All the ways Instagram and Facebook are changing for teens
Teens across the US will soon be subject to two-hour time limits across Facebook and Instagram.
Teens across the US will soon be subject to two-hour time limits across Facebook and Instagram.
by Aug 26, 2026, 8:00 PM UTC
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Emma Roth is a news writer who covers the streaming wars, consumer tech, crypto, social media, and much more. Previously, she was a writer and editor at MUO.
Meta just agreed to make sweeping changes for teens as part of a child safety settlement reached with attorneys general across the US. Under the agreement, Meta must apply new safeguards across Instagram and Facebook that will change how teens interact with the social media platforms, as well as restrict their use during certain times.
The settlement stems from a nationwide lawsuit alleging Meta, Google, TikTok, and Snap failed to protect children and made their platforms “addictive” by design. A group of 51 US states and territories signed the agreement, including New York, New Jersey, California, Nevada, South Carolina, Washington, Illinois, and many more. Most of these protections are required to remain in place for at least 10 years.
The changes are coming to Facebook and Instagram in all US states except for New Mexico, which is in the middle of a legal battle with Meta, and Florida, which has banned kids under 14 from creating social media accounts. Texas also reached a separate settlement with Meta with similar requirements. Here’s a list of the biggest changes:
- A non-personalized feed option: In four months, Facebook and Instagram must give teens the “reasonably accessible” option of a default feed that isn’t personalized by Meta’s recommendation engine. Meta will occasionally send teens reminders about this option, and parents will also be able to set it as their child’s default setting.
- Age assurance: Meta has agreed to ramp up efforts to identify and apply restrictions to underage users on the platform. Under the settlement, Meta must either continue to develop its own age assurance standard or adopt a third-party option. The method must evaluate whether a user is under 13, so they can be removed from the platform, or identify if someone is aged 13 to 17, in which case they would receive teen account protections. New users who haven’t yet been evaluated by Meta’s system will receive teen protections by default. Meta must also adhere to data minimization policies, implement a process for users to appeal their status as a minor, and have its age assurance system reviewed by an independent auditor.
- Two-hour time limit: Teens will only be able to use Instagram and Facebook — cumulatively — for two hours per day, unless the limit is turned off by a parent. Meta will apply the time limit not only across both apps, but across a user’s alternate account if it detects one. As noted in the settlement agreement, time spent consuming videos or audio more than 22 minutes long, messaging, or using an app’s settings won’t count toward the limit, which will reset at 12AM each day.
- Persistent prompts: Within four months, Meta is required to show teens prompts every 15 minutes that they continually scroll on Instagram and Facebook to prevent “excessive, mindless, or unintended” usage. The platforms will also send prompts after 60 minutes and 90 minutes. An example of the notification included in the settlement shows a message saying, “You’ve scrolled for a while. Try exploring something new,” with a prompt for users to view content related to other topics and to review their algorithm. Parents can change this setting to be less or more restrictive.
- Nighttime restrictions: Meta will block teens from accessing most of Facebook and Instagram between midnight and 6AM. During this time, teens can’t post on either platform or view feeds, stories, reels, or scroll through their Explore page. Teens will still be able to access messaging features and account settings at night, and parents, again, can adjust the setting.
- Muted notifications during the school day: Teens won’t receive push notifications by default between 8AM and 3PM, except for “direct messages and alerts about their account security or safety,” unless the setting is changed by a parent.
- Toggle off autoplay: Teens will get the option to turn off autoplay, which means they’ll have to tap or swipe their screen to view content, rather than Instagram or Facebook playing it as soon as it appears on their screen.
- No more visible likes: Facebook and Instagram will begin hiding the number of likes and reactions on teens’ posts by default, and will stop showing them on other posts as well.
- Limited access to beauty filters: Meta already blocks teens from using cosmetic surgery filters, but it will now restrict their access to “extreme makeup” filters as well. The agreement says this doesn’t include effects that make users look like a fantasy character, an animal, or effects that “entertain users by distorting their appearance.” It also doesn’t include filters that “smooth skin or alter appearance in ways that can be achieved by ordinary makeup techniques.”
Meta has committed to keeping many of its existing safety standards as well. That means placing all teens into more private accounts by default, preventing “potentially suspicious adults” from messaging them, and making it more difficult for adults to find, follow, or interact with young users. The company also says it will keep its age-appropriate content restrictions, which hide posts containing nudity, sexual content, strong language, or risky stunts from teens.
Meta is calling on TikTok and YouTube to make similar changes, saying “these protections will only be truly effective if we work with our peers.” It must pay $17.1 billion to states over 10 years, but says it will pay $5.3 billion of this sum only if TikTok and YouTube pay the same amount, as well as implement a daily time limit for teens, add restrictions at night, and roll out age assurance measures.
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