Set up supervised viewing, limit the Shorts feed, or choose the videos yourself. Start with the experience your child actually uses.
Official guidance checked · Written for parents · No TenMore subscription needed
1. Set up the right account or child profile.
On the child’s own device
Create or supervise their own Google Account first. In the parent’s Family Link app, select the child, then choose Controls → YouTube → YouTube & YouTube Music and follow setup. Alternatively, sign the child into YouTube with their linked Google Account, select GET STARTED, and complete parental permission.[13]
Google also documents a shared-device option: in your YouTube app, open Settings → Family Center → add a kid account. This option does not require a separate child Google Account, but does not grant YouTube Music access. Use Who’s Watching or Switch account to select the child’s profile—not your unrestricted adult profile.[13]
2. Turn off the scrolling Shorts feed.
Open the YouTube app signed in to your linked parent account.
Go to You → Settings → Family Center and select your child.
Choose Time management.
Set the daily Shorts feed limit to 0 minutes.[12][21]
Google documents the daily limit as preventing further scrolling when the allowance is reached; its official announcement confirms zero minutes turns the feed off. This targets the scrolling Shorts feed, not necessarily every short video in every part of YouTube.[12][21]
Check the account on each screen. Do not assume the same protection when the child is signed out, using your adult account, or watching through another profile. Test the Shorts tab in the actual supervised experience they use.
If the option is missing, check the account/profile setup, current app version, and Google’s current instructions. Don’t treat a missing control as a successful block.
3. Review the content level and autoplay.
In your linked parent account’s YouTube → You → Settings → Family Center, select the child and choose EDIT next to Content Settings. Family Link also offers YouTube content settings, though its menu labels can differ between setup and later changes.[12]
Google currently names the supervised-kid levels Older kids (9+), Teens (13+), and Older teens (16+). These are content-rating alignments, not a guarantee that every video suits your child. Google says only the names changed from its earlier labels, and its automated systems can make mistakes.[10]
The Teens content level inside a supervised kid account is not the same thing as a separate supervised teen account. Do not assume the same parent controls apply to both.[18]
In Family Center, consider Disable autoplay. Google says the child cannot turn autoplay back on while this setting is enabled. Break or bedtime reminders are not the same as a device or app lock.[12]
4. For handpicked videos, use YouTube Kids.
Approved content only is the YouTube Kids option for selecting videos, channels, or collections yourself. In that mode, the child cannot search for videos.[19]
Open YouTube Kids on the child’s device → Settings.
Complete adult verification, select the child’s profile, and authenticate as the parent.
Choose EDIT SETTINGS → Approve content yourself.
Review the Getting Started information, tap Select, and approve the videos, channels, or collections you want available.
Choose DONE. Use Manage under Approved content only to adjust the list later.[19]
Choose the scope deliberately: approving a channel or collection gives access to more than one handpicked video. Use individual-video approvals if that is the boundary you want.
This mode is configured in the YouTube Kids app, not by choosing a content level in regular YouTube.[19]
5. Test the app, browser, and shared screens.
Our suggested check:
Open the actual child profile. Check the Shorts feed after setting its allowance to zero.
Check YouTube Kids if you use handpicked viewing. Confirm the intended approved items appear and video search is unavailable.
Check the other viewing routes. Review browsers, televisions, consoles, shared devices, and account switching. An app limit and a website block are separate controls.
Use a device time boundary if you need one. A Shorts limit does not limit long-form videos. Use the matching Apple or Google device/app controls for overall viewing time.
Keep the conversation open. Watch together sometimes, and agree what your child should do if a video or interaction makes them uncomfortable.
Prepared with AI assistance and checked against the official pages above. These are educational instructions, not a claim of hands-on verification on every device. Menus, eligibility, and regional availability can change; use the linked official guidance if your screen differs.
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