How to block TikTok on iPhone: the app, the website and the scroll

Looking to block a person on TikTok rather than the app? Use TikTok's Block option for that account. This guide is about blocking TikTok itself.

Block TikTok on iPhone with Screen Time

Screen Time is the built-in way to stop TikTok from opening at all. These steps follow Apple's guide for iOS 18 and iOS 26; the iOS 27 version is below.

1. Go to Settings > Screen Time > App Limits and tap Add LimitIf Screen Time is off, tap App & Website Activity and turn it on first.
2. Select TikTokTap the category it sits in to see the apps inside, then select TikTok. Add any other feed you tend to switch to.
3. Tap Next, set the time and tap AddThe shortest time the picker offers works as a near-total block. A small daily budget works if you want to keep it for messages from friends.
4. Block tiktok.com in SafariSettings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions (turn it on) > App Store, Media, Web, & Games > Web Content > Limit Adult Websites, then Add Website below Never Allow and enter tiktok.com.
5. Lock itIn Screen Time, scroll down and tap Lock Screen Time Settings, then turn on Block at End of Limit for the TikTok limit. By default, Apple says, limits can be ignored once reached.

On iOS 27, Apple's guide for your own iPhone describes Time Allowances instead of App Limits. Go to Settings > Screen Time > Time Allowances and set the Social Media or Entertainment category, and use Screen Time Schedule to decide when that category is available at all. Apple says an allowance also covers an app's declared website. The passcode is under Manage Screen Time > Lock Screen Time Settings.

Block the TikTok website too

TikTok runs in a browser too; TikTok's own screen time settings even apply to the app and the web version together. If you block only the app, tiktok.com in Safari is the obvious way back. Add it under Never Allow as above, then test it in every browser on your phone. If another browser still loads it, delete that browser or read how to block websites on iPhone for a DNS-level layer.

TikTok's own screen time settings

TikTok has a set of time tools under one menu. They are useful as nudges. Just know where they stop.

Set a daily screen time limit

1. Tap Profile at the bottom
2. Tap the Menu button at the top, then Settings and privacy
3. Tap Time and well-being, then Screen time
4. Turn on Daily screen time and set a limitTikTok offers several options to choose from.

When you reach the limit, TikTok notifies you and you can close the app or enter the on-screen passcode to keep going. Because you can type it yourself, it is a speed bump rather than a block. For users aged 13 to 17, TikTok turns this on by default at one hour.

• Sleep hours. In the same Screen time menu, turn on Sleep hours. TikTok mutes push notifications after your sleep time begins and reminds you to take a break.
• Weekly screen time updates. A weekly note on how much time you spent and how it compares to the week before.
• Screen time dashboard. Your daily time for the current week, across the app and the web, under Time and well-being > Screen time or in Activity center.

How to quit TikTok for a while: deactivate your account

If you want a real break, step away from the account, not just the app. Deactivating puts it on hold: nobody sees your content or profile, and TikTok keeps your data so you can come back.

1. In the TikTok app, tap Profile, then the Menu button
2. Tap Settings and privacy, then Account
3. Tap Deactivate or delete account
4. Tap Deactivate account and follow the instructionsLogging back in with the same details and tapping Reactivate brings it back.

That easy way back is also the weak spot, so delete the app as well, and consider blocking new installs under Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions > iTunes & App Store Purchases > Installing Apps. The same menu offers permanent deletion if you're sure.

Is TikTok addiction real?

"TikTok addiction" isn't an official diagnosis, but you don't need a label to notice a pattern: opening it without deciding to, losing an hour you meant to spend sleeping, or deleting it and reinstalling it within days. Feeds that never end make stopping a decision you have to make again and again, usually when you are tired.

The research on cutting back is modest but encouraging. In a randomized study of 143 university students, limiting Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat to 10 minutes each per day for three weeks led to significantly less loneliness and depression than using them as usual. TikTok wasn't part of that study, so treat it as a pointer, not proof.

Curious what your TikTok time adds up to over a year? Take the daily number from Screen Time and run it through the calculator.

Make the block stick

• Let someone else set the Screen Time passcode. A block you can lift in five seconds lasts until the first bad evening. Decide on purpose whose Apple Account goes into Screen Time Passcode Recovery, since that account can reset it.
• Turn off TikTok notifications in Settings > Notifications, so the app has to wait for you.
• Plan the moment you used to open it, such as in bed, on the toilet or on the bus, and put something else there.
• Block the next feed too. Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts fill the gap fast; see how to block Instagram on iPhone and how to block YouTube Shorts.