Netflix Parent's Guide
Parent's guide for setting up Netflix
Parents have several features available using Netflix's own profile controls.
Why Controls Are Important For Children And Teens Watching Netflix
Netflix allows children and teens to watch a wide variety of movies and TV shows, many of which parents want to restrict. Fortunately, Netflix has several features that allow parents to limit movies by age rating or even block specific shows or movies.
Age ratings for TV shows and movies have increasingly become less family-friendly
Parents often need to be more judgmental about which movies they allow their children to watch, especially as more movies tread the thin line between PG-13 and rated R . In the context of Netflix specifically, parents have the options of both blocking specific movies and TV shows as well as setting a maximum age rating.
We recommend parents consider using both approaches at the same time, by setting a cap on the most mature kind of content their child can watch and blocking specific movies or shows.
Parents need to keep an eye on what their child is watching
It's often more difficult for parents to know what movies their child is watching in the age of smartphones and tablets. Parents could consider limiting Netflix to their living room TV only so they can casually check in with what their child is watching, but this isn't always effective.
Fortunately, Netflix allows parents to see activity (which movies where being watched), and they can be assured that these restrictions are not easy to disable.
Setting Up Parental Controls on Netflix
Netflix prides its app as having very customizable controls that parents can appreciate. These controls are unique to each profile on your Netflix account, and as a result, parents will need to make a profile (or profiles) for their children or teens.
Set up parental controls on Netflix like this:
- Create individual profiles for family members or create a kids' profile
- Customize each profile as appropriate
- Lock restriction with a PIN
(1) Set Up Profiles
Parents can consider two approaches for setting up profiles with their family:
- Add dedicated profiles for each family member
- Create a dedicated Kids Profile
Netflix only allows up to five profiles to be created, so depending on the size of your family, you may need to create a Kids Profile.
To create a new profile:
If you want to make this profile a kid's profile, select the Kids option to activate this feature
(2) Customize content on profiles
If you've decided to set up a kid's profile with Netflix Kids, you may consider skipping this step. Netflix Kids is already very restricted, and it provides a much simpler interface that is easier to navigate.
However, if you want to allow more mature titles for an older teen, Netflix allows you to set more granular controls for each profile. Your teen will need their own profile for this to work.
Parents can also block specific movies or TV shows on their child or teen's profile:
If you have multiple children or profiles on Netflix, be sure to repeat the same process on each profile.
The next, most critical step is to create a parental lock PIN.
(3) Lock restrictions with a PIN
Creating a PIN is what prevents your teen or child from using the wrong profile (for example, one that's intended for the parents or an older teen). You can also use a PIN to restrict new profiles from being added.
These steps need to be completed using a web browser.
You can go a step further and restrict your Netflix account's password. This password is required for anyone who wants to log in, but it is also used to disable parental controls. Parents should consider taking these steps:
Many browsers will automatically save passwords for any accounts, so you may need to remove them and confirm that it hasn't been saved. Here's how to remove saved passwords from multiple web browsers .
Here's how to change your Netflix account's password .
How to Review Your Teen's Activity on Netflix
We recommend checking in with your Teen's activity regularly. Using parental control features on Netflix, parents can review activity for each profile on their account. If you have multiple profiles added to your Netflix account, each profile has its own watch history.
Also, parents should be aware that Netflix game activity can be monitored as well.
Consider parental controls for your child's smartphone
Parental Controls can be improved on Netflix by adding additional controls specific to your child or teen's smartphone. These restrictions often aren't exclusive to Netflix, so you can apply these to other apps.
This is the ideal option to consider if:
- Your child uses either an iPhone or an Android smartphone
- You're looking for more effective ways to monitor your child's activity across multiple apps
If you and your child have iPhones, see our dedicated parents' guide to the iPhone .
If you and your child have Android smartphones, see our dedicated parents' guide to Android .
If you and your child have a mixture of the two, you may be able to consider a combination of both approaches on both Android and iPhone.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to disable games on Netflix
Hide game recommendations by using a Kid's profile. Unfortunately, game recommendations cannot be hidden on normal Netflix profiles.