Reddit is where you find the answer to the error message, the honest review and the one forum for your hobby. It is also where an hour goes while you look for them. Blocking all of it rarely lasts, because you need it on Tuesday. Here are the manual ways, what each cannot do, and a FocusMe plan that blocks the scroll and keeps the search.
The manual ways, and where they fall down
Logging out and deleting the app
Logged out, Reddit still works; it just stops being personalised. Deleting the app takes a minute to undo, and the site runs in any browser on the phone.
The hosts file
On Windows (C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts, as administrator) or Mac (/etc/hosts), send reddit.com, www.reddit.com and old.reddit.com to 127.0.0.1 and the site stops loading in every browser on that computer. It is all or nothing, with no way to keep one subreddit; it has no schedule; the same edit undoes it; and the phone is untouched.
Browser extensions
Blocker extensions can block a site or limit time in one browser. They turn off from the extensions page, they are off in private windows unless you allow them, and another browser is a click away.
Screen Time and Digital Wellbeing
An app limit on Reddit, in iPhone Screen Time or Android’s Digital Wellbeing, runs on a passcode you set and an “ignore limit” button. Reasonable on a child’s phone with a parent holding the passcode; on your own it holds while you want it to.
Block Reddit with FocusMe
FocusMe blocks websites and apps on Windows, Mac and Linux, and on Android and iPhone, and it understands paths, which is what makes Reddit workable.
Block one subreddit
On What to block, type reddit.com/r/gaming and click Add. That blocks the subreddit and every post in it, on old.reddit.com too, and nothing else on Reddit. Add as many as you like.
Block Reddit, keep one subreddit
Add reddit.com to the block list, then open Advanced, switch to Allowed and add reddit.com/r/learnprogramming. Allowed entries always win, so that one community opens and the front page shows the FocusMe block page. Turn on Similarity protection so the allow list cannot be stretched into the rest of the site.
Block the feed, keep search results
If what you want is “Reddit when Google sends me there, never the home page”, block reddit.com and allow reddit.com/r/. Posts and communities open from a search; the front page and the popular feed do not. Test it on Unlocked for a day to see whether that is the right line for you.
A budget instead of a ban
On When it runs, choose Time Limit and allow 20 minutes a day. FocusMe counts time you actually spend on Reddit and blocks it when the budget is spent, until tomorrow. A Session Limit of three visits of ten minutes, with a wait between, is built for Reddit: it stops the one tab becoming the afternoon.
On your phone
On Android, pick the Reddit app and add reddit.com as a website; the block holds in Chrome, Samsung Internet, Firefox and the rest. On iPhone, pick the Reddit app or add the site, and iOS Screen Time enforces the plan so it keeps working when FocusMe is closed. Sign in on your computer and your phone and the plan syncs.
Make it stick
Give it a schedule. A weekly schedule that blocks Reddit from 9 to 5 and a Time Limit for the evening is one plan: each interval on the timeline has its own mode. It starts and stops by itself.
Pick how strict. Gentle Guidance asks for five random characters before a plan stops. Firm but Flexible adds a wait and three pauses a day. Lock it Down means 25 characters typed perfectly and a ten-minute wait, no pauses.
Or commit. Enforced Mode means the plan runs to its end and can only be made stricter while it runs. Because Reddit is useful, most people are better served by a strict plan with a good allow list than by a total ban, and by an accountability partner who can approve a stop when the reason is real.
Frequently asked questions
Can I block Reddit but allow one subreddit?
Yes. Block reddit.com and put reddit.com/r/yoursubreddit on the allow list. Allowed entries take priority.
Does blocking reddit.com cover old.reddit.com?
Yes. A domain entry covers the domain and its subdomains, so old.reddit.com and new.reddit.com are included.
Can I limit Reddit instead of blocking it?
Yes. A Time Limit gives a daily budget; a Session Limit caps how many times you open it and how long each visit lasts, with a wait between.
Does it work in every browser?
Yes. A FocusMe plan applies to every browser on the computer, private windows included, and to every browser on an Android phone.
Related: The FocusMe website blocker, FocusMe for students, FocusMe for developers.
