Everything in Kid Pickup, and what it actually does
Kid Pickup is an iPhone app from Think X Design Media, on Vancouver Island, BC, that gives each school and activity pickup one person and keeps your family’s week on one calendar. New subscribers get two weeks free through Apple, then the plan renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the trial ends.
Pickups first, and around them the calendar, the chat and the family details your week runs on. If it’s on this page, it’s in the app today. If it isn’t working yet, it isn’t here.
Home, Your Family’s Feed
The day’s news from everyone who helps, with today’s pickups on top
The app opens on Home: one private feed for your family. Today’s pickups sit at the top with who has each one, and under them the family’s updates and photos, and what happened to each pickup, with a badge saying where it stands now. Everyone you’ve invited can post; nobody outside your family can see it.
- Your Family OnlyNo public profiles, followers or links. Photos are kept in private storage and shown only to your family.
- React and CommentReact to a post with an emoji or answer it with a comment. Each post is in the colour of whoever posted it.
- Photos, Full ScreenTap a photo in a post to see it full screen. Swipe to the post’s other photos, and pinch to zoom on an iPhone.
- Who and What It’s ForAn update about a pickup shows the kids’ avatars and the activity, like ⚽ Soccer, above what happened.
- Posts From the KidsA parent or guardian can post as one of the children, with their own name underneath. Children never get an account.
- Type a Plan, Get a PickupType “Soccer Thursday at 4” and Home offers to add it to the calendar, with the form filled in for you to check.
- Its Own Off SwitchTurn off Feed Notifications in Settings and the notifications about pickups keep coming.
How it works, step by step
- Open the app: Home is the first screen
- See today’s pickups at the top, with who has each one
- Post an update or a photo; the family gets a notification
- Type an event and choose Add to calendar
On Your Home Screen and Your Computer
Today’s pickups at a glance, and the whole app in a browser
Add the Kid Pickup widget to your iPhone’s Home Screen and today’s pickups are there without opening the app, with who has each. On a computer, sign in at app.kidpickup.com and your family’s calendar, feed and chat are all there, on the same account.
- Two Widget SizesThe small widget shows the next pickup today and who has it. The medium one shows up to three.
- In a BrowserSign in at app.kidpickup.com with the same account you use on your iPhone. A plan bought on the iPhone counts there too.
- Drag to RescheduleOn a computer, parents and guardians can drag a pickup up or down the Day view to change its time, or onto another day in the Week or Month view. The calendar scrolls when you drag near its edge.
- Keyboard ShortcutsPress ? in the browser for the list: N for a new event, / to search, T for today, the arrow keys to move through the calendar, and D, W or M for Day, Week or Month.
How it works, step by step
- Open Kid Pickup once after updating
- Touch and hold your Home Screen, tap Edit, then Add Widget
- Search for Kid Pickup and choose a size
- On a computer, go to app.kidpickup.com and sign in
- Plans are still bought on iPhone
- Notifications come to your iPhone, not the browser
Your Family’s Calendar
Every school run, practice and plan in one shared place
Add school runs, practices, appointments and any other pickup or drop-off in a few taps, or just type it as a sentence. One-time or repeating, it becomes a plan the whole circle can see, by day, by week or by month, not another calendar only one parent keeps in their head.
- Type It or Say ItWrite “Swim pickup for Leo Thursday at 4:30, ask Grandma”, or say it with your keyboard’s microphone, and the form fills itself in. Check it and tap Create. On every plan.
- More Than 100 ActivitiesPick soccer, piano lessons, the dentist or a birthday party from the list, or type your own. Each has a symbol that shows on the card and in notifications.
- Event, Activity or ReminderStart with what it is, then say whether somebody drives: drop-off, pick-up, both, or no ride. Change your mind later by editing it, or turn it into a To do. One with no ride doesn’t need a child, so your own dentist appointment or a meeting can go on too.
- Repeating ActivitiesAdd weekly soccer or daily school drop-off once, as a repeating pickup, instead of one day at a time. Call off a single day, with a reason, without touching the rest.
- Saved LocationsPick the school, the dance studio or grandma’s house from your saved places.
- Drop-Off and Pickup, Two PeopleAdd the morning drop-off and afternoon pickup together, each with its own time and place. Give both to one person, or choose a different person for each.
- Double-Booked? You’ll KnowIf a child already has something starting within an hour that day, you’re asked before it saves: change this one, or create it anyway.
- Two Cars? Two People.A pickup can need more than one person, or one per child. It stays open until every place is filled.
- In Your Own CalendarSubscribe from Apple, Google or Outlook Calendar and your pickups show up there too.
- Your Google Calendar, Brought InParents and guardians can connect their Google Calendar. Each calendar counts as busy time only or goes on the family calendar, and Google Tasks lists go into To do. Kid Pickup only reads from Google.
- Search Your EventsTap the magnifier on the Events tab and search by activity, child, place, a note or who has it.
- One Child at a TimeOnly drive one of the kids? Filter the Calendar to that child’s events, on your phone only.
- Files on an EventAdd the permission slip or the tournament schedule as a photo or a PDF, up to five on each event. Everyone who can see the event can open them.
- Holidays and Days OffChoose your province or state and its public holidays show on the Calendar. Add Pro-D days and school breaks, or let a school calendar you follow bring them in.
- Undo a DeleteDelete a pickup and Undo shows for a few seconds. For 30 days, a parent or guardian can put it back from Settings, Recently Deleted.
How it works, step by step
- Tap +, then type it as a sentence or fill in the form
- Say what it is: an Event, an Activity or a Reminder
- Say whether somebody drives: drop-off, pick-up, both or no ride
- Pick the child or children, the date, time and place
- Make it repeat if it’s a regular thing, and choose a reminder
- Leave it open for your circle, or take it yourself
Work Conflicts, Caught Early
Know who’s stuck at work before you ask who’s free
Parents and guardians add their work hours once, and can add a partner’s too. When a pickup still needs someone and it lands in somebody’s shift, or within half an hour of it, the pickup says so: “Ash is at work 9:00 AM–5:00 PM, around the pickup at 3:15 PM.” One tap turns it into a “Can you help?” for the whole family.
- The Week Ahead, at the TopA banner at the top of Events lists every pickup in the next seven days that nobody has yet and that lands in a parent’s shift.
- Your Hours, and Your Partner’sPick your work days and hours in Settings, or enter a partner’s for them. Parents and guardians see everyone’s hours on the Calendar; a helper only ever sees their own.
- Busy in Google Calendar CountsConnect your Google Calendar and a pickup nobody has yet that lands during a meeting says you have something on, without saying what.
- Travel Time CountedFinishing at 3:00 won’t get you to a 3:15 pickup. Anything within 30 minutes of a shift is flagged.
- Ask the FamilyOne tap sends everyone a “Can you help?” with an I’ll do it button, and the pickup is marked urgent.
- Quiet When It’s SortedOnce someone takes it on, the warning goes. Tap It’s fine to hide it. Move the pickup and it checks again.
- Double-Booked? You’ll KnowSeparately, if a child already has something starting within an hour that day, you’re asked before it saves.
How it works, step by step
- Open Settings and tap Work Schedule
- Pick your work days and hours
- Add pickups the way you always do
- A pickup nobody has yet shows who’s at work then
- Tap Ask the family, or It’s fine
- Once someone takes it on, the warning goes away
Everyone Stays in the Loop
No more “wait, who’s getting the kids?”
When a pickup is added, taken on or dropped, parents and guardians get a push notification, and helpers hear about the open pickups they could take and their own. Every one says where the pickup stands: “Open: nobody has it yet”, or “Claimed by Ash”. You find out someone has it covered without asking, and you hear straight away if someone can’t make it.
- New PickupsAdd an open pickup and everyone who could take it hears about it. A repeating one only notifies once.
- Taken OnWhen someone takes on a pickup, parents and guardians know who’s doing it.
- DroppedIf someone can’t make it after all, the pickup is open again and everyone who could take it hears.
- All in One PlaceEvery notification is kept behind the bell, so you can scroll back and see what was added, taken on and dropped.
- Asked by NameAsk someone for a pickup and they get a notification of their own. They tap I’ll do it, or open the pickup and Accept or Decline.
- Can’t Make ItSay so straight from the notification. The pickup stays open, the heads-ups keep going, and everyone who could take it hears that it still needs someone.
- I’ll Do It, From the NotificationTake a pickup straight from a “Can you help?” or “Needs someone” notification. If two people tap at once, one gets it and the other is told who.
- Seen by GrandmaParents and guardians see who has opened a pickup, and when a notification didn’t reach someone’s phone, so you know to text them.
- Tomorrow, the Night BeforeAt 7 p.m. the app sends one notification with tomorrow’s pickups and events and who has each, when there’s anything on.
- Choose What You GetSettings, Choose Notifications has a switch for each kind: being asked, pickups nobody has yet, changes, reminders, the evening summary, To do reminders and chat.
- Helpers Hear LessGrandparents and sitters hear about their own pickups and the ones that need someone, not every pickup in the family. They can switch to only their own, or everything.
How it works, step by step
- Allow notifications when the app asks after you sign in
- Someone adds a pickup and everyone who could take it is notified
- A helper takes it on and everyone sees who
- Someone drops a pickup and everyone who could take it hears
- Tap a notification to open that pickup
- Look back through it all behind the bell
Family Chat
Your whole circle in one conversation, out of the group text
A Chat tab for everyone in your circle: parents, grandparents, the sitter. The family chat sits first, under your family’s name and an avatar a parent picks. Say you’re running late, ask who has the spare car seat, or just say thanks. The rest of the family gets a notification, and with the chat open, new messages show up within seconds.
- Everyone’s InParents, guardians, grandparents and sitters share one family chat, on every plan.
- Everyone Gets a NotificationA new message sends a notification to the rest of the family and marks the Chat tab. With the chat open, it shows up within seconds.
- A Thread on Each Pickup (Premium)Talk about one pickup right on it: “Side door today, she has her cleats.” Only people who can see that pickup see its thread.
- Private Chats TooMessage one person, or start a group with just some of the family. A parent or guardian can start a group; anyone can message one person.
- Read Means YouOpening the chat marks it read for you, not for the whole family.
- Colors and ReactionsEach person’s messages are in their own color. Hold a message to react to it.
- Photos in ChatTap the camera beside the message box to send a photo in any chat. Only the people in that chat see it, and a tap opens it full screen.
How it works, step by step
- Tap the Chat tab
- Type a message and send it
- Everyone else in the family gets a notification
- On Premium, open a pickup and tap Messages to talk about just that one
- Opening the chat clears the dot for you
Reminders That Go to the Right Person
No pickup falls through the cracks
Whoever is doing a pickup gets a reminder before it, at the time you chose when you set it up. A pickup nobody has taken on yet stands out in amber, and parents and guardians get a heads-up 24 hours before, a more urgent one 3 hours before (you can change that), and another at 2 hours.
- A Nudge Before You GoThe person doing the pickup gets a reminder 15, 30, 45 or 60 minutes ahead. Pick more than one if they like a second nudge.
- Heads-Up When Nobody Has ItParents and guardians hear 24 hours and 2 hours ahead if a pickup is still open, plus a more urgent heads-up 3 hours out. The family owner can move that to 1, 2, 6 or 12 hours, or turn it off.
- Easy to SpotOpen pickups stand out in amber, with an “OPEN” badge that changes to “NEEDS HELPER” inside 24 hours.
- Stops When It’s CoveredOnce someone takes it on, the heads-ups stop. If they drop it, they start again.
How it works, step by step
- Add a pickup and leave it open
- It shows an “OPEN” badge on the calendar
- Inside 24 hours the badge turns to “NEEDS HELPER”
- Parents and guardians get a heads-up at 24, 3 and 2 hours
- Someone takes it on and the heads-ups stop
- They get their own reminder before the pickup
How the “nobody has this yet” nudges work, and how to change them
Request Help
For when the day goes sideways
Stuck in a meeting, or the car won’t start? Request Help puts an urgent, open pickup on the calendar and sends the whole family a “Can you help?” notification with your note. Whoever can go takes it on the same way as any other pickup.
- One Request, Everyone Sees ItThe whole family gets it at once. No calling around one by one.
- Your Note Comes With ItAdd a line like “Stuck at work, can someone get Emma at 3:15?” and it shows in the notification.
- Marked UrgentIt stands out on the calendar so nobody mistakes it for a regular pickup.
- Settled When Someone Says YesAs soon as someone takes it on, the request is marked accepted and you get a notification saying who’s going.
How it works, step by step
- Tap Request Help
- Pick the child, time and place
- Add a short note
- Everyone in the family gets “Can you help?”
- Someone takes it on
- You get a notification saying who’s going
Avatars for Your Kids
Whose pickup is it? You’ll know at a glance
Each child gets a color and either their initials or one of more than 140 pictures: a superhero, a fairy, a dragon, a fox, a unicorn, a rocket, a soccer ball. It shows on every pickup, so a busy week is easy to read, and kids like picking their own. Grown-ups can pick one too.
- CharactersA superhero, a fairy, a robot, a ghost or a dragon.
- AnimalsA puppy, a fox, a panda, a unicorn or a dinosaur.
- Favorite ThingsA soccer ball, a paint palette, a rocket, pizza or a game controller.
- Or Keep It SimpleStick with initials on a color, and switch back any time.
How it works, step by step
- Add a child, or open one to edit
- Pick a color
- Tap through the choices with them
- Choose initials or a picture
- Save it
- It shows on every pickup for that child
Your Trusted Circle
Your village, organized
Bring in the grandparents, the nanny, the neighbor and the friend from soccer. Each person gets their own account and takes on the pickups they can do. A sitter sees only what they can help with, not your whole week. Grandparents see the week, because they’re family.
- A Role for EveryoneParent, guardian, grandparent, nanny, babysitter, friend or neighbor.
- Only What They NeedSitters and other helpers see open pickups, their own and any you’ve asked them about, plus the kids on those. Grandparents see the whole calendar. Switch either one from their profile in Family. Parents and guardians see and manage everything.
- Taking On a PickupHelpers take on open pickups themselves, one day or every day of a repeating one in one tap, and parents and guardians are notified.
- Who’s Free?On a pickup nobody has yet, parents and guardians see everyone who could take it: at work, busy, on another pickup, can’t make it, or free. Tap Ask beside someone free.
- Remove AnytimeTake someone out of your circle and their access ends.
How it works, step by step
- Open Family and tap Add Helper
- Enter their name and email and pick a role
- They get an email invitation
- They open it and sign up straight into your family
- They see the pickups that need someone
- They take on the pickups they can do
Saved Locations
Quick access to the places you go most
Save the places your family goes all the time: school, the pool, the doctor, grandma’s. Adding a pickup is quicker when you pick a place from a list instead of typing the address again.
- Quick to PickChoose a saved place when you add a pickup instead of typing an address.
- Your Own NamesCall them whatever your family calls them: Soccer Field, Nana’s House, Dr. Smith.
- Shared With the FamilyEveryone in the family sees the same list.
- Easy to ChangeEdit or remove a place any time.
How it works, step by step
- Open Family
- Tap + next to Locations
- Enter a name and address
- Add notes if you like
- Pick it when you add a pickup
- Edit or delete it whenever you need
AI Assistant
Ask about your week like you’d ask a friend (Premium)
Premium families get an assistant built on Claude, Anthropic’s AI. Ask it about your family’s pickups in plain words, like “Which pickups still need someone?”, and it answers from your family’s calendar. It answers when you ask. It doesn’t watch your schedule in the background, and it doesn’t change anything. (Typing a new pickup as a sentence is separate, and on every plan.)
- Plain LanguageNo menus. Type a question the way you’d say it.
- Reads Your CalendarIt answers from the pickups on your family’s calendar, not from guesses.
- Spots the GapsAsk which pickups are still open and it lists them.
- Per ChildAsk about one child by name and it answers about their pickups.
How it works, step by step
- Tap the chat bubble in the app
- Ask a question about your schedule
- It reads your family’s pickups
- Get a short, clear answer
- Ask a follow-up if you need more
- Your conversation is there next time you open it
Private by Default
Your family’s data, kept to your family
Only the people you invite can see your family’s schedule. We don’t sell your data or share it for advertising, and you can delete your account from Settings whenever you want.
- Encrypted in TransitEverything between the app and our servers travels over HTTPS. Our database provider encrypts stored data.
- Invite OnlyOnly people you invite get in. Parents and guardians see everything. Sitters see only open pickups and their own; grandparents see the calendar, never your work hours or a child’s notes.
- You Decide Who StaysRemove a helper and they lose access to your family straight away.
- Sign In Your WayUse Sign in with Apple, Google, or an email and password. Add Apple or Google later under Settings, Account, and either one opens the same account.
How it works, step by step
- Sign in with Apple, Google or email
- Invite only the people you trust
- Parents and guardians manage the schedule
- Helpers see it and take on pickups
- Remove anyone, any time
- Delete your account from Settings if you leave
Try it with your own people
Grandparents and sitters never pay.
Two weeks free for new subscribers, then the plan’s price. Apple asks for a payment method and charges when the trial ends unless you cancel at least 24 hours before. Android is on the way.