Under the U.S. TV Parental Guidelines, TV-MA stands for Mature Audience Only and designates a television program specifically designed to be viewed by adults that may be unsuitable for children under 17. A TV-MA icon can carry up to three content descriptors—L for crude indecent language, S for explicit sexual activity, and V for graphic violence—and television networks or streaming platforms apply it episode by episode rather than once for an entire series. Unlike a Motion Picture Association R rating, under which children under 17 are not allowed to view R-rated motion pictures unaccompanied by a parent or adult guardian, the TV Parental Guidelines are voluntary television guidelines encoded for use with the V-Chip.

Maturity labels describe episode content rather than audience size; for Nielsen household percentages, viewer projections, and platform viewing hours, see how TV ratings work with streaming.

Is TV-MA for ages 17 or 18?

The official TV Parental Guidelines set the age line at 17, stating that a TV-MA program is designed for adults and may be unsuitable for children under 17. On Hulu, however, Hulu’s Ratings Glossary quotes the under 17 TV-MA definition and states that users must be logged in and over the age of 18 to watch TV-MA content on Hulu.

In U.S. theatrical film ratings, strict exclusion of viewers age 17 and under belongs to NC-17 (Adults Only — No one 17 and under admitted), which the Motion Picture Association introduced in September 1990 and reworded in 1996 to raise the minimum theatrical admission age to 18. Prior to the August 1997 revisions to the television rating system, TV-MA was originally designated TV-M before being renamed over a trademark dispute and to avoid confusion with the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) M (Mature) rating for video games.

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While the TV Parental Guidelines state that TV-MA programs may be unsuitable for children under 17, Hulu requires users to be logged in and over the age of 18 to watch TV-MA content on Hulu.

Is TV-MA the same as an R rating?

No—while TV-MA and Rated R both use an under 17 age line, they come from separate rating systems and apply to different units of programming. The Motion Picture Association (MPA) administers its voluntary film rating system through its Classification and Ratings Administration (CARA), assigning one rating (G, PG, PG-13, R, or NC-17) to a motion picture—with accompanying content descriptors used on films rated PG through NC-17, and not on G films—while children under 17 are not allowed to view R-rated motion pictures unaccompanied by a parent or adult guardian.

Television and streaming series instead use the TV Parental Guidelines, which went into effect on January 1, 1997 after being announced on December 19, 1996. On February 29, 1996, entertainment industry groups pledged to create the system and agreed that broadcast and cable networks would apply the guidelines episodically to handle some 2,000 hours of programming a day; the December 19, 1996 announcement also created a Monitoring Board to ensure accuracy, uniformity, and consistency, and for syndicated programs the distributor is usually responsible for rating them. Streaming services in the United States, including HBO Max, Hulu, and Netflix, later voluntarily adopted the TV Parental Guidelines, usually for television series and as a fallback for films that do not carry an MPA rating.

Comparison point TV-MA (TV Parental Guidelines) Rated R (MPA / CARA Film Rating)
Full label Mature Audience Only (also printed as Mature Audiences Only) Restricted
Age rule May be unsuitable for children under 17; on Hulu, users must be logged in and over the age of 18 Children under 17 are not allowed to view unaccompanied by a parent or adult guardian
Who assigns the label Voluntarily rated by broadcast and cable networks or program producers (for syndicated programs, the distributor is usually responsible); streaming services also voluntarily adopted the system Assigned to individual motion pictures by the MPA’s Classification and Ratings Administration (CARA), in effect since November 1968
Unit rated Episode by episode (episodes of one series may carry different ratings based on content) Individual motion picture
Content detail format Fixed letter codes: L (crude indecent language), S (explicit sexual activity), V (graphic violence) Tailored prose rating descriptor written for each individual movie (used on PG through NC-17 films)
Tier above this rating None—TV-MA is the highest tier in the six-level U.S. television rating system NC-17 (Adults Only — No one 17 and under admitted) sits above R for theatrical films
Broadcast indecency window Under 47 CFR § 73.3999, radio and television broadcast station licensees may not broadcast obscene material at any time or indecent material between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. The MPA rating system is a voluntary scheme that is not enforced by law
Channel editing & movie airings Rarely used on over-the-air broadcast TV; edited broadcast or basic-cable cuts (such as ABC or USA Network) receive a TV Parental Guidelines rating Uncut theatrical movies on premium cable channels such as HBO and Showtime carry their original MPAA rating plus network content advisories

TV-MA is rarely used by broadcast networks or local television stations due to FCC content restrictions, and is commonly applied on certain basic and premium cable channels and streaming networks for both mainstream and softcore programs. The attached L, S, and V letters indicate whether a TV-MA program may contain crude indecent language, explicit sexual activity, or graphic violence.

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Under an MPA R rating, children under 17 are not allowed to view the motion picture unaccompanied by a parent or adult guardian, whereas the TV Parental Guidelines place an on-screen icon at the start of rated programs and encode the guidelines for use with the V-Chip.

What are the TV ratings in order?

From youngest audience to most restrictive, the six age-based ratings in the U.S. TV Parental Guidelines are TV-Y, TV-Y7 (with TV-Y7-FV), TV-G, TV-PG, TV-14, and TV-MA. In the August 1, 1997 revision—supported by family and child advocacy groups, television broadcasters, cable systems and networks, and television production companies, and calling for five advocacy-community representatives to be added to the Monitoring Board—the industry paired those six age tiers with five content descriptors (FV, D, L, S, and V), allowing 44 possible combinations across all ratings.

Up to four content letters can appear beneath a rating icon, but two letters have strict tier limits: FV (fantasy violence) is used exclusively with TV-Y7, and D (suggestive dialogue) is reserved for TV-PG and TV-14 and is never paired with TV-MA. Use the quick-reference table below to compare every U.S. television rating, its allowed content descriptors, its official content description, and the MPA film rating definitions (G, PG, PG-13, R, and NC-17).

TV rating Official meaning & target age Allowed content descriptors Official content description MPA film rating comparison
TV-Y All Children (designed for all children, including ages 2–6) None (D, L, S, V, FV unused) Themes and elements designed for a very young audience; not expected to frighten younger children MPA has no separate young-children rating; G (General Audiences — All ages admitted) does not signify a children’s motion picture
TV-Y7 / TV-Y7-FV Directed to Older Children (age 7 and above) FV only (exclusive to TV-Y7 when fantasy violence may be more intense or more combative than other programs in this category) Designed for children age 7 and above; may be more appropriate for children who have acquired the developmental skills needed to distinguish between make-believe and reality, and themes may include mild fantasy violence or comedic violence MPA has no separate age 7 film rating; G admits all ages and for PG (Parental Guidance Suggested), a PG-rated motion picture should be investigated by parents before they let their younger children attend
TV-G General Audience (most parents would find this program suitable for all ages) None (D, L, S, V, FV unused) Although this rating does not signify a program designed specifically for children, most parents may let younger children watch unattended; contains little or no violence, no strong language, and little or no sexual dialogue or situations MPA G (General Audiences — All ages admitted) contains nothing that would offend parents for viewing by children
TV-PG Parental Guidance Suggested (contains material that parents may find unsuitable for younger children) D, L, S, V Many parents may want to watch with younger children; may contain some suggestive dialogue (D), infrequent coarse language (L), some sexual situations (S), or moderate violence (V) MPA PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) indicates some material may not be suitable for children
TV-14 Parents Strongly Cautioned (contains some material that many parents would find unsuitable for children under 14 years of age) D, L, S, V Parents cautioned against letting children under 14 watch unattended; may contain intensely suggestive dialogue (D), strong coarse language (L), intense sexual situations (S), or intense violence (V) MPA PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned) warns that some material may be inappropriate for children under 13
TV-MA Mature Audience Only (designed for adults; may be unsuitable under 17) L, S, V (D and FV unused) Specifically designed to be viewed by adults; may contain crude indecent language (L), explicit sexual activity (S), or graphic violence (V) MPA R (Restricted): under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian; NC-17 (Adults Only): no one 17 and under admitted

What does TV-14 mean vs. PG-13?

TV-14 stands for Parents Strongly Cautioned and warns that a television program contains material many parents would find unsuitable for children under 14 years of age, cautioning parents against letting children under 14 watch unattended. For motion pictures, the Motion Picture Association introduced its PG-13 film rating (Parents Strongly Cautioned — Some Material May Be Inappropriate for Children Under 13) on July 1, 1984 as an intermediate rating between PG and R (with that simplified wording adopted in 1985).

Three practical differences separate TV-14 from PG-13:

  • Age line (14 vs. 13): TV-14 sets its caution threshold at children under 14, whereas MPA PG-13 sets its caution threshold at children under 13.
  • Per-episode shifts vs. single-film rating: Because TV ratings are applied episode by episode, a drama series that airs most installments at TV-14 can still label a specific installment TV-PG or TV-MA when that episode’s content changes, whereas a theatrical PG-13 rating covers one completed movie cut.
  • Editing across channels: Movies and series are often edited differently depending on the broadcast hour and channel—such as broadcast television (ABC), basic cable (USA Network), or premium cable (HBO)—so a theatrical R or PG-13 movie cut for broadcast or basic cable receives a TV Parental Guidelines rating for that edited version.

Does TV-14 allow swearing?

Yes—under the Printable TV Ratings Guide, a TV-14 program may contain strong coarse language (L) as well as intensely suggestive dialogue (D), whereas a TV-MA program may contain crude indecent language (L) and does not use the D descriptor. Hulu’s Ratings Glossary separately lists TV-14 with infrequent coarse language (L) and some suggestive dialogue (D), while matching the official TV-MA wording of crude indecent language (L).

For radio and television broadcast station licensees, 47 CFR § 73.3999 prohibits broadcasting obscene material at any time and prohibits broadcasting indecent material on any day between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. By contrast, MPA PG-13 movies follow CARA’s film-specific language rule: a single non-sexual expletive use of one of the harsher sexually-derived words requires at least a PG-13 rating, and more than one use—or any use in a sexual context—requires an R rating unless CARA raters grant a PG-13 exception by a two-thirds majority vote.

What does TV-PG mean, and how do parental controls work?

TV-PG stands for Parental Guidance Suggested, indicating a program with material that parents may find unsuitable for younger children—such as some suggestive dialogue (D), infrequent coarse language (L), some sexual situations (S), or moderate violence (V)—and that many parents may want to watch with their younger children. On rated broadcasts, the rating icon and its content letters appear in the upper-left corner of the screen for the first 15 seconds of the program, reappear at the start of the second hour on programs longer than one hour, and many broadcast and cable television networks also display the rating after each commercial break; news, sports, and television commercials are exempt from ratings (and commercials cannot be blocked), while most religious and home shopping programs also carry no rating.

Unbranded television set-top receiver with a coiled unplugged HDMI cable beside two minimalist remotes on an oak media console
Television receivers equipped with V-Chip blocking block a program when a rating packet with the appropriate Content Advisory or MPAA rating level is received, while cable set-top boxes and satellite services will often allow blocking by channel, title, rating, or time/date.

Added by the Telecommunications Act of 1996, 47 U.S.C. § 303(x) requires apparatus designed to receive television signals that are shipped in interstate commerce or manufactured in the United States and that have a picture screen 13 inches or greater in size (measured diagonally) to be equipped with a feature designed to enable viewers to block display of all programs with a common rating, and on March 12, 1998 the FCC found the Industry Video Programming Rating System acceptable and adopted technical requirements for the V-Chip. Under 47 CFR § 15.120(a), effective July 1, 1999, manufacturers must ensure that one-half of their television broadcast receiver product models with picture screens 33 cm (13 in) or larger in diameter shipped in interstate commerce or manufactured in the United States comply, while 47 CFR § 15.120(b) requires compliance for all TV broadcast receivers with picture screens 33 cm (13 in) or larger measured diagonally, or with displays in the 16:9 aspect ratio that are 19.8 cm (7.8 in) or greater in height, and digital television receivers without an associated display device shipped in interstate commerce or manufactured in the United States. The V-Chip is built into every television set 13 inches or larger manufactured after January 2000:

  • How V-Chip blocking behaves (47 CFR § 15.120(e)(1)): Receiving a blocked Content Advisory or MPAA rating packet mutes the program audio, turns the video black or indecipherable, and eliminates program-related captions. Activating or changing V-Chip settings requires a password, and turning the television off does not turn the V-Chip off.
  • Hierarchical age and letter blocking (47 CFR § 15.120(e)(4)): When a user chooses to block an age-based rating such as TV-PG, the receiver must have the ability to automatically block more restrictive ratings such as TV-14 and TV-MA, and when blocking an age-plus-content combination such as TV-PG-V, the user should be able to automatically block TV-14-V and TV-MA-V, with the capability of overriding that automatic blocking.
  • Cable, satellite, and streaming controls: Cable set-top boxes and satellite services will often allow you to block programs by channel, title, rating, or time/date, while U.S. streaming services have voluntarily adopted the TV Parental Guidelines, usually for television series and typically as a fallback if a film does not carry an MPA rating.

When checking local broadcast listings for late-evening airings, pair the rating icon with how to read US TV premiere times and time zones and see how fall TV schedules work for how networks slot prime-time lineups across the editorial archive.

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