How to Block Distracting Websites on Safari & iPhone Browsers

You successfully blocked the Instagram or Reddit app. You feel proud of your self-discipline. But within two hours, you find yourself opening Safari, typing reddit.com or instagram.com, and scrolling on the mobile web version. Sound familiar?

Mobile web versions of social networks have become virtually identical to their native app counterparts. If your app blocker only targets iOS apps and ignores Safari, your attention will simply slip through the browser loophole.

Method 1: Apple's Built-in Web Content Restrictions

iOS provides a built-in method to permanently restrict specific URLs inside Safari and all WebKit browsers:

1. Open Settings → Screen Time.
2. Tap Content & Privacy Restrictions and toggle it on.
3. Select Store, Web, Siri & Game Center Content (or Content Restrictions depending on iOS sub-version).
4. Tap Web Content.
5. Choose Limit Adult Websites.
6. Under Never Allow, tap Add Website and enter the domains you wish to ban (e.g. https://www.reddit.com or https://x.com).

While effective, this method is static: the website is permanently blocked 24/7 unless you dig back through Settings to disable the rule. It does not support flexible focus sessions or workday-only windows.

Method 2: Session-Based Web Blocking with Bullseye

If you want websites blocked during your focus sprints or work schedules—but accessible when you are off the clock—you need a blocker that supports web domain tokens.

Bullseye leverages Apple's WebDomain Shield tokens to integrate web blocking seamlessly into your focus sessions:

1. Open Bullseye.
2. In your app picker, tap the Websites tab at the top.
3. Add the domains you tend to visit when bored (e.g., news portals, gossip blogs, social web addresses).
4. Start a timer or link the websites to your daily work schedule.
5. When you attempt to navigate to that URL in Safari or any WebKit browser during an active session, Apple's system shield appears directly over the webpage.

Closing the Incognito / Private Browsing Loophole

Some users try to bypass website blocks by opening a Private Browsing tab. With Apple's Screen Time framework:

• When Content & Privacy restrictions or Web Domain shields are active, Private Browsing in Safari is automatically restricted or monitored by the operating system.
• Alternative browsers like Chrome or Firefox on iOS use the same underlying WebKit engine and are subject to the same domain-level ManagedSettings shields.