How do I block websites on Safari?

There are four free routes. The simplest built-in option is Screen Time: go to System Settings → Screen Time → Content & Privacy → Content Restrictions → Limit Adult Websites → Customize, and add the site under Restricted. You can also edit the /etc/hosts file in Terminal to block a domain across all browsers, install a Safari content-blocker extension, or use a system-level app like Focuh that blocks sites during a focus session. Screen Time is the fastest; a system-level app is the hardest to bypass.

How do I block a website on Safari using Screen Time?

Open System Settings → Screen Time → Content & Privacy. Turn on Content & Privacy Restrictions, click Content Restrictions, set Access to Web Content to Limit Adult Websites, then click Customize and add the site's URL under Restricted. Safari will block it and you can password-protect the change with a Screen Time passcode. It's free and built in, but it only governs Safari — other browsers ignore it — and a determined user with the passcode can remove the restriction in seconds.

Does blocking a site in Safari block it in Chrome too?

It depends on the method. Screen Time restrictions and Safari extensions only affect Safari — Chrome, Firefox, and Arc are untouched. Editing the /etc/hosts file or using a system-level blocker like Focuh blocks the domain across every browser at once, because the block happens below the browser. If you only use Safari, the built-in options are enough. If you switch browsers, you need OS-level blocking to avoid the obvious escape hatch.

How do I block websites on Safari for free?

Every reliable method is free. Screen Time and the /etc/hosts file are built into macOS at no cost. Most Safari content-blocker extensions have free tiers. Focuh's desktop app is free and blocks sites system-wide during a focus session. You don't need to pay to block websites on a Mac — the paid blockers mostly sell stricter enforcement or cross-platform sync, not the basic ability to block, which macOS gives you for free.

Can I block websites on Safari with a Safari extension?

Yes. Safari supports content-blocker extensions from the App Store that can hide or block specific sites. They install in a click and work well inside Safari. The catch is the same as any extension: it only governs Safari, it can be toggled off in Safari's settings, and it does nothing about other browsers or native apps. For light, in-Safari blocking it's fine; for anything you're tempted to bypass, a system-level tool is sturdier.

How do I block a website on Safari permanently?

Nothing on a Mac is truly permanent, since you control the machine — but the hardest to undo is the hosts file combined with a system-level blocker. The hosts file stays until you manually edit it out, and a focus app like Focuh blocks at the OS level using Accessibility APIs, which takes deliberate effort in System Settings to disable rather than a quick toggle. Screen Time and extensions are the easiest to reverse, so they're the least 'permanent.'

Why does Safari let me back onto a site I blocked?

Usually because the block only covered Safari and you reopened the site in another browser, or because you removed a Screen Time restriction or toggled off an extension without much friction. Browser-level blocks are easy to undo by design. If you keep finding your way back, the issue isn't the site — it's that the block is too easy to switch off. Move to OS-level blocking, which doesn't sit in a settings toggle you can flip in two clicks.

Safariwebsite blockermacOSScreen Timeproductivity

How to Block Websites on Safari (Mac, 2026)

Q: What's the most reliable way to block distracting websites on a Mac?

System-level blocking. Tools like Focuh block sites across every browser and native app during a focus session, so there's no second browser to escape to and no per-app exception to forget. The free Focuh Mac app uses macOS Accessibility APIs rather than living in Safari's settings, which makes it harder to disable mid-session than a Screen Time toggle or an extension. For built-in simplicity Screen Time wins; for actually staying off the site, OS-level blocking wins.

May 31, 202610 min readFocuh

If a site keeps pulling you out of focus, here's how to block websites on Safari for free: use Screen Time for the fastest built-in block, edit the hosts file to cover every browser, or run a system-level app that blocks sites during a focus session. Screen Time takes two minutes; system-level blocking is the hardest to talk yourself out of.

This guide walks through every method — built-in macOS tools, Safari extensions, and OS-level blocking — with the honest limits of each, so you can pick the one that matches how hard you actually need the block to be.

Method 1: Screen Time (built in, free)

macOS has a built-in content filter inside Screen Time, and it's the quickest way to block a site in Safari.

Open System Settings → Screen Time.
Click Content & Privacy, then turn on Content & Privacy Restrictions.
Click Content Restrictions → Access to Web Content and choose Limit Adult Websites.
Click Customize, and under Restricted, add the site you want blocked (for example, https://www.reddit.com).

Safari will now block that site. You can set a Screen Time passcode so the restriction can't be removed without it, which adds a little friction.

The honest limits: Screen Time only governs Safari. Open the same site in Chrome and it loads fine. And if you know the passcode — which, for your own machine, you do — you can lift the restriction in a few clicks. It's great for a quick, casual block, less great when the temptation is strong.

Method 2: Safari content-blocker extension

Safari supports content-blocker extensions from the App Store. Install one, add the sites you want gone, and they're blocked inside Safari with no Terminal and no system settings.

This is the most app-like option — a click to install, a simple list to manage. For light blocking it's perfectly fine.

The catch is familiar: an extension only controls Safari. It can be toggled off in Safari's preferences, and it has no effect on Chrome, Firefox, Arc, or native apps. If you're the type to switch browsers the moment you hit a wall, the wall isn't tall enough.

Method 3: Edit the hosts file (covers every browser)

If you want to block a site across Safari and every other browser, edit your Mac's hosts file. It works at the network layer, below the browser, so the block is universal.

Open Terminal and run:

sudo nano /etc/hosts

Enter your password, then add the domains at the bottom:

127.0.0.1 reddit.com
127.0.0.1 www.reddit.com

Save with Control+O, exit with Control+X, then flush DNS:

sudo dscacheutil -flushcache; sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

The hosts file is free, universal, and effective. Its weakness is that it has no timer and no friction — the site is blocked until you reopen the file and delete those lines, which takes about as long as adding them. There's nothing stopping a determined you from undoing it.

Method 4: System-level blocking with a focus app

The methods above each block something. A system-level focus app blocks everything — across every browser and native app — and ties the block to a session instead of a permanent toggle.

The free Focuh desktop app for Mac blocks distracting sites at the operating-system level during a focus session. While the session runs, the site is unreachable in Safari, Chrome, Firefox, and Arc at the same time, and Focuh pairs blocking with a focus timer, a menu-bar countdown, and task management. Because it uses macOS Accessibility APIs rather than living in Safari's settings, it's harder to switch off mid-session than a Screen Time toggle or an extension.

This is the option to choose when the problem isn't "I forgot a site was bad" but "I keep finding my way back." Removing every escape hatch at once is what makes it stick.

Safari website-blocking methods, compared

Method	Free?	Covers other browsers?	Has a session/timer?	Bypass friction
Screen Time	Yes	No (Safari only)	No	Low (passcode helps)
Safari extension	Usually	No	No	Low
Hosts file	Yes	Yes	No	Low (easy to edit out)
Focuh Mac app	Yes	Yes (OS-level)	Yes — focus session	High

The pattern is clear once it's laid out. The built-in options are quick but narrow and easy to undo. The hosts file is universal but has no off-switch friction. The system-level app is the only row that covers every browser and ties the block to a session you can't casually flip off.

Why browser-only blocks keep failing

If you've blocked a site in Safari and ended up back on it within the hour, the method wasn't the problem — the scope was. A Safari-only block leaves Chrome wide open. The moment you hit the wall in Safari, the autopilot move is to open the same site in another browser, and a browser-scoped block can't see that.

This is the core argument for OS-level blocking: it closes the side doors. When the block lives below the browser, there's no "other browser" to escape to and no native app exception to forget. For the full comparison of the two approaches, see system-level vs browser website blocking and our deeper look at system-level website blocking on macOS.

Which method should you use?

Match the method to how hard you need the block to be.

"I just want a quick block in Safari and I trust myself" — Use Screen Time. Built in, two minutes, free.

"I want something app-like inside Safari" — Use a Safari content-blocker extension. Easy to install, easy to manage, Safari-only.

"I use more than one browser" — Use the hosts file for a universal block, or the Focuh Mac app if you also want a timer and stronger friction.

"I keep talking myself back onto the site" — Use system-level blocking. The Focuh app removes every escape hatch during a session, which is the difference between a block you respect and one you route around.

All of these are free, so you can start with Screen Time and step up to OS-level blocking if the casual block doesn't hold. For a roundup of dedicated Mac blockers, see the best website blockers for Mac in 2026, or download the free Focuh app to block across your whole system today.