Guides/Device setup
Set up a standard account for your child on a Mac
Turn your child's Mac account into a standard (non-admin) user in System Settings, so they can't undo parental controls. Works on Ventura and later.
Updated Jul 17, 2026 · 5 min read
On Windows instead?
These steps are for macOS. If your child uses a Windows computer, see the Windows version of this guide.
Why a standard account matters
On a Mac, an administrator account can install and delete apps, remove browser extensions, change any system setting and manage other users. A standard account can use the Mac normally but needs an administrator's name and password for all of that.
If your child's account is an administrator, any parental control is one password-free click away from being undone. Making them a standard user is the foundation that protections like Vidward's tamper-proof setup are built on.
Before you start
You need at least one administrator account on the Mac that belongs to you, with a password your child does not know. macOS will not let you demote the only administrator.
If your child already has an account
On macOS Ventura and later:
- 1Sign in as yourself (an administrator).
- 2
Open the Apple menu, then System Settings, then Users & Groups.
- 3Click the info button next to your child's account.
- 4
Turn off "Allow this user to administer this computer" and enter your password when asked.
- 5Restart the Mac so the change fully applies.
If you are creating a fresh account
- 1
In System Settings, open Users & Groups and click Add User (enter your password when asked).
- 2Set New user to Standard.
- 3Fill in their name and a password, then click Create User.
Switch to your child's account
Creating the account does not log you into it, so finish by opening it at least once:
- 1Open the Apple menu and choose Log Out.
- 2
On the login screen, select your child's account and enter its password. The first login takes a moment while macOS creates their home folder.
- 3
Once you are in, set up the browser your child will use and link it to Vidward from this account. Rules protect the browser they actually browse in, so it matters that you do this here and not in your own account.
For quicker switching later, turn on fast user switching: in System Settings, open Control Center, find Fast User Switching and show it in the menu bar. You can then jump between accounts without logging out.
On older versions of macOS
Before Ventura, the same options live in System Preferences, then Users & Groups. Click the padlock to unlock the panel first, then untick "Allow user to administer this computer" or create the new user as Standard.
Check that it worked
- Users & Groups should list Standard under your child's account name.
- From their account, try to install any app. macOS should ask for an administrator name and password.
What this does not do
A standard account keeps your rules from being undone, but it does not change what YouTube shows. For that side, see how to block YouTube Shorts and how to block a YouTube channel, then lock the extension itself with the tamper-proof setup.