The 7 best website blockers for Chrome in 2026

Last updated September 2026.

Before the ranking: we make Redirect, so it appears on this list and you should weigh our view of it with that in mind. We tried to make the rest of the page useful anyway. Every product's official site and Chrome Web Store listing was checked on September 26, 2026, and we only state what those pages confirm. Where another tool is the better pick for you, we say so.

What matters in a Chrome website blocker#

Most blockers can stop you from loading youtube.com. The differences show up in the moments that decide whether you keep using one:

• What happens when you hit a blocked site. A "blocked" page, a countdown, a redirect to something useful, or a short task before you get in.
• How you get a break. Some tools make you wait, some make you type, some ask for a password, some just let you click through.
• Schedules and limits. Hours and days, time limits, or both.
• How hard it is to turn off. Locks, passwords, and uninstall prevention matter if past you keeps undoing present you.
• Scope. A Chrome extension only covers the browser. Some tools also block desktop apps or your phone.
• Price and privacy. Free, one-time, or subscription, and whether an account or cloud sync is involved.

If you are new to this, our guide on how to block websites on Chrome covers the built-in options too, and why website blockers don't work explains why the unblock moment matters more than the block list.

Quick comparison#

What any Chrome extension can't do#

Be realistic about one thing before you pick: an extension lives inside the browser, so it can always be switched off from Chrome's extensions page. Tools handle that differently. Cold Turkey runs as a desktop app, and its listing warns that the browser may be blocked if the extension is disabled or removed during a locked block, per its Web Store listing. BlockSite lists uninstall prevention. LeechBlock NG's FAQ has a section on making the extension harder to remove from Chrome. Redirect makes turning off all redirects require typing a long paragraph, and loosening an active rule requires that rule's task, but it cannot stop you from removing the extension itself.

In practice, the friction that matters most is the everyday kind: the small cost of getting in when you only half want to. That is where the tools below differ the most.

The ranking#

Redirect

Who it's for: people who can block a site fine but keep giving themselves "just five minutes" that turns into an hour.

Redirect sends you to your Focus dashboard (your up to three goals and your stats) or a custom URL instead of showing a blocked wall. Rules can cover a whole site, a path like youtube.com/shorts, or a wildcard pattern, with exceptions per rule, so you can keep one YouTube channel open while the rest is off limits. Each rule can have a schedule by weekday and hours.

The part it is built around is the pause. To get temporary access you complete a task you chose for that rule: type a paragraph exactly, write down your reason (your past reasons are shown back to you), do mental arithmetic, a 4-7-8 breathing cycle, or a 60 second wait. Pauses last 1 to 60 minutes, you can cap them per day, and when a pause ends Redirect sends you back even if you are mid scroll. It also catches in-app navigation on sites like YouTube, so clicking into Shorts from the home page still redirects. Everything is stored locally, with no account.

Limits: Chrome and Chromium browsers only (Arc, Brave, Edge, Opera, Vivaldi). No Firefox, Safari, phone, or desktop app blocking. The free plan covers one site.

Price: free for one site; Pro and Lifetime plans for unlimited sites.

LeechBlock NG

Who it's for: anyone who wants a free, deeply configurable blocker and does not mind a settings-heavy options page.

LeechBlock NG is free and open source (MPL-2.0 on GitHub), with 100,000 Chrome users and a 4.9 rating. You get up to 30 block sets, each with its own times and days, time limits like "10 minutes in every hour", a lockdown mode, a password or random access code for the options page, a delaying countdown instead of a hard block, wildcards, exceptions, and keyword rules. Its FAQ confirms you can point a block set at your own custom blocking page, and there is an optional temporary override. It runs on Firefox, Chrome, Edge and other Chromium browsers.

Limits: the power comes with a lot of options to learn. Sync across devices is marked experimental in its documentation. No phone apps.

Price: free.

Cold Turkey Blocker

Who it's for: people who need a block that is genuinely hard to undo, across the whole computer.

Cold Turkey is a desktop app for Windows and macOS; the Chrome extension (200,000 users, 4.6 rating) only works alongside it. It blocks websites and apps, can block the entire internet with exceptions, supports weekly schedules, and can lock a block so you cannot stop it or simply uninstall it. Breaks are flexible: allowances, Pomodoro, and breaks that require typing random text or waiting out a delay. Settings and statistics stay on your device, and its supported browser list is long.

Limits: no Linux, ChromeOS, Android or iOS, per its pricing FAQ. You install a desktop app, not just an extension.

Price: Blocker Free covers basic website blocking and includes a 7 day trial of Pro. Pro is a one-time purchase that covers all computers you personally use.

StayFocusd

Who it's for: people who want a time limit on distracting sites rather than a hard schedule.

StayFocusd is now published by Sensor Tower and has 700,000 Chrome users with a 4.4 rating. Its listing describes usage history, blocking by site, subdomain, path, page or in-page content, the Nuclear Option (a block for a set number of hours that cannot be canceled), a Require Challenge before changing settings, active days and hours, and hiding YouTube Shorts, comments and recommendations. You can connect Android devices and other browsers to see usage and limits in one place.

Limits: the listing discloses that it handles web history, user activity and website content (it says it does not collect personal data from pages). It is Chrome focused.

Price: the Web Store listing does not flag in-app purchases.

Freedom

Who it's for: people whose distraction moves between laptop and phone, and who want one session to block everywhere.

Freedom blocks websites, apps, or the entire internet across Mac, Windows, iOS, Android and Chromebook, with sync sessions across devices. Premium adds scheduling, recurring sessions, and Locked Mode so you cannot quit a session early.

Limits: on Mac and Windows the Chrome extension only works paired with the desktop app, per its listing. The extension itself is rated 3.3 from 103 ratings. Scheduling and Locked Mode are Premium.

Price: a free plan, Premium at $8.99 a month or $3.33 a month billed yearly, and a lifetime option, per its pricing page today.

BlockSite

Who it's for: people who want a polished blocker with phone apps and cross-device sync.

BlockSite is the most installed tool here: 1,000,000 Chrome users and a 4.5 rating from 32.4K ratings. It offers schedules, a Pomodoro focus mode, category and keyword blocking, password protection, uninstall prevention, a custom block page, a site redirect option, daily usage limits, and sync with its iOS and Android apps.

Limits: many of the fuller features sit behind Premium, and its listing discloses that it handles web history.

Price: free to install, with a Premium plan and a 30 day guarantee advertised on its site. If the paid tier is what's stopping you, see our list of BlockSite alternatives.

one sec

Who it's for: people who don't want a wall at all, just a moment to notice what they are doing.

one sec adds a short pause before distracting sites open, with customizable interventions, re-intervention, and blocking. Usage data stays on your device. The same idea runs in its iPhone, iPad, Android and Mac apps, and the extension is also on Firefox, Safari and Edge.

Limits: a smaller Chrome user base (40,000, rated 4.9). A pause alone may not hold if you are in the habit of clicking through.

Price: its site calls the browser extension free; the listing notes in-app purchases.

How to choose#

• You want free and flexible: LeechBlock NG.
• You need to block apps too, or you keep uninstalling blockers: Cold Turkey.
• You switch between phone and laptop: Freedom, BlockSite or one sec.
• You want time limits rather than a full block: StayFocusd.
• You keep taking "quick" breaks that never end: Redirect, which sends you to your goals and makes every pause cost a small, chosen effort.
• You have ADHD and hard walls keep failing you: start with our website blocker for ADHD setup guide, or compare tools in the best website blockers for ADHD.

If you just want to start, pick one site that costs you the most time. Our block pages have setups for YouTube, Reddit, Instagram and more.

Close the tab. Open your goals.

Redirect sends distracting sites to the goals you wrote down, and makes every pause a choice.

Add to Chrome, free to start