Every story on OutaStory carries a minimum reader age. It decides who the
story is shown to, and it is applied automatically — there is nothing to
switch on.
The five bands
- 0 (all ages) — suitable for everyone, including the youngest
readers. Gentle stories, nothing frightening, nothing that needs
explaining afterwards. - 6 — simple adventure with a little tension and mild peril, the kind
of thing an early reader can handle on their own. - 12 — real conflict, darker moments, characters in genuine trouble.
Still nothing graphic. - 16 — strong themes, violence, stronger language, and references to
sexuality handled without explicit description. - 18 — explicit content of one kind or another. Adults only.
Who sets the rating
Three things shape it:
- The author, at publish time. They choose the band they believe
their story belongs in. - Moderation, which checks the rating against the content. A story
rated below what it actually contains can be corrected. - The category, which can cap the rating. A children's category
will not accept an adult band — so a story filed there cannot be
published at 18 whatever the author picks.
What you see as a reader
- Not signed in — you see only content rated 12 and below. That
is the ceiling for every visitor, on every device. - Signed in — you see the bands that match the age worked out from
the birthday on your profile. Fill it in accurately and the
catalogue fits you.
There is no filter to switch on
This is the part people most often go looking for, so it is worth saying
plainly: there is no reader-facing age filter anywhere in OutaStory.
No slider, no toggle, no per-account setting.
The filtering happens on the server, before the list of stories ever
reaches your device. That has two consequences, and both are deliberate:
- It cannot be turned off — not by a reader, and not by anyone using
a reader's account. - There is nothing for a parent to configure here. The protection is
already on and cannot be switched off by the person using the account.
If a story looks wrongly rated
Ratings are set by people, and people misjudge. If you meet a story whose
content sits well above its band, use Report on the story — that is
the route straight to our moderators, who can correct the rating or take
the story down. See
Reporting content for how the report
dialog works.
For the wider picture of how OutaStory handles younger readers, see
Parental controls overview.