In an effort to help parents decide which apps they should download or avoid for their kids on iPhones, iPads, MacBooks, Apple Watches, Apple TVs and the Apple Vision Pro, Apple has added three new age ratings: 13 plus, 16 plus and 18 plus. To make things a little clearer, Apple removed the 12- and 17-plus ratings (but kept the 4- and 9-plus ratings).
Apple said the new age ratings will be present on any Apple device running iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS Tahoe 26, tvOS 26, visionOS 26 and watchOS 26.
By increasing the granularity of its age ratings system, Apple is adding to its Helping Protect Kids Online initiative that it announced in late February to give parents more control over how much data is being shared with developers, part of a nationwide effort to increase platform safety for kids.
Fareedah Shaheed, founder of child online safety company Sekuva and a 2021 member of Forbes’ “30 Under 30” for Enterprise Technology, told CNET that Apple’s enhanced age ratings are “a great step in the right direction. The previous age ratings were vague and often unhelpful, Shaheed said. “Most parents in my community didn’t trust it, but I believe with this change, it will instill more confidence in the ratings.”
Shaheed says parents need to develop a strong line of communication with their children.
“The best way to protect your kids who are using various apps is to build an open and honest relationship with them so that you can discuss anything and everything (the good and bad) they may see or experience,” Shaheed told CNET.
In the memo this week, Apple said that app developers must answer more questions to help the company determine what age rating their app should have. Developers will need to provide information about in-app controls, violent themes, medical or wellness topics and capabilities.
Developers will be able to set a higher minimum age than Apple has assigned and can also answer the new questions after seeing what age ratings have been given to their apps under the new system. Apple said that developers “must consider how all app features, including AI assistants and chatbot functionality, impact the frequency of sensitive content appearing within your app to make sure it receives the appropriate rating.”
Robbie Torney, senior director of AI programs at Common Sense Media, said the increasing use of AI chatbots makes it “increasingly difficult” to determine whether apps are age appropriate.
“These chatbots are unpredictable and have been trained on adult content from across the internet, which makes them susceptible to producing harmful content and dangerous advice,” Torney told CNET. “We’ve seen this in our testing of these products even when they’re supposed to be ‘safe’ for teens.”