Age to Introduce Social Media

Question: At what age should children be allowed to use social media?

Answer: Thanks for asking this question – it’s on a lot of parents’ minds these days! Social media can introduce benefits like social connection, learning and entertainment but also be stressful, consume a lot of time, or introduce content that might not be appropriate for your child. So, it’s important to carefully consider when a child might be ready to start using social media.

The short answer:

Based on what we know from research into the risks and benefits of early social media use and platform policies, we suggest waiting until children are at least age 13 before starting social media accounts like Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok. And, even after that age, it really depends on a child’s own individual, unique traits and characteristics. Every child is different! One 13-year-old may be ready for a social media account, but another 16-year-old may not be. (See the 5 C’s section below for questions to consider as you determine if your child is ready for a specific platform.) 

The long answer:

The minimum age for creating a social media account is 13 in most of the United States, though at least one state has recently set a minimum age of 14, and some countries have set a minimum age of 16. We anticipate research in the future will examine whether limiting social media use for teens ages 13-15 is helpful or detrimental. Here’s what we currently know: 

Despite restrictions on users under 13, 38% of tweens (aged 8 to 12) report using social media. About 18% of tweens and 62% of teens report using platforms like Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Discord, and Reddit every day. Additionally, 64% of tweens and 77% of teens said they watch online videos every day. 

How are so many underage users able to make accounts? When signing up for an account, it is easy to make up an older age by entering a fake birthday. Some social media platforms are starting to use age verification to figure out who is too young, who is a teen, and who is an adult – to help make the experience more age-appropriate for teens – but this doesn’t happen on all platforms.

In fact, in our recent research interviewing parents, Harnessing Parent Wisdom: Community-Informed Solutions for Social Media and Youth Mental Health, many parents highlighted how easily children under 13 gain access to platforms, which frustrated them because many believed that it introduced kids to things they weren’t ready for. Parents described wanting social media platforms to do a better job at identifying who’s too young for their service.

Why is 13 the minimum age for social media accounts? Does this mean 13-year-olds are ready?

The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) was passed by Congress in 1998. It states that online services can’t collect or share data from children under the age of 13 without parental permission. This age limit was based on existing federal communications policies that used the age 13, as well as industry lobby resistance to covering all teens up to 18 with data privacy protections. Although age 13 marks the transition between childhood and the “teen” years, this age selection for federal communications policies does not seem to be based on any specific sign of developmental readiness.  

What are the potential risks and benefits of using social media at an early age?

Studies looking at when children began using social media have generally found increased risks for negative outcomes in children who were younger than age 13 (Note: these studies looked at “traditional” social media platforms like Snapchat and Instagram but did not include online video streaming platforms like YouTube or messaging apps).

• A 2025 study using data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study found that increases in time spent on social media at a younger age (9-11) may lead to or contribute to an increase in symptoms of depression over time versus starting social media a few years later. 
• One survey found that kids who started social media at age 10 or younger were more likely to be victims of online harassment and more likely to have online friends or social media accounts that parents would disapprove of. These youth were also more likely to display unsympathetic online behaviors such as sharing discriminatory or fake content, making passive-aggressive comments, or engaging in cyberbullying.
• For tweens already struggling with body image, early social media use made it worse.
• There are also major impacts on sleep - later bedtimes and fewer hours of sleep on school nights for kids who started social media earlier.
• A cross-sectional study of over 1,000 Spanish teens ages 12-17 found that teens who worry more about how they look on social media may experience more symptoms of depression. On average, girls showed higher levels of being worried about their appearance, engaging in activities to improve their appearance (e.g., using filters, taking multiple pictures and only posting the “best” one, removing photos that don’t get enough comments or likes), and depressive symptoms compared to boys. Additionally, for girls, just being highly worried about their looks on social media was strongly linked to depressive feelings, regardless of how much they edited or curated their appearance online. For boys, engaging in more appearance-improving activities online was linked with more depressive symptoms. Although this study included teens aged 13 and above, it is important to consider how these experiences can affect the mental well-being of children under 13. 

While there is less evidence around the benefits of beginning to use social media before age 13, studies did find that those who began using social media earlier tended to be more involved in supportive or civically active communities online compared to those who started later. 

What about teenagers?

Given that the research shows more downsides than upsides to social media for kids under 13 and platform polices around age, we suggest waiting until at least age 13 before starting a social media account. After that point, it’s important to consider your child’s own individual, unique traits and characteristics before they start an account. Every child is different! One 13-year-old may be ready for a social media account, but another 16-year-old may not be. 

Parents we’ve talked to have felt their child was ready for social media when they showed increased maturity and responsibility, critical thinking skills (so they could identify false information and scams), and weren’t constantly comparing themselves to others. Reasons to potentially delay social media, or start slowly with only one platform at a time, include: 

• Your teen is experiencing bullying 
• Your teen struggles to follow tech rules 
• Your teen has a history of depression, anxiety, disordered eating, or impulsive behavior 

Is there an amount of social media use that is best?  

Based on the research, using a little is better than using a lot. 

• A recent 2026 study of students in grades 4 to 12 found that the relationship between social media use and well-being follows a “U-shaped” pattern. This means that teens who use social media a moderate amount (less than 12.5 hours/week) tend to have the best well-being, while those who used it a lot (more than 12.5 hours/week) or none at all had lower well-being scores compared to moderate users.  
• Another study followed more than 17,000 teens from the United Kingdom from age 10 to 21. The researchers found that spending more time on social media was strongly connected to lower life satisfaction for girls between the ages of 11 and 13. For boys, this connection was strongest between ages 14 and 15. These findings suggest that during certain stressful stages of life for both boys and girls, social media can make those feelings of stress stronger.  

What Parents Can Do 

Strong parental relationships matter: Evidence shows that 60% of teens who frequently used social media and reported having poor parental relationships had poor mental health. Therefore, it’s vital to talk with your children about starting social media accounts! Strengthening your relationship with your teen can reduce the risk of mental health issues, even among youth who are frequently on screens. 

Take stock of your own social media use: Before your child starts their own social media journey, it’s a good time to take stock of your own. More than 80% of adults use social media, so many parents reading this may use one or more social media platforms themselves. As your child starts to express interest in using social media, it’s an ideal time to evaluate your own use and what you enjoy about social media and find challenging or disruptive about it. Do you find yourself passively scrolling Instagram out of habit in a way that distracts you from connection and conversation? Are you sharing content you see on social media that engages, educates or entertains you with your child to create connections? Even just owning out loud an area of your own social media use you’re trying to work on—“I have a hard time shutting off my phone when…” can help open conversations about healthy relationships with social media. If not, then now is a great time to start! By making social media a shared experience, you can set the stage for how your family will communicate, share, and establish guidelines for social media use at home.

Use the 5 Cs of Media Use Framework: Based on our 5 Cs of Media Use framework, here are some questions you can ask yourself and talk with your child about to determine their readiness for social media:

Child:

• What are your child’s strengths and challenges that might make having a social media account more difficult? (i.e., Do they get easily distracted from things like homework? Do they sometimes make impulsive decisions? Are they very critical of their appearance?)
• What are your child’s unique strengths, and how can they find creative inspiration or positive connections that relate to these interests on social media?
• How would you know your child is being a responsible social media user?

Content: 

• What platform do they want to use, what kind of content do they want to see, and what design features does the platform have around content or privacy?
  
  • Messaging platforms are great for social connection, but can be hard to put down and can be a place where drama/bullying happens. 
  • Platforms with algorithmic feeds can recommend inappropriate, distressing, or extreme content. In fact, a recent study tracking teen social media use found that daily time spent on feed-based platforms (TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube) was associated with worse wellbeing, self-esteem, and peer connection -- while more time on messaging platforms was not.  
  • Platforms with good privacy controls that limit connections to only people your child knows are safer for teens than those that allow chatting with anyone or livestreaming. 
• Has your child thought through how they would want to use the platform? And any potential downsides?
• Can they identify when influencers are being fake, when information is unreliable, or other inappropriate content?

Calm:

• Do they know how to change their feed to keep it more positive, and block/unfollow accounts that stress them out? Can they turn off the number of “likes” so that they don’t compare themselves to others? Suggest and discuss the Calm Toolbox, which provides alternative strategies to reduce stress that don’t involve social media. 

Crowding out:

• Social media can become a main way to connect with friends. What are other non-media ways they can connect with friends? Can they take part in after-school clubs, sports teams, theater groups, or meet up in other ways?

Communication:

• How often will you check in with your child? What methods will you use? How will you know if they are facing challenges with social media?  
  • Engage in regular, curious, and non-judgmental conversations with your child. Use our conversation starters for teens and tweens to help you get started. 
  • These check-ins could take place after the first week, first month, and 3 months of social media use. For some families, creating an agreement in which the parent can check the phone is one part of their family guidelines, while for others, checking in through regular conversation around social media is the expectation. 

Not sure what your next steps should be? These readings, resources, and tools are a great place to start:

Recommended Readings:

• Previous portal response on the Appropriate Age to Introduce a Mobile Device
• What your child really needs on social media: Youth mental health and childhood development expert, Dr. Jacqueline Nesi, created this piece to guide parents/caregivers in navigating social media, especially when it’s first initiated with their kids. 
• Why 16 is Not the Magic Age for Social Media: Dr. Devorah Heitner’s examines Australia’s ban on social media access for kids under age 16. 

Recommended Resources and Tools:

1. Glossary of Digital Media Platforms: This glossary, created by the Center of Excellence, provides detailed information about the digital media platforms teens use the most. It covers topics like safety settings and ways to support healthy boundaries around media, as well as a dictionary offering clear definitions of popular terms and phrases used on social media platforms. 
2. 5 Cs of Media Use: The 5 Cs is a mnemonic that you can use to think about your child’s media use. They are: Child, Content, Calm, Crowding Out, and Communication. Review our 5 Cs tip sheets for parents of young teens (10-14) and older teens (15-17). 
3. Family Media Plan: The AAP Family Media Plan will help you facilitate a discussion with all family members around safe and practical media use that works for your family’s specific needs.  
4. Conversation Starters: Consider using these conversation starters to talk with your teen about their media use. They include questions and prompts that you can use with your child to get their input, make decisions together, and have conversations rather than lectures. 
5. Common Sense’s Tips for the Online World: Under “Tips and FAQs,” families can access information and resources to help them build digital skills and stay safe.  
6. Parents can also visit individual social media companies’ websites for parental control guidelines and more information specific to each app.    
   • For example: see Instagram’s Parental Guide for Teens on Instagram  

References

• Bautista Alcaine, P., Cebollero-Salinas, A., Elboj-Saso, C., & Íñiguez-Berrozpe, T. (2025). Linking appearance in social networks and acts to improve it with depression in adolescents: a descriptive analysis of their relationship based on gender. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 30(1).   
• Charmaraman, L., Lynch, A. D., Richer, A. M., & Grossman, J. M. (2022). Associations of early social media initiation on digital behaviors and the moderating role of limiting use. Computers in human behavior, 127, 107053.  
• Charmaraman, L., Richer, A. M., Liu, C., Lynch, A. D., & Moreno, M. A. (2021). Early adolescent social media–related body dissatisfaction: Associations with depressive symptoms, social anxiety, peers, and celebrities. Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, 42(5), 401-407. 
• Charmaraman, L., Richer, A. M., Ben-Joseph, E. P., & Klerman, E. B. (2020). Quantity, content, and context matter: Associations among social technology use and sleep habits in early adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Health, 67(5), 741-748.  
• DeAngelis, T. (2024, April). Teens are spending nearly 5 hours daily on social media. Here are the mental health outcomes. Monitor on Psychology, 55(3), 80. 
• Heitner, D. (2024, January 9). Why 16 is not the magic age for social media. Devorah Heitner's Substack. 
• Meshi, D., Cotten, S. R., & Bender, A. R. (2020). Problematic social media use and perceived social isolation in older adults: A cross-sectional study. Gerontology, 66(2), 160–168. 
• Orben, A., Przybylski, A. K., Blakemore, S.-J., & Kievit, R. A. (2022). Windows of developmental sensitivity to social media. Nature Communications, 13, 1649. 
• Paulich, K. N., Ross, J. M., Lessem, J. M., & Hewitt, J. K. (2021). Screen time and early adolescent mental health, academic, and social outcomes in 9- and 10-year-old children: Utilizing the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development SM (ABCD) Study. PLoS ONE, 16(9), e0256591. 
• Pew Research Center. (2024, January). Americans’ social media use.
• Richter, A., Adkins, V., & Selkie, E.. (2022). Youth Perspectives on the Recommended Age of Mobile Phone Adoption: Survey Study. JMIR Pediatrics and Parenting, 5(4), e40704.  
• Siciliano, L. (2023, December 15). What your child really needs on social media. Technosapiens. 
• Singh, B., Zhou, M., Curtis, R., Maher, C., & Dumuid, D. (2026). Social Media Use and Well-Being Across Adolescent Development. JAMA pediatrics, e255619. Advance online publication.   

Age: 10 - 15

Topics: Age for social media, introduction of child to social media, age restrictions for social media

Role: Clinician