Meta has agreed to introduce new limits on how teenagers use Facebook and Instagram under a landmark settlement with U.S. state attorneys general.

Under the agreement, teens will be limited to two hours per day across Facebook and Instagram combined. They will also be blocked from using the platforms between midnight and 6 a.m., although messaging services will remain available.

Meta will also silence notifications during school hours. The company plans to strengthen its age-detection systems and introduce stricter default settings for teens. These settings will limit some beauty filters and control whether likes on posts are visible.

Following the settlement, Meta issued an open letter to Snap, TikTok and YouTube. The company urged its competitors to adopt similar protections for young users.

Meta argued that limits on one platform may not solve the wider issue. The company said teens could simply move to another app once they reach their daily limit.

The company has offered to introduce even stricter measures if its competitors join the agreement. If Snap, TikTok and YouTube all adopt the framework and reach similar settlements, Meta said it would reduce the daily limit from two hours to one hour.

Meta also agreed to increase its settlement payment under those conditions. The amount could rise from $12 billion to more than $17 billion if the other companies join the framework.

The agreement resolves a multi-state lawsuit filed in 2023. A bipartisan group of state attorneys general accused Meta of designing addictive features that harmed young people and improperly collecting their data.

States will receive the settlement money over the next 10 years. They must use the funds to address harms linked to youth social media use. Possible uses include counselling, wellness campaigns and after-school programmes.

Individual users will not receive compensation.

The agreement still requires approval from a judge. If approved, Meta expects to fully implement the new measures within the next six months.

The settlement marks the end of years of negotiations and a legal battle that could have cost Meta significantly more.