Apple TV is finally getting a feature that Roku users have had for years

tvOS 26 introduced several major updates to the Apple TV experience earlier this year, including the Liquid Glass redesign, a revamped Apple TV app, new screen savers, and improvements to the profile system.

If I had to pick my favorite feature of tvOS 26, it would definitely be the updates Apple made to profiles. Now, when you turn on your Apple TV, a screen appears prompting you to select a profile, similar to how streaming services like Netflix do it. Before this change, switching profiles on your Apple TV required manually opening the Control Center, which was easy to forget. While it’s an extra step each time you turn on your Apple TV, I believe it’s worth it for more personalized recommendations.

That said, although switching profiles is now more convenient and accessible, one issue that has always been associated with profiles on Apple TV is that they require being linked to an Apple ID. This means if you wanted to create a proper guest profile on your Apple TV, you still couldn’t do it with tvOS 26, as it would have required having an additional Apple ID beyond your main one. However, this is about to change.

With the upcoming tvOS 26.2 update, Apple is finally allowing users to add profiles to their Apple TV without needing to link them to an Apple ID (via MacRumors). This means if you want to create a proper guest profile for others to use on your Apple TV, such as for roommates, family members, or your kids, you’ll soon be able to. And for parents especially, it seems Apple has gone the extra mile to make this super handy for kids.

Apple is also adding a Kids Mode with tvOS 26.2

The update is still in beta

Besides removing the need for an Apple ID when creating profiles with tvOS 26.2, Apple has also added an option to check a box during profile creation that designates the profile as for kids. This automatically restricts the content available on that profile in the Apple TV experience to PG by default, ensuring that if you have a child who frequently uses your Apple TV, they will only see age-appropriate content.

Apple also allows you to adjust the TV show rating based on your child’s age, so you can set it to lower or higher levels, like TV-G or TV-14. However, you’ll still need to use parental controls to block access to apps outside of Apple TV.

tvOS 26.2 is currently in beta and is expected to be available sometime in mid-December…

So to sum it up, with tvOS 26.2, Apple has essentially created a way for you to set up a guest mode and kids mode on your Apple TV. And according to MacRumors, when you create additional profiles on your Apple TV, these profiles may also appear on the Apple TV app on third-party devices, such as smart TVs.

It’s also worth noting that you can still create profiles on your Apple TV linked to an Apple ID. Apple now simply gives you the option to do so without one with tvOS 26.2. Additionally, if you create a profile without an Apple ID and later decide you want to link it to one, you can do that.

tvOS 26.2 is currently in beta and is expected to be available sometime in mid-December, so you won’t have to wait long to use these new profile features. Personally, I’m just glad Apple has finally added a proper way to create a guest profile on Apple TV. This has been a feature Roku TV has had for a long time, so being able to do it on an Apple TV soon will be a big plus for people who share their device a lot.