What Is IARC?
IARC (International Age Rating Coalition) provides a questionnaire that participating storefronts use to generate region-specific content ratings. In Google Play Console, answer from content and interactions users can actually reach in the released app.
The rating labels shown to users depend on the applicable rating authority and region. Do not replace the generated result with one universal list of US labels.
Source boundary
Why Content Rating Matters
- Store disclosure — The generated rating and content descriptors help users understand the app before installing
- Regional display — Different rating authorities can show different labels for the same questionnaire
- Parental controls — Store controls may use the regional rating when filtering content
- Policy accuracy — An answer that omits reachable content or interactive features can create a review or enforcement issue
- Change control — New chat, UGC, purchases, gambling references, violence, language, or other content can require a questionnaire update
The IARC Questionnaire
The questionnaire asks about specific types of content in your app:
Violence
Record whether violence is present, how it is depicted, its intensity and frequency, and whether it is central to the experience. Use the questionnaire's current wording rather than predicting a rating.
Sexual Content
Does your app contain sexual content, nudity, or suggestive themes? Even dating apps must answer this section honestly.
Language
Does your app contain profanity, crude humor, or sexual references in text or voice? This includes user-generated content if your app has social features.
Controlled Substances
Does your app reference or depict alcohol, tobacco, drugs, or gambling? Health and educational apps may reference substances in a non-promotional context.
User-Generated Content
Record whether users can communicate or share content, what media are allowed, who can see it, and what moderation or reporting controls exist.
Interactive Elements
Does your app include in-app purchases, share user location, or contain digital purchases?
How Ratings Are Assigned
Submit one accurate questionnaire and preserve the resulting certificate and regional outputs. The app team should not choose a preferred age label or copy a competitor's rating.
| Record | What to verify | Completion evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Questionnaire version | Questions and answers used for the current release | Export, certificate, or dated case record |
| Reachable content | Core flows, optional areas, web content, ads, and post-login states | Test matrix tied to the release build |
| Interactive elements | Purchases, location, communication, UGC, and moderation controls | Feature inventory and reviewer path |
| Regional outputs | Labels and descriptors generated by applicable authorities | Saved regional rating results |
| Change trigger | Release changes that alter an answer | Owner and update decision in the release checklist |
Evidence Gaps to Check
- Answering for intended content only — The reviewer can reach content or interactions missing from the questionnaire record
- Forgetting user-generated content — If users can post text, images, or communicate, you must declare it
- Ignoring third-party content — If your app displays web content or ads, that content factors into your rating
- Not updating after changes — Adding new features (chat, violence, etc.) requires re-completing the questionnaire
Do not choose the desired rating
Questionnaire Completion Checklist
- Freeze the build: identify the exact package and version being rated
- Walk every reachable content path: include optional, post-login, remote, advertising, and user-generated states
- Record interactive elements: purchases, communication, location sharing, links, and moderation controls
- Save the submitted answers: keep the certificate and regional outputs with the release record
- Add change triggers: require a rating review when a release changes any questionnaire answer
Evidence standard
Primary references
These first-party sources support the changeable platform requirements in this guide. Your current Play Console notice remains authoritative for account-specific steps.
Review your next Play Console step
Tell us what the account shows, where the release is blocked, and what has already been submitted. We will scope the work around the evidence in your case.
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