How Do I Block a Website on Safari?
Whether you’re worried about your children getting access to adult content, or you want to protect yourself from distractions while working on something important, there are several ways to block websites on Safari. These methods will help you keep kids away from dangerous or inappropriate sites, and they’ll also prevent you from spending too much time online that isn’t useful.
How to Use Screen Time to Block Websites on Mac
If you have a Mac running macOS Catalina or higher, you can use the new Screen Time feature to limit the amount of time your children spend on a website. This feature lets you set a passcode that will only allow them to visit a site for a certain period of time.
Once the passcode has been set, if a child attempts to visit a website that is blocked by Screen Time, they will receive a restricted notice. They won’t be able to access the site at all until they enter the passcode again.
How to Add a List of Restricted Websites on Safari
The next step is to create a blocked list of websites in Apple’s Content and Privacy Restrictions. Once you have created this list, you can add new sites to it as needed. To do this, open the Screen Time app and go to System Preferences > Content & Privacy Restrictions.
Click on the “+” icon under the Allowed Websites and Limit Websites sections. In the “Restricted” section, type in the URL of the website you wish to block. Then click OK.
You can also block a website by adding it to your hosts file, which is available in the Terminal app. This method is a bit more complex, but it’s an effective way to block a website on your Mac.
How to Use the Hosts File on Mac
The hosts file is a text file that contains information about all the websites on your computer. This is used by web browsers like Safari, Chrome, and Firefox to determine which websites can be accessed and which cannot.
When you edit the hosts file, you can remove entries that are not relevant to the websites you’re blocking. For example, if you’re blocking a site that’s not related to your job, you might want to remove the entry for it.
If you’re comfortable using the Terminal app, you can also use it to add and delete entries in the hosts file on your Mac. You’ll need to know your administrator password in order to run this process.
How to Add a List to the Hosts File on Mac
Once you’ve added a website to your hosts file, you can test it by opening up the Safari browser and trying to access that website. If you don’t see the website, try re-opening the hosts file and adding a new line in it with the address of the blocked website before it.
If you’d rather not use the hosts file, you can also use a third-party app to block websites on your Mac. These apps are usually free, and they’re easy to use. They’re also compatible with most major web browsers, including Safari.
