App Store age ratings. The new scale and the questionnaire

What an age rating is and where it shows

The rating sits on the app's App Store page, and parental controls run on it. You don't pick it from a list. You answer a questionnaire about what the app contains and how often, and App Store Connect works out the global and per-country ratings, with separate rules for Australia, Brazil and Korea.

On iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS Tahoe 26 and the other version 26 systems people see the new scale of 4+, 9+, 13+, 16+ and 18+. Devices on older systems get the earlier one, 4+, 9+, 12+ and 17+.

Where the questionnaire lives in App Store Connect

Go to App Store Connect › Apps › your app › General › App Information › Age Ratings. The first time, press Set Up Age Ratings, later use Edit at the top of App Information. The Account Holder, Admin, App Manager and Marketing roles can fill it in.

The resulting rating shows on the same page, and systems before version 26 have a block called Operating Systems Earlier than Version 26.

Rating levels and what raises them

Rating	What the app may contain, examples from Apple's help
4+	nothing objectionable, though ads, chat, user-generated content and infrequent contests are fine
9+	loot boxes, health topics, infrequent profanity or cartoon violence
13+	social media, frequent contests, infrequent realistic violence
16+	unrestricted web access such as an in-app browser, frequent medical information
18+	real-money gambling, frequent simulated gambling, frequent realistic violence
Unrated	graphic sexual content and sadistic violence, which the App Store doesn't publish

Per App Store Connect Help and Apple's news of July 24, 2025, checked October 16, 2026.

The most common surprise is an in-app browser. Unrestricted access to any website inside the app means 16+, even if everything else suits children.

How to fill in the questionnaire

1. Open App Information and press Set Up Age Ratings.
2. Under In-App Controls and Capabilities, tick what the app has, such as chat, ads, social media or a browser. Press Next.
3. In each section, say how often each kind of content appears, counting everything the app can show, AI assistant and chatbot replies included.
4. Under Age Categories and Override, choose Not Applicable, Made for Kids for the Kids category, or Override to Higher Age Rating.
5. Check the calculated rating, add an Age Suitability URL if you have one and press Save.

Common mistakes

• Forgetting the in-app browser. If users can reach any website from the app, that's unrestricted web access and 16+. Answer by what users actually see.
• Leaving out AI. Apple explicitly asks you to count AI assistants and chatbots when judging how often sensitive content appears. An open chat with a model can show what the rest of the app never would.
• Picking Made for Kids in a hurry. It's open only to 4+ or 9+ and can't change once the app is approved. Every later update has to follow the Kids category rules.
• Skipping the new questions. Apple asked for answers by January 31, 2026, so update submissions wouldn't be interrupted. If an app's answers are old, update them before the next version.

What changed in 2025

On July 24, 2025 Apple updated the scale. 13+, 16+ and 18+ joined 4+ and 9+, every app was re-rated automatically, and the questionnaire gained required questions on in-app controls, capabilities, wellness and violence. Ratings can now be raised above the calculated one, and if the license agreement sets a higher minimum age, raising it is mandatory.

Appto fills in App Store Connect and runs the version's final checklist before submission, asking for a yes wherever it writes to App Store Connect. Then Appto submits the version to Apple from your account or shows you what to press, more on the App Store Connect page.