Roblox introduces mandatory age-gated account tiers amid child safety lawsuits

This article was published on April 13, 2026 In short: Roblox is introducing three mandatory age-gated account tiers -Kids (5-8), Select (9-15), and standard (16+) – starting mid-May, segregating content and chat access by age group. The move follows lawsuits from eight US state attorneys general over child safety failures and builds on the facial age verification system mandated in January. Developers must now pay $5/month and verify their identity for content to appear in younger tiers. But the system’s credibility is under pressure: age-verified accounts appeared on eBay for $4 within days of the verification mandate, and Wired reported the facial scans could be bypassed by toddlers. Roblox is splitting its 85-million-plus daily active user base into three age-segregated tiers, Kids (5-8), Select (9-15), and standard (16+), starting mid-May, its most significant structural change since mandating facial age verification in January. The move follows lawsuits from at least eight US state attorneys general over child safety failures, but the efficacy of the age-checking technology underpinning the system remains deeply contested. The three account types align with the platform’s exi