Netflix: the parent’s setup guide
Per-profile maturity ratings, PIN locks, and Title Restrictions for specific shows.
Kid profiles and maturity ratings
Netflix’s parental controls live per-profile, not per-account. Every kid needs their own profile with age-appropriate rating and PIN.
Setup
- Sign in at netflix.com/account.
- Profile & Parental Controls › select or add your kid’s profile.
- Viewing Restrictions — set a maturity rating (Little Kids, Older Kids, Teens, Adults).
- Use “Title Restrictions” to block specific titles by name if needed.
- Profile Lock — require a 4-digit PIN to enter any adult profile.
- Turn off autoplay if your kid is young enough that one episode is enough.
Kids profile vs Older Kids profile
- Little Kids (G / TV-Y content) — safe-ish for under 7.
- Older Kids (up to PG) — 7-10.
- Teens (up to PG-13) — 11-14.
- Adults (up to TV-MA) — teens 15+ at your discretion.
Download rules
Kids can download titles for offline viewing. Downloads respect the profile’s maturity rating, but once downloaded, content plays with no PIN prompt. Worth noting if you use bedtime rules.
Trending content slips the filter
Sometimes a title rated TV-14 appears in a kid profile because of Netflix’s recommendation logic. Use Title Restrictions to kill anything you don’t want surfacing.
Common questions
Where are Netflix’s parental controls?
Per profile, not per account — which is the detail most parents miss. Every child needs their own profile with its own maturity rating. Set them at netflix.com/account under Profile & Parental Controls.
Which Netflix maturity rating fits which age?
Little Kids (G / TV-Y) is broadly safe for under-7s, Older Kids (up to PG) suits 7–10, Teens (up to PG-13) suits 11–14, and Adults (up to TV-MA) is a judgement call for 15+.
A show above my child’s rating appeared in their profile. Why?
Netflix’s recommendation logic occasionally surfaces a title above the profile’s rating. Use Title Restrictions to block specific shows by name — that is the tool for exactly this, and it works where the rating filter did not.
Do downloads respect the maturity rating?
Yes at the point of download — but once downloaded, content plays with no PIN prompt. That matters if you rely on profile locks as part of a bedtime rule, because an already-downloaded episode sidesteps it.
Should I PIN-lock the adult profiles?
Yes. Profile Lock requires a four-digit PIN to enter any adult profile, and without it a child simply switches profile and your rating settings become decorative.