Block Apps
How To Effectively Block Apps on Smartphones
Learn about how to block apps on the different smartphones, such as iPhone and Android.
Most built-in app blocking solutions for smartphones are specifically designed for parents monitoring their children's app usage. However, blocking apps isn't just a concern for parent anymore - adults want to restrict themselves from problematic apps too. In this guide, I'll show you reliable ways to block apps on smartphones without having to patch together parental control apps.
Blocking apps across all smartphone platforms is tricky:
- Both iPhone and Android smartphones have completely different environments and ecosystems. As a result, they each have different considerations.
- Many popular apps (especially social media platforms) can be access from both an app and a web browser. If your goal is to block content online, you'll have to consider both web browsers and native apps.
- Many standard app blockers just don't cut it. They can be easily bypassed, disabled, or removed.
How exactly can you overcome all of these weaknesses? I've spent a significant amount of time researching this problem, and between iPhone and Android smartphones, there is one sure-fire way that works across multiple devices. It starts by creating a customizing a DNS Content Policy.
Disable Apps with a DNS Content Policy
If you are trying to block an app that depends on the internet, a DNS Content Policy provides the most comprehensive blocking approach. This blocking technique can disable the native app (the app downloaded on to the device) and also the version that can usually be accessed through a smartphone's web browser.
For example, with the Tech Lockdown Content Policy , you can easily search through a list of supported apps and add them to a block rule.
Block Categories of Apps
Instead of blocking apps or domains one-at-a-time, you can instead block entire categories of apps.
Tech Lockdown has apps organized into common categories, like Social Media, Adult Themes, Gaming, and much more.
Blocking apps by category is the basis for one my most recommend content filtering approaches: the Default-Deny Approach.
Default-Deny App Blocking
A common problem with app blocking is trying to handle new or relatively unknown apps. With most app blockers, you'll need to manually add each new app; potentially after it's already been installed.
That's why I recommend the Default-Deny approach. For example, if you're trying to block social media apps, then you could block the entire social media content category and manually add apps you want to allow (maybe LinkedIn or Slack).
Schedule When Apps are Blocked
In some cases, you might only want to reduce the window of time that you can access a particular app (or category of apps). In that case, rule scheduling let's you define when an app can connect to the internet.
A great use-case I've recommended to people before is to enforce an internet shutoff time at night. I've written a complete guide if you'd like to learn more about how to turn off internet access at night.
Block Content Within Apps
For some apps, like Reddit, Twitter / X, or YouTube, Tech Lockdown's Content Policy has rule presets which can block images and videos while still allowing posts and comments to load.
Here's an example of one of my favorite Rule Presets that blocks YouTube thumbnails:
YouTube videos still work, but it's much easier to navigate and far less tempting to keep watching.
Block Apps on iPhone
If you have an iPhone device, I'd strongly recommend reading my free, dedicated guide for blocking apps on iPhones , where I deeply explain each option available.
For example, depending on whether you're an adult managing your own iPhone or a parent managing a child's iPhone, I've recommended a few different options that are ideal if you need a solid alternative to screen time .
App Blocking with Supervised Mode
For iPhone users, you can enforce a list of apps if you use Supervised Mode to block apps if you're an adult. This will prevent these blocked apps from being downloaded from the App Store (or from being opened if they're already installed, in the case of pre-installed apps like Safari).
One option you could consider is to create an App Allowlist that blocks all other apps by default, minus the one you specifically choose. If you're trying to create a dumb iPhone, this is one of the best ways to fully restrict all distracting apps.
For example, I've gone ahead and blocked all but a small handful of useful apps on my iPhone here:
However, if this is too restrictive, then you can manually block apps individually with an App Blocklist or any app above an age rating.
If you're interested in learning how you can create your app blocklist or allowlist, see our dedicated guide for getting started with Supervised App Blocking . This is the most effective option I can recommend if you're an adult who is managing your own iPhone.
App Blocking with Parental Controls
Another option is to set up parental controls on your iPhone to restrict apps or limit the app store, although this isn't as effective as supervised mode. On iPhone, you can manage Screen Time, which is Apple's version of parental controls.
If you're setting up your child's iPhone, then you might find Managed Screen Time is a better option using Apple Family Sharing. This requires you to set up Apple Family and multiple Apple accounts, so it might not be the right option if you're only restricting apps for yourself.
It's also important to note that you should get ahead of potential loopholes and ensure that Screen Time works correctly , without the possibility of being disabled or bypassed.
Block Apps on Android
If your an Android user, I'd strongly recommend checking out my dedicated guide for blocking apps on Android smartphones.
The most effective option I found was to use Device Management to fully control which apps are installed. It's more advanced than downloading and installing an app, and if you're interested, I'd strongly recommend reading my guide dedicated to explaining how to reliably block apps on a managed Android device.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the easiest way to block apps on iPhone?
iPhone has a built-in parental control option called Screen Time.
If you aren't familiar with Screen Time, it's something I've researched extensively when it comes to both blocking apps and websites. It has its weaknesses, but overall it's a decent option if you want to get started or need an extra layer of backup. I've written a dedicated guide for setting up parental controls on iPhone if you want to learn more.
If you need something much more powerful than Screen Time that actually removes the ability to open or download apps you need to block, you'll need to consider using Supervised Mode, Apple's better alternative to Screen Time .
What's the easiest way to block apps on Android?
For the most part, Android devices can use a variety of apps or third-party tools to block apps effectively; I explore several options in the free, dedicated guide for blocking apps on Android .
What's the most compatible way to block apps between iPhone and Android smartphones?
A Content Policy can be used to block an app's connection to the internet in a very simple way across devices.
Instead of manually blocking app domains, you can block an app and all associated domains at once.
What kind of content can I block with DNS Filtering?
You can block specific apps or websites, as well as categories of websites (like those hosting adult or violent content). If you're interested in seeing a full list of restrictions and customization options, please see our content policy help doc.
Can I lock my Content Policy to prevent undoing rules?
I've designed Tech Lockdown's Content Policy with self-managing users in mind, which is why you can lock your profile to prevent most restrictions from being undone.
You'll still be able to add websites to a block rule, so if you find a website you want to block, you won't need to unlock your profile to make your rules more restrictive.