How to block YouTube on iPhone
To block it all day, give YouTube a one-minute App Limit in Screen Time. If you need it for work or study, schedule Downtime for the hours it should be off instead. Then block youtube.com and lock it all with a passcode.
Updated . Steps for iOS 18 and iOS 26, checked against Apple Support and YouTube Help.
This page blocks the YouTube app on your own iPhone. Blocking a channel, so it can’t comment or mention you, is a YouTube setting: see Block channels on YouTube.
First, all day or only some hours?
If YouTube is pure distraction for you, block it outright with an App Limit. If a lecture, a tutorial or a client’s video is part of your work, an all-day block won’t last a week. Block the hours instead: keep it for the evening, or keep it out of your mornings.
1. Block it all day: a one-minute App Limit
- Go to Settings, then Screen Time. Turn on App & Website Activity if Screen Time is off.
- Tap App Limits, then Add Limit.
- Tap the name of the category YouTube is in, so you can choose single apps, and select YouTube.
- Tap Next, set one minute, then tap Add (Done on iOS 26).
Source: Apple, Set schedules with Screen Time on iPhone (iOS 18, iOS 26).
2. Block it at set hours: Downtime
Downtime works the other way round from an App Limit. During the hours you schedule, everything is blocked except calls, messages and the apps you allow. So you choose what stays open, and leave YouTube off the list.
- In Settings, then Screen Time, tap Downtime and turn on Scheduled.
- Choose Every Day or Customize Days and set the hours YouTube should be off. Customize Days lets weekends differ.
- Back in Screen Time, tap Always Allowed and add the apps you need in those hours: your notes, your email, your maps. Don’t add YouTube.
- Once you’ve set a Screen Time passcode (section 4), tap Downtime and turn on Block at Downtime.
That last step matters. Apple says that with Block at Downtime off, you see a reminder but “can choose to continue using the apps.” Scheduled Downtime also sends a reminder five minutes before it starts.
Source: Apple, Set schedules with Screen Time on iPhone (iOS 18, iOS 26).
3. Block youtube.com in Safari
Both methods act on the app. YouTube plays fine in a browser, so block the site by name as well.
- In Settings, then Screen Time, turn on Content & Privacy Restrictions.
- Tap App Store, Media, Web, & Games, then Web Content, then Limit Adult Websites.
- Tap Add Website under Never Allow and enter youtube.com.
This blocks the site all day, even if you went with Downtime. If you study from YouTube in the browser, skip this step and rely on Downtime.
Source: Apple, Block apps, app downloads, websites, and purchases on iPhone (iOS 18).
4. Set a Screen Time passcode
- In Settings, then Screen Time, scroll down and tap Lock Screen Time Settings.
- Let someone else enter the four-digit code, twice, so you can’t change your mind at 1am.
- Leave Screen Time Passcode Recovery off. It would let you reset the code with your Apple Account.
Source: Apple, Create, manage, and keep track of a Screen Time passcode (iOS 18).
Why one video turns into ten
Autoplay. In YouTube’s words, “When Autoplay is on, another related video will automatically play after a video ends.” On mobile data it stops by itself after 30 minutes of inactivity. On Wi-Fi, YouTube says, it stops after four hours (YouTube Help).
None of that is hidden, and you can switch it off. It just means the default is to keep going, and stopping is the step you have to take.
YouTube’s own settings
All four are in the YouTube app. They don’t block anything, but they make the next video a choice.
- Autoplay off. Profile picture, Settings, Autoplay. The one to change first.
- Take a break reminder. Profile picture, Settings, General, Remind me to take a break. It “will pause your video until you dismiss it.” Off by default for adults, and phones only (YouTube Help).
- Bedtime reminder. Same menu, Remind me when it’s bedtime. It can interrupt the video or wait for it to end, and offers Remind Me Again in 15 minutes (YouTube Help).
- Shorts feed limit. You tab, Settings, Time management. It can be set to zero, but at the limit YouTube offers “an option to dismiss or ignore” it (YouTube Help).
YouTube and a Stint session
Stint doesn’t try to judge which videos are work. You decide before the session starts.
- Focus counts only in your work apps. Stint counts time while you’re in the work apps you chose, and only during a session. Social apps aren’t work apps, and an app can’t be on your work list and your block list at once.
- Block it, and it’s blocked for the session. Pick YouTube in Apple’s app picker and opening it shows a block screen. Unlock anyway opens it and ends that day’s session. Nothing you didn’t pick is blocked.
- Leave it unblocked, and know what counts. Studying from a video isn’t forbidden. Time spent in YouTube simply doesn’t count toward the goal unless it’s one of your work apps.
- A pool keeps you honest. Everyone pays the same entry fee into a prize pool, and everyone who meets the daily goal on the days the rules require qualifies to split it. You’re never charged more than your entry fee.
Picking work apps for study is covered on Stint as a focus app for studying.
YouTube’s reminders, Screen Time or Stint?
Keeps YouTube for study
- YouTube’s reminders
- Yes, nothing is blocked
- Screen Time and a passcode
- Yes, with Downtime at set hours
- Stint session
- Yes, if you don’t pick it to block
When it kicks in
- YouTube’s reminders
- After the time you set, or at bedtime
- Screen Time and a passcode
- After a daily limit, or during Downtime
- Stint session
- While a focus session runs
Getting past it
- YouTube’s reminders
- Dismiss the reminder
- Screen Time and a passcode
- Only with the passcode
- Stint session
- Unlock anyway, which ends that day’s session
Cost
- YouTube’s reminders
- Free
- Screen Time and a passcode
- Free and built in
- Stint session
- Free to download. A pool has an entry fee, and that’s the most you can lose
Turn Autoplay off today whatever else you do. For every other app, the guide to blocking apps on iPhone has the same steps.
Questions
How do I block YouTube on iPhone but keep it for school or work?
Use Downtime instead of an App Limit. Schedule Downtime for the hours YouTube should be off-limits, add the apps you need to Always Allowed, and leave YouTube out. Outside those hours it works as normal.
Does blocking the YouTube app block youtube.com?
No. Screen Time limits are set on the app, so also add youtube.com to Never Allow under Content & Privacy Restrictions, Web Content. On iOS 27, Apple says a Time Allowance covers a website the app declares as its own.
How do I stop YouTube playing the next video?
Turn Autoplay off: tap your profile picture, then Settings, then Autoplay, and switch it off. YouTube’s Help Center says you can also cancel the next video at the end of the one you’re watching.
Can I block YouTube Shorts but keep normal videos?
Not with Screen Time, which works on whole apps. YouTube’s own Shorts feed limit can be set to zero, but YouTube says you’re offered the option to dismiss or ignore it when you reach it.
Is Stint free?
Stint is free to download for iPhone on iOS 18 or later. A pool has an entry fee, shown before you join, and Stint Pro (US$5.99 a month) is optional.
Block YouTube while the work gets done
Stint is free to download for iPhone on iOS 18 or later. You pay a pool’s entry fee only when you join one.
