Here’s What Every Parent Needs To Know About Roblox

Gamers are a loyal bunch. Some are devoted to Fortnite. Some love Minecraft. And around the world, some several million are majorly into Roblox. Offering both intense multiplayer gaming and a sophisticated game-building tool, Roblox delivers variety, creativity, competition, and socializing—much of it for free. You can even make money on Roblox.

Roblox has the potential to be a learning tool similar to Minecraft, but it has its downsides. Because all of its content is user-generated, kids can be exposed to a range of material. Much of it is age-appropriate for tweens and teens. Some of it is just annoying, such as advertising and incessant demands to buy “Robux,” Roblox‘s in-game currency. And a sliver of it is very concerning, such as predatory behavior and sexually explicit user forums. However, with careful attention to red flags, privacy settings, and other safety precautions, kids can have a rich and thrilling experience playing Roblox. But your understanding of how it works, and how your kids can use it safely, is key. Learn more about the pros and cons of this immersive, creative, and powerful multiplayer gaming service.

What is Roblox?
Roblox is an online gaming platform where you can play games designed by other users and create and share your own games using Roblox‘s proprietary game-developing tool. Once you sign up, you can play an infinite number of games, build and share creations, and chat with other users—all for free. If your kids are serious about Roblox, though, they’ll need Robux, and they’ll probably want to subscribe to the Builders Club, which provides additional features for a membership fee.

How does Roblox work?
Roblox offers two equally compelling modes: playing games and creating them. After registering, you have unrestricted access to both modes (however, most kids are just there to play). You can choose from a never-ending and continually evolving supply of creative and fun challenges in various categories, from shooters to murder mysteries to sports to fighting games. (Frustratingly, you can’t sort games by genre, so finding ones you like is often a process of trial and error.)

Or you can download Roblox Studio and work on building your own games. Gameplay can be uneven, but good creators tend to rise to the top of the feed. Some amateur developers use Robloxas a kind of portfolio to showcase their work for potential employers. For kids who are interested in creating their own games, Roblox offers a lot of instructions, a wiki, and a helpful player community. Creators can monetize their games to earn revenue, both by charging people to play their games and by offering pay-as-you-go in-game purchases—usually needed to get ahead in the game.

What age is Roblox for?
Roblox doesn’t specify a minimum age. Users of any age can create and join groups, chat, and interact with others. The company’s commitment to the theory of “constructivism,” which promotes the educational benefits of curiosity, designing, and building, is— in theory—appropriate for anyone who can navigate through a game. In practice, though, such an open approach can pose some risks to kids, especially younger ones. And though Roblox has some safety precautions in place, it remains a target of people with less-than-good intentions. Still, because of the learning potential Roblox offers, Common Sense Media rates it OK for users age 10+. We urge parents to help kids protect themselves by enabling privacy settings, teaching them how to recognize the methods that online predators use to win kids’ trust and exploit them, and showing kids how to report bad behavior and block users.

What are Robux?
Robux are Roblox‘s in-game currency. You use them for a range of things, including special outfits or animations for your avatar, unique abilities in games, weapons, and other objects. There are different ways to get Robux: You can buy them, get them as part of your subscription, trade for them, or have someone donate some to you. You can also earn them by charging Roblox users to play games you’ve created and by charging for items in your games.

How much does Roblox cost?
Roblox uses a freemium/premium model. You can do a lot on Roblox for free, including play tons of games and use the Roblox Studio game builder. But doing anything beyond the basics, such as animating your avatar or buying and trading weapons, requires Robux. The company offers a range of subscription models in its Builders Club membership program: The “Classic” costs $5.95 per month or $57.95 annually; “Turbo” is $11.95 per month or $85.95 annually; and “Outrageous” is the priciest at $19.95 per month or $129.95 annually. You get a certain number of Robux daily depending on your subscription level.

Are there parental controls for Roblox?
Roblox offers account controls that let parents restrict how kids can interact on the site. You can control whether kids can be contacted, who can message them, and who can chat with them, and do a few other things in the contact settings. To enable these settings, you add your email address to your kid’s account and create a PIN that prevents kids from changing the settings back. The account controls are optional; kids of any age can create an account on Roblox with no parental restrictions. On accounts of kids under 13, Roblox automatically defaults to stricter settings, but a kid could change these if there’s no parent PIN.

Can you make real money from Roblox?
Yes, you can make real money on Roblox. In fact, dedicated creators can earn major bucks. Robloxoffers a few different revenue-generating models, including charging others for access to games you create, charging incremental fees within your game, and trading rare items that other players are willing to pay for. To earn money, you have to be over 13, a member of the Outrageous Builders Club, and have at least 100,000 Robux in your account. Then you can trade the Robux in to the company for real money. 100,000 Robux is worth $350.

Is there chat on Roblox, and is it safe?
Roblox encourages users to interact through its Chat & Party function. All chat is filtered, which means inappropriate language is replaced by hashtag symbols. Chatting in accounts of kids under 13 is more heavily filtered. Roblox also employs human monitors who keep an eye out for inappropriate language and content.

What are “ODers” in Roblox?

“OD” stands for “online dater.” These are folks who join social networks, including gaming sites like Roblox, to find romantic partners. Games on Roblox can even be designed expressly for ODers. Roblox doesn’t explicitly forbid ODers, and ODers aren’t necessarily preying on kids. (They may be solely looking for other ODers.) Roblox‘s monitors look out for inappropriate conversations and content. And its community rules prohibit chat that’s sexual in nature. If your kid wants to use Roblox, it’s critical that you review online safety, such as how to identify potential predators, how to report and block users, and how to spot “grooming” behavior, which predators use to get their victims to trust them.

How do kids find out about Roblox?
If your kid likes this game, he or she can find lots of Roblox-related videos on popular gaming platforms such as Twitch, Miniclip, and YouTube Gaming. There are Let’s Plays — where gamers livestream themselves playing Roblox games — as well as how-tos, news, and analysis by Roblox fanatics. Some of these videos have off-color language, so check out our YouTube guide for tips on keeping kids from overexposure to age-inappropriate content.

Are sexual predators a big problem on Roblox?
There are predators on Roblox, as there are on many extremely popular social networks. Predators take advantage of Roblox‘s easily accessible chat to target their victims. (All you have to do is sign up for Roblox to start chatting, and the Chat & Party window is featured on nearly every page of the site.) Roblox uses human monitors as well as technology to weed out the bad guys, but they still crop up occasionally. To avoid being contacted by a predator, and to play as safely as possible, kids should enable the most restrictive contact settings (found on the Privacy Settings page). You can prevent anyone from contacting you by turning off chat entirely or limiting interactions to only friends. You should coach your kids to not chat with people they don’t know (unless they can verify they’re actually a friend, or a friend of a friend, in real life) and to not accept private messages (PMs) from anyone they don’t know. Make sure they know never to give away personal information, trust their instincts if someone makes them uncomfortable, and never move a conversation to a different platform (a telltale predator red flag).