AI Safety

AI companion apps and teens: many are 18+ only, yet most teens have tried one

7 min read · Updated November 5, 2026

Many AI companion apps, including Replika, Chai and Janitor AI, are 18+ only, and Common Sense Media recommends no one under 18 use them. Even so, most US teens have tried one: 72 percent in a 2025 Common Sense Media survey, with about half using them regularly. These are chatbots built to be a friend, confidant or partner, so the useful question is what role the app plays for your teen.

A homework helper answers a question and is done. An AI companion is built to keep the conversation going: it remembers you, asks how your day was and is always available. That design is what makes these apps appealing to teenagers, and it is why researchers and the companies themselves have treated them differently from general assistants since 2025. For the controls each app offers, see parental controls in every AI app.

What counts as an AI companion

An AI companion is a chatbot designed to act as a friend, confidant or partner: a character you can talk to whenever you want, which remembers you and keeps the conversation personal. That includes dedicated apps such as Character.AI, Replika and Nomi, but also character features inside bigger apps. A general assistant like ChatGPT can drift into the same role if a teen uses it that way, which is why some companies now build rules against it.

What the research says

Common Sense Media’s 2025 report Talk, Trust, and Trade-Offs is based on a nationally representative survey of 1,060 US teens aged 13 to 17, carried out by NORC at the University of Chicago in April and May 2025. Among all teens surveyed:

• 72 percent had used an AI companion at least once, and 52 percent were regular users, talking to one at least a few times a month. 13 percent used one daily.
• 33 percent used AI companions for social interaction and relationships, such as conversation practice, emotional support, role play, friendship or romance.
• 31 percent found conversations with AI companions as satisfying as, or more satisfying than, those with real-life friends. Most, 67 percent, found them less satisfying.
• Half said they distrust the information or advice AI companions give.

Among teens who had used AI companions, 33 percent had chosen to discuss something important or serious with an AI companion instead of a real person, 34 percent had felt uncomfortable with something one said or did, and 24 percent had shared personal information such as their real name or location. On the other side, 80 percent of users said they spend more time with real friends than with AI companions.

Pew Research Center’s February 2026 report, a survey of 1,458 US teens in fall 2025, asked about AI chatbots in general rather than companion apps. 16 percent of teens said they had used chatbots for casual conversation, and 12 percent to get emotional support or advice. Only 18 percent of parents said they would be comfortable with their teen getting emotional support or advice from a chatbot.

What experts recommend

Common Sense Media rates social AI companions an Unacceptable Risk for anyone under 18 and recommends that no one under 18 use them. The American Psychological Association published a health advisory on AI and adolescent wellbeing in June 2025, listed under Sources, which is worth reading if your teen uses these apps. In September 2025 the US Federal Trade Commission asked seven companies, including Character.AI’s developer, Meta, OpenAI, Snap and xAI, how they test and limit the effects of companion chatbots on children and teens. That is a study, not a finding against any of them.

What the big platforms now do for teens

• Character.AI removed open-ended chat with characters for users under 18, starting in the US in November 2025. Character.AI age limit covers what teens get instead.
• Meta paused teens’ access to its AI characters worldwide in January 2026 while it builds a new version. The Meta AI assistant itself remains available.
• OpenAI’s ChatGPT for Teens, launched in August 2026, includes rules that ChatGPT should not use romantic language, encourage emotional dependence, or imply it has feelings.
• Google says Gemini users under 18 get safeguards that cannot be turned off, including avoiding language that simulates intimacy or acts like a companion.
• Dedicated companion and romance apps such as Replika, Nomi and Kindroid say users must be 18 or over. AI boyfriend and girlfriend apps covers them app by app.

October 2026: Character.AI files for bankruptcy

In October 2026 Character.AI filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and began a court-supervised sale of its assets, with a $20 million offer from Disney as the opening bid. The app keeps running for now, but Character.AI says that if no buyer offers to keep it operating, the platform will be wound down. If your teen uses it, they can request a copy of their data in the app’s settings, which can take 3 to 4 weeks, or delete the account. Character.AI age limit and parental controls has the steps.

Signs it might be worth a conversation

Using a companion app is common and usually harmless: role play, story writing, practising a hard conversation. What deserves attention is the pattern, not the app.

• They talk about the AI the way they would about a person, or seem upset when it is unavailable.
• They have pulled back from friends or activities they used to enjoy.
• They are bringing serious problems to the AI instead of to anyone else.
• They are using an app meant for adults, or one with romantic or sexual role play.

If you are worried about your teen’s mood or wellbeing, talk to their doctor or a mental health professional. An app is never the whole picture, and a professional can help you see the rest of it. Signs your teen is too attached to an AI chatbot goes through each sign, and the AI companion apps list covers the apps one by one.

How to talk about it

How to talk to your teen about AI has more on keeping the conversation open.

Every guide on AI companion apps

• The apps: AI companion apps list, Character.AI safety for teens, is Replika safe for kids?, is Talkie safe for kids?, is Chai safe for kids?, Janitor AI and teens.
• Romance and attachment: AI boyfriend and girlfriend apps, if your teen has an AI girlfriend or boyfriend, signs your teen is too attached to an AI chatbot.
• What to do: how to talk to your teen about AI companions, teens using AI for mental health support.
• The law: New York’s AI chatbot law.

Where TeenCue fits

TeenCue is parental controls for AI that works in Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Brave on a computer. When your teen uses Character.AI or another supported AI website in the browser, TeenCue shows you what a chat was about as a category, a topic and a concern rating, so a pattern of leaning on AI for emotional support shows up as something worth a conversation. It never stores what your teen typed, it does not block apps, and your teen will know it is installed. It does not cover companion apps on phones yet; the TeenCue iPhone app is coming soon.