "I'll drive you" into "off you go." Your child gets to build independence, and you get a way to reach them if plans change.
Why it doesn't need to be a smartphone. None of this requires apps or a browser. It requires a phone that makes and takes calls, which a five-year-old can manage and a smartphone massively over-delivers on.
“He cycles to school now. Twelve minutes door to door. He rings me when he gets there, again before he leaves to come home. I stopped checking my phone every five minutes. We both got our afternoons back.”
2. They can ring grandparents whenever they like
Grandparents love a phone call from the grandkids, and older relatives often prefer a voice on the line to anything with a screen. A phone lets your child pick up and call nan or grandad on their own, without you setting it up each time.
Why it doesn't need to be a smartphone. A call is a call. No app to install, no account to make, no video feature anyone has to learn. It works with a landline on the other end just as well as a mobile.
“Our 7yo can ring grandma in the UK without us setting it up each time. She talks for ages about nothing. Hearing them pick up the phone, say hello and chat away has been some of the happiest moments to experience.”
3. You get safety check-ins without hovering
The arrival call is the quiet workhorse of parenting. "I'm here." "I'm heading home." Two short calls a day and you can stop refreshing a tracking app every few minutes, because your child tells you themselves.
Why it doesn't need to be a smartphone. A check-in is one tap and a quick chat. There's nothing a smartphone adds here except the temptation to get distracted before the call happens.
4. They stay connected across two homes
For kids splitting their week between two houses, a phone is a direct line to both parents that belongs to the child, not to either household. They can ring mum or dad themselves whenever they want to, which takes the logistics and the go-betweens out of it.
Why it doesn't need to be a smartphone. A phone locked to approved contacts does this better than a smartphone would, because the people who can reach your child are only the ones you've added. No stranger contact, no group invites, just a clean line to the people who matter.
5. They can reach a trusted adult in an emergency
This is the reason most parents come back to. If something goes wrong, your child needs to be able to call you, or another adult on the list, quickly and without fuss. It matters even more in households living with a medical condition, where a fast call to a parent can be genuinely important.
Why it doesn't need to be a smartphone. In an emergency, complexity is the enemy. A big, obvious way to call the people who can help beats a locked screen and a wall of apps every time.
6. They keep friendships going by voice
Best friends move away. Cousins live in other cities. A phone lets kids keep those friendships alive with actual conversation rather than losing touch, and there's something lovely about a child chatting away to a mate for half an hour about nothing much.
Why it doesn't need to be a smartphone. Friendship over the phone is just talking. It doesn't need a messaging app, a follower count, or a feed to work. Arguably it works better without them.
7. They learn responsibility with a device that isn't precious
Looking after a phone teaches kids to keep track of their things, charge it, and answer it. That's a good lesson. It's a far better lesson to learn on a simple, sturdy phone than on a smartphone that costs many hundreds of dollars and cracks the first time it hits the pavement.
Why it doesn't need to be a smartphone. A first phone should be one you're relaxed about handing over. Losing a call-only phone is a shrug. Losing a smartphone is a very expensive teaching moment.
8. You both get your afternoons back
When your child can reach you and you can reach them, the constant low-level checking stops. You stop hovering, they stop feeling watched, and everyone gets on with their day. Parents describe this as the surprise benefit, the one they didn't expect.
Why it doesn't need to be a smartphone. Peace of mind comes from being reachable, not from a device that can do a thousand other things. A smartphone tends to add worry here rather than remove it.
9. It's a phone they use and put down
A good first phone gets used when it's needed and then set down. There's no feed to fall into, nothing pinging for attention, nothing pulling them back. They call, they hang up, they go back to what they were doing.
Why it doesn't need to be a smartphone. This is the whole point. A smartphone is built to be picked up again and again. A call-only phone is built to be forgotten between calls, which for a young child is exactly right. It also keeps them well clear of social media, which in Australia is off limits to under-16s anyway since the ban came into effect on 10 December 2025.
“Go does what I needed and nothing more. Voice, location, no apps, no screen to scroll. We almost got him a smartwatch last Christmas and I'm glad we waited. The Go feels purpose-built.”
10. They get the confidence of doing things solo
Underneath all of it is the same quiet win. A child who can call home if they need to is a child who feels brave enough to try things on their own. The phone isn't there to be used constantly. It's there so they know help is one call away, and that's often all it takes for them to have a go.
Why it doesn't need to be a smartphone. Confidence comes from the safety net, not the gadget. A simple phone is the whole net. Everything else a smartphone adds is beside the point at this age.
So what should they actually have?
If those are the reasons, then the phone you want is one that does exactly those jobs and stops there. That's the thinking behind Waffle, which makes two screen-free phones for kids with no apps, no camera and no internet.
Waffle Go is the portable one, with a built in eSIM so it works out and about without WiFi, plus GPS so you can see where your child is. It suits the walking, cycling and after school years.
Waffle Home is the home one, running on your WiFi with no SIM. It sits on the bench, rings like a real phone, and is how the kids call grandparents and how grandparents call back.
Both are locked to approved contacts, so the only people who can reach your child are the ones you've added.
“Approved contacts only means no spam, no unknown numbers, no random group invites. My 8yo answered her first call and didn't have to wonder if it was a scammer.”
If you're weighing up a first phone for kids, start from the reasons above and work backwards. In most cases, the honest answer isn't a smartphone at all.
Frequently asked questions
Why should a kid have a phone?
The strongest reasons are independence, staying reachable, calling family, and safety check-ins when they're away from you. Almost all of them come down to making and taking calls, which is why a young child rarely needs a full smartphone to get the benefit.
What are the benefits of kids having a phone without a smartphone?
A call-only phone gives you the good parts, being reachable and independent, without the apps, internet, camera and social media that make parents wary. It's cheaper, harder to break, and far less distracting.
What's the best type of phone for a young child?
For younger kids, a screen-free phone that only makes calls to approved contacts is usually the best fit. Purpose-built options like the Waffle Go and Waffle Home are designed for exactly this.
Do kids really need a phone?
Not always, but many do once they start doing things without a parent, like walking to school, staying with relatives, or moving between two homes. The need is usually about calling, not about owning a smartphone.
More parent questions are answered on our FAQ page.