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How to block apps on iPhone and make it stick (iOS 27)

To block an app on iPhone, use Screen Time: set an App Limit (or a Time Allowance on iOS 27) for the app, set a Screen Time passcode so the limit cannot be ignored, and turn on blocking. To keep the app from coming back, also set Installing Apps to Don't Allow. Every one of these can be undone by someone who knows the passcode, so if the block is for yourself, the only way to make it stick is a supervised iPhone.

Here is each built-in option, what it actually stops, and what it does not. Menu names are checked against Apple's support pages as of October 2026.

First, a note on iOS 26 and iOS 27

iOS 27 rebuilt Screen Time. On iOS 26 and earlier you have Downtime and App Limits. On iOS 27, Apple's guide describes a Screen Time Schedule and Time Allowances by category (such as Entertainment, Games and Social Media) instead. Always Allowed exists in both. The steps below give both versions where they differ.

Option 1: App Limits (iOS 26 and earlier)

App Limits put a daily timer on an app or a category.

  1. Open Settings and tap Screen Time.
  2. Tap App Limits, then tap Add Limit.
  3. Pick a category, or tap a category name and select single apps inside it.
  4. Tap Next, set the time, then tap Add.

Set the shortest time the picker allows. Apple's own guide warns: "By default, Screen Time limits can be ignored once reached." When the timer runs out you can tap Ignore Limit and keep going. To stop that, Apple's guide says to set a Screen Time passcode and turn on Block at Downtime (see Option 2), so limits cannot be ignored once they are reached.

Option 2: Downtime and Always Allowed (iOS 26 and earlier)

Downtime blocks everything except the apps you allow. It is the closest built-in thing to "block all apps except these".

  1. Open Settings and tap Screen Time.
  2. Tap Downtime, then tap Scheduled and pick Every Day or Customize Days, with start and end times.
  3. Turn on Block at Downtime. This needs a Screen Time passcode. Without it, you only get a reminder you can dismiss.
  4. Go back and tap Always Allowed. Add the apps you need (Phone, Maps, your bank) and leave the app you want blocked off the list.

A 24-hour schedule turns this into an all-day block on everything outside Always Allowed.

Option 3: Screen Time Schedule and Time Allowances (iOS 27)

On iOS 27:

  1. Open Settings, tap Screen Time, then tap Time Allowances.
  2. Tap Manage Categories, add a category such as Social Media, and drag its time down.
  3. For time-of-day blocks, tap Screen Time Schedule, turn on Schedule, tap Add Schedule, and leave the category out of the time windows where you want it gone.
  4. Tap Always Allowed to choose apps that stay open no matter what.

Apple notes that if an app declares a website, its Time Allowance covers that website too. Apple's guide describes Time Allowances by category only; it does not describe a separate allowance for one app.

On a child's iPhone with iOS 27, you can block a single app directly: open Settings, tap Family, tap your child's name, tap Apps & Websites, select the app and tap Block App. The app is not deleted; it is dimmed on the Home Screen.

Option 4: Lock or hide the app with Face ID (iOS 18 and later)

  1. On the Home Screen, touch and hold the app.
  2. Tap Require Face ID (or Touch ID or Passcode).
  3. Tap Require Face ID again to lock it, or Hide and Require Face ID, then Hide App, to also remove it from the Home Screen.

A hidden app moves to a Hidden folder at the bottom of App Library. This is a privacy feature, not a block: your own face opens it. Apps that came with the iPhone cannot be hidden.

Option 5: Stop the app from coming back

Deleting an app is the most honest block there is, until you download it again. To close that door:

  1. Open Settings, tap Screen Time, then tap Content & Privacy Restrictions and turn it on.
  2. Tap iTunes & App Store Purchases.
  3. Tap Installing Apps and choose Don't Allow.

The App Store icon disappears from the Home Screen and no app can be installed until you change it back. Depending on your iOS version, the same screen may also let you stop apps from being deleted, so a limited app cannot be deleted and reinstalled. On a child's iPhone with iOS 27 Family settings, the install choice is under Apps & Websites > App Store > Installing Apps, set to Blocked.

Hide Apple's own apps

Built-in apps such as Safari, Camera and FaceTime cannot be deleted, but Screen Time can hide them. On iOS 26: Content & Privacy Restrictions > Allowed Apps & Features, then turn off the app. On iOS 27 this section is called Other Features.

Why these blocks do not stick

Look at the list again. Every option above is undone in Settings:

  • The Screen Time passcode. If you set it for yourself, you know it. If you forget it, Screen Time Passcode Recovery can reset it with your Apple Account.
  • Ignore Limit. Without a passcode and blocking turned on, the limit is a suggestion.
  • Turning off Screen Time. Turning off App & Website Activity removes every limit at once (it asks for the passcode if one is set).
  • Face ID. A lock that opens with your face is not a lock against you.
  • Blocker apps. Third-party app blockers use Apple's Screen Time tools and live on the phone, so they can be paused, deleted, or have their Screen Time permission turned off.

For a child without the passcode, Screen Time is often enough. For an adult quitting an app, the way out is in their own pocket.

The stronger option: supervision

Apple has a second, stricter system meant for companies and schools: supervised iPhones with configuration profiles. A profile on a supervised iPhone can:

  • hide specific App Store apps by their bundle ID, so the app leaves the Home Screen and cannot be opened,
  • turn off app installation, so the App Store icon is gone,
  • stop the user from changing Screen Time settings, erasing the iPhone, or hiding and locking apps,
  • be marked so it cannot be removed in Settings.

None of this sits under Screen Time, so there is no passcode and no Ignore Limit button.

The problem is how an iPhone becomes supervised. Apple Configurator on a Mac does it, and Apple's deployment guide says: "During this process, the device is erased and all data is lost." The other path, Automated Device Enrollment with an MDM server, is built for organizations that buy their iPhones through Apple Business Manager. Neither suits a person who wants to block Instagram on the phone they already use.

Wax: block apps with supervision, without erasing

We built Wax for exactly that case. It is a Mac app that supervises your iPhone over a USB cable, without erasing it, and installs a profile that blocks the apps and websites you pick.

  • Setup: turn off Find My on the iPhone, back it up, plug it into your Mac and click Supervise. The iPhone restarts once. Pick apps by searching the App Store from your Mac, then tap Install on the iPhone. Photos, messages and apps stay where they were.
  • What it blocks: any App Store app (a game, a dating app, a video app), the App Store itself if you want, and websites in Safari.
  • What it cannot block: Apple's own apps, such as Safari, Messages and Phone. For those, use the Screen Time setting under Hide Apple's own apps above.
  • What happens on the phone: a blocked app is gone from the Home Screen and cannot be opened. No setting on the iPhone brings it back.
  • How to undo it: choose Remove Supervision in Wax on your Mac, then remove the profile in Settings. Your data stays. Erasing the iPhone also removes it.
  • Requirements as of October 2026: a Mac with Apple silicon on macOS 14 or later, and an iPhone on iOS 27 or earlier.

Read how Wax works or the common questions. To block websites as well, see how to block websites on iPhone.

Which method fits you?

  • A child's phone: App Limits or Time Allowances (or Block App on iOS 27), Installing Apps set to Don't Allow, and a passcode only you know.
  • A short break from an app: delete it and turn off Installing Apps for a while.
  • Keeping someone out of a private app: Require Face ID and Hide.
  • Quitting an app for good on your own phone: supervision.

Frequently asked questions

How do I permanently block an app on iPhone?

Delete the app and set Installing Apps to Don't Allow under Content & Privacy Restrictions, with a Screen Time passcode you do not know. That holds until someone types the passcode. For a block nobody can undo on the phone, you need a supervised iPhone with a profile that hides the app, which Wax sets up without erasing.

How do you completely block an app on iPhone?

Screen Time can limit an app to a short time each day and, with a passcode, block it after the limit, but the passcode holder can always lift it. A complete block hides the app by its bundle ID through a configuration profile on a supervised iPhone. The app then cannot be opened at all, and no setting on the iPhone restores it.

Is it possible to hide apps on iPhone?

Yes. On iOS 18 and later, touch and hold an app, tap Require Face ID, then Hide and Require Face ID. The app moves to a Hidden folder in App Library. You can see hidden apps in Settings > Apps > Hidden Apps. Apps that came with the iPhone cannot be hidden this way.

Can you lock an app so you can't use it?

You can lock an app with Face ID, but your own face unlocks it, so it will not stop you. To lock yourself out, ask someone else to set a Screen Time passcode and use App Limits or Downtime with blocking on. For a lock with no way around it on the phone, use supervision.

Can you delete the App Store?

No, but you can hide it. Set Installing Apps to Don't Allow under Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions > iTunes & App Store Purchases. The App Store icon disappears and no apps can be installed. On a supervised iPhone, a profile can do the same in a way Settings cannot reverse.