How to set up parental controls on your game console
All modern consoles let you create a child account and lock it down with age ratings, time limits, and spending controls. Create a new account for your child, set it to child mode, then go to the account settings and choose which game ratings they can play and how long they can use the console each day.
Parental controls let you decide what your child can play based on the game's age rating, how long they can play each day, and whether they can spend money. You set this up by creating a separate account for your child and linking it to your parent account. Once that is done, you can change the rules from your account without needing to touch the child's account. Different consoles have slightly different steps, but they all work the same way.
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Skip — I just want a technicianCommon mistakes to avoid
- Creating a standard account for a child instead of a child account. Parental controls work better with child accounts
- Setting the age rating too high. If you set it to Teen, Mature games will still be playable
- Not linking the child account to your parent account. The restrictions will not apply
- Forgetting to set time limits or spending restrictions and only setting age ratings
Signs you need professional help
- The parental controls do not work as expected, your child found a way around them, or you are unsure what age rating is appropriate for a specific game.
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