Meta to Add Teen Time Limits, Night Blocking, and Safer Feeds on Instagram and Facebook After $18 Billion Settlement
Meta has agreed to introduce major new protections for teenagers on Instagram and Facebook as part of an $18 billion settlement tied to children’s safety claims brought by 29 U.S. states. The changes are designed to give parents more control, reduce excessive screen time, and limit how much influence recommendation algorithms have over young users.
If approved by the court, the new rules will automatically apply to users under 18 in participating U.S. states and territories. Many of the protections are expected to remain in place for 10 years.
One of the biggest changes is a daily two-hour time limit for teens across Instagram and Facebook. The limit will count time spent on both apps together, rather than separately. For example, if a teen spends one hour on Instagram and one hour on Facebook, they will hit the daily cap.
Once the two-hour limit is reached, underage users will be locked out of both platforms unless a parent or guardian gives permission to disable the restriction. Meta also says the rule will still apply if it detects that a teen is using multiple accounts to get around the limit.
Another major update is the option for teenagers to use a non-personalized feed by default. This means parents and guardians will be able to set a teen’s experience so posts are not primarily selected by Meta’s recommendation algorithms.
Currently, Instagram and Facebook allow users to temporarily view content in a more chronological way, but the apps often return users to algorithm-driven feeds. Under the new system, families will have more control over whether teens see recommended content or a feed that is not shaped by personalization systems.
Meta will also introduce a default Night Mode for underage users between midnight and 6 a.m. During this window, teens will be blocked from accessing, posting, or viewing content on Instagram and Facebook.
The company already limits nighttime notifications for teen users, but this new setting goes further by restricting access to the apps during late-night hours. The goal is to reduce sleep disruption and discourage teens from scrolling through social media overnight.
Teens will also see new reminders after every 15 minutes of continuous use on Instagram or Facebook. These alerts will be added on top of existing prompts that appear when a teen reaches 60 minutes of total daily use.
Meta is also expanding restrictions on appearance-altering effects. Underage users will no longer be able to use extreme makeup filters, adding to existing limits on filters that simulate cosmetic surgery. This change is aimed at reducing pressure around appearance and body image.
During school hours, Meta will mute most push notifications by default. The company defines school hours as 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. During that time, teens will not receive most alerts, though direct messages and account safety or security notifications will still be allowed.
Another new control will let parents and teens turn off autoplay. When autoplay is disabled, users will need to take a deliberate action, such as tapping or swiping, to continue watching or viewing more content. This is intended to make scrolling less automatic and help teens become more aware of how much time they are spending on the apps.
Like and reaction counts will also be hidden by default for underage users. This applies both to posts made by teens and posts they see from others. While users have already had the option to hide like counts, the new policy makes that setting the default for teens.
Meta says it is also improving its systems for detecting whether users may be between 13 and 17 years old, even if they enter an adult birth date when signing up. The company says this will help ensure that teenagers receive the proper safety settings and protections.
Alongside these changes, Meta is calling for other major video and social platforms to adopt similar teen safety measures. The company argues that if restrictions apply only on one app, teens may simply shift their time to another platform.
Under the settlement terms, Meta’s $18 billion payment will be distributed to the states over 10 years. However, about 30% of that amount, roughly $5.3 billion, will only be paid if other major platforms implement similar limits, including daily time caps, nighttime restrictions, school-hour notification limits, and 15-minute usage prompts.
Meta says it will continue enforcing existing teen safety policies as well. These include placing teens into private accounts by default, limiting contact from suspicious adults, and preventing underage users from following or interacting with accounts considered inappropriate for their age.
The settlement marks one of the most significant moves yet toward stricter social media rules for minors in the United States. If the measures take effect, teen users on Instagram and Facebook could see a very different experience: less endless scrolling, fewer late-night sessions, reduced pressure from likes, and more parental oversight.
