Should my child use YouTube Kids or YouTube?

For most children under about 9, YouTube Kids is the better fit: it’s a separate app with a narrower set of videos, and you choose an age level. For tweens who have outgrown it, YouTube offers a middle option many parents haven’t heard of: a supervised account on regular YouTube, with a parent managing what they can see and do (YouTube). Full, unsupervised YouTube is for teenagers.

There’s no single right answer: it depends on your child, what they watch and how you feel. Here’s how the options differ and the settings worth switching on. Menus change from time to time, so the linked help pages have the current wording.

The three options at a glance

YouTube Kids (for 12 and under). A separate app and website, with three content levels (YouTube):

• Preschool: ages 4 and under
• Younger: ages 5 to 8
• Older: ages 9 to 12

You can also choose Approved content only, where your child can only watch videos and channels you’ve picked yourself, and can’t search.

A supervised kid account on YouTube (for under-13s). Google describes this as a parent-managed version of regular YouTube and YouTube Music (YouTube). You choose one of three content settings, Older kids, Teens or Older teens, each with more content than YouTube Kids (YouTube). Some older guides call these settings “Explore” and “Explore more”; Common Sense Media describes the gentlest one as mostly content for ages 9 and up (Common Sense Media).

A teen account (13 and over). Teens are placed in teen accounts automatically, with built-in protections such as break and bedtime reminders and private uploads by default. Parents can choose to supervise (YouTube).

What about the minimum age?

Here the sources don’t quite agree, which is worth knowing. YouTube’s general terms of service say you must be at least 13 to use YouTube, though children of any age can use it, and YouTube Kids, if a parent sets it up (YouTube). Webwise, Ireland’s online safety awareness centre, says YouTube’s terms require users to be 16, and that under-18s need a parent’s permission (Webwise).

Either way, the practical message is the same: a younger child shouldn’t have their own regular YouTube account with a made-up birthday. They should use YouTube Kids or a supervised account that you’ve set up.

What’s different in a supervised account

The supervised account looks like normal YouTube, but a lot is switched off. According to YouTube, children with a supervised account can’t (YouTube):

• upload videos, Shorts or live streams, or make public playlists
• post comments or use live chat (on the Older kids setting, they can’t read comments either)
• buy channel memberships or Super Chats
• see personalised ads

That’s often the deciding factor for parents: their child can watch the football highlights, Minecraft builds and science videos their friends are talking about, without the comments section or the pressure to post.

How to set it up

Both options are managed from your own Google Account, through Google’s free Family Link app or the Family Center in the YouTube app (Google). If your child uses Android, our guide to setting up Family Link covers the account part.

To change the YouTube Kids level (Android steps):

1. Open the YouTube Kids app and tap Settings.
2. Solve the sum or enter your passcode.
3. Choose your child’s profile and enter your password.
4. Tap Edit settings and pick Preschool, Younger, Older or Approve content yourself.

(Steps from YouTube.)

To set a supervised account’s content level: in Family Link, pick your child, tap Controls, then YouTube, then Edit under “YouTube Settings” and choose a setting (Google). One thing to know first: if you add supervision to an account your child already uses, Google deletes some of its content, including their uploads, comments and playlists, so download anything they want to keep beforehand.

The settings worth switching on

In YouTube Kids, use the timer: open Settings, solve the sum, tap Set timer, choose a time and tap Start timer. When it runs out, the app shows “Time’s up!” and locks (YouTube). This is a lot less of a battle than asking a 6-year-old to stop mid-episode.

In a supervised account, open the YouTube app, tap You > Settings > Family Center, choose your child, and look at (YouTube):

• Disable autoplay, so one video doesn’t roll into the next. Common Sense Media recommends this to limit continuous viewing.
• Time management, where you can set a daily limit on the Shorts feed (even to zero) plus take-a-break and bedtime reminders.
• Pause watch history and Pause search history, if you’d like recommendations not to build on what they’ve watched.

No filter is perfect

YouTube is upfront that no automated system is perfect, and that search results in YouTube Kids aren’t reviewed by a person (YouTube). Common Sense Media makes the same point about every setting, and says young children need a parent keeping an eye on things whatever controls are in place.

That’s not a reason to panic, just a reason to stay involved. Webwise suggests keeping the conversation open, showing your child how to block and report a channel, and asking them to tell you about anything that upsets them (Webwise). If they come to you with something, our guide on what to do if your child sees something upsetting online can help.

What to do next

• This week: check which app your child is actually using, and on whose account. If a younger child is watching on your account or a family TV, set up YouTube Kids or a supervised account for them.
• Pick the level together: look at the content options side by side and agree which one fits. A child who helped choose is more likely to stick with it.
• Switch on one time setting: the YouTube Kids timer, or the Shorts limit and bedtime reminder in a supervised account.
• Every few weeks: sit and watch a few of their favourites with them. It’s the easiest way to know what they’re into.

Every family draws these lines in a slightly different place, and that’s fine. The aim is a set-up that grows with your child.