10 Of The Best Streaming Services For Kids

With the prominence of smartphones and the easy accessibility to the internet, it's natural for parents to be worried about what their children are consuming. There's a full guide for protecting kids on the internet, and an array of kid-friendly tablets worth every penny to ensure kids don't witness anything they shouldn't. However, there may also be concerns related to what type of content children can access on various streaming services. Parents may want Max for themselves, but probably the last thing they want is for their kids to check out an episode of "House of the Dragon."

Aside from practical matters of ensuring kids watch age-appropriate material, parents may simply want to set their kids down in front of the TV set so that they stay out of the way for a little bit. No parent wants to be working on a home renovation project only for their child to come up behind them to tell them they're bored. Fortunately, many streaming platforms have loads of content for youngsters.

Some apps also have adult-oriented fare, so parents will need to figure out how to block kids from accessing it. Other services solely focus on child development, and a number of them are entirely free, so your kids can always have their favorite shows at their fingertips. Plus, these services often let parents control how long kids spend watching TV so they don't waste an entire weekend in front of a tablet. 

Is Disney+ worth it? If you're a parent, the answer's a huge "Yes." Naturally, the platform contains numerous titles from throughout Disney's history, so children can sing along to "Moana" to their heart's content as often as they want. They can even watch it on a tablet with headphones so that parents don't have to listen along to "How Far I'll Go" over and over. There's a lot more than simply Disney princess movies, too — there are shows and movies for kids of all ages, from "Bluey" to "Gravity Falls." Older kids may even enjoy some of the Marvel and Star Wars series that have propagated on the platform. 

However, while many parents may assume anything affiliated with Disney is suitable for the whole family, that's no longer the case. Disney+ has begun putting more mature content on the service, including the foul-mouthed "Deadpool" movie. That one's definitely not like other Marvel movies on the service, so parents will need to go into a specific profile to limit what someone on that profile can watch. Parents can set the Content Rating of a given profile, one ideally designated just for their kids, so that they can only watch shows and movies appropriate for their age range. If you're a parent and want to watch something a little more mature, you can always set up your own separate profile with no restrictions.

For years, PBS has been a go-to destination for instilling valuable lessons in the next generation. From "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" to "Sesame Street," the public broadcaster was an integral part of many childhoods and continues to maintain that reputation to this day. Now, it's easier than ever for kids to see what PBS has to offer, thanks to the streaming service PBS Kids. It's entirely free no matter what device you watch it on, and there are no ads to try to influence what kids want their parents to buy for them.

PBS Kids maintains a robust catalog of programming, so there's plenty for kids to watch. However, that might make it feel overwhelming, so parents may need to help their children find precisely what they're looking for. As opposed to a lot of kids' shows where it's just a bunch of cartoons without any rhyme or reason, PBS has always specialized in educational content. Many of the shows found on PBS Kids can assist with a young person's cognitive development, so parents can rest easy.

The app doesn't stick just to shows, either. It also has a splendid game section, many of which are based on beloved PBS properties like "Arthur" and "Clifford the Big Red Dog." Many of the games are centered on education, so kids can play something to aid with their math or science knowledge. PBS has entered the 21st century in a big way, and this streaming platform is a must, especially for parents of particularly young children.

Young kids deserve to have many entertainment options at their disposal, and Toon Goggles definitely delivers on that. There's an assortment of animated programs on the service that are delivered entirely free with ads. In the event parents don't want their kids watching a bunch of commercials, there is an advanced paid tier at $4.99/month, placing this among the great streaming apps that cost less than $5/month.

There's a vast array of categories to choose from, including some based on recognizable properties like Transformers and "Roblox." There's even some live-action programming, including a show where kids can watch people do feats to get into Guinness World Records. Everything's suitable for children, which is the ethos CEO Stephen L. Hodge always wanted for the platform. When speaking with The Washington Times, Hodge explained, "The entire platform from the ground up is designed for children to access appropriate content in a safe and easy manner. There's no sex, there's no violence, there's no foul language — nothing like that is included in any of our content."

That even extends to older content that may not have aged well for modern sensibilities. Hodge continued, "The 'Tom and Jerry'-esque things that we grew up on, those will not be found on the service." Seeing as the service is free, parents can try it out for their kids at absolutely no cost. If the ads suddenly become a problem, it's a small investment to make for finding some great new series for your child. 

Netflix really kicked things off when it came to streaming, and even to this day, it remains a popular option for adults, especially those with children. The app has a full "Kids" section that only has content appropriate for youngsters. Parents can even restrict what's accessible even further by altering the rating settings, so whether there's a toddler or preteen in the household, they can only watch content suitable for their age. Everyone can have their own profile on Netflix, meaning one person's viewing habits won't impact what's suggested for someone else. If children going into an adult's profile makes parents wary, they can always set up a PIN to gate access to anything outside of their kid's profile.

Netflix has a rotating library of content, much of which comes from other networks and studios. Kids may be able to find shows that originated on Nickelodeon or other channels, so all of their favorites are right there in one place. However, Netflix is also dedicated to creating a vast library of original content, including plenty of movies and shows geared toward kids.

Another perk is that Netflix allows parents to monitor their kid's viewing history. That way in the event a child does see something they shouldn't, the parents will know and can handle it accordingly.

One concern parents may have about signing up for a given streaming service for children is how long it will remain viable. Many offerings cater to kids of specific ages, such as preschoolers. That may be fine for a year or two, but the strategy will need to change once those kids start wanting something a little more grown-up. Fortunately, Paramount+ provides plenty of longevity with its collection of shows from Nickelodeon. That means there are shows from Nick Jr. on the platform for the younger crowd, as well as shows for when kids grow up a bit. This includes classic Nickelodeon series from the 1990s like "Hey Arnold!" and "Rugrats." Even the adults may want to partake in some of those kids shows to relive a bit of their childhoods. 

The price for Paramount+ starts at $5.99/month with ads, and there's a yearly subscription at $59.99. Additionally, there are various tiers beyond that to get extra programming, such as Paramount+ with Showtime. Showtime won't have much for kids, but adults deserve to have easily accessible shows, too. Even without Showtime, Paramount+ is a great option for adults to watch shows like "Blue Bloods" without a cable subscription.

With that being said, there's plenty on Paramount+ that kids probably shouldn't see. Paramount+ walks parents through the steps to block specific content and then require a PIN to access it. At that point, adults only need to make sure their kids don't learn what the PIN is. 

Common Sense Media is an online movie and TV review site that specifically caters to parents, letting them know if a certain program is suitable for the whole family. That site has launched its own streaming service, Sensical, that only has content that's been approved to be viewed by children to help them with development. In fact, Sensical's website boasts several impressive caveats to the type of content it promotes, including how shows are certified by third parties. Additionally, parents can ensure their kids only see content that's appropriate for their age range, limiting them to various categories. 

The service provides several recognizable titles, including "Teletubbies" and "Maya the Bee." CEO of Common Sense Networks, Eric Berger, promoted the platform in a statement published by Variety: "[What] we're offering is 'healthy streaming' — it's age-appropriate and aligned to social, emotional, and cognitive levels. Based on methodology and expertise of Common Sense Media." Another major selling point of Sensical is how it insists it doesn't rely on algorithms to determine whether a show is appropriate for a given age range. Real-life people view the content to make a proper determination, so parents should be able to rest a little easier. 

Sensical is free with ads, and even those commercials are vetted to be appropriate for children to see. This includes ads for healthy snacks (instead of junk food) and educational games. 

Many parents believe kids should only watch television shows that expand their minds and help them grow at school. With Hopster, that philosophy is front and center, with programming specifically designed to help kids gain a greater appreciation of learning. There are various payment tiers, but that also means there are no ads for children to begrudgingly watch. Many of the series are designed to aid kids in getting a better handle on math or even learning greater social and emotional maturity. 

Parents will probably have heard of some shows, like "Pingu." Others are specific to Hopster, such as "Two Minute Tales from Shakespeare," which provides kids with an introductory lesson in the works of William Shakespeare, including a take on "Hamlet" called "The Indecisive Prince." Don't worry; the episodes don't delve into the darker, more mature elements of these stories. 

Hopster contains other mediums to help children grow in other ways, too. There are games, including "Grow," where kids can take care of various seeds, providing them with water and sunshine to help them develop. There's also a music section featuring lullabies and nursery rhymes to provide soothing relaxation for kids who may feel overstimulated. To top it all off, parents can download content on Hopster to a tablet, so if the family's going on a long road trip, kids can bring their favorite shows with them and stay entertained in the back seat. 

People often say, "You get what you pay for." Therefore, some parents may look at a free streaming service and think that while it's nice they don't have to pay anything, they also probably aren't getting anything all that interesting. That doesn't appear to be the case for HappyKids, which has many popular shows adults will have definitely heard of. There are numerous shows based on classic characters like "Wallace and Gromit" and "Garfield." 

Plus, the platform got a major boost in 2023 when it acquired a collection of episodes from "The Wiggles". Additionally, Future Today, the company that oversees HappyKids, launched a Wiggles app that's completely dedicated to the beloved kid-friendly band. 2023 also saw the app acquire the "Total Drama" franchise, which launched in the 2000s on Cartoon Network with "Total Drama Island." Various spinoffs soon followed, but it's important to remember this show is more appropriate for slightly older kids due to the occasional gross humor. 

With HappyKids, parents may need to monitor their kids' viewing habits more closely to ensure they stick with shows and movies that are good for their ages. However, given the sheer volume of the app's library and the fact that it's entirely free, it makes for an enticing option to download. 

Some kids' streaming apps might say they support child development, but Kidoodle walks the walk in addition to talking the talk. The platform offers a teachers' corner where educators can acquire free lesson plans to help spice up activities during the school day. Even after school, children may not be able to get enough of Kidoodle, which boasts thousands of episodes of notable TV shows like "SpongeBob SquarePants" and even some "Pokémon" titles. This streaming service has a free tier that comes with ads, but you and your kids can avoid any pesky commercials with the premium tier, which costs $4.99/month. 

While the idea of having a bunch of streaming services seems like a relatively new concept, Kidoodle has been around for a while and has a proven track record. In fact, in January 2024, the service celebrated a decade in business, and it seems to have no plans to slow down any time soon. The company is also dedicated to helping kids outside of giving them TV shows to watch, such as providing support for the Make-a-Wish program. Kidoodle co-founder Neil Gruninger spoke with Los Angeles Magazine about expanding the scope of the brand: "Whether through helping to grant wishes or supporting families with a year of groceries we look to reflect our core values in ways beyond the screen."

Even if parents wind up paying for a more premium tier, they can feel good knowing Kidoodle dedicates itself to worthwhile causes. New content is uploaded all the time, so for kids, there's always something novel to discover.

Many kids may not feel the need to venture to other streaming services when YouTube is readily accessible. However, there's a dark side to YouTube. It's easy for kids to begin watching something suitable for their age range, and get recommended a video they definitely shouldn't see. It's easier than ever for children to fall down rabbit holes, especially with so many cartoons that look innocent from a thumbnail but contain adult material. Safe Vision isn't a streaming platform per se, but it's an app parents should absolutely become aware of to ensure their kids have safe, pleasant experiences on YouTube. 

Real people monitor content to determine whether it's appropriate for kids to see. However, there's also an option for parents to review content personally. It's all in the name of keeping kids safe, so parents can download the Safe Vision app to whatever devices their kids use with the peace of mind that they're not going to stumble on anything they shouldn't. Many parents may have begun to try to keep their children off YouTube altogether, but that's a tall order in this day and age. Safe Vision provides a solid middle ground, letting kids check out their favorite channels and preventing them from wandering elsewhere. Additionally, Safe Vision allows parents to install daily time limits. 

Between Safe Vision and an assortment of other apps, there are plenty of ways for kids to stay entertained without parents worrying about what they watch. Of course, it's also up to the parents to ensure their kids develop good habits around technology use (and maybe spend some time outside playing once in a while), but one battle at a time.