• Is it age appropriate?

  About our ratings

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  Not age appropriate for kids under 6, age appropriate for kids over 8; suggested age 8.

• Is it any good?

  4.0

• Common Sense says

  Safe virtual world is still about buying stuff.

Why We Rated This for Ages 8 and Up

The good stuff

• Educational value:

  Not an issue.
• User-created content:

  Not an issue.

What to watch out for

• Messages:

  The site promotes fashion, shopping, the color pink, and other stereotypical girl pursuits. In contrast to some other girl-oriented sites, it doesn't offer any empowering messages that would lead girls to value themselves outside of the world of beauty and fashion, i.e. anything that requires brain power.
• Violence:

  Not an issue.
• Sex:

  Not an issue.
• Language:

  Not an issue.
• Consumerism:

  Girls must own a Barbie Girl MP3 player ($60) in order to have access to certain things on the site such as adopting a pet and Secret B Chat. Kids can also play games to earn virtual money. There are opportunities to spend real cash on products (although you have to be 18 to do so). The V.I.P. section costs $6 a month or $36 for six months.
• Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

  Not an issue.

How safe is it?

• Personal privacy:

  The site has sound privacy rules designed to prevent girls from revealing their identities.
• Online interaction:

  Three levels of chat offer various levels of restricted, safe chat. The site is well moderated.
• Parental controls:

  The site makes a strong effort to work with parents and give them a lot of control over their kid's account. Parents can update their daughter’s account, manage their daughter’s chat status, receive email updates on new features, and create a Smart Pact that lets you create household rules on computer usage.

What Parents Need to Know

About BarbieGirls

Families Can Talk About