The quick answer
Start with the child’s profile. Decide who should choose the available videos, whether the child should search, and how a viewing session will end. Then try the child’s experience yourself before handing over the device.
YouTube Kids and KidsTube are different apps. This guide starts with Google’s YouTube Kids. Our separate app, KidsTube, is an optional alternative for iPhone and iPad.
Match the control to the problem
| Your goal | Start here | Check afterwards |
|---|---|---|
| Choose exactly what is available | An approved-content setup | Can your child reach anything you did not choose? |
| Reduce independent searching | The profile’s search setting | Do the remaining choices still fit your family? |
| End a viewing session | An app timer or device time control | What happens when time runs out? |
Write down one sentence before touching settings: “On this device, I want my child to be able to ___, until ___.” That sentence makes it easier to notice a gap. A well-chosen library can still run past dinner; a reliable timer can still allow videos you would not have picked.
For a shared tablet, repeat this exercise for each child. Do not assume that changing the profile you are currently viewing changes every other profile or every device in the house.
Choose the content approach
YouTube Kids offers age-based content settings and a parent-selected option. Google’s profile setup guide explains the choices and the parent sign-in required for an approved-content profile. Choose based on how much ongoing selection you want to do.
A useful first question is whether you are comfortable reviewing a channel as a whole, or whether you want to choose individual videos. Those are different commitments. A familiar creator may publish a new series with a different tone; an appealing video title tells you little about the rest of a channel.
If your goal is a small handpicked library, follow our guide to allowing only approved YouTube channels and videos. It covers the approval workflow and a checklist for evaluating what you add.
Start small enough that you can explain each choice. You can add variety later when your child asks for it. A shorter list is also easier to review when your family’s interests change.
Understand what turning off search changes
In the YouTube Kids app, open Settings, pass the parent check, select the child’s profile, and switch Search off. Google says this also clears that profile’s watch and search history and resets recommendations. Review anything you need from the history first. Source: Google’s search settings guide.
Search off does not mean “only content I approved.” It removes searching and narrows access to content verified by YouTube Kids. If you want to make the selections yourself, use the approved-content option.
After changing the setting, spend a few minutes looking at the child’s home screen. The question is not just whether a search button disappeared. It is whether the choices that remain are the choices you intended to offer.
Give viewing a clear endpoint
YouTube Kids has a session timer that locks the app when the time expires. Google’s timer instructions show how to start and exit it. A session timer addresses the current sitting; a daily device allowance addresses a different question.
Decide how you will explain the endpoint before pressing start. For example: “We can choose from these videos now. When the timer finishes, we put the tablet away and start the puzzle.” That is an illustrative family script, not a promise about how a child will respond.
Use our iPhone and iPad viewing-time guide to compare a session timer, a daily allowance and a viewing window. The guide includes a short verification routine for the actual device your child uses.
A five-minute review before handing it over
- Check the profile. Start from the same screen your child will see, with the intended profile selected.
- Open a few available videos. Look at the content, presentation and choices around playback.
- Check the parent gate. Confirm how settings are protected and keep the parent code private.
- Try the ending. Use a short temporary timer, watch what happens, then restore your intended limit.
- Look beyond this app. Check whether the child can switch to regular YouTube, a browser, another profile or a television.
These are checks for you to perform. We have not remotely tested your child’s device or account. If a setting behaves differently from the linked instructions, stop at that point and use Google’s current help for your platform.
Agree on a simple response to an unwanted video: put the device down and tell a parent. Keep that invitation separate from any conversation about limits so the child knows they can bring a surprise to you.
When KidsTube may be useful
If you want a finite Home feed alongside per-child channel choices and viewing limits, KidsTube for iPhone and iPad is another option. Strict mode uses approved channels; Flexible mode adds filtered search. Its controls apply inside KidsTube, so other routes to YouTube still need separate attention.
KidsTube offers a three-day trial and requires a subscription afterwards. The YouTube Kids vs KidsTube comparison explains the tradeoffs, including when keeping YouTube Kids may be enough.
Common questions
Is YouTube Kids the same as KidsTube?
No. YouTube Kids is Google’s product. KidsTube is independently developed by Groei BV. The settings and purchases in one do not configure the other.
Does turning off search make every video parent-approved?
No. Search and parent selection are different controls. Use the approval workflow when choosing the available content yourself is the goal.
Do I need to buy an app to start?
You can begin with the controls in the app and device you already use. Consider a different app only if it solves a specific gap you have identified.
A calmer place to choose
Try a finite feed for your family.
Choose channels and viewing limits for each child on iPhone or iPad.
View KidsTube on the App Store ↗3-day trial, then a subscription. iOS/iPadOS 17+. YouTube advertising may apply to playback. Privacy · Terms.