How to Block Porn on iPhone: Complete 2026 Guide
The short answer. The fastest free way to block porn on an iPhone is Screen Time: Settings, Screen Time, Content & Privacy Restrictions, Web Content, Limit Adult Websites. It takes two minutes and covers Safari and most other browsers. A DNS filter adds a second layer on Wi-Fi. Both can be switched off in under a minute by anyone who knows the Screen Time passcode, and if you set the passcode, that is you. This guide gives the exact taps for the free methods, the seven ways they get undone, and how to set a Screen Time passcode that you never see, so the block holds until a date you chose.
Method 1: Screen Time (free, two minutes, built in)
Screen Time is Apple's own content filter. It has been on every iPhone since iOS 12 and it is the right first step for everyone.
The taps on iOS 18 and later:
- Open Settings and tap Screen Time.
- Tap Content & Privacy Restrictions and switch it on.
- Tap App Store, Media, Web, & Games.
- Tap Web Content.
- Choose Limit Adult Websites.
On iOS 17 and older, step 3 is called Content Restrictions instead. The rest is the same.
Under the same Web Content screen you can add sites to Never Allow. Adult sites that slip through the filter go there. For a child's phone, Only Approved Websites is stricter: nothing loads unless it is on the list.
Then lock it:
- Go back to the Screen Time screen and tap Lock Screen Time Settings (older iOS: Use Screen Time Passcode).
- Set a four-digit passcode. From now on the restrictions cannot be changed without it.
What it blocks: known adult sites in Safari, in Chrome, Firefox, and other browsers that follow Apple's rules, and adult links opened from Messages and Mail. Explicit content in the App Store, Apple Music, and Books is filtered too.
Where it breaks:
- Whoever knows the passcode can turn the filter off in the same five taps.
- Forgot Passcode? resets it with your Apple ID. If the phone is yours, that is your Apple ID.
- It filters websites, not content inside apps. Adult material on Reddit, X, or Telegram is inside an app, not on a blocked domain.
- New apps, including VPNs and other browsers, can still be installed unless you also block installs. That setting is two screens away and covered below.
Method 2: DNS filtering (free, Wi-Fi only)
A DNS filter refuses to look up adult domains, so they fail to load in every browser and app on that network.
- Open Settings, tap Wi-Fi.
- Tap the (i) next to your network.
- Tap Configure DNS, choose Manual.
- Delete the servers listed, then add
185.228.168.168and185.228.169.168(CleanBrowsing Family Filter). - Tap Save.
Where it breaks:
- It is per network. Cellular data and any other Wi-Fi network are unfiltered unless you install a DNS configuration profile from the filter provider.
- It is a setting, so it is undone in the same screen.
- Any VPN app sends traffic around it.
Use it as a second layer under Screen Time, not on its own.
Method 3: Blocker apps (free until you delete them)
Apps like BlockerX, Canopy, and Covenant Eyes filter traffic through a VPN on the phone or replace the browser with a filtered one. Some are good filters.
Where they break: every one of them can be deleted by pressing and holding the icon, unless app deletion is blocked in Screen Time. Most run through a VPN that can be disconnected in Settings. Their passcodes are reset by email, and the email account is yours.
Why the free methods fail the same way
Every method above is set up by the person holding the phone, so it can be removed by the person holding the phone. In a calm moment that is fine. At 1am it is the whole problem. The version of you who set the filter in the morning is not the version in charge at night, and that version knows the passcode.
The seven ways a free block gets undone on iPhone, all in under a minute:
- Enter the Screen Time passcode and turn the filter off.
- Tap Forgot Passcode? and reset it with the Apple ID.
- Install a free VPN.
- Install another browser, or open one that was already there.
- Switch DNS back to Automatic, or move to cellular data.
- Delete the blocker app.
- Erase the phone and set it up again.
Nobody is told when any of this happens. The block disappears at night and is back by morning.
If you are protecting a young child who will not go looking for these, Screen Time with app installs blocked is a good setup and it is free. If you are protecting a teenager, or yourself, the question is not which filter is strongest. It is whether the block survives the person who wants it gone.
Method 4: A Screen Time passcode you never see (QuitPorn)
QuitPorn uses Apple's own Screen Time lock and fixes the one weakness in it: you know the passcode. The setup closes each of the seven bypasses above, in order.
The passcode is never on screen. During setup you set a random four-digit code in Screen Time that you never see and cannot remember. It is never shown, never emailed, never in your notes. QuitPorn stores it encrypted and shows it to you on your dashboard only when your lock period ends.
The lock has a date, not a switch. You choose the period before setup: up to 30 days on the monthly plan, up to 180 days on the six-month plan, up to 365 days on the annual plan. There is no early reveal, no emergency unlock, no support ticket that gets the code out sooner. When the date arrives, a Reveal Passcode button appears on your dashboard.
Every bypass is closed during setup. The guided setup on quitporn.io walks through these steps, with a video and screenshots for each:
- Choose the lock length and accept the terms.
- Turn off Find My iPhone (Advanced Mode), which is one of the routes to a reset.
- Install the apps you need for the lock period, because installs are about to be blocked.
- Delete the apps you do not need, including spare browsers.
- Sign out of iCloud (Advanced Mode), so the passcode cannot be recovered through the account.
- Turn on Screen Time without a passcode yet.
- Set the web filter: Limit Adult Websites, plus any sites you add to Never Allow.
- Block app changes: Installing Apps and Deleting Apps both set to Don't Allow. No new VPNs, no new browsers, no deleting the filter.
- Block account changes, so a new Apple ID cannot be added.
- Turn off Forgot Passcode recovery, so the Apple ID cannot reset the lock.
- Set the passcode with our audio step, so you never see or keep the code.
The whole thing takes ten to fifteen minutes. From that moment the iPhone is locked until the date you chose.
The same lock on every device. One account covers up to 5 devices: iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows and Mac. A laptop with no block is the usual bypass for a phone with one, so the lock needs to be on all of them.
Plans start at 10 dollars a month on the annual plan, 15 dollars month to month, with a seven-day money-back guarantee. See the plans.
How to block porn on iPhone permanently
Nothing on a phone is permanent if the owner can change the settings, so "permanently" means "until a date I chose, with no way to end it early". On iPhone that takes three things: the Screen Time web filter, app installs and deletions blocked, and a Screen Time passcode nobody has, with Apple ID recovery switched off. The first two are free. The third is the part QuitPorn does. Set the longest period you are willing to commit to, then decide again when it ends, in daylight.
How to block porn on a child's iPhone
For a child under 13, use Family Sharing and set Screen Time from your own phone: Settings, Family, the child's name, Screen Time. The same restrictions apply, and the passcode lives on your phone rather than theirs. Block app installs, set Web Content to Limit Adult Websites or Only Approved Websites, and turn on Ask to Buy. For a teenager who knows how to look for workarounds, the weak point is the same as for an adult: whoever knows the passcode, or can reset it, owns the block.
Comparison
| Screen Time | DNS filter | Blocker app | QuitPorn | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blocks Safari and other browsers | Yes | On that network | Depends | Yes |
| Works on cellular data | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Blocks inside apps | No | Domains only | Partly | Domains only |
| Stops new app installs | Optional setting | No | No | Yes, during the lock |
| Stops deleting the blocker | Optional setting | No | No | Yes, during the lock |
| Stops passcode reset by Apple ID | No | No | No | Yes |
| Passcode you do not know | No | No | Resettable | Yes |
| Fixed end date | No | No | No | Yes |
| Cost | Free | Free | Free or subscription | From 10 dollars a month |
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I block porn on iPhone for free?
Settings, Screen Time, Content & Privacy Restrictions, App Store, Media, Web, & Games, Web Content, Limit Adult Websites. Then set a Screen Time passcode. That blocks known adult sites in Safari and most other browsers. It protects against accidental exposure, not against yourself, because you know the passcode.
Does Screen Time block porn in Chrome and other browsers?
Yes. The Limit Adult Websites filter applies to Safari and to browsers like Chrome and Firefox on iPhone, which follow the same restriction. It does not filter content inside apps such as Reddit or X.
Can you block porn on iPhone without Screen Time?
Partly. A DNS filter on your Wi-Fi network blocks adult domains in every app, but only on that network, and it is switched off in the same screen it was set in. Screen Time is still the base layer on iPhone. Everything else sits on top of it.
How do I block adult content on iPhone permanently?
Set the Screen Time web filter, block app installs and deletions, and set a Screen Time passcode you do not know, with Apple ID recovery turned off. QuitPorn's setup does all of that, with a random four-digit code you never see, shown to you only when the lock period ends. Choose the longest period you are willing to commit to.
What if I know my Screen Time passcode?
Then the filter lasts until the first bad night. The fix is not a stronger filter. It is a passcode you never had. QuitPorn has you set a random code during setup that you never see, and stores it until your lock ends.
Can I get my QuitPorn passcode early?
No. There is no early reveal and no emergency unlock. The Reveal Passcode button appears on your dashboard on the date you chose. If you lose access to your account, the passcode still waits for that date.
Does QuitPorn block porn inside apps like Reddit or X?
No, and neither does anything else on iPhone without deleting the app. The web filter blocks adult sites in browsers. For apps that carry adult content, the setup has you delete them before installs are blocked, so they cannot come back during the lock.
Does the lock slow down my iPhone?
No. QuitPorn uses Apple's own Screen Time restrictions rather than routing your traffic through a server. Speed and battery are unchanged.
Conclusion
Screen Time is the two-minute free block and every iPhone owner should have it on, with app installs blocked and a passcode set. A DNS filter adds a layer on Wi-Fi. Both are undone in a minute by anyone who knows the passcode, and both are fine for the people who will not go looking.
For a teenager who will, or for yourself, the filter is not the problem. The passcode is. What works is Apple's own lock with a code you never saw, Apple ID recovery off, installs and deletions blocked, for a period you chose when you were thinking clearly. That is what QuitPorn does on iPhone, and on every other device you own. Plans start at 10 dollars a month with a seven-day money-back guarantee, and setup takes ten to fifteen minutes.
If you are not sure how serious the problem is, start with the free two-minute test. If you are sure, set the lock.