How to Turn Off Age Restriction on YouTube, Step-By-Step (With Photos)

YouTube’s age restriction settings prevent people from viewing videos that may not be safe for work (NSFW) or that market to children in a harmful way. If your account is banned from viewing certain videos, there are ways to turn off age restriction on YouTube, allowing you to access everything they have to offer. Here’s how to do it.

Why is there an Age Restriction on YouTube?

While certain content may not go against YouTube standards, it may not be suitable for users under the age of 18. In cases like this, YouTube restricts the viewing age of the video. This policy is applicable to all YouTube products and features, including videos, video descriptions, custom thumbnails, live broadcasts, and more.

Can’t I Just Update My Birthday?

You can, but you’ll have to do it with your Google account. You’ll log in, navigate to your personal info on the left-hand side, and then update your birthday. Don’t forget to click ‘Save’!

How to Turn Off Age Restriction on YouTube

While you can easily update your birthday to bypass YouTube restrictions, there is another way to do it as well. That’s to turn off the restriction in your YouTube settings. Here’s how to do that.

Step 1: Log In

First, you’ll log in and view your YouTube home screen, from there, you can immediately go to step two.

Step 2: Navigate to Restricted Mode

Next, you’ll click your photo in the right-hand corner, and a menu will pop up. You’ll need to scroll down in order to see restricted mode.

Step 3: Disable Restrictions

Once you locate restricted mode, you’ll click on it. A new pop-up will show up and ask you if you want to enable or disable restricted mode. You’ll know that restricted mode is disabled if it’s greyed out (like the photo below).

And that’s it! That’s how to make sure that restrictions are turned off on your YouTube account.

Step 4: Do this for Each Browser or App

Keep in mind that if you turn off age restriction on YouTube following the steps above, you’ll have to do it for every browser and app, regardless if you’re using the same YouTube account or not. In other words, if you’re logged in under your account on Chrome and Firefox, you’ll have to follow steps 1-3 for each browser.

If using the YouTube app on your phone, you’ll also need to turn off restrictions. To do this, you’ll open the app, click your photo on the right-hand side, click ‘settings’, choose ‘general’, and make sure restricted mode is disabled (or greyed out).

Check out this video for a detailed walkthrough tutorial:

How to Turn Off Age Restriction on YouTube Wrap Up

It’s very easy to turn off the age restriction on YouTube, mainly because the platform offers easy access to your settings. And remember, you can toggle your restrictions on or off based on your preferences!

The image featured at the top of this post is ©JuliusKielaitis/Shutterstock.com.