What it is
8 Ball Pool is free to start. You play frames against other people. Coins pay the entry to some tables, and those coins are also sold for real money. Cues and boxes are the rest of the shop. It is easy to run out of coins and be offered a pack.
What it costs: coin packs, over and over, if a card is saved. The other cost is the chat and the opponent. They are not a school friend just because the game put you at the same table.
What to look out for
- Coin packs and “limited boxes” on a statement.
- Chat messages from an opponent.
- A cue or a VIP offer bought to keep playing.
- Pressure to add them on another app after a game.
Ways to stay safe
These steps are for 8 Ball Pool. The house rules still apply on every app.
- Do not put your card details on their device. Not in the App Store, Google Play, the game, or PayPal. If you choose to pay, type the card in yourself for that purchase, then remove it.
- Play the free tables. When the coins run out, stop. That is the free version working.
- Turn chat off.
- No card on the device. A stranger who wants to keep talking is a no.
In the news
Published reports you can read yourself. A headline is the proof, not a set of instructions, and this page does not repeat graphic detail.
- Games that sell random prizes are getting higher age ratings This BBC report is about higher age ratings for games that sell random prizes or push daily play. 8 Ball Pool sells coins, against a stranger. The report does not name 8 Ball Pool.
A way to start the conversation
You can say: "If the table wants more coins, we are done for today. We do not buy our way back in. And you do not chat with the other player. My card is not on your phone."
Video
Parent briefing
A short video for this guide can be added by an editor. Until then, the written briefing above is the one to use.