Two hours a day...new restrictions on teenagers’ use of “Instagram” and “Facebook”
Fady Mahouly
18:52 · 27 August 2026
2 min read
Meta announced an agreement with a bipartisan group of 52 attorneys general in US states and territories and the District of Columbia, imposing a new set of restrictions and protections on teens' use of Instagram and Facebook.
The company indicated that the agreement stipulates setting a default limit for teenagers’ use of two hours per day, and a user under 18 years of age cannot disable it except after obtaining the approval of a parent.
Emphasizing that the two hours are not calculated separately for each platform, but rather cumulatively across Instagram and Facebook. The time spent across multiple accounts is included in the calculation if Meta is able to discover that they belong to the same person.
Direct messaging features are exempt from this limit, with the goal of allowing teens to stay in touch with their friends and family.
Meta confirmed that it will implement a night mode that prevents teenagers by default from using key parts of the two applications between midnight and six in the morning.
During this period, teens will not be able, for example, to post or view the Feed, Stories, Explore section, or Reels. Direct messages remain exempt from night mode restrictions.
She pointed out that the agreement includes a special status for school hours, according to which notifications are silenced by default between eight in the morning and three in the afternoon.
Meta announced that teenagers will receive an alert after every 15 minutes of continuous use of Facebook or Instagram.
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