Social media age limits in the UK, explained
Minimum age for Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, WhatsApp and YouTube in the UK. Who sets it, what the Online Safety Act changes, the gaps. Plain English.
Short version. The main social media platforms set their own minimum age at 13. Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, TikTok, Snapchat and a YouTube account. A rule in the platforms’ own terms of service. Not, until recently, the law. What’s changing is enforcement. Under the Online Safety Act, services children can access have new duties to keep them safe, and Ofcom is now pressing platforms to actually enforce their 13+ minimums rather than just state them.
So “13” is the headline number, with two important caveats. It’s largely self-declared. The legal picture is shifting underneath it.
The minimum ages, platform by platform
| Platform | Stated minimum age | Who sets it |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Meta’s terms | |
| 13 | Meta’s terms | |
| 13 | Meta’s terms | |
| TikTok | 13 | TikTok’s terms |
| Snapchat | 13 | Snap’s terms |
| YouTube (own account) | 13 | Google’s terms |
A few notes. The 13 minimum comes largely from data-protection rules about handling children’s data, which is why it’s so consistent across platforms. For younger children, YouTube points families to YouTube Kids, and Google’s Family Link lets a parent manage a supervised account. WhatsApp’s UK minimum is 13. These are the figures stated in the platforms’ own terms at the time of writing. Platforms do change them. Worth a quick check on the official help pages if a precise figure matters.
The catch: it’s self-declared
The honest part. For years, these age limits have mostly relied on a child typing in a date of birth, which a child who wants an account can simply get wrong. That’s why so many children are on these platforms well before 13, and why an age limit on paper hasn’t meant much in practice.
What the Online Safety Act changes
The part that’s genuinely moving. The Online Safety Act’s children’s safety duties came into force on 25 July 2025. Services that are likely to be accessed by children, and that carry harmful content, now have to use what Ofcom calls “highly effective age assurance” to keep children away from the worst material. Ofcom has been explicit that self-declaration on its own doesn’t count.
More directly relevant to the age limits above: in March 2026, Ofcom wrote to major platforms requiring them to enforce their own minimum age policies using proper age assurance, and asked them to set out what they would do. The regulator is turning a paper “13” into something platforms are expected to actually check. Ofcom is due to report on age assurance by the end of July 2026.
And the under-16 question
Separately, the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026, which received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026, gave the government a new power to introduce age-based or feature-based restrictions for under-16s on social media. A power, not yet a rule. Regulations haven’t been made. Ministers have indicated they’re aiming for the first of them by the end of 2026. The legal direction is towards tighter restrictions for under-16s. Under-16s aren’t banned from social media today.
How to check a platform’s current age rule
Platforms change their terms. The regulation is moving quickly. Worth knowing how to check a current figure yourself rather than relying on a number that may have shifted. The most reliable source is the platform’s own help or safety centre, usually under “minimum age” or “age requirements”. That states the official figure and any rules for supervised or younger accounts. For the UK regulatory picture, Ofcom’s site is the place to look. It publishes guidance on age checks and what services are now required to do.
A sensible habit, if this matters for your family: check the platform’s own page at the point you’re making a decision, rather than trusting a screenshot from a parenting forum that could be a year out of date. The headline today is consistent, 13 across the major platforms. The enforcement of it, and the separate question of restrictions on under-16s, are the parts most likely to change over the coming year. A quick look at the source beats assuming.
What this means for your family
Two practical takeaways. If your child is under 13, they’re below the minimum for every major platform, and the rules are finally being enforced more seriously. The most reliable “age check” a parent controls is the device itself. A phone that can’t install Instagram or TikTok settles the question without a daily argument. The everyday case for a simple phone as a first phone. For the wider picture of what the evidence does and doesn’t show, see what the research says, calmly.
Common questions
What age can a child use WhatsApp in the UK? WhatsApp’s stated minimum age is 13, set in Meta’s terms of service.
Is 13 a legal age limit for social media? The 13 minimum comes from the platforms’ own terms, rooted in data-protection rules, rather than a law that bans under-13s outright. The Online Safety Act is now pushing platforms to enforce it properly.
Are under-16s banned from social media in the UK? Not currently. The government has taken a power to introduce restrictions for under-16s. The regulations haven’t yet been made.
Sources: platform terms of service (Meta, TikTok, Snap, Google); Ofcom guidance on age assurance under the Online Safety Act; the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026. Full sources on the research.
Continue reading
Notes from Knock, when there is something worth saying.
Short notes on simple phones, the parent conversation and the school side. Sent when there is a piece worth sending, never on a marketing schedule. Unsubscribe with one click.
