What Character.AI's own terms, help center and privacy policy say about teen accounts and your chats.
Whether Character AI is safe depends on how old you are, because Character AI sorts users into two experiences based on an age check. In the guides we publish here at Chalkbox, we quote what Character AI's own terms and help center say, with dates, so you can check them. Character AI's Terms of Service (last updated August 27, 2025) allow sign-ups from age 13, or 16 for citizens and residents of the European Economic Area (EEA) and the United Kingdom (UK). Character AI's help center says users verified as under 18 are placed in reading mode, where chat with characters is not available, though they keep past chats and creation tools. Character AI's privacy policy also lists chats among the data it collects and says it uses data to train its AI models. For a teenager, Character AI is not a private space.
Character AI set up this split in stages. On October 29, 2025, Character AI published a blog post titled Taking Bold Steps to Keep Teen Users Safe on Character.AI, stating it would remove open-ended chat for users under 18. An update published in a November 21, 2025 blog post titled An Update On Changes to Our Under-18 Experience said age assurance had begun in the US. A follow-up post on September 3, 2026, titled Continuing To Build Upon Our Safety Priorities, said open-ended chat with characters, removed for users under 18, "remains so today."
| Age Group | Account Eligibility | Available Features | Chat Access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 13 (Under 16 in EEA and UK) | Not authorized to sign up | None | None |
| Ages 13 to 17 (Ages 16 to 17 in EEA and UK) | Authorized to sign up | Reading mode, character creation, past chat archives | No live chat with characters |
| Ages 18 and older | Authorized to sign up | Full platform features | Full open-ended chat |
For teens ages 13 to 17, the resulting setup is called reading mode. According to a Character AI support guide on What is Reading Mode, users under 18 can browse characters, view past saved chats, create scenes, and view community feeds. They cannot type new messages to AI personas. Full chat remains restricted to users verified as 18 or older.
Character AI requires every account holder to complete an age check before granting access to live chat features. The support documentation on What is Age Assurance explains that users confirmed as 18 or older receive full chat, while anyone determined to be under 18 enters reading mode. This verification process relies on three sequential steps:
Character AI's Age Assurance FAQ says Character AI "wouldn't collect or have access to that ID." Persona handles the intake directly. Furthermore, Character AI's support page on What happens to my data during age assurance states that "Any biometric data or ID submitted is automatically and permanently deleted within 7 days." You can also start the check yourself from Settings, then Advanced, then Verify Age, on mobile or web, as outlined in How do I verify my age.
The Age Assurance FAQ notes one exception. If Character AI introduces virtual currency or related features later on, it may create limited exceptions where it coordinates with Persona to access an identification record, subject to user consent.
Character AI's privacy policy lists data you give it and data it collects automatically. According to the Character AI Privacy Policy, effective July 1, 2026, Character AI collects identifiers including names, email addresses, phone numbers, and dates of birth. It also stores uploaded images, video files, voice recordings from audio tools, payment details, and text interactions. Character AI also collects device data, your Internet Protocol (IP) address and IDs such as "User ID, Chat ID, Session ID" automatically, including through cookies and trackers used by "advertising and analytics providers."
Yes, Character AI can see your chats. Its Terms of Service say Character AI "may access, review, screen, edit, modify and delete your content at any time and for any reason." The privacy policy also says Character AI discloses information "to employees, consultants, service providers, and other vendors," including for "content moderation."
Character AI also uses conversations to develop its underlying software. The privacy policy confirms that chat logs help train artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning models. Under an official support guide on How do I manage/update my model training settings, only users located in the EEA or the UK can opt out of model training by turning off the setting labeled Improve the Model for Everyone. Users in the United States and other regions do not receive this opt-out toggle. Character AI's privacy policy itself asks, "please do not include any sensitive personal information in your interactions."
Companion chatbots like Character AI work differently from study tools. A study tool makes outlines or flashcards, while a companion chatbot is built to feel warm and social. If you want software strictly for academic tasks, our guide to AI study tools for students covers apps built for studying rather than roleplay.
Companion chatbots are built to maintain ongoing engagement. Fictional characters respond instantly, offer validation, and adapt their tone to your preferences. Over time, spending hours each day chatting with characters can crowd out homework, sleep, and face-to-face friendships. If you notice yourself turning to an online character instead of speaking with family or friends when you feel stressed, take a step back from the screen.
Characters on a screen do not have real feelings, independent thoughts, or real-world accountability. When you encounter complex emotional challenges, a character cannot replace support from a trusted friend, family member, school counselor, or healthcare professional.
On March 25, 2025, Character AI introduced supervision tools in an announcement titled Introducing Parental Insights: Enhanced Safety for Teens. Character AI describes the current version in its Parental Insights FAQ. To turn on Parental Insights, the teen invites a trusted adult from Settings, under "Parental insights." Once connected through Family Connect, parents see "Only the teen's screentime" and get "a weekly digest." Adult verification for the feature runs through an identity vendor named k-ID, as documented in Character AI's Parental Insights Troubleshooting guide.
Parental Insights has several functional limits that families must understand before relying on it:
The Common Sense Media AI Risk Assessment for Character AI issued an overall rating of Unacceptable Risk, with the recommendation that Character AI "should not be used by anyone under age 18." That assessment was updated on April 10, 2025, which predates Character AI's October 2025 decision to remove open-ended chat for under-18 users.
When discussing software in class, teachers can consult our guides on how to teach AI literacy and AI literacy tools for students to help students examine data safety and privacy terms. School leaders establishing district guidelines can review our resource on writing an AI policy for schools. To help students sort study aids from social apps, see our guides on the pros and cons of AI in education and when using AI is considered cheating.
Character AI's terms do not allow anyone under 13 to sign up, and users verified as under 18 cannot chat with characters. If you are an older student using Character AI's creative tools, treat everything you type as text that Character AI may review and use to train its models. Never upload identifying records, real names, phone numbers, or private thoughts to Character AI.
If you already use Character AI, open your account settings today and check what personal details you have added. The privacy policy says "You may delete your account through your account profile page."
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Character AI's Terms of Service (last updated August 27, 2025) set the minimum age at 13, or 16 for citizens and residents of the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom. Character AI's help center says users verified as under 18 cannot chat with characters.
Outside the EEA and UK, a 13-year-old can sign up, but Character AI's help center says users verified as under 18 get reading mode with no chat. Character AI collects user data and can use chat content to train its AI models, and only users in the EEA or UK can opt out of that.
Yes. Character AI's Terms of Service state that Character AI may access, review, screen, edit, modify, and delete your content at any time and for any reason. Its Privacy Policy also says it discloses information to employees and vendors, including for content moderation.
Character AI says it would not collect or have access to your ID. Persona asks for one only as a final step if a selfie cannot confirm you are 18 or older. Character AI says any biometric data or ID submitted is automatically and permanently deleted within 7 days.
Yes, through a feature called Parental Insights. A teen sends the invite from their account settings. The parent then sees only the teen's screen time and a weekly digest, and cannot see messages or set screen time limits.