How to Block Adult Websites on Safari (iPhone, iPad, Mac)
Block adult websites in Safari across all your Apple devices using Screen Time — and lock the settings so they actually stay blocked.
How to Block Adult Websites on Safari (iPhone, iPad, Mac)
Safari has a built-in adult content filter that works on iPhone, iPad, and Mac, and it's stronger than almost anyone realizes — it's enforced by the operating system, not a browser extension that can be disabled with two taps. Here's how to enable it properly, what actually closes the gaps around it, and what changed in iOS 26 that most guides online haven't caught up to yet.
On iPhone & iPad
- Open Settings → Screen Time
- Tap Content & Privacy Restrictions → toggle on
- Tap Content Restrictions → Web Content
- Select Limit Adult Websites
- (Optional) Add specific URLs under Never Allow
Each of these steps takes seconds, and the whole thing is done in under two minutes. The value isn't in the complexity — it's in doing every step, including the ones later in this guide that most people skip because they don't seem related to Safari at first glance.
On Mac
- System Settings → Screen Time
- Click Content & Privacy → turn on
- Under Content Restrictions → Web Content → Limit Adult Websites
Mac and iPhone restrictions can be tied to the same Apple ID and Screen Time settings, which means locking one properly tends to lock the other too — worth knowing if you use both devices regularly.
Important: this changed in iOS 26
Older guides say Limit Adult Websites blocks private browsing too, and for years that was simply true. As of iOS 26, that's no longer automatic. A setup that fully worked on iOS 17 or 18 can have a gap on iOS 26 if you skip one extra step — and because the rest of the setup still looks and works identically, most people have no idea the gap exists until it matters.
The fix: if you're restricting your own device, also turn on Supervised Mode in Screen Time setup. This closes the private-browsing gap that Limit Adult Websites alone no longer covers by default on iOS 26.
This is exactly the kind of thing that makes "I set this up once" different from "this is actually working right now" — Apple changes the OS periodically, and a setup that worked last year can quietly stop covering everything this year without any visible warning.
Block other browsers too
Limiting Safari is pointless if you can just install Chrome, Firefox, or Brave the moment Safari's restrictions start feeling inconvenient — none of those browsers inherit Safari's content filter, since they use their own rendering engines.
In Screen Time → Content & Privacy → iTunes & App Store Purchases: - Set Installing Apps to Don't Allow - Set Deleting Apps to Don't Allow (so blockers can't be removed either)
Lock the passcode so settings can't change
All of the above is reversible in 30 seconds — if you know the Screen Time passcode, which you do, because you're the one who just set it.
LockIn replaces your passcode with a sealed code you don't see. For 1 day, 30 days, or a year, you literally cannot disable Safari's adult content filter, Supervised Mode, or app installs, no matter how convincing the reason feels in the moment.
Why this specific combination matters
Each piece here closes a different door. Safari's filter closes the "search engine result" door. Supervised Mode closes the "private tab" door. Blocking app installs closes the "just use a different browser" door. Locking the passcode closes the "just turn it all off" door — the one every other step in this guide is technically still vulnerable to without it. Skip any single one and you haven't built a wall, you've built a wall with a door still standing open somewhere in it.
FAQ
Do I need Supervised Mode if I'm not on iOS 26 yet? No — on iOS 17/18, Limit Adult Websites still covers private tabs on its own without any extra step. Supervised Mode becomes necessary specifically because of the iOS 26 change, so if you haven't updated yet, this particular gap doesn't apply to you — yet.
Will Supervised Mode break anything else on my phone? It adds restrictions typically used for managed devices, like the ones IT departments configure for company phones. For a personal phone used specifically to enforce a block, most people don't notice a difference day to day beyond the restrictions they intentionally set.
What if Apple changes this again next year? Probably, eventually — Apple adjusts Screen Time behavior most major iOS releases, sometimes in ways that aren't well documented outside developer release notes. That's exactly why a locked passcode matters more than any one setting: it forces you to actually check and update what's enabled when you set up a new lock, instead of assuming a two-year-old configuration still holds up against whatever changed since.
That's the difference between "I tried" and "I can't."