YouTube Kids, YouTube & your child's Google Account

When you use Family Link to create a Google Account for your child under 13, your child can use the YouTube Kids app where it’s available. However, they can't use any other YouTube apps, websites, or features until they turn 13 and manage their own Google Account. Your child will be able to use YouTube if you added supervision to their previously existing Google Account.

Using Family Link: If you created a Google Account for your child using Family Link or added supervision to an existing account for a child under 13 (or the applicable age in your country outside the European Union), you can use the Family Link app to manage your child's activity settings, including their YouTube History settings.

Note: Use of YouTube includes creating a YouTube channel, uploading and publicly sharing videos and live streams, commenting, and using live chat. Learn more.

Add supervision to an existing Google account

If you add supervision to an existing account for a child under 13 (or the applicable age in your country outside the European Union), their YouTube videos, chats, comments, live chats, posts, playlists, stories, purchased and rented YouTube videos, as well as subscriptions, will be deleted. Google recommends that children download their data before setting up supervision. Learn more.

How YouTube Kids works

The YouTube Kids app includes both popular children's videos and diverse new content, delivered in a way that is easy to use, for children.

If you let your child download the YouTube Kids app, you'll set up the app for your child before they can use it.

In Family Link, you can control your child’s YouTube Kids experience when you decide:

The content level setting you want for your child.
If you want your child to use the search function in the app.

Note: There are some other YouTube Kids settings, like sound and casting, that can only be changed from your child's YouTube Kids app. Learn more in the YouTube Kids Parental Guide.

Change YouTube Kids settings

On your device, open Family Link .
Select your child.
On the "Settings" card, tap Manage settings More YouTube Kids.
- Tip: You won't find "YouTube Kids" if you haven't set up the app.
Under "YouTube Kids Settings," you can:
- Tap Edit to update content level settings
- Turn Search on or off
- Block or Unblock videos for an account

Control access to YouTube

Block or allow the YouTube site

Follow these steps to control whether your child can go to the YouTube site on their Android device or Chromebook.

Note: For more information on access control, visit the YouTube Kids Parental Guide.

Block or allow the YouTube app

Follow these steps to control whether your child can use the YouTube app on their Android device or Chromebook.

Note: For more information on blocking the YouTube app, visit the YouTube Kids Parental Guide.

Turn Restricted Mode on or off

Your child may begin using the YouTube app and other features once they turn 13 (or the applicable age in your country outside the European Union). No content filter settings are turned on in YouTube by default. You can turn on Restricted Mode to help screen out potentially mature content that you may not want your child to see. No filter is 100% accurate, but it should help your child avoid most of this content.

Learn more.

To turn Restricted Mode on or off from Family Link:

On your device, open the Family Link app .
Select Manage Settings Filters.
Select YouTube .
Turn "Restricted Mode" on or off.

Was this helpful?

How can we improve it?