Television content rating systems are systems for evaluating the content and reporting the suitability of television programmes for minors. Many countries have their own television rating system and countries' rating processes vary by local priorities. Programmes are rated by the organisation that manages the system, the broadcaster, or the content producers.
A rating is usually set for each individual episode of a television series. The rating can change per episode, network, rerun, and country. As such, programme ratings are usually not meaningful unless when and where the rating is used is mentioned.
Comparison table A comparison of current television content rating systems, showing age on the horizontal axis. Note however that the specific criteria used in assigning a classification can vary widely from one country to another. Thus a colour code or age range cannot be directly compared from one country to another.
Key:
White – No restrictions: Suitable for all ages / Aimed at young audiences / Exempt / Not rated. Yellow – Advisory: Parental guidance is suggested for designated age range. Purple – Strong advisory: Not recommended for a younger audience but not restricted. Red – Restrictive: Parental accompaniment required for younger audiences. Black – Prohibitive: Exclusively for older audiences / Restricted to a specific audience / Banned (content is usually locked by a password).
CountryAge ratingOther 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Australia PG Brazil L 6 10 — AL A6 A10 Canada G PG Quebec G 8+ 13+ Colombia — Family Denmark A 7 11 15 — Ecuador A — B Finland S/T 7 12 — France Unrated — Germany Unrated — FSF 0 FSF 6 FSF 12 (day time) Ghana U 12+ 15+ 18+ PG Greece K — Hong Kong Unrated — Indonesia — SU — P–BO A–BO R–BO Mexico AA A — Morocco All audiences — Netherlands AL 6 9 — New Zealand G — PG North Macedonia [Green circle] [Yellow circle] — Norway A 6 9 — Philippines G — PG Poland BOW 7 12 — Portugal T 10AP 12AP — Romania Unrated AP — Russia 0+ 6+ 12+ 16+ 18+ — Singapore G — PG Slovakia [] 12 — 7 Slovenia Unrated — VS South Korea All 7 12 15 Exempt Spain 7 12 16 X TP Catalonia 7 10 13 18 — Thailand — General Turkey General 7+ Exempt United States () (-FV)() — TV-G () TV-PG Venezuela Todo usuario — VietnamP K T16 T18 T13 Country 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Other
Use Australia
Child-specific ratings
Symbol Abbreviation Name Description P Preschoolers Programmes deemed to specifically meet the educational needs and interests of preschool children who have not yet started school. P-rated content must be broadcast between 7 am and 4:30 pm, Monday to Friday. C Children Programmes deemed to specifically meet the educational needs and interests of children of school age who are under 14 years of age. C-rated content must be broadcast between 7 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. or between 4 p.m. and 8:30 p.m on weekdays or 7 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. on weekends and school holidays.
Standard ratings
Classifications are intended to be equivalent to the Australian Classification Board (ACB) classifications of the same name. They're usually presented with the same shape and sometimes colour as their ACB counterparts.
Symbol Abbreviation Name Description E Exempt Exempt from classification; Only very specific types of material can be exempt from classification and the material cannot contain anything that exceeds the constraints of the PG classification. These include news & current affairs, sports broadcasting, education videos and certain documentaries. G General General exhibition, suitable for all ages but not necessarily intended for children and may be more suitable for older children or adults. Content is VERY MILD in impact. G content may air at any time of day. PG Parental Guidance Recommended Parental guidance is recommended for young viewers. Content is MILD in impact; Elements in these programmes may require parental supervision for young children. PG content may air at any time of the day. M Mature Recommended for viewing only by persons aged 15 years or over. Content is MODERATE in impact; These programmes may require a mature perspective and are deemed not suitable for all children. M content may only be broadcast between 7:30 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. on any day, and additionally between 12:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. on school days. MA 15+ Mature Accompanied Not suitable for people under 15. Content is STRONG in impact; It is advised people under the age of 15 do not view these programs, due to the strength of the elements within. MA 15+ programming may only be broadcast between 8:30 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. on any given day. Consumer advice is mandatory. AV 15+ Mature Accompanied (Adult Violence) No longer used Not suitable for people under 15. The category deal with content or contain depictions that require a more mature perspective. Violence is STRONG in impact; this classification was the same as MA 15+, except the "AV" stands for "Adult Violence". AV 15+ content was broadcast between 9:30 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. on any day. Consumer advice is mandatory.
The AV 15+ classification was abolished after 30 November 2015. Strong impact violence is now incorporated into the MA 15+ classification. Adult "Pay Per View" only Symbol Abbreviation Name Description R 18+ Restricted R 18+ Not for anyone under 18; this is limited to Adult "Pay Per View" VC 196 and 197, access to these programmes is locked by a personal password. Content may include prolonged scenes of intense violence, sexual situations, coarse language and strong drug use. X 18+ Restricted X 18+ Contains material that is pornographic in nature. No one under 18 may legally rent, buy, possess, exhibit, hire, or view these programmes, on television, DVD, or otherwise. The exhibition or sale of these programmes to people under the age of 18 years is a criminal offence carrying a maximum fine of $5,500. R 18+ and X 18+ restricted classifications are not permitted for free-to-air broadcast in Australia. Many R 18+ movies on DVD/Blu-ray are often edited on Free TV/cable networks, to secure an MA 15+ classification or lower. Some movies that were classified R 18+ on DVD have since been aired on Australian TV with an MA 15+ classification.
Consumer advice Consumer advice is compulsory for all MA 15+ and one-off programmes, as well as very short series classified M or higher (such as feature films, miniseries and documentaries).TV Classifications: G, PG, M and MA15+ what do they mean and how are they used? ABC Help – Australian Broadcasting Corporation Help Centre When a programme carries consumer advice, appropriate abbreviations are displayed along with the classification symbol after each commercial break. In general, these abbreviations are as follows:
A – used for programmes with adult themes, medical procedures or crude humour. V – used for programmes depicting violence; L – used for programmes coarse language; S – used for programmes depicting simulated sex scenes and/or references; H – used for programmes containing horror or supernatural themes; D – used for programmes with drug references and/or use; N – used for programmes containing nudity;
For violence, coarse language and sex scenes, the intensity and/or frequency is mentioned in front of the consumer advice. These include: "mild", "stylised", "some", "frequent" or "strong". Example: "strong sex scenes".
Brazil
A television content rating system in Brazil was implemented following a consultation in 2006. Since then, the television networks themselves rate the shows, while the indicative rating () judges the content to guarantee that the rating is appropriate for that specific show. On broadcast networks, where the system is mandatory, the ratings are also translated in Brazilian Sign Language, and may also carry content descriptors. The icons must be shown at the start of each block of the show, and their respective promos.
The Brazilian content rating system utilises age-specific classifications (with the exception of L-rated programming), and generally follow the film ratings. However, unlike with films, television programmes can be rated by the broadcaster with the need to formally submit them for a rating, although the Department of Justice, Ratings, Titles and Qualification (DEJUS) reserves the right to revise the rating. Ratings assigned by the broadcaster mirror those assigned by DEJUS, but are preceded by the letter "A".
In 2025, a new rating was introduced, which set at an age threshold of 6-years-old.
Symbols Abbreviations Portuguese Name English Translation L Livre para todos os públicos Suitable for all public. AL6Não recomendado para menores de 6 anos Not suitable for viewers under 6 years of age.A6 10 Não recomendado para menores de 10 anos Not suitable for viewers under 10 years of age. A10 12 Não recomendado para menores de 12 anos Not suitable for viewers under 12 years of age. A12 14 Não recomendado para menores de 14 anos Not suitable for viewers under 14 years of age. A14 16 Não recomendado para menores de 16 anos Not suitable for viewers under 16 years of age A16 18 Não recomendado para menores de 18 anos Not suitable for viewers under 18 years of age (access to these programmes is locked by a personal password) A18
Canada
The Canadian TV Classification System was created in late 1997 for English-language programmes to use, which lined up with those of the American v-chip, both matching that system and allowing television manufacturers to use the same backbone firmware for both systems. The upper-right corner of symbols are shaped like the corner of a maple leaf, as is used in the national flag, and are rendered in black and white. The icons are intended to be shown once an hour lasting 15 seconds, although in the case of longer programmes that do not start on the hour, some broadcasters show the rating at the start and at the top of each subsequent clock hour, while others show the rating at the start and again precisely one hour later. However, there are some networks like Global that only display the television rating at the beginning of the show. The icons are displayed in the upper-left corner and the size is mandated to be a minimum of 52 scan lines or pixels tall, and must also fully cover an American ratings icon if burned-in or broadcast live by an American broadcaster.
Additionally, should a programme contain content potentially unsuitable for some viewers, such as violence, coarse language, or nudity, members of the self-regulating Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (which does not include the CBC, although it still uses such warnings) are required to air a disclaimer at the beginning of the programme and at the end of each commercial break, advising viewer discretion (such disclaimers are only required for the first hour if airing after 9:00 p.m.). This disclaimer is technically required even if the final commercial break comes immediately before the closing credits, and some (but not all) channels in fact observe this.For further details, refer to the Canadian Association of Broadcasters Code of Ethics and Voluntary Code Regarding Violence in Television Programming
Notably, the television rating given may depend on the level of cable and satellite, or if the programme is broadcast over-the-air. Also, television ratings are generally considered more restrictive than movie ratings.
English-language ratings
The Canadian rating system for English-language broadcasters (as well as third-language broadcasters, which broadcast in a language other than English or French) is as follows: Exempt – Programming that is exempt from ratings (such as news and sports programming) will not display an on-screen rating at all. C – Programming is intended for younger children under the age of 8 years. No offensive language or sexual content of any level allowed. Might contain occasional comedic, unrealistic depictions of violence.