Both MMGuardian and Qustodio are widely popular parental control apps and I’ve seen many parents talking about their experience using both before. Here’s a summary of their general experience:
MMGuardian is well-regarded for its robust features and the ability to manage the app remotely through a parent app, available on both Android and iOS. It offers excellent content filtering, has application control feature which blocks apps, monitors text messages, and tracks location too. As you mentioned, it is definitively pricier than Qustodio.
Qustodio, on the other hand, offers similar features to MMGuardian. It can filter web content, set device time limits, track location, and monitor calls and text messages. Additionally, it features social media tracking, which can be an edge over MMGuardian. Parents seem to enjoy the simple user interface and the ability to set time controls for specific apps. It is also slightly cheaper than MMGuardian.
As per bypassing these apps, tech-savvy kids might always find a way around restrictions, however, both these apps have proven to be quite resilient and difficult to bypass according to most parents. However, some complain that savvy kids might disable the VPN on Qustodio on iOS devices (this is less of a problem on Android).
A choice between the two might depend on weighing what is more important for you. If social media monitoring is crucial, Qustodio might have an edge. If app control feature is more important and you are ready to spend a bit more, then you might want to go for MMGuardian. It’s advisable to weigh the pros & cons of both these apps based on your specific parenting needs. Also, both offer a free trial version, so you could test both out and see what works best.