Pokémon age rating: what parents of kids 4–7 should know

• ✓Official rating above age 7
  ESRB: E10+ (Legends: Z-A)
• ✓Contact with other players or strangers
  GO: friends and gifts; TCG Live: Users Interact
• ✓Purchases with real money
  GO PokéCoins $0.99–$99.99; Z-A $59.99
• ✓Paid random items
  Booster packs; TCG Pocket: Contains Loot Boxes
• ✓Violence or scary content in rating descriptors
  ESRB (Z-A): Fantasy Violence
• ✓Government lawsuits, fines, or safety warnings
  2016 Pokémon GO bans and police warnings

Each flag is a yes-or-no fact from the sources on this page. The number is a count of flags, not a safety score. How we count.

Checked October 2026. Ratings and settings change; check the official source before you decide. What do these ratings mean?

Facts for parents, not medical or legal advice. If you're worried about your child, talk to your pediatrician.

What is Pokémon?

Short answer: A franchise of games, an anime, and trading cards whose creatures, called Pokémon, battle each other.

It was created in 1996 by Game Freak, Nintendo, and Creatures; The Pokémon Company runs the cards and apps. Parents of young kids usually meet four parts of it:

• The anime: Pokémon Horizons, with new leads Liko and Roy, on Netflix in the US since March 2024, plus older seasons.
• Switch games: the newest is Pokémon Legends: Z-A (October 16, 2025), $59.99.
• Pokémon GO: a free location-based phone game from 2016, now run by Scopely.
• Trading cards: physical packs and the TCG Live and TCG Pocket apps.

Common Sense Media calls the franchise "a giant marketing machine."

Pokémon age rating: what's in it

Short answer: The show is rated for ages 7 and up in the US; the newest game, for 10 and up.

• Anime, US: TV-Y7, per Rotten Tomatoes.
• Anime, UK (BBFC): PG; episode advice includes dangerous behavior and references to violence and threat.
• Anime, Germany (FSK): Pokémon seasons 6, for threat or distressing scenes.
• Legends: Z-A: ESRB E10+, Fantasy Violence; PEGI 7. The ESRB describes battles as "frenetic," with grunts of pain and large colorful explosions.
• Common Sense Media: TV 6+, citing lots of fantasy violence and mild name-calling like "twerp."

Pokémon GO age rating and kids' accounts

Short answer: Pokémon GO is 9+ on the App Store, Everyone on Google Play in the US, and PEGI 16 on Google Play in the UK; Common Sense Media lists 13+.

Scopely's parents page says a parent's consent is required under 13 in most regions; child accounts can't message others, need a parent's OK to add friends, and see no ads. PokéCoins cost $0.99 to $99.99. Common Sense Media cites location tracking and real-world safety.

In 2016, Iran banned the game, Indonesia barred police from playing on duty, and police in several countries warned about driving and trespassing. We found no fine against Niantic or Scopely over children's data.

Cards, packs, and paid random items

Booster packs hold random cards of different rarities; over 85 billion cards had been made as of March 2026, according to Wikipedia, which also warns about fake cards. We couldn't confirm an official age or price for packs.

The free Pokémon TCG Pocket app is 9+ on the App Store, which lists "Contains Loot Boxes," with Poké Gold from $0.99 to $99.99; Google Play lists In-Game Purchases (Includes Random Items). Pokémon TCG Live is rated E (everyone) by the ESRB, with Users Interact.

The habit kids may copy: one more pack

Each pack is a surprise. The card a child is hoping for might be in the next one, or the one after that.

Try tonight: two baskets

Draw two circles on paper. In one, list what's up to your child about Pokémon (sharing cards, taking turns, being kind when they lose). In the other, what isn't (which card comes in a pack). Say: "That one's not up to me. This one is." In our program, this is the lesson "Two Baskets": what's up to me, and what isn't.

What age is Pokémon for?

The anime is listed TV-Y7 in the US by Rotten Tomatoes and is PG in the UK. The newest Switch game, Legends: Z-A, is rated E10+ by the ESRB and 7 by PEGI.

Is Pokémon for kids?

Common Sense Media lists the TV show for ages 6 and up, noting lots of fantasy violence. Pokémon GO is 9+ on the App Store, and Common Sense Media lists it for 13 and up.

What is the Pokémon GO age rating?

It's 9+ on Apple's App Store, Everyone on Google Play in the US, and PEGI 16 on Google Play in the UK. Scopely requires a parent's consent for players under 13 in most regions.

Are Pokémon cards loot boxes?

Booster packs hold random cards. Apple labels the Pokémon TCG Pocket app "Contains Loot Boxes," and Google Play lists In-Game Purchases (Includes Random Items).

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