How to block apps on iPhone: limits, locks and blocks that hold

How to block an app on iPhone with an App Limit (iOS 18 and 26)

An App Limit is the closest thing iOS has to a block button for one app. These steps follow Apple's iPhone User Guide for iOS 18 and iOS 26. On iOS 27 the menus changed; skip to the iOS 27 section below.

1. Open Settings and tap Screen TimeIf Screen Time is off, tap App & Website Activity and turn it on first.
2. Tap App Limits, then tap Add Limit
3. Select the appTap a category name, for example Games or Social Networking, to see the apps inside it, then select the app. You can select several apps; they then share one limit.
4. Tap Next and set the timePick the shortest time the picker offers if you want a near-total block. Tap Customize Days to set a different limit for weekends.
5. Tap Add
6. Set a Screen Time passcode, then turn on Block at End of LimitIn Screen Time, scroll down and tap Lock Screen Time Settings. With a passcode set, a limit can block the app when time runs out instead of offering to let you keep going.

Block apps at night or during work with Downtime

Downtime blocks everything except the apps and contacts you allow, on a schedule. It suits the late-night scroll better than a daily limit does.

1. Go to Settings > Screen Time > Downtime
2. Tap ScheduledOr tap Turn On Downtime Until Tomorrow for a one-off. Choose Every Day or Customize Days, then set the start and end times.
3. Turn on Block at DowntimeThis appears once you have a Screen Time passcode. Blocked apps then appear dimmed with an hourglass and can't be opened until Downtime ends.
4. Choose what stays availableGo to Settings > Screen Time > Always Allowed and keep the essentials, such as Phone, Messages and Maps. Apps on this list are exempt from Downtime and App Limits.

On iOS 27: Time Allowances and Screen Time Schedule

Apple redesigned Screen Time in iOS 27. Its iOS 27 guide for your own iPhone no longer describes App Limits and Downtime. It describes Time Allowances (daily time per category, such as Entertainment, Games or Social Media) and a Screen Time Schedule (time windows that decide which categories are available).

1. Set a daily allowance: Settings > Screen Time > Time AllowancesDrag the slider for your daily total, or tap a category under Time Allowances and set its own time. To add a category, tap Manage Categories, then the add button.
2. Set when apps are available: Settings > Screen Time > Screen Time ScheduleTurn on Schedule, tap Add Schedule, pick the days, then edit each time window and select which categories it allows.
3. Keep essentials open: Settings > Screen Time > Always AllowedTap Add Apps or Add People.
4. Lock it: Settings > Screen Time > Manage Screen Time > Lock Screen Time SettingsEnter a four-digit passcode twice.

Two details from Apple's iOS 27 guide: allowances work by category rather than single app, and if an app declares an associated website, the allowance covers both. Apple also notes that the newest Screen Time features need iOS 27 or later on all your Apple devices.

How to lock apps on iPhone with Face ID

Since iOS 18 you can lock any app you downloaded, and many built-in ones, behind Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode. You can also hide it.

1. On the Home Screen, touch and hold the app until the quick actions menu opens
2. Tap Require Face ID (or Touch ID or Passcode)Then tap Require Face ID again to lock it, or tap Hide and Require Face ID, authenticate and tap Hide App to lock and hide it.
3. Find it later in App LibraryA hidden app moves to the Hidden folder at the bottom of App Library, which needs Face ID to open.

Be clear about what this does. A lock is privacy, not a block: your own face opens the app in a second. It still helps a little, because Apple says a locked app's content stays out of notification previews, search and Siri suggestions, so fewer things pull you back in. Apps that come with iPhone can't be hidden, and some can't be locked, including Camera, Clock, Maps and Settings.

How to permanently block an app: delete it and block reinstalls

If a limit keeps losing, remove the app and make getting it back slow.

1. Delete the appTouch and hold it, tap Remove App, then Delete App, then Delete. Remove from Home Screen only moves it to App Library, which is not the same.
2. Block new installsGo to Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions, turn it on, tap iTunes & App Store Purchases and set Installing Apps to Don't Allow.
3. Block the website tooMost social apps also run in Safari. Add the site under Never Allow; see how to block websites on iPhone.

This blocks every new install, not just that app, so you'll need the passcode for anything you download. Apple's iOS 27 App Store guide still lists iTunes & App Store Purchases under Content & Privacy Restrictions. For Apple's own apps, use Allowed Apps & Features in the same menu (on iOS 27 it is called Other Features). On iOS 18 and 26, turning an app off there hides it without deleting it.

Why app blocks fail, and how to make them hold

• You know the passcode. A block you can lift in five seconds lasts until the first bad evening. Ask someone you trust to set the Screen Time passcode, and decide on purpose whose Apple Account goes into Screen Time Passcode Recovery, since that account can reset it.
• The website is still there. Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Reddit all work in a browser.
• The habit moves. Block one feed and another often takes its place. Limit the whole category, not one app.
• Nothing changed but the phone. Charge it outside the bedroom and give the first 20 minutes after waking to something else.

Not sure how much time an app really takes? Work out what it adds up to over a year.