How to Block Porn in Chrome and Other Browsers

Ben

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Updated May 15, 2025

If you want to block porn in chrome and other web browsers, I recommend a multi-layered approach. When it comes to blocking adult content, it's important to use multiple methods at the same time to create a full blocking system.

If you are self-managing, you want to handle moments of weakness where you are motivated to disable your blocking setup to access content that you know is ultimately harmful to you. If you are helping another person, you want to have some assurance that you have provided them the right tools for success.

Blocking adult content on Chrome is just one of the many techniques available in our full guide to blocking porn . Each device has its own unique considerations, and as a result, it can be difficult to gather all of this information in one place.

Choosing a Blocking Approach For Chrome

Although this guide will mostly focus on what you can do in the browser to block and prevent bypass of blocking techniques, you should choose techniques that are difficult to undo and use multiple of these approaches at once. This is especially true if you're managing your own devices and might have the temptation to disable your restrictions later.

But first, what are some techniques that actually work to block porn on Chrome and other browsers?

1. Enforce SafeSearch to hide most explicit searches and results. 
2. Disable certain search terms or keywords in your browser's URL.
3. Block images on certain websites.
4. Restrict certain browser extensions.

Enable SafeSearch

SafeSearch is a search engine feature that provides filtered search results. It's improved over the years, so turning on SafeSearch is a critical part of any blocking setup.

The top right corner of the Google search results page usually shows the status of SafeSearch

Step 1: Enable SafeSearch in Google Chrome

Step 2: Enforce SafeSearch

SafeSearch can easily be toggled off unless you enforce it so that it's locked on.

There are several ways that you can do this, and you could combine multiple techniques for the best results. In fact, since this is an important enough step, I've written a comprehensive guide for enforcing Google SafeSearch that recommends several options depending on your device.

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Enforce SafeSearch

Force usage of the SafeSearch mode on Google, Bing, and other search engines.

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Disable Privacy Features on Chrome

Many browsers have many features that may need to be disabled if you're using a content filter on your device. For example, Chrome has incognito mode, which won't record browsing history.

There are some cases, especially if you're working with a spouse or accountability partner, where you'd like to ensure browsing transparency. Disabling certain features, like incognito mode or private browsing, can be a deterrent when looking at harmful content, since the user can't hide their browsing activity.

There are other cases where a browser might use a built-in VPN extension that could conflict with content filtering.

Learn more about how to disable browser privacy features that conflict with blocking and bypass prevention over at our free guide.

Block Images on Websites Using Mac Config Files

There might be certain cases where you'd need to access a website, but would prefer not to take your chances with any images you might potentially find. If you have a Mac computer, then you can use Config Files to reliably enforce restrictions across multiple websites. This includes the option to block images on a website while still allowing it to be accessed.

For example, I might want to browse using Google Search (with SafeSearch enabled , of course) on my Mac, but I'd like to completely remove any chance of me stumbling upon an image I don't want to see. Normally, I could easily open the images tab for any Google search.

Config Files are installed onto your Mac computer and enforce restrictions across multiple browsers at once. So, instead of blocking the entire Google website, I could block image results from Google entirely like this:

This will also work if you're browsing the main search results page:

As a result, Config Files are a much better choice if you're an adult trying to lock down your own Mac. They can apply to multiple browsers at once, and are restricted with a password so they aren't as easy to uninstall.

Browser Plugins and Extensions

If you need more refined control over your browser, then you may consider using browsing extensions to keep an eye out for keywords or disable elements on a webpage.

These techniques will be especially helpful on websites you might not want to fully block, but could still present a temptation that you'd like to remove.

Content Blocking Plugins

Content blocking plugins provide unique capabilities that you will not get from the hosts file or from DNS Filtering services. Similar to the hosts file, this blocking method will also work even while using a VPN or Proxy.

Block Websites containing words

When you load a website, you'll notice that your browser's address bar has a website URL like www.youtube.com.

You can use a browser extension to block website URLs that contain keywords that you specify.

Block Searches on any Website

You can block searches containing specific keywords on Google, Youtube, or most other search portal websites.

For example, when you search for"fruit" on most websites, the URL will usually have a part like this:

?query=fruit

?q=fruit

Youtube search for "fruit"

Google Search for "fruit"

To block searches on Google and Youtube containing the word "fruit," you can use a browser plugin with a blocking rule like this:

Take the guesswork out of setting up the perfect blocking system. Become a Tech Lockdown member to get access to step-by-step premium blocking guides and expert support.

Block Google Images

When you search on Google images, the URL changes to something like this: https://www.google.com/search?q=apples....&tbm=isch. 

If you want to block Google image search entirely, you can use a blocking plugin to create a block like this to target image search specifically:

*google.com/search*tbm=isch*

Block Based on Window Titles

When you visit a page in your browser, you'll see the title in the tab.

You can configure content-blocking browser plugins on platforms like Windows to block any website that uses a specific title or contains specific words. 

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Create a DNS Content Policy

Enforce content filtering rules on all your devices.

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Element Hider Extensions

One type of extension that is actually pretty useful involves an element hider extension.

You can use this kind of extension to block sections of a website that you use frequently.

For example, Twitch.tv is a website used for watching video game streams. However, you can access non-video game content on the website. You will often see non-video game related channels suggested in the sidebar.

As a result, it can be useful to use this extension to hide recommended channels on Twitch. You can apply this concept to other similar websites.

Note: I block images on Twitch, which is why the images don't load in this example.

How to hide parts of a page:

News Feed Hider

Social media websites can become a problem for people who struggle with quitting porn. Social media news feeds often show content that can trigger a similar dopamine hit to viewing adult content . This can lead to the person seeking out more dopamine.

As a result, if you don't want to completely block social media websites, it can be helpful to hide endless content news feeds.

I download News Feed Eradicator on my computer's web browser, which replaces social media feeds with an inspirational quote. It works on Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Reddit, and even LinkedIn.

Enforce Browser Plugins

A weakness with using browser plugins to block content is that browser plugins can easily be uninstalled or disabled. In order to prevent this, you can manage a browser.

There are two ways that you can manage your browser: either enable policies using the Registry (or Plist files if you're a Mac user) or enable managed mode on your device.

For most computers, it's usually much easier to enforce policies as opposed to managing your entire device. Enforcing browser plugins is a very complicated process that we can't get into here, but we have an entire guide dedicated to explaining how to enforce browser extensions .

Block Browser Plugins

It is also possible to block browser plugins. If you'd like to block specific browser extensions instead of just enforcing specific ones, check out our guide about how to block browser extensions .

Hide the Browser Plugins Store

Additionally, if you would like to avoid the ability to install new extensions altogether, hiding the extensions store completely is one of the best ways to go.