Watchly Features

Build a YouTube Library You Actually Trust

Hand-pick every video your kid can watch, or start with pre-made libraries we've already vetted. No algorithmic surprises, ever.

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✓ Designed for parent’s sanity and child’s safety✓ Zero ads✓ No algorithm✓ Nothing to install✓ Cancel anytime… but you won’t want to

Why parents rely on this

YouTube's recommendation engine is a slot machine. Even when you start on a safe channel, you're two clicks from something you'd never approve. Watchly solves that by flipping the default: nothing plays unless you've explicitly added it to a library.

Start from scratch or import a pre-made library our team has already screened. Search YouTube from your dashboard, pull in the exact videos you want, and organize them by theme or per child.

Libraries scale with your family. Bedtime stories for the toddler, science experiments for the older kid, a Saturday morning cartoon mix for weekends, each library is independent and reassignable anytime.

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What's included

Whitelist-Only Libraries

Kids only watch what you add. No algorithmic surprises, no autoplay into the unknown, the library is the entire universe.

Predefined Starter Libraries

One-click curated collections, educational, music, crafts, from Watchly's vetted catalog. Instant day-one experience.

YouTube Search & Import

Search YouTube from your dashboard and import videos directly. No copy-pasting URLs, no leaving the app.

Multiple Libraries per Child

Organize by theme, bedtime, learning, Saturday morning, and assign per kid. Each library stays purpose-built.

Playlists Within Libraries

Group related videos into binge-worthy themed playlists. Makes long libraries browsable for young kids.

Shareable Library Previews

Send a preview link so grandparents or a co-parent can review every video before it goes live. No account required on their end.

Video Request Flow

Kids can request new videos for your approval. They feel heard; you keep the gate.

See it in the app

Tap any screen to try the real thing.

Profiles

One Profile Per Kid, One Pause Button

Each child gets their own profile, with their own library and their own limits. From your phone you can see what any of them is watching right now, and pause it while it is playing.

  • ✓A separate profile for each child
  • ✓See what each child is watching right now
  • ✓Pause any child’s screen instantly
  • ✓A PIN keeps them in their own profile
See profiles and PINs
AI Safety Review

Every Video Rated Before They Watch

Even creators you trust post things you would not approve of. Subtle objectification, harassment, bullying: those are three of the 21 themes the Watchly AI checks every video for.

  • ✓Safe, Caution or Unsafe on every video
  • ✓21 named themes, checked one by one
  • ✓Read from what is actually said in the video
  • ✓You still decide what goes in the library
See all 21 themes

How it works

1

Pick or build a library

Start from a predefined collection or create an empty library and add videos yourself.

2

Assign it to a child

Link any library to any child profile. One library per kid, many libraries per kid, it's up to you.

3

Expand as you go

Approve kid requests, import new finds from YouTube, or swap in a new pre-made library anytime.

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27%

of YouTube videos watched by kids 8 and under are made for older audiences.

Common Sense Media & Michigan Medicine, 2020

No algorithm

No feed, no recommendation rail, no autoplay. Inside Watchly there’s nowhere else to go — just the library you built.

Zero ads

No pre-roll, no mid-roll, no banners, no sponsored anything. The video you approved plays — and nothing else.

Designed for parent’s sanity and child’s safety

Part of that: we never sell or rent your data, or your children’s. It’s in our privacy policy in capital letters.

Questions parents ask about this

How many videos can one library hold?
There's no hard cap. Most parents end up around 40-150 videos per library, enough variety to keep a kid engaged for weeks, small enough that you actually remember what's in there.
What are pre-made libraries, and who picks the videos?
Pre-made libraries are themed collections our team builds and screens, things like early-reader read-alouds, science experiments, or quiet-time music. Every video is hand-added, same as if you did it yourself. You can use one as-is or copy it and edit.
Can my kid add videos themselves?
Not directly. Kids can request a video from inside the player, and the request lands in your dashboard for approval. They feel heard, you stay the gatekeeper, nothing shows up in their library without your tap.
What if I want to share a library with my co-parent or grandparent?
Every library has a shareable preview link. Send it, they see every video in the library without needing a Watchly account. Useful for catching a video you'd want to pull before a grandparent presses play.
Can I move a video from one kid's library to another?
Yes. Reassign videos or whole libraries between kids in two taps. Good for the hand-me-down library moment, when something the 9-year-old outgrew is perfect for the 5-year-old.

Problems this feature solves

The YouTube rabbit holeOne click into the sidebar and your six-year-old is somewhere you would never have picked.Autoplay turns one video into ninety minutesYou said one episode. YouTube cued up twelve. Closed library, no infinite queue.The search bar is a trapSpell anything wrong and the results page can change your afternoon. The library is the surface, no search needed.Curating safer than they can watchYou spend more time vetting than they spend viewing. Predefined libraries collapse hours of work.The want-want-want drumbeatNothing they own is enough. Closed library cuts the influencer feed at the source.Sharing a curated list with other parentsYou did the work. There is somewhere to send it now.The stir-glance reflex while cookingThe library is your selection. You can stir without checking the screen.Wanting to say yes to screensYou can hand over the iPad without dread when the surface is yours.

Keep exploring

AI Content FilterLayer AI scoring on top of your library as an extra safety net.Kid Profiles with PINGive each kid their own library assignments, locked behind a PIN.YouTube Parental ControlsSet daily limits and schedules that apply to every library you build.Whitelist YouTube for KidsThe whitelist approach explained, and why it's the only model that actually works.Browse Safety-Reviewed CreatorsSee real, video-by-video safety reviews for popular YouTube creators — age ratings, content warnings, and verdicts.

Start your 14-day free trial

No charge until your trial ends. Set up your first child profile in under five minutes.

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