Parenting comes with a never-ending list of little things to remember. Who is handling pickup? Did the kids make it home? Is someone running late from practice? Those everyday details can take up a whole lot of space in a parent’s mind.
When both parents share that responsibility, there is one less thing for either person to carry alone.
A September 2026 report from family location-sharing app iSharing offers a glimpse into one part of that routine: checking children’s whereabouts. Among the cities included in its analysis, San Mateo, California, had the highest share of location-checking sessions attributed to fathers.
The findings offer an interesting conversation starter about shared parenting. However, checking an app is only one small piece of raising a child, and these numbers do not measure everything that makes a dad supportive or involved.
How the Study Measured Parents’ Check-Ins
According to the supplied report, iSharing compared app sessions attributed to mothers and fathers across dozens of U.S. cities. Researchers then calculated the percentage of parental location checks attributed to dads in each city.
A father’s share of 54.1%, for example, means dads accounted for slightly more than half of the recorded parental checks in that city. It does not mean fathers handled 54.1% of all parenting responsibilities.
Here are the report’s top 10 cities by fathers’ share of recorded location checks:
| City | State | Fathers’ share | Total sessions | Dad sessions | Mom sessions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Mateo | California | 54.1% | 37 | 20 | 17 |
| Surprise | Arizona | 53.7% | 41 | 22 | 19 |
| Binghamton | New York | 53.1% | 32 | 17 | 15 |
| Euless | Texas | 51.4% | 37 | 19 | 18 |
| Cumming | Georgia | 51.3% | 78 | 40 | 38 |
| San Jose | California | 43.1% | 840 | 362 | 478 |
| Omaha | Nebraska | 42.1% | 444 | 187 | 257 |
| Seattle | Washington | 41.7% | 1,019 | 425 | 594 |
| Sacramento | California | 41.4% | 1,180 | 489 | 691 |
| Jackson | Mississippi | 41.2% | 335 | 138 | 197 |
Source: figures supplied in iSharing’s September 2026 report. Sessions represent app activity, not necessarily individual parents or families.
San Mateo, California, Leads the List
In San Mateo, fathers accounted for 54.1% of recorded parental location checks, with 20 sessions attributed to dads and 17 to moms.
That places the city first in this ranking, although the result comes from just 37 sessions. A small number of additional checks could change the percentage noticeably, so the finding is best viewed as a snapshot of the recorded activity.
Surprise, Arizona, Comes in Second
Surprise lived up to its name with fathers accounting for 53.7% of parental checks.
The report recorded 22 dad sessions and 19 mom sessions. Within that activity, checking children’s whereabouts was shared fairly evenly, with fathers making slightly more checks.
It is a small everyday task, but remembering to check whether a child arrived can be part of sharing the family’s daily logistics.
Binghamton, New York, Shows a Similar Pattern
In Binghamton, fathers were responsible for 53.1% of recorded location checks.
The city’s total was 32 sessions: 17 attributed to dads and 15 to moms. As with San Mateo and Surprise, the difference was modest and the session count was small.
Still, the recorded activity shows both parents participating in this particular task.
Euless, Texas, Is Close to an Even Split
Euless recorded 19 father sessions and 18 mother sessions, giving dads a 51.4% share.
With only one session separating the two groups, this was almost an even split. For families thinking about how to divide responsibilities, that idea of shared ownership matters: both parents knowing what needs attention and taking the initiative to handle it.
Cumming, Georgia, Rounds Out the Top Five
Fathers in Cumming accounted for 51.3% of recorded checks, with 40 dad sessions and 38 mom sessions.
The city had 78 total sessions, more than the other cities in the top five. Its numbers again reflected a near-even division of this specific activity.
Three California Cities Make the Top 10
Alongside San Mateo, both San Jose and Sacramento appeared in the ranking.
In San Jose, dads accounted for 43.1% of 840 sessions. In Sacramento, fathers made 41.4% of 1,180 sessions.
Those totals are much larger than San Mateo’s, an important distinction when comparing the results. A higher percentage from a small number of sessions tells a different story from a slightly lower percentage drawn from hundreds of checks.
Omaha, Seattle, and Jackson also made the top 10, with fathers accounting for just over four in 10 recorded checks in each city.
What These Numbers Can—and Cannot—Tell Us
An app cannot capture the dad who reads bedtime stories, cooks dinner, helps with homework, or sits beside a child after a difficult day.
It also cannot tell us whether repeated location checks reflect practical coordination, worry, or a family’s particular schedule. The supplied figures do not establish how many individual families generated the sessions.
For those reasons, this ranking is better understood as a look at fathers’ share of location-checking activity among the app users studied, rather than a ranking of America’s best dads.
The bigger conversation is about how families share the work of keeping daily life moving.
Sharing Parenting Without Spending More
Here at Champagne Style Bare Budget, we appreciate things that make everyday life feel a little easier without adding another expense. Sharing parenting responsibilities can start with simple habits:
- Divide recurring tasks. Decide who handles pickup, school messages, appointment scheduling, and activity reminders.
- Share the remembering. Taking responsibility includes noticing when something needs to happen.
- Keep a shared calendar. A basic calendar can help both parents stay aware of the week’s plans.
- Make room for conversation. Asking about a child’s day offers connection beyond knowing where they are.
- Agree on digital boundaries. If your family uses location sharing, discuss its purpose, who can access it, and expectations appropriate to your child’s age.
Different households will find different routines that work. The goal is to build a system where responsibilities are clear and everyone feels supported.
The Little Things Are Part of Showing Up
Knowing who is picking up the kids, remembering tomorrow’s permission slip, and checking whether everyone made it home may seem ordinary. But family life is built from ordinary moments.
This report offers a narrow glimpse into how some parents share one of those moments. The more useful question for our own households is: What can we take off each other’s plates today?
Sometimes, making family life feel richer starts with sharing the everyday work.
You can find the research spreadsheet here.
