Short answer: Roblox can be a reasonable place for kids, especially under 13, if you link your account and set chat by age. Most of the protections are tied to your child's age, so the two things that matter most are a correct birthday and your chat choices.
Last verified 2026-09-30 against the official sources listed with this post.
Two words to know first
- Connections is Roblox's name for friends on the platform.
- Trusted Friends are a smaller group: people your child knows and trusts in real life, like parents and siblings. Roblox lets Trusted Friends chat across age groups, and for kids under 13 each one needs your approval.
Do this tonight
- Link your account to your child's. On your child's account, go to Settings → Parental Controls → Add parent, enter your email, and follow the instructions. You'll verify you're an adult with a government ID or credit card.
- Check the birthday on their account. It decides which games your child can see. If it's wrong, a linked parent can correct it once.
- Set chat. From your account: Settings → Parental Controls → your child → Communication. See "Our pick" for each age below.
- Set a monthly spending limit under Spending restrictions. If your child plays on a console, set a limit on the console too (more below).
- Scroll through their Connections list together (Parental Controls → Connections → Manage).
How Roblox sorts kids by age
Roblox now has three account types:
- Roblox Kids (ages 5–8): games rated Minimal or Mild.
- Roblox Select (ages 9–15): games rated Minimal, Mild, or Moderate.
- Roblox (16+): all rated content except Restricted, which is for users 18 and up.
Roblox is moving to age checks to place kids in these account types. During a transition period in most regions, though, Roblox still uses the birthday on the account to decide which games catalog your child sees, and requires an age check only for chat. So check that the birthday on their account is right. (Age bands vary by region.)
An age check is a quick selfie-based Facial Age Estimation or a government ID (ID only for 13 and up), and Roblox says the images are deleted after processing. Roblox suggests doing one on your own account first, and making sure your child is the one in front of the camera. It also says no system is foolproof, so pair checks with controls and conversations.
Under 9 (Roblox Kids)
Our pick: leave chat off.
- Chat is off by default. A linked parent can turn it on for an age-checked child. If you do, they can only chat with users under 13 or with Trusted Friends.
- Voice chat is off for everyone under 13.
- Daily screen time limits are available.
- You approve new games. If a game isn't in their catalog, they can request it, and you'll see it under Pending requests.
Ages 9 to 12 (Roblox Select)
Our pick: chat with Trusted Friends only, and approve each one yourself.
- Chat needs your permission (similar age groups or Trusted Friends).
- Direct chat inside a game needs your consent. Roblox's help pages say this applies under 13 in one place and under 16 in another, and you can manage direct chat through age 15.
- The Chat tab (messaging friends outside a game) is limited to Trusted Friends at this age.
- Trusted Friends need your approval within 24 hours of a request.
- Voice chat is off by default for everyone under 13. Roblox's parental controls page says you can allow it with Trusted Friends for ages 9–12, but its voice chat help article says it isn't available under 13, so check what your child's account actually offers. Voice chat is only available in some regions.
- Games themed on sensitive social, political, or religious issues are blocked by default for under-13s (Content restrictions → Sensitive issues).
Roblox's full set of parental controls applies through age 12.
Ages 13 to 15 (Roblox Select)
Our pick: set the Chat tab to Trusted Friends only, and talk about voice before leaving it on.
- You can still manage some things through age 15, including game management and direct chat.
- Voice chat with Trusted Friends is on by default. You can turn it off.
- For the Chat tab, you choose between Trusted Friends only or all friends.
- Party chat is limited to age-checked users over 13 in similar age groups.
- Roblox screen time limits aren't available at 13 and up. Your phone's or console's own controls can help.
At 16 and up, parents keep visibility into friends, screen time, and spending through age 18.
The money settings parents forget
The monthly limit under Spending restrictions resets each calendar month and covers Robux and subscriptions, but it doesn't limit gift card redemptions.
Consoles are the big gap. Roblox says its monthly spending limits may not apply on certain consoles, and that limits set on Roblox don't affect spending through Xbox. If your child plays on a console, set a spending limit or purchase approval on the console itself.
High-spend alerts are on by default for linked parents: you're notified after $100, $250, and $500 in a month, then every ten purchases after that. You can switch to an alert on every purchase.
Scams and account safety
Roblox employees will never ask for your password, and "free Robux" offers in exchange for login details are a trick to steal accounts. Teach your child never to share a password or 2-step verification code, and turn on 2-Step Verification, as Roblox recommends.
If you'd like help, our free checklist walks through Roblox and other apps step by step, no login needed. Setup Coach is $19 once for the whole family and walks you through the phone.
If something goes wrong
- Report the specific thing, not just the person. In a game, open the menu (the Roblox logo, top left), then tap the flag next to a name or the Report tab. Roblox says reporting only from a profile page means moderators can't see what happened.
- Block from your parent dashboard. In Connections → Manage, tap the three dots next to a name. Blocked users can't chat directly with your child or re-add them without your permission.
- If an adult is asking your child for photos or sexual content, report it to the NCMEC CyberTipline at report.cybertip.org or 1-800-843-5678. If your child is in danger, call 911.
Most of all, let your kid know they won't lose Roblox for telling you something went wrong. That promise matters as much as any setting.
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