Message Notification Options

BestInterest offers flexible notification settings so you can manage how often you’re alerted to new messages from your coparent. We understand that in high-conflict or emotionally charged situations, frequent notifications can add stress. With our notification options, you can decide when and how often you’d like to receive updates, allowing you to stay informed on your own terms.

Smart Silence Features

BestInterest provides several options for receiving notifications about new messages from your coparent. We call this Smart Silence, because you can reduce the amount of communication you are notified about, without missing urgent notifications. You can choose the setting that best suits your needs:

• Immediate Notifications: You’ll receive a notification as soon as a message is sent, keeping you updated in real-time.
• Hourly Notifications: Balances peace and immediacy. If your coparent sends a message, we won’t notify you right away, but delay the notification for one hour. If more messages come in during that time, we will only notify you once that one hour is over.
• Daily Notifications: Receive a summary of messages once per day, allowing you to check in on your coparent’s communication at a scheduled time.
• Weekly Notifications: BestInterest will send a notification once a week, providing a lower-frequency option that still keeps you informed without daily updates.
• No Notifications: If you prefer not to receive notifications at all, you can turn them off entirely. Messages from your coparent will still appear in the app, but you’ll need to open BestInterest to view them.

Smart Notifications

We will never notify you about new messages you have already read. So for instance, if your coparent sends a message and you have weekly notifications turned on, but you open the app during that window, we will not send you a notification of that message.

Urgent Message Detection

BestInterest uses AI to detect messages that may be urgent, such as last-minute exchange requests or health-related updates. When we determine a message may require immediate attention, we will override your set notification frequency to ensure you’re alerted right away. For more information on how our urgency detection works, please see our support article on Urgent Messages and our disclaimer about AI accuracy.

Notifications by Email

If you’d like to receive alerts by email, simply enable “Send alerts by email” option. Your alerts will also contain the filtered message if Show filtered message in alert option is enabled. These emails will go to the email address configured in your profile settings.

Show Filtered Messages in Alert

You can choose to include the filtered message in the notifications receive by turning on Show filtered message in alert. Some parents prefer this option so they can choose to take action without opening the BestInterest app. Note that this option is only available when Immediate notifications are enabled.

How do I disable notifications per device?

BestInterest supports sending alerts to all your devices. If you’d like to disable alerts on a specific device, go to Settings > Message Notifications, then tap the mobile icon next to the device you’d like to disable alerts for. Notifications will no longer be sent to that device. To remove a device entirely from notifications, such as when you switch to a new phone, simply hold your finger down on the device and then tap Delete.

Viewing Messages with Notifications Turned Off

If you choose not to receive notifications, remember that messages from your coparent will still be stored in the app. You’ll need to open BestInterest to view any new communication. This option is ideal if you prefer a “check-in” approach, where you review messages at times that feel right for you.

How to Set Your Notification Preferences

To adjust your message notification settings:

1. Open the BestInterest App: Go to Settings by tapping More

2. Tap “Message Notifications”: You can turn OFF notifications, or turn them on and select how often you wish to be notified. Tap notification frequency to choose from Immediate, Daily, or Weekly based on your preference.

These flexible options give you control over how and when you’re updated, helping you manage communication in a way that best fits your needs.

Troubleshooting

Not getting any notifications? See our help article about what to do when you don’t see any notifications