How does Google Play's Families policy affect ads for children's apps?
Apps aimed at children may only use ad SDKs Google has certified for families, must not show interest-based or remarketing ads, and must keep ads clearly separated from app content. If your app targets children, or targets both children and adults, it falls under the Designed for Families requirements, and the ad rules are stricter than the general policy in four specific ways: only self-certified ad SDKs from Google's published list may serve, ads must be non-personalised, interstitials that are disruptive or appear before a child can understand them are prohibited, and the app must correctly set its target audience and child-directed treatment flags in both Play Console and AdMob. The commercial consequence matters: non-personalised inventory earns materially less, so a children's app typically has a lower ceiling on eCPM and is better served by a monetisation mix that does not depend on ads alone.
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