Epic Games Parental Controls


Epic wants to empower families with tools that enable them to make informed decisions about their digital experience. Our parental controls help you manage:

  • Your child’s access to social features and purchasing within games owned and operated by Epic, including Fortnite, Fall Guys, and Rocket League.

  • Which games your child can get in the Epic Games Store.


These controls can be set or modified via the Epic Account Portal and from within the Fortnite Parental Controls menu. There are also parental controls available on gaming platforms such as PlayStation®, Xbox, Nintendo Switch™, and mobile devices.  
 



Overview of Permissions


Social Permissions

These permissions help you to manage your child’s online social interactions. They can be applied to games owned and operated by Epic, including Fortnite, Rocket League, and Fall Guys. 

Require PIN to Add Epic Friends

This setting requires your Parental Controls PIN to be entered for your child to be able to send or accept Epic friend requests.

Setting On: Each time your child tries to send or accept an Epic Games friend request, you will need to enter your PIN. If a game or service doesn't yet support this setting, friend requests won't be permitted. This setting doesn’t affect platform-wide friends systems on gaming platforms such as PlayStation®, Steam, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch™.

Setting Off: Your child can send or accept friend requests themselves.

Why add friends?
Players can add other players to their friends list, allowing them to easily play together.


Epic Voice Chat Permission

This setting manages who your child can speak with using Epic voice chat. You can choose to allow your child to speak with: 

  • Everybody

    • Your child can voice chat with any player.

  • Friends & Teammates

    • Your child can voice chat with players in their Epic friends list and platform friends list, and players on their team.

  • Friends Only

    • Your child can voice chat only with players in their Epic friends list and platform friends list.

  • Nobody

    • Epic voice chat is disabled for your child.


If a selected setting is not yet supported by a game or service, a more restrictive setting is applied.


Epic Text Chat Permission

This setting manages who your child can speak with using Epic text chat. You can choose to allow your child to speak with: 

  • Everybody

    • Your child can text chat with any player.

  • Friends & Teammates

    • Your child can text chat with players in their Epic friends list and platform friends list, and players on their team.

  • Friends Only

    • Your child can text chat only with players in their Epic friends list and platform friends list.

  • Nobody

    • Epic text chat is disabled for your child.


Please note: Selecting "Nobody" still allows players to use messages from a list of standard in-game safe phrases (e.g. “Nice one!”), if supported. 

If a selected setting is not yet supported by a game or service, a more restrictive setting is applied.



Purchasing Permissions

Purchasing permissions help prevent unauthorized payments while using Epic Games payment.

Epic Games Payment

This setting requires your Parental Controls PIN to be entered to authorize purchases using Epic Games payment.

Setting On: Your Parental Controls PIN will be required to complete payments using Epic Games payment. This setting does not affect payments made on gaming platforms such as PlayStation®, Steam, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch™, nor does it affect purchases made with in-game currencies, such as V-Bucks in Fortnite.

Setting Off: Your child will be able to complete payments without a PIN.



Content & Access Permissions

These permissions enable you to:

  • Limit your child’s access to new games in the Epic Games Store based on their rating. 

  • To manage which non-Epic games outside the Epic Games Store your child can sign into using their Epic Account.


Rating System

This setting enables you to require your Parental Controls PIN to be entered before your child can get new games in the Epic Games Store that are rated above the age limit that you set. Rating systems vary by region. Some examples of age rating limits are: 

  • Everyone

  • Everyone 10+

  • Teen

  • Mature

  • Adults Only

  • Unrated 


For example, if you select Everyone 10+, your child would not be able to get new games rated Teen and download games like Fortnite without entering your Parental Controls PIN.


Sign in with Epic

This setting enables you to require parental consent the first time your child signs into each game or app that is not owned or operated by Epic, but that supports the "Sign in with Epic" account feature. 

Players can use "Sign in with Epic" to sign into third-party games or apps outside the Epic Games Store. This provides an easier way to access games and social features such as friends. When using "Sign in with Epic," a user may share their Epic name, connected gaming account names, and Epic friends list with the game or app to enable gameplay and social interaction. It’s important to review the privacy policies of other games and apps your child signs into, because they may have different information practices than Epic.

Setting On: You will be asked to approve each non-Epic game your child attempts to log into with their Epic Account outside of the Epic Games Store.

Setting Off: Your child will be able to log into any game that uses Sign in with Epic, including games outside of the Epic Games Store.


Mature Language

This setting enables you to filter out mature language such as profanity in text chat. The mature language setting applies to Fortnite only.

Setting On: Mature language in text chat will be filtered and replaced with heart symbols. 

Setting Off: Text chat won’t be filtered for mature language.



Playtime Reporting

Playtime reports enable you to track the amount of time played each week.   

Playtime Tracking Report

This setting enables you to receive weekly playtime tracking reports for Fortnite.

Setting On: We'll send a weekly playtime report to the parent or guardian associated with this account. If there isn't a parent or guardian email address, we'll send the playtime report to the registered account’s email address. 

Setting Off: You won't receive weekly playtime tracking reports.

Learn about playtime restrictions for your console/platform.
 



Frequently Asked Questions


How do I set up Parental Controls? 

Managing Epic Parental Controls requires you to set up a six-digit PIN. This can be done either through the Epic Account Portal or in the Fortnite Parental Controls menu.

To set up your Parental Controls PIN, please refer to the instructions outlined in the sections below. The email address associated with the Epic Account will be used to change or recover the Parental Controls PIN. This should be an email address that the parent controls.

How to set up Parental Controls through the Epic Account Portal

  • Open the Epic Games Launcher or the Epic Games Store website (opens in new window).

  • Sign in.

  • Under your account name, select ACCOUNT.

  • Choose PARENTAL CONTROLS from the left menu.

  • Set Up your six-digit Parental Controls PIN. This PIN will be required to change parental controls in the future, so make sure to set a PIN that is different from other PINs that you use and is easy for you to remember.

  • You’re all set! You are now able to select your parental control preferences. 


How to set up Parental Controls through Fortnite 

  • Launch Fortnite on your platform of choice.

  • Once in the Lobby, open the main menu.

  • Select PARENTAL CONTROLS.

  • You will be asked to confirm the email address linked to the account. If no email address is linked to the account, you'll be guided to a web browser so that you may create an Epic account using your email address.

  • Set up your six-digit Parental Controls PIN. This PIN will be required to change parental controls in the future, so make sure to set a PIN that is different from other PINs that you use and is easy for you to remember.

  • You’re all set! You are now able to select your parental control preferences. 


How can I change my Parental Controls PIN?

To change your PIN, go to the Epic Account Portal, log into your Epic Account, select Account, and click on Parental Controls from the left-hand menu.

You will first need to successfully log in with your old PIN.

  • Click on the Change PIN link found directly under the Parental Controls heading.

  • Enter your new PIN.

  • You will see a pop-up confirming your PIN has been successfully changed.


I forgot my Parental Controls PIN. How can I reset it?

Did you forget or enter the wrong PIN and need to reset it? Please follow the instructions below:

  • Confirm that you would like to reset your PIN.

  • You will receive an email to the address attached to the account. Please click on the link to reset your PIN.

  • Enter your new six-digit PIN.

  • You will see a pop-up confirming your PIN has been successfully changed.


Why are some parental controls permissions pre-set?

When using Epic’s Parental Controls, you may find that some of the options have been pre-set. These settings are based on the age of your child or on choices you have previously selected when you set up your child’s account. 


How can I change my Parental Controls Settings?

You can modify any Parental Controls setting by signing into the Epic Account Portal or going into the Fortnite Parental Controls menu and selecting Parental Controls. Enter your six-digit PIN at the prompt and then proceed to choose the desired on/off state for each setting. 


How can I access Parental Controls in the Epic Games App on Android?

You can set or modify Parental Controls in the Epic Games App on Android from within the Fortnite Parental Controls menu.
 



Parental Controls via Gaming Platforms

The parental controls within Epic Games only apply to the features in games owned and operated by Epic Games, including Fortnite, Rocket League, and Fall Guys, regardless of the platform they’re being played on. This means that if, for example, you turn off voice chat in Epic Games, your child may still be able to access voice chat for the game using communication methods outside of it, such as by using the chat system built into your console.

If you would like to restrict access to such features, you can do so at the platform level on PlayStation®, Xbox, Nintendo Switch™, Windows 10, iOS, and Google Play. This includes restricting access to purchases.

Links to information on each platform’s specific parental controls and how to set them up are provided below.

PlayStation

Learn more about PlayStation® 5 parental controls or PlayStation® 4 parental controls.

Xbox

Learn more about Xbox parental controls.

Nintendo Switch

Learn more about Nintendo Switch™ Parental Controls. 

Microsoft Windows

Learn more about Windows parental controls.

iOS

Please note that iOS purchasing restrictions do not apply to in-game Fortnite purchases made through Epic direct payment. To restrict purchases made through Epic direct payment, use the Epic Games parental controls detailed above. 

Learn more about iOS parental controls. 

Google Play

Please note that Google Play purchasing restrictions do not apply to in-game Fortnite purchases made through Epic direct payment. To restrict purchases made through Epic direct payment, use the Epic Games parental controls detailed above. 

Learn more about Google Play parental controls.