MESSAGING
Parental Controls for Messenger
Facebook's messaging app for chats and calls, covered by the same Teen Account protections and supervision as Facebook.
THE 30-SECOND OVERVIEW
What You Need to Know About Messenger
Messenger is the chat app tied to Facebook, used for one-to-one and group messages plus voice and video calls. Teens aged 13 to 17 use it inside a Teen Account, with the same protective defaults as Facebook.
Because Messenger and Facebook share one account and one Family Centre, setting up supervision on Facebook already covers Messenger. The main worry here is contact, so who can reach your teen matters most, and message content stays private even under supervision.
SET-UP GUIDANCE
👉 Do This First
Parental controls can feel overwhelming at the start. We recommend setting up these foundations first before anything else.
Set Up Supervision in the Meta Family Centre
What it does: A parent can set daily limit and sleep mode, approve or deny requests to make settings less protective, and see their teen's Facebook friends, Messenger contacts and who they have blocked. One invite covers Facebook, Messenger and Instagram. Message content stays private.
Learn more: https://familycenter.meta.com/supervision
🛠️ Customise For Your Family
Fine tune what your child can do in the app with these settings. We recommend reviewing these settings periodically and adjusting them to match your child's growth.
Set Who Can Message Your Teen (Privacy & Safety Settings)
What it does: Teen Accounts are set to protective message delivery, so only Facebook friends and existing connections can chat with your teen. Keep this strict - under 16s need approval to change it.
Learn more: https://www.facebook.com/help/messenger-app/1009085707755605?helpref=faq_content
Find Out How to Block and Report
What it does: Make sure your teen knows how to block and report a contact, which stops future messages and calls. With supervision on, you can see who they have blocked.
Learn more: https://www.facebook.com/help/messenger-app/1245152242249842
⚠️ What These Controls Won't Do
Messages stay private. Supervision never shows chat content, so a harmful conversation with a known contact will not appear in your dashboard.
Group chats can pull in strangers. A teen can be added to a group where they do not know everyone, and calls and disappearing content can happen inside chats.
Supervision is not available in all regions. Note that this feature is not currently available everywhere. Check the official link here for the latest updates: https://www.facebook.com/help/messenger-app/208146828679749/?helpref=uf_share
Things to Watch Out For:Â
Messages or calls from people your teen doesn’t know in real life.
Pressure to move to another app, or to keep a chat secret.
Being added to group chats with unknown members.
Clearing chats, or reluctance to show who they talk to.
LAST UPDATED: JULY 2026
Settings and features change often, so please visit the app's official sources for the latest updates. The links provided are external sources, please note that we do not assume responsibility for the content found on these external links.