Guides

Practical guides to spending less time on your phone.

• How to block Instagram on iPhone

  You can block Instagram on iPhone with a Screen Time App Limit, close the website gap by adding instagram.com to Screen Time's Never Allow list, or use a blocking app like Sisa that blocks Instagram on a schedule and shows a friend's message when you open it. Instagram's own daily-limit reminder can be dismissed with one tap, so it works as a nudge, not a block.

• How to block TikTok on iPhone

  You can block TikTok on iPhone with Screen Time's App Limits, by also blocking tiktok.com in Safari, or with a blocking app like Sisa that puts a friend's message on the block screen. The hard part is not the block itself but the "Ignore Limit" button, so the method you pick should make giving in harder.

• Screen time apps you use with friends

  Apps that bring friends into cutting screen time work in three ways. Some let friends see your screen time (Opal). Some make you ask friends before you get more time (Snitch, Friend Controls). Others put a friend's encouragement where you would otherwise give in (Sisa, which shows a friend's message on the block screen). Clearspace has a friends feature on its paid plan. iPhone's Screen Time can also involve a friend if they set the passcode.