The calendar and the costs, in one calm place both parents see. Whose night it is, who owes whom, what got agreed to: answered before anyone has to ask.
Start free, no credit card
One subscription covers both homes. $59.99 a year, about $5 a month, and your co-parent joins free. The big-name apps charge every parent separately. See the comparison →
A short tour of the shared calendar, the running balance, and the handoff details, exactly as both parents see them.
No sign-up needed to watch. 30 days free when you are ready, no credit card.
These are real screens, not mockups. Everything below syncs live between both parents' phones.
Every day is color-coded by parent, switch days show the drop-off time, and each child's activities carry their own color. Questions like "what time is pickup?" get asked and answered in comments right on the event, so the plan and the conversation stay together.
The app opens to tonight: whose house the kids are at, what's coming in the next 7 days, this month's balance, and anything new from your co-parent. Built for a parent checking their phone between meetings.
Snap a photo or upload a PDF of any receipt and AI fills in the amount, date, store, and category. Costs split by your percentages automatically, and each month ends with a clear number both parents agreed to.
A shared checklist for each child: the inhaler, the cleats, the library book, the charger. Both parents see the same list, so nothing gets left at the other house. Bought something on the list? The money button starts a shared expense with the child and description already filled in, so you just add the amount.
Week-on/off, 2-2-3, every other weekend, or a fully custom 2-week rotation. It fills the calendar in for you.
One time-stamped thread. Wrote it heated? Tap Soften and AI rewrites it calm and child-focused. You choose which version sends.
A private journal, one-tap exchange check-ins, and watermarked PDF exports of your message log.
529s, daycare, medical mileage auto-filled from two addresses, and an accountant-ready packet every January. Only you can see it.
Upload your parenting plan and AI drafts the schedule, holidays, and split for your review. You approve every line before it applies.
Both parents log in and see the same calendar and expenses, synced live. Your co-parent joins free with a code.
iPhone, Android, tablet, or computer, right in the browser today. Add it to your home screen now, and native apps are coming soon to the App Store and Google Play.
Optional two-factor authentication, and we never link bank accounts or move money between you.
All your co-parenting messages in one organized, time-stamped thread, so nothing gets lost in scattered texts. And when a draft comes out heated, tap 🕊️ Soften: AI rewrites it calm and child-focused, and you choose which version sends.
The same organized calendar, fair expense-splitting, and secure messaging the leading co-parenting apps offer, at a fraction of the cost, plus a few things they don't have.
| Two Porch Lights | Typical co-parenting app | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost for both parents | One price, co-parent joins free | Often billed per parent |
| Start free | 30 days, no credit card | Card often required up front |
| Holiday and birthday exchange times | ✓ Built in | Rarely included |
| Comments on calendar events | ✓ Built in | Separate message thread only |
| School email to calendar import | ✓ AI-powered | Premium tier elsewhere, if offered |
| Import your TalkingParents history | ✓ Free | Start over from scratch |
| AI message tone coach ("Soften") | ✓ Included | Premium add-on, if offered |
| Snap a receipt, auto-filled | ✓ AI-powered | Type it in by hand |
| Built-in AI assistant | ✓ Private to each parent | Not offered |
| Private time-stamped journal & exchange check-ins | ✓ | Rarely included |
| Private Tax Center: 529s, daycare, mileage, accountant-ready packet | ✓ Included with your plan, private to you | Not offered |
| Document storage for the shared space | ✓ 5 GB included, no tiers | Tiered by plan, 1 GB at the entry price |
| Custom and every-other-week schedules | ✓ | Limited presets |
| Works on any phone or computer | ✓ Browser now, apps coming soon | Usually the phone app only |
| Two-factor authentication | ✓ Optional, free | Rarely offered |
| Your money | Never linked or touched | Some take a cut of payments |
Comparison reflects common paid co-parenting apps; features and pricing vary by provider and plan.
23 field-tested steps for calm handoffs, clean money habits, and records that stay in order. Free, straight to your inbox. No newsletter, no spam.
No learning curve. If you can send a text, you can use this.
Add your kids, your cost-sharing split, and any child support. Takes about a minute.
Add each shared expense and any payments. Edit anything later in a tap.
Open the dashboard for a clear monthly balance, and settle up with confidence.
Exchange days end the way they should. The light's on at both houses.
Use everything free for 30 days. One simple yearly price covers both parents: calendar, parenting schedule, expenses, and live sync across all your devices. Cancel anytime.
This app keeps growing, and the ideas come from the parents using it. When something gets built, it shows up in your account at no extra cost. What does not move is what you pay. Subscribe at $59.99 a year and that stays your price for as long as your subscription is active, however much the app grows.
No. One subscription covers the shared space for both of you. Your co-parent joins with an invite code and never pays for the calendar, expenses, messages, or payments. The one personal extra is the private Tax Center: yours is included with your plan, and if your co-parent wants their own, they add their own plan.
Yes. The private Tax Center tracks 529 contributions, daycare and day camp, medical costs, kids' insurance premiums, and FSA reimbursements, and it auto-calculates medical-visit mileage from two addresses. One tap builds an accountant-ready packet for TurboTax or your CPA. It's private: your co-parent can never see it.
No, you do not need matching phones. Two Porch Lights works in any web browser on iPhone, Android, tablet, or computer, and you can add it to your home screen so it opens like an app. Native iPhone and Android apps are coming soon to the App Store and Google Play, and the same account works either way.
Never. We don't link bank accounts or transfer funds between you. You settle up however you already do; we just keep an accurate, shared record of who owes whom.
30 days free with no credit card. After that, keep it for $59.99/year or $7.99/month, your choice, and it covers your whole household. Cancel anytime.
Yes. Your data is yours, stored securely, and never sold. See our Privacy Policy for details.
It still works for you on its own. You can log expenses, track the schedule, keep your journal and exchange check-ins, and export watermarked PDF and CSV records, all without the other parent ever joining. Nothing you enter depends on them. If they join later with your invite code, everything you have already recorded is there waiting, and the shared view switches on from that point.
They are built for it. Your message thread is time-stamped and cannot be edited or deleted after the fact, and you can export it as a watermarked PDF, along with a full expense history and payment record, whenever your attorney or mediator asks. We are not a law firm and this is not legal advice, so follow your attorney's guidance on what to file.
They stay yours. Export everything to PDF or CSV at any time, before or after you cancel, and nothing is locked behind the paywall on the way out. If you decide to delete the account outright, that erases your data for good and we cannot recover it.
Sign in to your shared account to pick up right where you and your co-parent left off, on any device.
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Add it to your home screen today and it opens full-screen, with its own icon, and it even works offline.
Native apps for iPhone and Android are on the way, coming soon to the App Store and Google Play. The same account and subscription work either way, so nothing changes for you or your co-parent.