Amazon Prime Video Parental Controls: How to Protect Your Kids' Viewing

Ever sat down to watch your favorite show on Amazon Prime Video, only to find your 8-year-old suddenly watching a horror movie with blood on the screen? It’s not a rare glitch - it’s a missing setting. Amazon Prime Video gives you powerful tools to lock down what your kids can watch, but most parents don’t know where to find them. If you’ve ever had to scramble to pause a show because it wasn’t age-appropriate, this guide will fix that for good.

Set up a child profile - it’s not optional

The first step to protecting your kids on Prime Video isn’t locking a password. It’s creating a separate profile for them. Every adult account on Prime Video can have up to six profiles. You need at least one of those to be a child profile.

To do this, go to the Prime Video app or website, click your profile icon in the top-right corner, then select Manage Profiles. Choose Add Profile and pick Child. You’ll be asked to enter a name and age. The age matters - it tells Prime Video what content to block automatically.

Once the child profile is created, only content rated for that age group or lower will show up. A 6-year-old won’t see PG-13 movies. A 12-year-old won’t get R-rated films. That’s the baseline. But it’s not enough on its own.

Turn on PIN protection for mature content

Here’s the problem: a child profile can still be switched to by someone who knows the profile name. And if your kid finds your main profile on the TV remote, they can watch anything. That’s why you need PIN protection.

Go to Settings > Parental Controls > Content Rating PIN. Set a 4-digit PIN you won’t forget - but your kids won’t guess. This PIN is required to watch any content rated above the child profile’s limit. Even if your kid switches to your profile, they can’t play a 16+ movie without the PIN.

You can also set a PIN to prevent profile switching. That means no one can jump from the child profile to yours without entering the code. This is especially useful if you share a TV with other family members. Your 10-year-old shouldn’t be able to watch your true crime documentaries just because they grabbed the remote.

Use the maturity level filter - and don’t ignore it

Prime Video lets you set a global maturity level for your whole account. This controls what appears in search results, recommendations, and browse sections. You can set it to Little Kids, Older Kids, Teens, or Adults.

If you set it to Little Kids, you’ll only see shows like Bluey or Peppa Pig. No superhero fights. No romantic subplots. No dark humor. This setting applies to every profile unless overridden by a child profile’s own restrictions.

But here’s the catch: if you leave this set to Adults, your child profile’s limits won’t matter as much. The app will still show mature content in the homepage feed. So always match your account’s maturity setting to your youngest viewer. It’s a safety net.

Block specific titles - yes, even if they’re popular

Some shows slip through the cracks. A comedy might have a single scene with strong language. A movie might be rated PG but have a terrifying sequence. Prime Video lets you block individual titles, no matter the rating.

Go to Settings > Parental Controls > Blocked Titles. Search for the show or movie you want to block. Click Block. That title will disappear from every profile on your account. Even if someone types the exact name into the search bar, it won’t appear.

This is perfect for shows like Stranger Things - great for teens, but too intense for a 7-year-old. Or The Boys - no kid should see that, no matter how much they beg. Block it. It’s that simple.

Monitor what they’re watching - without spying

You don’t need to sit next to your kid every time they turn on the TV. Prime Video gives you a viewing history for each profile. Go to Account > Viewing Activity. You’ll see a list of everything watched on each profile, including the date and time.

This isn’t about punishment. It’s about awareness. If you notice your 9-year-old has watched three episodes of a horror series you didn’t know existed, you can adjust the PIN or block the title. You can also use this to find good content they’re enjoying - and recommend more like it.

You can turn off viewing history for a profile if you want privacy. But if you’re setting up parental controls, keep it on. It’s your only real-time feedback loop.

What you can’t do - and how to work around it

Amazon Prime Video doesn’t let you set daily time limits. It doesn’t lock the app after 9 p.m. It doesn’t send alerts when your kid watches something new. Those features exist on Netflix and Disney+, but not on Prime Video.

So you have to layer other tools. Use your TV’s built-in parental controls (most smart TVs let you lock apps or set schedules). Or use a router-level filter like Circle with Disney or Net Nanny to block Prime Video after bedtime. You can also use Apple Screen Time or Google Family Link on tablets to restrict app usage.

Don’t rely on Prime Video alone. Treat it as one layer in a bigger safety system.

Test it - before your kid does

Once you’ve set everything up, test it. Switch to the child profile. Try searching for a movie you know is rated 15+. Can you play it? Can you change profiles without the PIN? Can you find blocked titles?

Do this on every device: the Fire TV stick, the iPad, the phone, the laptop. Settings don’t always sync perfectly. What works on your TV might not work on your phone.

If something still lets your kid watch something inappropriate, go back. Tighten the PIN. Lower the maturity level. Block the title. Parental controls aren’t set-and-forget. They need checking every few months - especially as your kids grow.

Why this matters more than ever

In 2025, kids have more access to adult content than ever. A 2024 study by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that 68% of children under 12 have watched content not meant for their age group - mostly because parents didn’t use built-in controls.

Prime Video isn’t trying to expose your kids. It’s giving you tools to protect them. But those tools only work if you use them. The difference between a safe viewing experience and a scary surprise is a 4-digit PIN and a child profile. That’s it.

Don’t wait for the next bad moment. Set it up today. It takes less than five minutes. And once it’s done, you can finally relax - knowing your kids are watching what they should.