YouTube Gives Parents New Controls to Limit Teen Scrolling

Parents now have a powerful new way to help their teens build healthier social media habits.

YouTube announced Wednesday that parents can finally set time limits on Shorts, the platform's addictive short-form video feature. The controls range from blocking Shorts completely to allowing up to two hours of scrolling time.

The flexibility means parents can adjust limits based on what's happening in real life. A teen might have zero Shorts access during homework time but get an hour of entertainment during a long family road trip.

The new features go beyond just time limits. Parents can now create custom bedtime reminders and "take a break" prompts tailored to their teen's schedule, building on the automated reminders YouTube already provides for all users under 18.

Setting up supervision just got easier too. YouTube simplified the sign-up process for creating supervised accounts and made switching between profiles smoother on shared family devices.

The platform is also changing what teens see when they open the app. YouTube will now prioritize content that sparks curiosity, builds life skills, and provides credible wellbeing information over videos that could send young viewers down harmful rabbit holes.

Teens are already blocked from repeatedly watching content that idealizes certain body types or promotes other dangerous behaviors. These new recommendations add another layer of protection.

The Ripple Effect

YouTube's changes reflect a broader shift happening across the tech industry. Instagram, ChatGPT, and Character.AI have all rolled out similar parental controls in recent months as families, advocates, and lawmakers push for better youth protection online.

The timing matters. Last year, YouTube began using artificial intelligence to detect suspected teen users and automatically place them in more protective settings, even if they claimed to be older during sign-up.

Google, YouTube's parent company, just made another important change this week. After child safety advocate Melissa McKay raised concerns about Google letting 13-year-olds remove parental supervision without permission, the company updated its policy to require approval from both parent and teen before supervision can be turned off.

The updates recognize what parents have been saying for years: endless scrolling through short videos can be especially addictive for young people still developing self-regulation skills. Now families have practical tools to set boundaries that work for them.

These features won't solve every challenge of raising kids in a digital world, but they put more power back in parents' hands where it belongs.