How to Block YouTube on Mac (Safari, Chrome and the App Alike)

Why YouTube is so hard to quit on a Mac

On a Mac, YouTube rarely arrives as a decision. It is a background tab during a build, a "quick" tutorial that becomes a recommendation spiral, or picture-in-picture floating over your editor. Screen Time can nudge you, but the limits are designed to be dismissed. Below are the native options set up as strictly as they go, then a network-level block that covers every browser and app on the machine.

Free method: Screen Time

Two approaches, depending on whether you want a limit or a block:

1. Block it outright. Go to System Settings → Screen Time → Content & Privacy, set web content to Limit Adult Websites, and add youtube.com to the Restricted list.
2. Limit it. Under Screen Time → App Limits, add a limit and choose youtube.com from the websites list, for example 30 minutes a day.
3. Turn on Lock Screen Time Settings and have someone else set the passcode.

Website limits rely on Safari-style tracking and are less dependable in Chrome or Firefox, "Ignore limit" is one click away unless the passcode is someone else's, and Screen Time settings on an admin account can be worked around. It is fine for gentle nudges, weak for a hard stop.

Block YouTube on every browser with NoorI

1. Enroll the Mac with the free Cloudflare One app (see the Mac setup guide) and install the NoorI certificate so blocks show a proper page.
2. In Content Policy, create a rule and add the YouTube app. It covers youtube.com, youtu.be, thumbnails on ytimg.com and the googlevideo.com video servers.
3. Optional: attach a schedule such as weekdays 08:30 to 18:00.
4. Open YouTube in Safari, Chrome and any YouTube wrapper app to confirm all three are blocked.

App blocking and schedules are Pro features ($9.99/month, 7-day free trial). Because this happens at DNS, Safari's private windows, a new browser profile or a downloaded "YouTube for Mac" app all hit the same rule.

The middle ground for developers and learners

• Restricted Mode only. A YouTube Restricted Mode rule keeps tutorials available while filtering mature videos, enforced for every browser.
• Evenings only. Schedule the block for working hours and leave YouTube open after.
• Download, then block. If you rely on a specific course, save it for offline use first, then keep YouTube blocked during the day.

What DNS cannot do: block only Shorts, only recommendations, or only the home feed while leaving search. YouTube serves all of them from the same domains. For phone-side Shorts blocking, see the mobile guides in this section.

Locking it in

Make your daily macOS user a Standard account so the Cloudflare One app and profiles cannot be removed without someone else's admin password. Then switch on Guardian Mode: deleting the YouTube rule, pausing filtering or disconnecting sends an approval email to your accountability partner, and even an approved request waits out your chosen delay (minimum 4 hours) before a 30-minute window opens. Read VPN and bypass prevention for the gaps that remain. Setting up a child's Mac? Use per-child rules.

Frequently asked questions

Can Screen Time block YouTube in Chrome on Mac?

Website limits and restrictions are most reliable in Safari. To block YouTube in Chrome, Firefox and apps as well, use a DNS-level rule such as NoorI's YouTube app block.

Can I block YouTube Shorts but keep normal videos on Mac?

Not with DNS filtering. Shorts and regular videos use the same YouTube domains, so a DNS rule blocks both or neither.

Will blocking YouTube break other websites?

Embedded YouTube players on other sites will stop working while the block is active. The rest of those pages loads normally.