YouTube Safety Guide

How to Set Up Supervised YouTube

Give your child access to regular YouTube with content-level restrictions managed through Family Link.

Quick answer: Create a supervised Google account for your child through Family Link, then configure YouTube content settings in Family Center. You can choose from three content levels (Explore, Explore More, Most of YouTube) and set a daily Shorts limit. This is YouTube's native middle-ground between YouTube Kids and unrestricted access.

Requirements

  • Your child needs a Google account supervised through Family Link
  • Child must be under 13 (or under the age of consent in your country) for automatic supervision, or you can set up supervision for teens who consent
  • You need the Family Link app or access to Family Center

Setup steps

  1. Create or link the child account in Google Family Link
  2. Open YouTube settings for your child in Family Center
  3. Choose a content level:
    • Explore: Narrowest — generally suitable for ages 9+
    • Explore More: Broader — generally suitable for ages 13+
    • Most of YouTube: Nearly everything except age-restricted content
  4. Set Shorts limit — choose a daily limit or set to 0 to disable
  5. Configure autoplay, history, and search settings

What supervised YouTube controls and doesn't control

ControlsDoesn't control
Content level (category-based filtering)Specific channels or videos
Shorts daily limitComments visibility
Search historyAd content
Watch historyVideo downloads

When supervised YouTube isn't enough

Supervised YouTube uses category-based content levels, not a parent-chosen channel list. If you need to control exactly which channels your child can watch, consider:

  • YouTube Kids (Approved content only): For younger kids who don't need the regular YouTube interface
  • WhitelistVideo: Blocks all content by default, only allows parent-approved channels on regular YouTube. Also blocks Shorts, hides comments, and blocks downloads.

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