A guide for families with key information about ‘Pinterest’, including the age rating, key terminology, risks and instructions for enabling parental controls and safety settings.
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Pinterest is a social media platform that allows users to create their own virtual pin boards dedicated to their interests. The purpose of the app is for users to ‘Pin’ inspirational photos or videos to their different ‘Boards’, organising their ideas by theme. Common ‘Board’ themes include interior styling, recipes and outfit inspiration, but with over a billion ‘Pins’ on the platform, there is content available catering to almost all interests. Boards can be public or private, allowing other users on the platform to ‘Follow’ the boards they are interested in. Users can also search the platform for ideas and inspiration for their different projects or interests, as well as being offered a personalised feed of content on the ‘Browse’ section. The app is free to download on both Android and iOS with over 430 million users worldwide.
Official age rating
The minimum age rating for Pinterest users is 13, however, the app does not have any rigorous age verification methods.
Users under the age of 16 are automatically given private profiles that limit their interaction with unknown users and inappropriate content. Users who registered under the age of 18 and attempt to change their age will need to verify their age with a government-issued document.
It has been given an age rating of 12+ on the Apple App Store and ‘Mature 17+’ on the Google Play Store.
Find out more about age ratings in our ‘A parent and carer’s guide to age ratings of apps and games’.
How children and young people use the app
Pinterest is appealing to young people since it is easy to use and is centred around photos and videos - something many young people enjoy on other social media platforms. The wealth of content that is available means it is easy for young people to explore their interests and be inspired by others. Unlike other social media platforms, the social element is less about personally connecting with other users, but instead taking inspiration from them through their images. The content on Pinterest is often highly curated or taken by professional photographers. Some young people feel that the professional quality of the images and videos on Pinterest can lead to them feeling like their lives do not match up with what they are viewing on the platform.
Key features and terminology
Potential risks
Content
Pinterest is known for its collection of inspirational images and videos that are often ‘picture perfect’. Unlike other image-based social media platforms, these images are often not centred on individual people and profiles, but instead on specific interests such as fashion and interiors. However, these images are often highly edited or curated to look perfect. Over exposure and constant scrolling through highly edited content can impact negatively on some users, leaving them feeling that their lives or material items do not match up with the ones they are seeing on the platform. Talk to your child about how the content on the platform has been edited to generate ‘likes’ and interest and should not be used as a life-comparison tool.
With such a wealth of content available on the platform, it is possible that your child may come across content that is inappropriate for them in some way. Whilst the platform doesn’t allow certain content types, such as nudity or violent content, it does appear on the platform, often under misleading ‘Pin’ descriptions. Encourage your child to talk to you if they have encountered content that they find upsetting on the platform.
There is also the possibility that your child may be sent inappropriate content via the ‘Messages’ or ‘Comments’ feature on the app. To reduce the risk of exposing your child to inappropriate content in the messaging function of the app, edit who can send your child messages in settings or set up parental controls on their account. By limiting who can message your child through the app, your child is less likely to experience language or behaviour that is unsuitable for their age or development. However, it should be acknowledged that your child may still be exposed to inappropriate content by their ‘friends’ or known contacts. For information on how to do this, limit who can message your child’s account, go to the ‘Managing interactions and content’ section of this guide.
Connecting with others
The main way in which users can communicate with one another through Pinterest is by commenting on ‘pins’ or sending direct messages to one another. Both features can lead to your child being contacted by people they do not know if the correct privacy settings are not in place. Although the default settings for users under 16 are restrictive, parents should be mindful that they can still be changed by the teen to make their profiles public and accessible to other users. Talk to your child to ensure they know the risks of communicating with people they do not know online and work with them to set the appropriate message settings to help control who can contact them on the platform. We also recommend parents talk with their child about the importance of not sharing any personal or identifiable information on their profile or within messages. Encourage them to tell you if they have been asked more personal questions or have been made to feel uncomfortable by the content of a message or comment.
User behaviour
As Pinterest allows users to share personal content in the form of ‘Pins’ and personal ‘Boards’, users should be aware of what is appropriate to share on the platform. Have a conversation with your child to help them understand what is and is not appropriate for them to share online and the lasting impact that anything they post may have on themselves and their future. The ‘Comments’ feature on the platform can also expose users to hurtful content. Encourage your child to talk to you if they have been affected by hurtful comments on the platform and ensure they know how to report and block users who behave inappropriately.
Design, data and costs
Pinterest is an engaging platform and users can sometimes spend many hours at a time scrolling through the diverse content, pinning items to their various boards. The platform is designed to keep users engaged and interested, offering tailored content in the ‘Browse’ section that the platform thinks you will be interested in. Children and young people do not often have the skills to self-regulate their time scrolling and to take time-out from the platform. Talk to your child about the risks of endless scrolling and encourage them to take regular breaks from the platform. The platform also contains adverts, as well as links to external sites, where users can buy items similar to the ones in images or videos they have pinned. It is recommended that users check the ‘Data personalisation’ settings to help manage the adverts and personalised content they are exposed to. Information on how to do this can be found in the ‘Managing interactions and content’ section of this guide.
Tips for keeping your child safe
Additional tips
Pinterest can be a fun way for young people to explore their interests and generate new ones. Spend time with your child exploring the app to monitor the type of content they are viewing and whether it is suitable for their age or stage of development.
Pinterest has a help centre where users can find out how to manage their privacy and safety on the platform. Pinterest also has a dedicated help centre for parents and carers. Parents and carers can learn more specific settings and resources that Pinterest has for managing safety and privacy for their children. For children and young people, see Pinterest’s teen safety options page.