Ofcom Children's Online User Ages (CUA) Wave 4
Study details from the Studies index, with sources and citations for each field.
Notes · Non-probability; Total 8–12 social-media profile-holder sample, n=898 (Male 474 + Female 424, unweighted) — the population base for the per-platform underage profile-ownership metric (per-platform bases vary among users of each app). The user-age-gap figures use a subset with a calculable user age (n=755). Full survey n=1,793 aged 8–17.
References
Ofcom (2025) CUA W4 Questionnaire— Wave 4 Questionnaire
Ofcom (2025). Children's Online User Ages Wave 4 — Survey Questionnaire.
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Ofcom (2025) CUA W4 Tech Report— Wave 4 Technical Report
Ofcom (2025). Children's Online User Ages Wave 4 — Technical Report.
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Ofcom (2025) CUA W4 Chart Pack— Wave 4 Chart Packadditional source
Ofcom (2025). Children's Online User Ages Wave 4 — Chart Pack.
report- Retrieved on:
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Ofcom (2025) CUA W4 Data Tables— Wave 4 Data Tablesadditional source
Ofcom (2025). Children's Online User Ages Wave 4 — Data Tables (xlsx).
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Study details & methodology
| Name | “Children’s Online User Ages” Ofcom Children’s Online User Ages, Wave 4. |
| Country | “The sample for the survey was designed to be representative of UK internet users aged 8 to 17 years” |
| Publication year | Publication year 2025. Ofcom’s release calendar lists Wave 4 on 31 March 2025: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/our-research/statistical-release-calendar-2025 |
| Fieldwork dates | “20th January –3rd February 2025.” Fieldwork ran 20 January – 3 February 2025. |
| Sample size | “Male 8 to 12” The entry covers 898 respondents aged 8–12, within the full sample of 1,793 aged 8–17. Eligibility required an own profile on at least one listed app. Individual-app bases vary; the profile-age calculations use a smaller subset with a calculable user age. |
| Age range | “Male 8 to 12”“Female 8 to 12” The displayed entry uses the 8–12 age group in the unweighted sample profile. |
| Sampling | “The survey was conducted using the YouGov bespoke online survey platform.” Non-probability YouGov online panel; children recruited via parents/carers. Quotas aimed for at least 50 interviews per age group (8-12, 13-15, 16-17) per app/site. |
Harms measured
| Underage Use | “Q1. Which of the following apps and sites do you use?”“Q2. Below are the apps and sites you said you use. Some need a profile or account to be set up first.” Q1 records app use and Q2 distinguishes own profiles from borrowed profiles or no profile. Age combined with own-profile status supports the under-13 coverage here. Separate questions measure the date of birth supplied when the profile was created and whether age verification was requested; a misstated profile age is not itself the definition of underage use. |
Platforms measured
| Platform list | “Q1. Which of the following apps and sites do you use?” Own-profile and profile-age questions document 9 eligible apps for ages 8–12. YouTube is excluded because permitted supervised access is not distinguished. Low-base reporting limits do not remove documented measurement. |
Per-app measurement by harm
| Underage Use | “Q2. Below are the apps and sites you said you use. Some need a profile or account to be set up first.” Own-profile and profile-age questions document 9 eligible apps for ages 8–12. YouTube is excluded because permitted supervised access is not distinguished. Low-base reporting limits do not remove documented measurement. |