Modern technology has made co-parenting, scheduling and organizing your life post-divorce easier than ever.  Through the use of apps, parents can create schedules, share documents and track and pay expenses.  When used properly, the apps operate to eliminate much of the uncertainty and conflict that may be present in co-parenting post-divorce.  The following is a list of the best non-legal apps to keep everyone on the same page and to help avoid unnecessary conflict or confusion:

Free Apps:

Cozi:

Cozi is a free app that helps parents avoid confusion over custody schedules.  Parents can coordinate and communicate everyone’s schedules and activities.  It can also be used to manage to-do lists, track grocery lists, maintain a family journal and plan meals for the week.  The basic Cozi membership, which most families find sufficient, is free.  Cozi has recently added a subscription version.  Any member of the family can access Cozi’s features from PCs or Macs.  The Cozi IOS app requires iOS8 or higher and the Cozi Android app requires version 2.1 or higher. 

AppClose:

AppClose allows its users to manage children’s schedules, create and share parenting schedules, communicate children’s activities and appointments and exchange important child-related information (such as medical or child care providers).  In addition, it allows parents to track spending and submit expenses for reimbursement, make payments or send money through its built-in payment solution (ipayou) and share documents and receipts.  Finally, parents can use the app to communicate and share information with third parties as well as preserve and export records for personal or litigation purposes.  This app is available on iPhones and Androids. 

Google Calendar:

If you just need a shared calendar program, google calendar is an excellent, free option.  Google calendar enables you to simply create a calendar and share editing permissions with your ex so that he or she can make any changes.   You can schedule events like weekly visits to repeat automatically and you can also create a separate calendar for your children’s activities to share with your ex.  The Google Calendar app can be installed for free on iPhones and Android devices.  

Fee-Based Apps:

Our Family Wizard:

Our Family Wizard (commonly known as OFW) is the most popular app for communications between ex-spouses (particularly those who were involved in a less than amicable divorce).  OFW allows shared access to a parenting schedule as well as the ability to share appointment details and submit requests for changes to parenting time.  All communications can be sent through OFW messaging and the Journal allows parents to document last-minute schedule changes.  The “Tonemeter” function even allows you to identify and flag emotionally charged messages in order to keep the discourse civil.  The app includes an expense log to track shared parenting expenses and to send documented payments via “OFWpay.”  The most basic plan starts at $99 and the app is available on iPhones, Androids or KindleFire devices. 

coParenter:

co-Parenter offers organization and management features to keep everyone on the same page.  coParenter allows you to organize and manage your children’s schedules, store all of your children’s important data (such as health information, education records and emergency contact information) and track expenses and transfer money. In addition, coParenter allows you to propose, respond to and memorialize coParenting agreements so that everyone is on the same page.  The app even offers live, on-demand co-parenting mediation professionals to keep things running smoothly.  Finally, should you end up in court, coParenter maintains all of your history and authenticated records of communication between you and your spouse.  After a free 30-day trial, coParenter costs $120/year and is available on iPhones and Androids.

TalkingParents:

Unfortunately, there are times when co-parenting issues can only be resolved through the court system.  TalkingParents makes this process easier by providing a place to store all of its users’ communications.  It is a completely secure, easy-to-use record-keeping system and serves as an “accurate and unalterable” record of past conversations.  The records provide a complete and coherent view of all communications between parents, who can order PDF or Certified Printed Records whenever they choose.  TalkingParents also contains a shared calendar, personal journal (the journal is only accessible to the one parent using it) and a library to share documents.  The basic account, which can be accessed via TalkingParents.com is free but access to the iPhone and Android apps requires a Premium Account.  The Premium Account costs $5.99/month.

Coparently:

Coparently is intended to eliminate the “he said/she said” element involved in co-parenting.  The app offers the full range of tools, including a colo-coded calendar system, secure messaging and an expense management system.   It also provides parents with a shared information bank to share reports and documents as well as an on-line directory to store contact information.  The app offers a free 30-day trial after which it costs $9.99/month or $99/year.  Coparently is available on the web, Android, iOS and Kindle Fire. 

Truece:

Truece is an app designed to help parents communicate, collaborate and stay organized.  Similar to other apps it provides the full range of co-parenting tools, including a calendar and scheduling system, text messaging, a vault to save important documents and reports and a method to clearly log custody time (using geo-tracking).  Truece has a tiered pricing system, ranging from a free subscription (with limited features) to its “Premium Tier,” which includes, among other things,(i) a one hour legal consultation, (ii) parenting plan support and integration and (iii) smart expense and budgeting features.  The Premium Tier costs $99/year.  Truece is available on the web, iPhone, Android and iOS.

2houses:

2houses provides a way for parents to organize schedules, keep track of all activities and exchange information concerning their kids, from medical notes to school appointments.  It also provides document storage, a messaging service and access to a mediator.  There is a free 14-day trial and the cost of the app is $12.50 per month thereafter.  The app is available on a web platform as well as iOS and Android. 

Fayr:

Fayr has all the standard features of a scheduling app in a time-sharing calendar, messaging with easily accessible records, thoroughly organized expenses and a file vault for uploading important documents.  But this app is unique in that it generates a monthly parenting report with stats that track your custody, your engagement with documentation, and even your message response time.  In addition, Fayr provides a “Geo Location Log” that allow a court verifiable way to document its users’ presence at a GPS-verified location at a precise date and time.  Fayr is available for both iPhone and Android devices and costs $9.99/ month or $99.99/year.