The payment is part of a proposed national settlement valued at up to $17.1 billion. The agreement would also require Meta to place new limits on how young people use its platforms.
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport announced the deal Wednesday. It must be approved by a federal judge before it takes effect.
New Jersey began co-leading an investigation into Meta in 2021 and joined a multistate lawsuit against the company in 2023. The states alleged that Meta designed Facebook and Instagram to keep young users online for long periods while downplaying the effects on their mental health, sleep and safety.
The lawsuit also accused Meta of collecting information from children under 13 without proper parental consent.
The case went to trial this month in Oakland, California. Former Meta employees had started testifying, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg was expected to appear as a witness before the settlement was reached.
“Meta knew its platforms could harm young people, yet continued practices designed to keep them hooked,” Davenport said shortly before the trial began.
The broader agreement covers claims involving 47 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands.
For New Jersey parents and teenagers, the settlement would lead to several changes on Facebook and Instagram.
Users under 18 would have a default combined limit of two hours a day across the two platforms. Access would be blocked between midnight and 6 a.m. unless a parent changed the setting. Notifications would also be limited overnight and during school hours.
Meta would have to strengthen its age-verification system, remove children under 13 and give parents additional supervision tools. Teenagers would be able to choose a feed that is not personalized by Meta’s recommendation system.
The company would also restrict visible like counts and cosmetic-procedure filters for minors. Additional requirements address bullying, eating-disorder content, suicide and self-harm material.
An independent auditor would monitor Meta’s compliance and report problems to the participating attorneys general.
Meta did not admit wrongdoing. The company said it was building on existing safety measures and called on TikTok, YouTube and other competitors to adopt similar protections.
New Jersey would receive at least $525 million if the settlement is approved. The payment could rise above $752 million under conditions included in the agreement, including the adoption of similar restrictions by other large social media platforms.
A separate settlement announced Wednesday addresses allegations that Meta shared nonpublic Facebook user information with third parties, including Cambridge Analytica. Meta would pay more than $460 million in that case, with New Jersey receiving more than $20 million.
