Parents' guide — SafeSearch

How to turn on SafeSearch on Google and YouTube (2026)

SafeSearch hides most explicit results in Google, and Restricted Mode hides most adult videos in YouTube. This guide gives you the exact menu steps for Android and iPhone, shows how to lock the setting so your child cannot switch it back, and is honest that a filter is one layer, not a wall.

By the Safeinest team — written by parents, checked against what the apps really do · Published 27 October 2026

The short answer

Turn on SafeSearch in your child's Google account and set it to Filter, then turn on Restricted Mode in the YouTube app or browser. For a child, lock SafeSearch through Google Family Link on Android, or through Apple's Screen Time on an iPhone, so it cannot simply be switched off again.

How to turn on Google SafeSearch

SafeSearch is Google's own filter. When it is set to Filter, Google hides most explicit images, videos and websites from search results. You can set it on a phone or a computer, and it works on both Android and iPhone.

1. Open google.com in a browser, or the Google app, signed in to the account your child uses.
2. Tap your profile picture (or the three dots), then Settings.
3. Open SafeSearch.
4. Choose Filter. This is the strongest setting and blurs or hides explicit results.

On a shared computer, go to google.com, click Settings at the bottom right, then Search settings, and tick Filter explicit results. If nobody is signed in, the setting only sticks on that one browser.

Lock SafeSearch for a child with Family Link

On its own, SafeSearch can be turned off again by anyone using the account. To lock it for a child on Android, use Google Family Link. Open the Family Link app on your phone, tap your child's name, then Controls → Content restrictions → Google Search, and turn on SafeSearch. Now it stays on and your child cannot change it. Our full walk-through is in how to use Google Family Link.

Force SafeSearch for every device on your Wi-Fi

If you want SafeSearch on for every device in the house, you can force it at the network level using DNS. In your router's settings, point DNS for google.com to forcesafesearch.google.com, or use a family DNS service that does this for you. It is more technical, and it only covers your home Wi-Fi, not mobile data, so a phone on 4G or 5G is not protected by it.

How to turn on YouTube Restricted Mode

Restricted Mode is YouTube's filter. It hides most mature videos and turns off comments. It is set per device and per browser, so you must turn it on in each place your child watches: the app on their phone, and every browser they use.

1. Open the YouTube app and tap your profile picture.
2. Tap Settings → General.
3. Turn on Restricted Mode.

In a browser, open youtube.com, click your profile picture, and choose Restricted Mode from the menu, then turn it on. Because it is per browser, a child who opens a new or logged-out browser can slip past it. For younger children a kids product is stronger. See is YouTube safe for kids? for the full picture.

YouTube Kids and supervised accounts

For a younger child, the better option is YouTube Kids or a supervised account set up through Family Link, rather than normal YouTube with a filter. A supervised account lets you pick a content level by age and is tied to the child's Google account, so it follows them across devices instead of being a per-browser switch. It is the stronger choice up to around the early teens.

How to turn on SafeSearch on an iPhone

On an iPhone, the cleanest way to force SafeSearch in Safari is through Apple's Screen Time. This is tied to Safari and the child's Apple account, so it does not cover every third-party browser.

1. On the child's iPhone, open Settings → Screen Time.
2. Tap Content & Privacy Restrictions and turn it on.
3. Tap Content Restrictions → Web Content.
4. Choose Limit Adult Websites.

This blocks many adult sites and forces SafeSearch in Safari. Set a Screen Time passcode that only you know, so the setting cannot be undone. For YouTube on an iPhone, you still turn on Restricted Mode inside the YouTube app as above, because Screen Time does not control it.

Where Safeinest helps — and where it cannot

Safeinest is a paid family app, and it is honest about its edges. The Safeinest Browser has SafeSearch, history and blocked sites built in, and that part works on both Android and iPhone. On an Android child phone, Safeinest can also do message-safety alerts, spotting self-harm, bullying or grooming words in messages and notifications on the device, with a consent screen the child sees. It adds app pauses, bedtime and school-hours rules, live location and safe zones.

On an iPhone, Apple does not let any app read messages, so Safeinest cannot do that and will not pretend to. On iPhone it does the browser with SafeSearch, limits, location, family calls and an SOS button. Message-safety detection is Android only. You can see the full honest list on our features page.

One thing to hold onto: SafeSearch and Restricted Mode are filters, and a determined child can sometimes get around a filter with a new browser, a logged-out session, or a VPN. They are a good first layer, not a wall. Treat them as part of a wider plan alongside honest conversations.

The numbers

Children meet search and video early. Ofcom (2025) found that 56% of 10-year-olds and 83% of 11-year-olds in the UK own a smartphone, and 99% of 8 to 17-year-olds are online. Most of those phones are Android: StatCounter puts Android at about 70% of phones worldwide, and far higher in many countries, around 96% in India and 94% in Pakistan (World Population Review, 2024–2025).

Filters matter because so much goes unseen. The Childlight study at the University of Edinburgh estimated that 1 in 8 of the world's children, about 302 million in one year, faced online sexual exploitation or abuse. And when something bad happens online, 2 in 5 children never told anyone (LGfL, via Internet Matters). A filter cuts down what reaches a child, but it does not replace the conversation that makes them tell you.

What to say to your child

Keep it short and warm. You could say: "I have turned on a filter so you are less likely to stumble into nasty stuff by accident, not to spy on you." Then add the line that matters most: "If anything online ever scares or upsets you, you can tell me and you will never be in trouble." If your child does see something upsetting, our guide on what to do when your child saw something adult online walks you through it calmly.

Helplines

In the UK, your child can call Childline free on 0800 1111. As a parent you can call the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000. In an emergency, always call 999. Outside the UK, call your local emergency number or your country's child helpline.