What parental controls does YouTube have?
YouTube has two options for kids: YouTube Kids, a separate app and site with content for kids, and a supervised account on regular YouTube for children under 13. A parent manages both through Google Family Link.
What can a parent control in YouTube Kids and a supervised account?
In YouTube Kids and in a supervised YouTube account, a parent picks a content setting for the child’s age, turns search on or off, clears watch and search history, and blocks videos and channels.
- Blocking a video in YouTube Kids blocks it on the child’s supervised YouTube account too.
- Parents can also turn off autoplay and pause watch history.
What happens to YouTube parental controls at 13?
At 13, YouTube supervision ends. A parent can then turn on Restricted Mode, which Google says helps “avoid most mature content”. Restricted Mode uses signals such as the video title, the description, and age restrictions.
What do YouTube’s parental controls miss?
In our view, YouTube’s parental controls sort videos by age, not by your family’s taste. A video can suit a child’s age and still be the prank or brain-rot video you don’t want, and YouTube leaves you to block it one video or channel at a time.
Your family’s rule might be “no pranks or brain rot; science and drawing are fine”. An age setting can’t say that. See how to block brain rot on YouTube.
How do I filter YouTube by topic for my kids?
Write one Feed Diet rule in plain words on the YouTube tab of the Feed Diet side panel, and click Save. Feed Diet then blurs or hides the YouTube videos that break the rule.
No brain rot, pranks, or scary videos. Science, drawing, and Minecraft builds are fine.
- Add Feed Diet to Chrome on the computer your child uses.
- Click the Feed Diet icon in the toolbar. The side panel opens on the YouTube tab.
- Type your rule and click Save.
- Choose Blur or Hide. Blur covers a video, and one click shows it. Hide removes it.
- Under Lock settings, set a password, so only you can change the rule.
What Feed Diet rules work for kids?
A good Feed Diet rule for kids says what to drop and what to keep, in the words you would use with your child. The rules below are examples. Change them to fit your family.
- “No brain rot, pranks, or scary videos. Science, drawing, and Minecraft builds are fine.”
- “Only science, animals, drawing, and music lessons.”
- “No unboxing, toy review, or challenge videos.”
- “No Shorts, except cooking.” (See how to hide YouTube Shorts.)
Does Feed Diet replace YouTube’s parental controls?
No. Use both: YouTube’s controls for age settings and history, and Feed Diet for topics. Feed Diet runs only in Chrome on a computer, not on phones, tablets, or the YouTube app.
A parent can lock Feed Diet’s settings with a password, so the rule stays as the parent set it. On a supervised Google account, a child needs a parent’s approval in Family Link to install a Chrome extension. Parents can allow or block extension installs.
Questions
Is YouTube Kids the same as a supervised account?
No. YouTube Kids is a separate app and site with content for kids. A supervised account is a child’s account on regular YouTube, for children under 13. A parent manages both through Google Family Link.
Does blocking a video in YouTube Kids also block it on YouTube?
Yes, on the child’s supervised YouTube account. Blocking a video in YouTube Kids blocks it on that account too.
Can my child change the Feed Diet rule?
Not if you lock it. Set a password in the Feed Diet side panel, and the rules, switches, and Blur or Hide stay as you set them until you unlock them. See how the lock works.
Is Feed Diet free?
Feed Diet has a 7-day free trial, with no account needed for the first 3 days. After that, Pro is $5 a month or $50 a year. See the FAQ for more.
More guides: A BlockTube alternative, How to hide YouTube Shorts, How to mute words on X and How to block brain rot on YouTube. Or see how Feed Diet works, the FAQ, and pricing.
Add to Chrome, it’s free