Wattpad's Content Guidelines

At Wattpad, we set stories free with the goal of creating a safe and comfortable space for everyone to discover and create.

In order to create an inclusive and respectful space, we want to ensure our Wattpadders know what type of content they will discover as well as content they can or cannot post!

Before you take off on your writing journey, please take a peek at the following:

- It's important to respect and protect fellow Wattpadder's feelings, property, and personal information.

- You shouldn't post anything you might regret in the future or that your peers, family, or teachers might not want to see online.

- You should read our Content Guidelines, Code of Conduct, Terms of Service and our Privacy Policy so you have all the information you need to enjoy Wattpad and help others enjoy it too!

If you come across any content that violates our guidelines, let us know by reporting it. See for how to do that.

To learn more about Copyright, please see

Rating Your Story

All writers are expected to rate their stories as either Mature, or for Everyone, according to the guidelines provided below. If you come across a story that has been rated incorrectly, you can let us know by reporting it (see our guide ). Please note that we will change your rating if it does not comply with these guidelines.

Mature Rating

Mature stories are intended for an audience that is 17 and up. There are restrictions on discovering Mature stories on Wattpad that help ensure they reach the correct audience. A story may be rated Mature if it contains any of the following:

An explicit sex scene

Self harm themes or scenes (including suicide and eating disorders)

Graphic depictions of violence; including but not limited to: sexual, verbal, emotional and physical abuse.

Marking your story Mature does not mean that it can contain prohibited content. Stories that contain prohibited content will be removed regardless of their rating.

Prohibited Content

The following guidelines list content that is not allowed on Wattpad. This is not an exhaustive list, and we reserve the right to remove any content that we deem inappropriate.

Sexual content on Wattpad

What does Wattpad classify as sexual content?

Wattpad considers sexual content to involve sexual intercourse and other sexual acts, including, but not limited to, oral sex or self-gratification.

The following sexual content is NOT allowed on Wattpad, and will be removed:

Pornographic content: Wattpad considers content to be pornographic when it exists solely for the purpose of sexual stimulation.

Age of consent: The age of consent is 16+ on Wattpad. Any sexual content between characters must abide by this age of consent and not be in violation of Canadian Law.

Non-consensual sexual content: Wattpad classifies non-consensual sexual acts to include rape, sexual assault, kidnapping for sexual purposes, or sexual slavery. The content cannot be encouraging or promoting of non-consensual sex acts.

Sexual roleplay or sexting: Wattpad does not permit sexual messages or solicitation. This includes posting content which encourages sexual private messages, on or off Wattpad, or posting rules for public or private roleplay that are intended for sexual purposes.

Illegal sex acts: In accordance with Canadian Law, any content which encourages illegal sex acts including, but not limited to, bestiality or necrophilia, will be removed.

Media on Wattpad

Media on Wattpad includes images, videos, gifs, and sound clips. To help keep Wattpad a safe space for everyone to create and discover content, we may remove images that don't follow our Content Guidelines. The following Media is not allowed on Wattpad, and is subject to removal:

- Media containing full exposure of any private parts, such as genitalia, breasts and buttocks.

- Media displaying sexual intercourse, or any other sexual act, regardless of whether private parts are visible.

- Media displaying self-harm or suicide

- Images of people posted without their consent, except for public figures and celebrities.

- Any other media which captures an illegal act.

If you see the yellow triangle caution indicator on one of your uploaded images, it means that the image in question appears to violate one of our Content Guidelines and is no longer publicly accessible by your readers on Wattpad.

If you want more information regarding Image moderation please see our Help Center Article .

Wattpad has the right to remove any media deemed unfit for Wattpad.

Talking about Others:

Sharing opinions on stories and the quality or style of writing is ok. We aim to create a safe community for everyone on Wattpad, so be kind, respectful, and please treat others as you would want to be treated, so don't post any content that:

- Bashes a user purely for personal reasons.

- Reveals any personally identifying information about other people, including private messages, photographs/videos:

Due to the fictional nature of stories and the chances of real names being used coincidentally, we are unable to remove a work for having the same or similar name to a real person. Only if there is additional identifying information, such as the city you are from or your work/school, is there a violation of our content guidelines.

- Actively promotes violence or hatred. The promotion of hatred on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, disability, gender, age, sexual orientation, content that is intended to bully, threaten, or harass others, is also strictly prohibited.

General expressions of opinions are allowed, but they cannot be violent in nature or encourage others to attack Wattpad community members.

Self-Harm on Wattpad:

If you are struggling with eating disorders, addiction, self-harm, thoughts of suicide, or other challenges, we want you to know that you are supported.

A list of global helplines, because it's important to reach out if you are feeling blue is and .

Keep in mind that reading about self-harm and suicide can be upsetting or triggering. That's why we want to remind you that:

- Content that encourages or gives instruction on self-harm will be removed.

- Content that contains lots of description might be rated Mature, and stories that glorify or do not "tell a story" might be removed. "Telling a story" means the work must have a plot unrelated to the self-harm scene/s, or must show a progression or growth in its characters.

- We want to encourage healthy discussions about these issues, so content about recovery, survival or that portray the negative consequences of self-harm are acceptable on Wattpad.

Spam

Any content that advertises products or services unrelated to, or not sanctioned by Wattpad is not permitted and will be removed.