Where to Find Content Label Settings
Content label settings on Tumblr live in your account preferences, not in individual post settings. Open Tumblr in a web browser, click your avatar in the top right corner, and select Settings from the dropdown menu. On the Settings page, click the Content and Visibility tab on the left side. This is where you control what kinds of content you see in your dashboard and what labels appear on your own posts.
If you are using the Tumblr mobile app, tap your avatar, scroll down to Settings and Privacy, then tap Content and Visibility. The options are the same as the web version, though the layout is slightly different. Mobile users should note that some advanced filtering options may be easier to manage on desktop.
Key Takeaways
- Content label settings are found under Settings > Content and Visibility on both web and mobile, not in individual post menus.
- You can choose which content categories you want to see in your dashboard, including mature content, violence, and other tagged material.
- The labels you set affect what appears in your own blog and what other users see when they visit your profile.
- Tumblr's content filtering works through tags and community labels, so posts without proper tags may not be filtered even if you have that category turned off.
Adjusting What Content You See
Under the Content and Visibility tab, you will see a section called Mature Content. This controls whether posts tagged with mature content appear in your dashboard and search results. By default, Tumblr shows mature content to users over 18. If you want to hide mature content entirely, toggle this setting off. If you turn it on, you will see posts that creators have tagged as mature.
Below that, you may see additional filtering options depending on your region and account age. These might include options to filter violence, sexual content, or other specific categories. Each toggle works the same way: turn it on to see that content, turn it off to hide it. Your choices here are personal and do not affect what other users see on your blog.
Setting Labels for Your Own Posts
When you create a post on Tumblr, you can add a content label before publishing. Click Add content label below the text or media area. A menu will appear with options like "Mature," "Violence," "Sexual content," and others depending on what you are posting. Select the label that best describes your post's content. You can add multiple labels if your post contains more than one type of sensitive material.
Adding labels to your posts is important because it helps other users filter content according to their own preferences. It also affects how Tumblr's algorithm distributes your post—unlabeled mature content may reach fewer people, and posts that should be labeled but are not may be flagged by other users. Labels are visible to anyone who views your post, so they are part of how you communicate what your content contains.
Understanding Community Labels and Tags
Tumblr uses two systems to organize content: community labels (which you add when posting) and tags (which you add for searchability). Community labels are the formal content warnings that appear on your post. Tags are keywords that help people find your post through search. A post can have both—for example, a post might have the "Violence" community label and also be tagged #blood #injury #horror.
The filtering system in your Content and Visibility settings works primarily with community labels, not tags. This means that if someone posts mature content without adding the mature content label, it may still appear in your dashboard even if you have mature content turned off. You cannot control tag-based filtering from your settings; instead, you can block specific tags by using Tumblr's tag-blocking feature in your preferences.
Blocking Specific Tags
If there is a particular tag you do not want to see—such as #spoilers or #needles—you can block it from your dashboard. Go to Settings > Content and Visibility and scroll down to Blocked Tags. Type the tag name (without the # symbol) and click add. Any post tagged with that word will be hidden from your dashboard, your search results, and your recommendations.
Blocked tags are case-insensitive, so blocking "spoilers" will also hide posts tagged #Spoilers or #SPOILERS. Keep in mind that blocking a tag only hides posts that actually use that tag—if someone posts spoiler content without tagging it, you will still see it. You can block as many tags as you want, and you can remove any blocked tag at any time by clicking the X next to it.
Controlling Who Sees Your Blog
In the same Content and Visibility tab, you will find options for Blog Visibility. This controls whether your blog is public, private, or searchable. If you set your blog to private, only people you follow back can see it. If you set it to public but turn off search visibility, your blog will not appear in Tumblr's search results, though people can still visit it if they have the direct link.
These settings are separate from content labels but work together to control your overall privacy. A blog can be public with mature content labels, or private with no labels—the choice is yours. Remember that even if your blog is private, any reblogs or notes on your posts may be visible to others depending on their privacy settings.
What Happens When You Change Settings
Changes to your content filtering take effect when ready. If you turn off mature content, your dashboard will stop showing those posts right away. If you add a content label to an old post, that label appears on the post going forward, though the post itself does not change. If you block a tag, posts with that tag disappear from your view, but they are not deleted—they are just hidden from you.
Other users' content label settings do not affect what you see on their blogs. If someone has mature content turned off but you have it turned on, you will see their mature posts and they will not. The settings are individual to each account, so there is no way to know what filters someone else has enabled.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will adding a content label to my post stop people from seeing it?
No. Content labels do not hide your post—they just mark it so people can filter it if they choose to. Your post will still appear in your followers' dashboards and in search results. People with that content category turned off will not see it, but most people will.
Can I change my content label settings on mobile?
Yes. Go to your avatar, tap Settings and Privacy, then Content and Visibility. The options are the same as on desktop, though some advanced features may be easier to use on a computer.
What if I block a tag but still see posts with that tag?
The tag blocking system only hides posts that use the exact tag you blocked. If someone uses a similar tag (like #spoiler instead of #spoilers) or does not tag their post at all, it will still appear. You may need to block multiple variations of the same tag.
Do my content label settings affect my followers?
No. Your settings only control what you see. Your followers see your posts based on their own settings. If you label a post as mature, followers with mature content turned off will not see it, but that is their choice, not something you control.
Can I see what content labels other people have set?
No. Content label settings are private to each account. You can only see the labels that creators add to their own posts, not what filters they have enabled for their dashboard.