How to block a website on iPhone, and make the block stick

How to block a website on iPhone with Screen Time

These steps follow Apple's iPhone User Guide for iOS 18 and iOS 26 and work on your own iPhone, no Family Sharing needed. The same menus exist on iPad. If your iPhone runs iOS 27, read the next section first.

1. Open Settings and tap Screen Time
2. Tap Content & Privacy Restrictions, then turn on Content & Privacy RestrictionsNothing in this menu applies until that switch is on.
3. Tap App Store, Media, Web, & Games, then tap Web ContentOn iOS 17 this menu was called Store, Web, Siri & Game Center Content.
4. Select Limit Adult WebsitesThis turns on Apple's automatic adult filter and shows the Never Allow list underneath.
5. Tap Add Website below Never Allow and enter the addressType the site you want gone, for example reddit.com. Repeat for every site, including mobile versions you actually use.
6. Lock it with a Screen Time passcodeGo back to Screen Time, scroll down, tap Lock Screen Time Settings and enter a four-digit passcode twice. Without it, the block is two taps from gone.

Now open the site in Safari to check that it no longer loads. If you would rather allow a short list and block everything else, choose Only Approved Websites in Web Content instead of Limit Adult Websites. It is strict, so expect to add sites you need for work, banking and maps.

On iOS 27: what changed in Screen Time

Apple redesigned Screen Time in iOS 27. For your own iPhone, Settings > Screen Time now centers on Screen Time Schedule, Time Allowances and Manage Screen Time. Apple's iOS 27 guide for your own device covers Content & Privacy Restrictions for media (Content Restrictions), Other Features and Siri, but it no longer spells out the website list.

The detailed website controls, including Block Website, Limit Adult Websites and Approved Websites Only, are now documented for children's accounts under Settings > Family > [child's name] > Apps & Websites. For yourself, Apple's iOS 27 App Store page still lists App Store, Media, Web & Games under Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions, so look for Web Content there first.

• The passcode moved: on iOS 27 it is Settings > Screen Time > Manage Screen Time > Lock Screen Time Settings.
• Time Allowances limit categories such as Social Media or Entertainment. Apple says that if an app declares an associated website, the allowance applies to both, so a limit on an app can also cover its site in Safari.
• Apple notes that the newest Screen Time features need iOS 27 or later on all your Apple devices.

How do I block a website in Safari?

Safari's own settings have no block list. On iPhone, blocking a site in Safari happens in Screen Time, with the steps above. Apple documents these website controls for Safari; it doesn't promise the same for every other browser or app.

That leaves gaps worth knowing before you rely on a block:

• Other browsers. If you have Chrome, Firefox or another browser installed, open the blocked site in each one. If any of them loads it, limit or delete that browser.
• Apps are not websites. Blocking reddit.com does nothing to the Reddit app, and the same goes for X, Instagram, TikTok, Discord or Telegram. Their feeds come from the app, not from a web page. Block the app as well: see how to block apps on iPhone.
• The adult filter is automatic. Limit Adult Websites catches a lot but not everything. Add anything it misses to Never Allow.
• The off switch. Anyone who knows the passcode can turn off Content & Privacy Restrictions, and the whole list pauses with it.

Why a Screen Time block is easy to undo

Screen Time was built for parents setting rules on a child's device. When you set the passcode for yourself, the person who makes the rule and the person who wants to break it are the same. At 1 a.m. you will remember four digits.

There is a second back door. When you set a passcode for yourself, iOS offers Screen Time Passcode Recovery: an Apple Account that can reset the passcode later. It protects you from being locked out, but if your own account goes there, you can also reset the passcode whenever you like.

Ask someone else to set the passcode

1. Pick one person you trustA partner, friend or sibling. They don't need to know which sites, only that you want a lock you can't open alone.
2. Hand them the phone at Lock Screen Time SettingsThey type the passcode twice. Don't watch, and don't let them use a code you could guess.
3. Decide together about passcode recoveryWhoever controls the recovery account can reset the passcode. Settle this on purpose instead of tapping through it.
4. Agree on how unlocking worksFor example: they unlock it to add a site you need for work, never late at night. Deciding this now saves an awkward request later.

Add a second layer: block websites at the DNS level

Screen Time decides inside the browser. A DNS filter works one step earlier: when any app asks where a blocked domain lives, the filter doesn't answer, so the page can't load. Apple's encrypted DNS support lets an app or a configuration profile set this for the whole system, and Apple says those settings apply to all apps and can cover both Wi-Fi and cellular.

• It works in every browser, which closes the other-browser gap.
• It blocks whole domains. It can't block one page or one subreddit while keeping the rest of the site.
• It has an off switch too. Installed profiles sit in Settings > General > VPN & Device Management, and deleting one removes its settings.

When blocking a website isn't enough

A block buys you a pause between the urge and the page. That pause is worth a lot, but it works best with a reason not to reach past it. People who keep reopening the same site usually do better with a plan for the moment the urge hits and a commitment they would rather keep, such as a promise to someone or a commitment contract.

If the site is a porn site, our guide to blocking porn on iPhone covers SafeSearch, other browsers and iPad in more detail. For a Mac, see how to block websites on Mac.