Manage target audience and app content settings

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Learn about the process and review the interactive checklist at Academy for App Success.
 

To better serve users, it's important to provide accurate information about your app. In addition to filling out the content rating questionnaire, you'll also need to provide details about your app's target audience and content. Depending on the target audience selections you make, your app may be subject to additional Google Play policies:

Learn more about the following sections by selecting these links:

• Fill out the "Target audience and content" section
• About target age groups
• Personal information
• Neutral age screen
• Apps primarily designed for children

Fill out the "Target audience and content" section

If you create a new app or publish an update to an existing app, you’ll be required to declare your app’s target age group. Any apps that include children in their target audience must comply with Google Play's Families Policy Requirements.

Before filling out the Target audience and content section, you must have declared whether or not your app contains ads, and provided instructions for app access. You must also have added a privacy policy.

1. Open Play Console and go to the App content page (Policy > App content).
2. Under "Target audience and content," click Start. If you’ve previously filled out the Target audience and content section and want to make changes, click Manage. Fill out each section accordingly:
   • Target age: Select the age group(s) that your app targets. You can make multiple selections if appropriate. Selecting certain age groups, such as users only over the age of 18, may allow you to specify additional restrictions to your app availability. For details, see About target age groups.
   • App details: You may be asked for additional details about how your app works. It is very important that you provide accurate answers to the questions as they relate to your app. Some of the questions are related to legal requirements. If you are unsure, please consult with your legal counsel.
   • Ads: If your app is serving ads to children, you will be asked about Google Play's Families Self-Certified Ads SDK Program or whether your app has a neutral age screen.
   • Store presence: Apps that are primarily for children and apps designed for several age groups such as older audiences and children are eligible for consideration in the Teacher Approved program.
3. Review a summary of your selections and click Save.​
   • Google will review your app to make sure the target audience that you disclose is accurate and your app is compliant with all Google Play Developer policies. Please note that certain developer accounts and/or categories of apps may be subjected to extended reviews, which may result in review times of up to 7 days or longer in exceptional cases. We recommend that you adjust your planning to take this into account.

About target age groups

You should only select more than one age group for your app’s target audience if you have designed your app for and ensured that your app is appropriate for users within each of the selected age group(s).

For example, an app designed for toddlers should only have the age group "Ages 5 and under" selected.

You should only select age groups that include both adults and children, if you truly have designed your app for all ages, not just because you want your app to be available to users of all ages.

Please note that if your app targets any users who are under the age of 21, you must consider if they would be considered children under their local laws. Apps that target children must comply with Google Play Families Policy requirements.

Here are some tips and additional examples to help you select the most appropriate age group for your app.

Personal information

Any collection of personal and sensitive information from children, such as name or e-mail address, must be disclosed and should be collected with parental consent if required. We advise you to take the time to thoroughly consider, research, and understand how any SDKs or APIs used in your app may collect user data. Reading through any documentation for these SDKs or APIs is a good starting point. Keep in mind that any data exfiltrated from your app is your responsibility. Please also consult Play’s user data policy and applicable legal regulations in your target country for more guidance.

Neutral age screen

A neutral age screen is a mechanism to verify a user's age in a way that doesn't encourage them to falsify their age and gain access to areas of your app that aren't designed for children, for example, an age gate. An example of this would be a system that asks users to freely enter their month, day, and year of birth. An incorrect setup of a neutral age screen would be presetting the birth date to the required age (for example, 13 years old) or indicating that a certain age is required to access areas of the app. Additional guidance on age screens may be found on the FTC website.

If your app's target age groups include both children and older audiences, any ads that may be shown to children must comply with Google Play's Families Self-Certified Ads SDK Program. A neutral age screen must be implemented so that any ads not suitable for children are only shown to older audiences.

For apps whose target audience is solely children, all ads must come from a self-certified ads SDK.

Apps primarily designed for children

If your app is not primarily designed for children under 13 but your listing contains marketing elements that suggest otherwise (such as youthful animation or young characters in the graphic assets), Google Play may reject your app. If that happens, you'll have the following options:

• Remove any marketing elements in your store listing that may appeal to children, including those that have been identified by our review team.
• Change the target age group(s) of your app to only include children under 13 (which will require complying with Google Play Families Policy).

Related links

• About Google Play Families Policies
• Understanding Google Play's Families policies
• Build Teacher Approved apps for Google Play