TikTok to pay Alabama $100m and impose teen usage limits in landmark settlement

TikTok has agreed to settle with the state of Alabama, sidestepping a trial that was due to begin on Monday over allegations the company misled parents about the effectiveness of tools meant to protect children from harmful content. Alabama's attorney general described it as the first settlement of its kind reached with a US state amid a broader wave of litigation over social media's impact on teenage wellbeing.

The agreement closely follows safety commitments Meta previously made in similar settlements. It introduces a two-hour daily time limit for teenage users, restricts app access between midnight and 6am, suspends notifications during school hours, strengthens age verification, bans beauty filters for teens, and offers young users a non-personalised content feed. TikTok will pay Alabama $100m, with the total potentially rising to $300m if 40 additional state attorneys general sign comparable agreements within a set timeframe.

Attorney general Steve Marshall called the settlement a great outcome for the state's parents, saying it gives them confidence that real safeguards are now in place against social media addiction risks for their children.

Part of a wider legal wave

Alabama originally filed suit against TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance in April 2025, later narrowing its claims to allegations under the state's deceptive trade practices law concerning features such as Restricted Mode and Kids Mode. More than a dozen other states, including California and New York, still have active lawsuits against TikTok. The settlement follows Meta's $18bn deal in August over similar addiction claims involving Instagram and Facebook, as well as separate March jury verdicts ordering Meta to pay $375m in New Mexico and Meta and YouTube to pay $6m in a Los Angeles case.