How to Block Websites on Chrome: A Step-by-Step Guide

The fastest way to block websites on Chrome is a free extension: install Website Blocker, click its icon, enter the site's address and click Block. From then on the site shows a block page instead of loading, in every tab, until you remove the rule. This guide covers each step, then shows how to block a single page, block a site only at certain times, keep the block working in Incognito, and fix a site that still opens.

Extension: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/website-blocker/kniediipngcpmbmpeacaoinhoeipfina

Does Chrome have a built-in way to block websites?

Not one you can switch on in Settings. Chrome's Site settings control what a site may do (notifications, pop-ups, camera), but they cannot stop the site from loading. Chrome's real blocking tools are meant for administrators and parents: an organization or computer admin can block addresses with a Chrome policy, and parents can block sites on a child's Google Account with Family Link. Both work, but they take setup and are not something you can turn on for yourself in a minute. We compare them, along with the hosts file (which needs admin rights), in how to block websites in Chrome without an extension.

For most people, an extension is the quickest way to block a website on Chrome, and it is the method this guide uses. If you want the background first, see what a website blocker is and how it works.

One limit up front: Chrome on Android and iPhone does not run extensions, so these steps work on a computer (Windows, Mac, Linux or a Chromebook), not on your phone.

How to block websites on Chrome, step by step

The whole setup takes about two minutes. You only do steps 1 and 2 once.

Step 1: Install Website Blocker

Open Website Blocker on the Chrome Web Store and click Add to Chrome. In the dialog that opens, click Add extension. The extension is free, and blocking as many sites as you like does not cost anything.

Step 2: Pin the icon to the toolbar

Chrome hides new extensions behind the puzzle-piece Extensions button to the right of the address bar. Click it, find Website Blocker in the list and click the pin icon next to it. The icon now stays in the toolbar, one click away.

Step 3: Open the popup and enter the site

Click the Website Blocker icon. The popup (its header reads WebBlocker) has a field under Block Websites with the placeholder "e.g. https://www.google.com". If you open the popup while you are on the site you want to block, the field is already filled in with that site's address. Otherwise, type it in.

What you type matters. By default the rule blocks every address that contains your text, so a short entry catches more:

• youtube.com blocks www.youtube.com, m.youtube.com, music.youtube.com and every page on them.
• www.youtube.com blocks every page on www.youtube.com, which is where desktop YouTube lives.
• youtube.com/shorts blocks only the Shorts pages and leaves the rest of the site open.

WebBlocker

English

Running

Block Websites

www.youtube.com Block

Block Type

Permanent Block

Attempt Wise Block 3

Reset attempt daily

Time Wise Block

Recently Blocked Website

https://www.reddit.com/

https://www.instagram.com/

Create Password Remove Password

Step 4: Keep Permanent Block and click Block

Under Block Type, leave Permanent Block selected. It is the default, and it means the site is always blocked. Click Block. The site appears under Recently Blocked Website right away, and there is no Save button to look for.

Repeat steps 3 and 4 for every site you want to block on Chrome. To block sites on Chrome in bulk, you can import a list from a CSV file instead of adding them one by one.

Step 5: Test the block

Open a new tab and go to the site. Instead of the page you should see the block screen with the message "Looks like you've reached a dead end". If the site was already open in a tab, reload that tab.

You can change what the block page shows in Settings: write your own custom message, redirect blocked sites to a useful page (for all sites, or per rule), add a Reason to a rule so your own words appear on the block screen, or close the blocked tab automatically after a few seconds.

Block a whole site or just one page

Every rule has a Filter URL setting with two options. You set it on the Settings page (the gear icon in the popup) when you add or edit a rule:

• Contain (default) blocks any address that contains the text you entered.
• Exact blocks only an address that matches exactly.

You can also use "*" as a wildcard in Contain mode. Here is how the options combine:

Two things to watch. Contain matches the text anywhere in the address, so a very short word (say, "news") also blocks unrelated sites that happen to contain it. And wildcards do not work in Exact mode, so remove the "*" if you switch a rule to Exact. There are more examples in keyword and exact URL rules and blocking nested pages with Contain vs Exact.

Block a site only at certain times or after a limit

Permanent Block is the simplest choice, but you don't have to cut a site off completely. The other two block types in the same popup give you a limit instead:

• Attempt Wise Block lets you open the site a set number of times, then blocks it. Tick Reset attempt daily to get a fresh count every day.
• Time Wise Block blocks the site after a time limit: After 1 Minute, After 5 Minute, After 10 Minute, After 30 Minute, After 1 Hour or Custom Minutes. Tick Reset time limit daily to renew the allowance each day.
• Custom Schedule (in the Time Wise list) blocks the site on the days and hours you pick, for example Monday to Friday during work hours.

Without a daily reset, a rule that reaches its limit stays blocked until you change it. There is also a Whitelist mode that turns things around: it blocks everything except the sites you allow. Which mode suits which habit is covered in our guide to the Chrome block websites modes, and the feature pages explain scheduled blocking and attempt-based blocking in detail.

Make the block stick

A block that is easy to get around doesn't help much. These settings close the usual gaps.

Turn on Allow in Incognito

Chrome does not run extensions in Incognito windows unless you allow it, so a blocked site opens normally there. To fix this, go to chrome://extensions, click Details under Website Blocker and turn on Allow in Incognito. More on this in blocking websites in Incognito mode.

Lock your settings with a password

Click Create Password in the popup, set a password and choose a security question and answer. After that, changing your rules or settings requires the password. If you forget the password, you can reset it with the security answer. Remember at least one of them, because if you forget both there is no way to recover access. See password protection.

Add a cooldown before blocking can be turned off (Pro)

With Pro, Disable Cooldown makes you wait before the extension can be switched off. The pause is often enough for the urge to pass. Read how the cooldown timer stops impulsive unblocking. Pro costs $2.99 a month or $14.99 a year, with a 14-day free trial.

Stop the extension from being removed

Anyone who can open chrome://extensions can still disable or remove an extension, and a password cannot prevent that. If you manage the computer, a browser policy can keep the extension installed: see preventing removal in Chrome on Windows (registry) and preventing removal in Firefox (policies.json).

How to edit, pause or unblock a site

• Pause all blocking: click the Running toggle in the popup header. It switches to Paused, and no rule is applied until you turn it back on.
• Pause one site: open Settings (the gear icon). In the Block List, turn that site's Rule Status to Off. The rule stays saved, so you can turn it back on later.
• Edit a rule: click the pencil icon next to the site under Recently Blocked Website, or in the Block List. The rule opens in Settings, where you can change the block type, Filter URL, redirect or reason, then save.
• Unblock a site: click the trash icon next to it and confirm.

If you created a password, the extension asks for it before these changes. Every blocked visit is also logged on the History page, which you can turn off or clear. See block history.

Troubleshooting: the site still opens

If a site you blocked on Chrome still loads, one of these is almost always the reason:

Block websites in Edge and Firefox the same way

Website Blocker is also available for Microsoft Edge and Firefox, with the same popup, block types and settings, so the steps above carry over almost unchanged:

• Edge: install from Microsoft Edge Add-ons, show it in the toolbar from the Extensions button, and to block sites in InPrivate windows turn on Allow in InPrivate in the extension's details in edge://extensions.
• Firefox: install from Firefox Add-ons with Add to Firefox, and to block sites in private windows set Run in Private Windows to Allow on the extension's page in about:addons.

Rules are stored in each browser separately. To copy them across, export your settings as a JSON file and import it in the other browser: see backup and restore. For help choosing what to block and building a routine around it, read which websites to block to stop distractions.

Conclusion

Learning how to block websites on Chrome takes a couple of minutes: install the extension, enter the site, keep Permanent Block and click Block. Then close the gaps: allow the extension in Incognito, add a password, and use Contain or Exact to block exactly what you mean. When you want limits instead of a hard block, switch to Attempt Wise Block, Time Wise Block or a schedule.

If you are still comparing tools, our checklist of what a good site blocker Chrome extension should do may help. Otherwise, add Website Blocker to Chrome and block the first site that keeps pulling you away. It is free, and you can pause or remove any rule whenever you like.