Is YouTube Kids safe? What it does and doesn't filter
An honest look at YouTube Kids: how its filters work, where inappropriate videos have slipped through, and the settings that make it safer for your child.
By The SafePlay team
· updated · 3 min read
In this article
YouTube Kids is the first thing many parents try, and for good reason: it's made by YouTube, it's free, and it looks built for children. The honest answer to "is it safe?" is that it's safer than regular YouTube and not the same thing as safe. What matters is how you set it up.
The short answer#
For a young child, YouTube Kids beats the main YouTube app on almost every measure. It has a simpler interface, no comments, and a set of parental controls. But in its default modes, the videos your child sees are chosen by automated filters, human review and recommendations. YouTube itself says no system is perfect. If you want to be certain what appears, you need its strictest setting, or a different approach.
How YouTube Kids filters content#
YouTube says it combines automated systems, human review and reports from parents to keep the app suitable for children. Parents choose a content level, and the app shows videos it considers appropriate for that level (at the time of writing: Preschool, Younger and Older).
The important detail is that these levels are about what an automated system predicts is suitable for an age group. They aren't a list you have looked at. YouTube's own guidance for parents acknowledges that inappropriate videos can slip through and asks you to block and report them.
Where it has gone wrong before#
In 2017, widely reported investigations found that disturbing videos made to look like popular children's cartoons had reached YouTube Kids. The episode, often called Elsagate, led YouTube to tighten its policies and enforcement. It's old news and the app has changed a lot since, but it showed something structural: automated filters can be gamed by people who are trying to get past them, and children are the audience least able to spot the trick.
The settings that make it much safer#
If you use YouTube Kids, these do the most work:
- Approved content only. You choose the videos, channels or collections your child can watch, and search is switched off. This is the safe way to use the app.
- Turn off search. If you're not using Approved content only, at least stop children searching.
- Turn off autoplay. It removes the easiest path from one video to an hour of whatever came next.
- Set a timer. The app can end the session for you.
- Lock the parent settings with a passcode so your child can't change them.
- Check watch history at first. It's the quickest way to learn what your child is really watching.
- Block and report. Anything unsuitable can be blocked, and reporting helps the next family.
Ads and recommendations#
The free app is ad-supported, though YouTube says it doesn't serve personalised, interest-based ads on it. In the age-based modes it also recommends videos. Neither is a safety failure, but both are part of how the product works, and worth knowing if you'd like a screen with no commercial layer at all.
How an allow-list app differs#
Approved content only is an allow-list, and it's a good one. A dedicated allow-list app, such as SafePlay (which we make, so weigh this accordingly), differs mainly in what surrounds the list.
| YouTube Kids on Approved content only | A dedicated allow-list app like SafePlay | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free, ad-supported | Free plan, paid family plan (see pricing) |
| What you approve | Individual videos, channels or collections | Channels, per child |
| Different lists for different children | Profiles | Yes, one list per child, so siblings never share by accident |
| Reviewing a channel's new uploads before your child sees them | No per-channel control that we're aware of | Strict Mode, switched on per channel |
| Screen time | A timer | A daily budget per child, per-day overrides, and "ask for more time" requests |
| Where the videos play | YouTube's Kids app | YouTube's own embedded player, inside an app where links out sit behind the grown-ups PIN |
Swipe sideways to see every column.
Neither column is "safe" and the other "unsafe". They're different trade-offs between convenience and control.
So which should you choose?#
If your child is young, you're happy with YouTube's app, and you only need light control, use YouTube Kids on Approved content only and turn autoplay off. It is a decent solution and it costs nothing.
If you want a separate list for each child, control over new uploads, Shorts, and a daily budget that the app enforces, an allow-list app is worth trying. We compare the approaches in Whitelist vs blocklist, and our complete guide covers all four options for different ages.