The National SAFEKIDS Campaign recommends that no child under age 12 be left at home alone. Beyond that, each parent must make a decision based on the development and maturity level of their individual child. The child left home alone needs to be sufficiently mature to be able to handle an emergency, know what to do when the doorbell or phone rings and obey your rules about leaving the house or having friends over. A child is usually considered old enough to stop needing a child care facility at about age 12. However, this depends on the maturity and decision-making capability of the individual child. Only a few states have legal age requirements.