HBO Max

Strong for younger children once you turn two things on. Out of the box the Kids profile is a suggestion rather than a lock, because a child can tap the profile switcher and land in an adult one.

Menu names shift between software versions and between phone makers. If a name here does not match what you see, look for something close by rather than assuming the setting is gone.

1. 1

   Make them a Kids profile

   A Kids profile filters the home screen and search as well as playback, so things they should not see never appear. It can never reach R or TV-MA whatever else you set.

   1. Add a profile, mark it as a Kids profile, and enter their date of birth.
   2. Pick the rating group for their age.

   Recommended by age

   Under 7	G, TV-Y (up to age 5)
   7–11	G, TV-Y7, TV-G (ages 6+)
   11–12	PG, TV-PG (ages 10+)
   13–15	PG-13, TV-14 (ages 13+), which is as high as a Kids profile goes
   16–17	An adult profile with a rating you agree together

   New accounts arrive with a default Kids profile already set to PG and TV-PG, which is aimed at ages 10 and up. If your child is younger, change it rather than assuming a Kids profile means young. Kids Mode cannot be switched off on a profile whose birthdate is under 18. On content: Sesame Street moved to Netflix in 2025 with worldwide premiere rights, so do not subscribe here for new episodes. Studio Ghibli is on HBO Max in the United States, where GKIDS holds exclusive US streaming rights. We could not confirm Ghibli for the UK and Ireland, so check before counting on it.

2. 2

   Set the Parent Code and turn on Kid-Proof Exit

   This is the step that turns the Kids profile from a suggestion into a control, and it is off until you do it. It is the thing most parents are caught by, because the profile looks locked and is not.

   play.hbomax.com/parent-code

   1. Set the four-digit Parent Code at play.hbomax.com/parent-code.
   2. Turn on Kid-Proof Exit for the Kids profile.

   There is one Parent Code for the whole account, and it applies to every Kids profile on it.

   Who holds this: You set this from your own account, and your child cannot change it back.

3. 3

   Put a PIN on every adult profile

   Kid-Proof Exit stops them leaving. A profile PIN stops them arriving. You need both, because by default a new adult profile can watch everything and the app reopens wherever it was last.

   1. Add a four-digit Profile PIN to your own profile.
   2. Do the same on every other adult profile, not just yours.
4. 4

   Let the device do the rest

   HBO Max follows the device's own parental controls when those are stricter, which makes the device a genuine backstop here. It does not follow controls you set with a TV provider.

   1. Set the device controls too, from the guide for that device.

Menus move. If something on screen does not match these steps, check the official link above.