Social platform · High risk
Is Instagram safe for your child?
Age guide
13+
We advise Instagram from age 13 and up. Overall risk 7/10 (high risk).
- 5-8
- Children in this age range are not permitted on Instagram due to its 13+ age restriction; supervision is critical if they access it.
- 9-12
- Pre-teens may attempt to join Instagram to connect with friends or follow influencers, often sharing photos and short videos in their feeds or stories.
- 13-15
- Teenagers frequently use Instagram to share personal moments, explore trends, and engage with content through likes, comments, and direct messages.
- 16+
- Older teens often use Instagram for self-expression, building personal brands, following news, and interacting with a wider social network, including using features like Reels and Live.
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. Users can upload photos and videos, add captions, edit with filters, and organize content by hashtags and geotagging.
- Age guide
- 13+
- Overall risk
- 7/10
- Violence
- 2/10
- Toxic behaviour
- 8/10
- Stranger contact
- 7/10
- Addiction risk
- 9/10
- Language
- 7/10
- Influence
- 9/10
What parents should know
Instagram is a popular photo and video sharing platform with a minimum age requirement of 13. It allows users to share visual content, interact with posts, and communicate through direct messages. Parents should prioritize setting accounts to private, managing message and comment controls, and discussing the implications of sharing personal information and engaging with online communities. The platform's visual nature and direct messaging features require careful supervision.
What to do about Instagram
Free with a Parentwise account. The age-by-age verdict needs your child's age, which is why it lives behind the account.
- The age-by-age verdict
What we advise for under 8, 8-12 and 13+ - our age guide for Instagram is 13+, and the answer changes with your child's age. - The one setting to change tonight
The exact Instagram setting that cuts the most risk, with the steps to find it. - What to say
Word-for-word openers for talking about Instagram without a row. - Red flags to watch for
The signals in Instagram that mean it is time to step in.
Instagram age rating and parents guide: common questions
What age rating is Instagram?
Parentwise puts Instagram at 13+. We advise Instagram from age 13 and up. Overall risk 7/10 (high risk). Violence scores 2/10, language 7/10, stranger contact 7/10 and addiction risk 9/10.
Can a 10 year old use Instagram?
Not by default: we advise Instagram from 13+, so at 10 it needs your supervision and the settings changed first. Pre-teens may attempt to join Instagram to connect with friends or follow influencers, often sharing photos and short videos in their feeds or stories.
Can a 12 year old use Instagram?
Not by default: we advise Instagram from 13+, so at 12 it needs your supervision and the settings changed first. Pre-teens may attempt to join Instagram to connect with friends or follow influencers, often sharing photos and short videos in their feeds or stories.
Can a 13 year old use Instagram?
Yes, 13 is at or above the age we advise for Instagram (13+). Teenagers frequently use Instagram to share personal moments, explore trends, and engage with content through likes, comments, and direct messages.
Is Instagram appropriate for kids?
Instagram is a popular photo and video sharing platform with a minimum age requirement of 13. Parentwise rates Instagram overall as high risk (7/10), with stranger contact at 7/10 and addiction risk at 9/10.
Is Instagram family friendly?
Instagram is one of the higher-risk titles we rate, so treat it as supervised rather than family viewing. It allows users to share visual content, interact with posts, and communicate through direct messages.
Instagram parents guide: what should a parent know first?
Instagram is a popular photo and video sharing platform with a minimum age requirement of 13. The parts that most often catch parents out are stranger contact (7/10) and how hard it pulls for more time (9/10).
Is Instagram safe for kids?
We advise Instagram from age 13 and up. Overall risk 7/10 (high risk). It allows users to share visual content, interact with posts, and communicate through direct messages.
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Release and popularity data comes in part from RAWG, TVMaze (CC BY-SA) and Wikidata (CC0). Safety guidance is written by Parentwise.