OurFamilyWizard costs $110 to $300 a year per parent, billed annually, with no free tier. If that's why you're here, the realistic alternatives in 2026 are: Kidtime (free tier that doesn't expire; Premium $99.99/yr), AppClose ($83.88/yr on the web), TalkingParents ($77–$352/yr), 2houses ($169.99/yr for the whole family), Custody X Change ($72–$144/yr), and Cozi (free, or $39/yr) if you only need a shared calendar. Each is compared below, including what OurFamilyWizard still does better.
Prices were checked on August 29, 2026 against each company's own pricing page. Every app here is priced per parent unless it says otherwise.
Be honest about this before switching. OFW has been in market for over twenty years and is the app family courts and attorneys most often name. Its messaging is immutable — nothing can be edited, deleted, or retracted. Practitioner accounts are free, so an attorney, mediator, or guardian ad litem can be given access at no cost. Documented calling scales by tier, and the Max tier records and transcribes calls. And OFW's fee-waiver program is broad: parents on SNAP, TANF, WIC, LIHEAP, SSI, Medicaid, or the National School Lunch Program can be verified instantly online and get an Essentials subscription with unlimited calling at no cost.
If a judge ordered OurFamilyWizard by name, use OurFamilyWizard and check the fee waiver if cost is the problem. The list below is for parents who have a choice.
Kidtime is the co-parenting app with a free tier that doesn't expire: the shared custody calendar with 15+ schedule templates, messaging, and notes. Premium is $99.99 a year per parent, frequently on sale, with a 7-day free trial in the app; it adds tone scanning on every message, recorded calls and messages on the record, expense tracking, court-ready exports, and view-only access for an attorney or mediator. Kidtime is also the first co-parenting app with an AI assistant parenting plan builder — it interviews you in plain language and writes a court-ready plan section by section, with state profiles for Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Ohio, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Free to build; the export is paid.
Best for: parents who want the record-keeping without a per-parent bill, or whose co-parent won't pay — the free tier means they can still join. Where OFW is stronger: court name recognition, and OFW's Max tier records calls you place; Kidtime records calls made inside the app. Side by side: Kidtime vs OurFamilyWizard.
AppClose was free for a decade and ended that on January 1, 2026. It now has one all-inclusive plan: $7.99 a month on the web ($83.88 a year, $143.76 for two years) or $8.99 a month in the app ($98.99 a year). Both parents subscribe. There's a 60-day free trial with no card, and accounts that stop paying drop into a free read-only mode where you can still view and export your records. Fee waivers for financial hardship and domestic-violence survivors give full access for a renewable year; AppClose says it has granted over 23,500 of them since January.
Best for: a single flat price with in-app calling, messaging, expenses and 15 schedule templates. Where it falls short: no tone tool, and no free tier for the parent who won't pay. Details: AppClose pricing.
TalkingParents ended its free plan on March 30, 2026. It runs $77 (Essentials), $176 (Enhanced), or $352 (Ultimate) a year per parent on the website, and both parents must have a paid plan. Its strength is the unalterable record and Accountable Calling; its weaknesses are cost (records exports are $55 per access on Essentials, the tone tool is Ultimate-only) and the lack of any attorney access — your lawyer sees the record only when you export it.
Best for: parents who want a documented call and message record on the OFW model, on a slightly lower entry price. Where it falls short: two parents on Ultimate is $704 a year, more than OFW's Max. Details: TalkingParents pricing.
2houses charges $169.99 a year per family ($14.17 a month), and only one parent has to subscribe to give access to both parents, children, third parties and mediators. There's a 14-day trial. It's a structured calendar-journal-finance app rather than a legal-records tool.
Best for: amicable co-parents who want one bill and a shared expense ledger. Where it falls short: no tone tool, no recorded calls, and the record isn't built for court. Side by side: Kidtime vs 2houses.
Custody X Change is a scheduling and parenting-plan tool: Bronze is $72 a year ($6/month billed annually) and Gold is $144 a year, per parent, with a 30-day refund window. The free guest account can't print, export, or calculate. It's excellent at drawing custody calendars and counting overnights; it isn't a messaging platform.
Best for: building the schedule and plan document before a hearing. Where it falls short: no messaging, no calls, no ongoing record between parents. Side by side: Kidtime vs Custody X Change.
Cozi is a general family organizer, free with ads or $39 a year for Cozi Gold across the whole household. It has no custody features, no records, and no legal design, but for low-conflict parents who just need one calendar both households can see, it works.
Best for: amicable co-parents who need a calendar and lists, nothing more. Where it falls short: nothing in it will help you in court.
| App | Price per parent, per year | Free option | Tone tool | Attorney access | Record built for court |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OurFamilyWizard | $110–$300 (billed annually) | Fee waiver only | ToneMeter, all tiers | Free practitioner accounts | Yes |
| Kidtime | Free tier; Premium $99.99 (often on sale) | Free tier, no time limit | Premium | Premium (view-only) | Yes |
| AppClose | $83.88 web / $98.99 app | 60-day trial; read-only after lapse; fee waiver | — | — | Yes (certified exports) |
| TalkingParents | $77–$352 | 30-day trial (Enhanced/Ultimate); fee waiver | Ultimate only | Not offered | Yes |
| 2houses | $169.99 per family | 14-day trial | — | Mediator access | Partial |
| Custody X Change | $72–$144 | Guest account (no export) | — | Free sharing | Plans and schedules only |
| Cozi | Free, or $39 per family | Free with ads | — | — | No |
Three routes. Kidtime's free tier is the only one on this list that gives two parents a shared calendar, schedule templates and messaging with no expiry and no card. AppClose's read-only mode keeps old records viewable and exportable for free, but you can't send anything. And OurFamilyWizard's own fee waiver is genuinely free for parents on public assistance, court-documented indigence, pro bono representation, or working with a domestic-violence professional — it's worth applying before you leave OFW over price.
The two are closer to each other than to anything else here: both are records-first, court-recognized, per-parent, and expensive at the top. OFW's edge is professional access (free practitioner accounts) and a broader fee waiver; TalkingParents' edge is a lower entry tier ($77 vs $110). Neither has a free tier, and on both, a co-parent who refuses to pay locks you out.
If you're leaving OurFamilyWizard over price, the cheapest complete alternative is AppClose at $83.88 a year on the web, and the only one where the other parent can participate for free is Kidtime. If you're leaving over features, look hard at what you actually use — most households pay OFW's higher tiers for call minutes and recording they never touch. And if a court put you on OFW, stay, and use the waiver.
Sources: ourfamilywizard.com/plans-and-pricing and /plans-and-pricing/scholarships; appclose.com/pricing and the AppClose Fee Waiver FAQ (updated August 10, 2026); talkingparents.com/pricing and the TalkingParents "Pricing and Plans" help article (June 30, 2026); 2houses.com/en/pricing; app.custodyxchange.com/pricing-parents; cozi.com/faq. Checked August 29, 2026.