Hey everyone, so I got my younger brother a new Android phone last month. He’s 14 and honestly spends way too much time on social media apps and random websites during school hours. I tried just telling him to put the phone down but yeah… that did not work lol. A friend told me there are Android site blocker apps that can actually restrict access at a schedule level, not just parental lock stuff. I am not a tech person so I really need some help here.
Would love bullets, numbered steps, any technical breakdown you got. Appreciate it.
Using an android site blocker to restrict access on my phone is actually super doable on Android without rooting the phone. Let me break it down for you.
Top Android Site Blocker Apps to Know About:
1. Google Family Link
- Free, made by Google
- Works at the device level, not just browser
- You manage everything from your own phone
- Can block specific apps and set daily screen time limits
- Works on Android 7.0 and above
2. BlockSite (App)
- Available free on Google Play with a paid Pro tier
- Blocks websites AND apps
- Has a Focus Mode that locks distractions on a schedule
- Syncs across devices if needed
3. DNS based blocking via NextDNS or AdGuard DNS
- Set a custom DNS on the phone under WiFi settings
- Go to Settings > Network > Private DNS and enter your NextDNS hostname
- Blocks at the DNS query level, so it catches all browsers not just Chrome
How to Set Up Google Family Link (Quickest Method):
Step 1: Download Family Link on your phone
Step 2: Create a supervised Google account for your brother or link his existing one if he is under 18 (Google allows this)
Step 3: Follow the pairing process, the app walks you through it
Step 4: Once linked, go to Manage Settings > Filters on Google Chrome > Try to block sites
Step 5: Under App Activity you can also set time limits per app
The DNS route is more technical but harder to bypass since it works at the network level, not just inside one app.
Jumping in here because I set this up for my cousin a while back and the DNS method is genuinely the strongest option if you want something that actually sticks.
How to Use an Android Site Blocker to Restrict Access on Your Phone
Why DNS Blocking Works Better
Most app based blockers sit on top of Android. A determined teenager can just uninstall them or use a different browser. DNS blocking works at the network layer, meaning every single app on the phone that tries to load a webpage goes through it.
Setting Up NextDNS Step by Step
Step 1: Go to nextdns.io and create a free account
Step 2: Once inside the dashboard, click on the Denylist tab
Step 3: Add the domains you want blocked (example: tiktok.com, instagram.com, youtube.com)
Step 4: Go to the Setup tab and copy your unique DNS hostname, it looks like this: xxxx.dns.nextdns.io
Step 5: On the Android phone, go to Settings
Step 6: Tap Connections (or Network and Internet depending on phone brand)
Step 7: Tap More Connection Settings > Private DNS
Step 8: Select Private DNS provider hostname and paste the NextDNS hostname
Step 9: Hit Save
What Gets Blocked
- All browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Samsung Internet, Opera)
- In app browsers inside social media apps
- Background data requests from blocked domains
Scheduling Blocks
NextDNS free tier does not have scheduling natively. For scheduling, pair it with Google Family Link which can cut off internet access entirely during specific hours.
Can It Be Bypassed?
Yes, if he switches to mobile data instead of WiFi, the DNS setting still applies because Private DNS is device wide, not WiFi only. Good news there.
Ok so I want to add something nobody mentioned yet. There is actually a built in feature on Samsung phones called “Parental Controls” inside their Digital Wellbeing section and it is surprisingly solid.
If the phone is a Samsung specifically:
- Go to Settings > Digital Wellbeing and Parental Controls
- Tap Parental Controls at the bottom
- It redirects you to Google Family Link setup OR Samsung Kids depending on age settings
- From there you get app timers per app, a full bedtime mode that locks the screen, and a content filter for the browser
For non Samsung Android:
- Settings > Digital Wellbeing > App Timers
- Set a daily limit per app, example 30 minutes for Instagram
- Once the limit hits, the app goes grey and shows a pause icon
- The kid would need your PIN to add more time
This is not a full blocker but it is fast to set up and already on the phone. No third party apps needed.
One thing I will say about the bypass question, Digital Wellbeing app timers CAN be worked around if the kid goes to Settings and disables Digital Wellbeing, so lock your settings with a PIN. Go to Settings > Biometrics and Security > Set a screen lock if not already done, and also go to Digital Wellbeing > turn on the lock so changes require authentication.
Layer this with Family Link or NextDNS and you have a pretty solid setup.
wait so nobody told OP that you can literally lock down the whole browser? 
like not just block sites but remove Chrome entirely from the home screen so he cannot even open it without going through settings.
Here is what I mean:
Using Google Family Link App Controls:
- Open Family Link on your phone
- Tap your brother’s account
- Go to Controls > App Controls
- Find Chrome in the app list
- Set it to Always Blocked or Requires Approval
Now Chrome is gone from his view. He would need your approval to open it.
For YouTube specifically:
- Family Link has a dedicated YouTube Kids redirect option
- Under Content Restrictions you can switch YouTube to YouTube Kids mode
- This filters out adult content and restricts search results
For blocking websites inside the browser if you still want him to use Chrome for school stuff:
- Family Link > Manage Settings > Google Chrome > Manage Sites
- Under Blocked Sites add whatever domains you want gone
- You can also flip it and only allow specific sites (whitelist mode) which is honestly stronger
Whitelist mode means ONLY the sites you approve will load. Everything else gets a block page. For a study scenario this is perfect because you list his school site, maybe a couple of educational tools, and nothing else gets through.
This is the cleanest setup for a parent or guardian situation without going deep into DNS stuff.
Real talk, I work in IT and we use Mobile Device Management (MDM) for this at scale. For a home setup you probably do not need full MDM but here is something worth knowing:
If you want the most technically solid approach that is also hard to remove, look at Android’s built in Device Admin features.
Apps like Family Link register themselves as Device Administrators. Here is what that means practically:
- The supervised account cannot uninstall Family Link without your approval
- Settings changes on the device that would affect supervision require your sign in
- Even a factory reset on a supervised device triggers a setup screen asking for the original Google account credentials (this is called Factory Reset Protection or FRP)
So the bypass path a lot of kids try, which is factory resetting to start fresh, actually does not work cleanly when Family Link is active with FRP enabled.
To confirm FRP is active:
- Settings > Accounts > Google
- Make sure the supervised account is the primary account on the device
- FRP locks to that account automatically
One more technical note: if the phone has a work profile or second user profile, blocks set on the main profile do not apply there. Make sure no second profile exists:
- Settings > Accounts > tap the three dot menu > check for secondary users or guest mode
- Delete any profiles that are not the main one
This closes a gap that is easy to miss.
So OP mentioned he is not super technical and I feel like some of these replies went deep fast lol. Let me give you the no stress version.
If you just want something working today in under 15 minutes:
Easiest Path: Google Family Link + BlockSite combo
Part A: Family Link for app and screen time control
- Install Google Family Link on YOUR phone from Play Store
- On your brother’s phone, sign in with his Google account (must be under 18 or you create a supervised account)
- Family Link will prompt you through linking the two devices
- Done, now you see his app usage, set limits, and approve or block apps remotely
Part B: BlockSite for website level blocking
- Install BlockSite from Play Store on his phone
- Open it, tap the plus button to add sites
- Type in any website URL you want blocked
- Under Schedule, set active blocking hours like 8am to 3pm on weekdays
- Set a BlockSite password that only you know so he cannot change settings
Why both:
- Family Link handles apps and overall screen time
- BlockSite handles specific websites inside any browser
- Together they cover the main gaps
The paid version of BlockSite (around 2 to 3 dollars a month) adds a stricter admin lock and sync features, but the free version does the job for basic website blocking.
That is genuinely all you need to get started. You can always go deeper with DNS stuff later if needed.
Adding one angle that got skipped here. What about blocking at the router level instead of the phone? Because if this is about home use and restricting access at home, the router approach means you do not even need to touch the phone settings.
Router Level DNS Filtering:
Most home routers let you set a custom DNS server for all devices on the network.
- Log into your router admin panel (usually 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1 in your browser)
- Find the DNS settings under WAN or Internet Setup
- Replace the default DNS with a filtering DNS like:
- CleanBrowsing Family Filter: 185.228.168.168 and 185.228.169.168
- Cloudflare for Families: 1.1.1.3 and 1.0.1.3
- Save and restart the router
What this does:
- Every device on your home WiFi goes through that filtered DNS
- No app installation needed on the phone
- Works for laptops, tablets, gaming consoles, everything
Limit: It only works on home WiFi. On mobile data it does nothing. So pair this with the Private DNS setting on the phone itself (as Krytexis explained above) to cover both cases.
For scheduling at the router level, routers with parental control features like ASUS routers with AiProtection or TP Link with HomeCare let you set time schedules per device based on MAC address. You can say this specific phone gets no internet from 10pm to 7am.
Between the phone level DNS, router level DNS, and Family Link, you have three layers. Most kids will not get past all three.
yo this thread is actually really helpful, bookmarking it
I just want to throw in a quick note about something OP asked specifically, whether a 14 year old can bypass these.
Bypass Methods Kids Actually Try (and whether they work):
Using a VPN app:
- Yes this can bypass DNS based blocking
- Fix: In Family Link, block the VPN app category entirely, or block specific VPN apps like NordVPN, ExpressVPN from being installed
- Family Link > App Controls > search for VPN apps and block them
Switching to mobile data:
- Bypasses router level blocking
- Fix: Private DNS setting on the phone covers mobile data too as mentioned above
- Additionally, Family Link lets you set a mobile data limit or cut off mobile data entirely during certain hours
Using a proxy website:
- Sites like hide.me or proxy sites can sometimes slip past basic DNS filters
- NextDNS has a dedicated Security > Block Bypass Methods toggle that handles most of these
Installing a different browser:
- Chrome blocked? He installs Firefox
- Fix: Family Link blocks installation of new apps unless you approve them. Go to Family Link > App Controls > Approve all new downloads. Now any new app install pings your phone for approval first.
The full stack that stops most bypass attempts:
- Private DNS set to NextDNS with bypass blocking on
- Family Link with app install approval required
- VPN apps blocked
- BlockSite with admin password
That is pretty solid for a home setup without going the MDM route.