Reddit is one of the easiest places to find porn on an iPhone, and most blocking setups miss it. If you've turned on Screen Time's adult website filter and still end up on NSFW subreddits, this post explains why and how to close the gap.
Why Reddit gets past your porn blocker
- The filter doesn't look inside apps. Screen Time's Limit Adult Websites setting filters web pages in Safari. Everything you see in the Reddit app is unfiltered.
- Safari treats reddit.com as a general site. The adult website filter doesn't reliably catch NSFW subreddits or the images and videos on Reddit's media domains.
- Reddit's own NSFW setting is easy to undo. You can hide mature content in the app's settings, but you can turn it back on in a few seconds. A setting you control yourself won't hold during an urge.
Deleting the Reddit app doesn't fix this on its own either. You can reinstall it from the App Store in under a minute.
Step 1: Remove the Reddit app with the 13+ restriction
Go to Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions > App Store, Media, Web & Games and set Apps to 13+.
Reddit is rated above 13+ on the App Store, so under this restriction it won't open and you can't reinstall it. The same setting blocks Chrome, Firefox and other third-party browsers and removes Private Browsing from Safari, so Safari becomes the only way onto the web.
Other apps rated above 13+ stop working too, so check the ratings of apps you rely on first. The 13+ post covers that tradeoff in more detail.
Step 2: Block Reddit in Safari
With the app gone, Safari is the only way left to reach Reddit. On the same screen, tap Web Content, choose Limit Adult Websites, then under Never Allow tap Add Website and add each of these:
reddit.comwww.reddit.comold.reddit.comredd.iti.redd.itv.redd.itpreview.redd.it
The redd.it domains host Reddit's images and videos. Adding them stops Reddit media from loading when it turns up in Google results or in links shared from other apps.
To check it worked, open reddit.com in Safari. You should see a page saying the site is restricted.
Step 3: Lock it with a passcode you don't know
All of this sits behind your Screen Time passcode. If you know that passcode, you can undo the whole setup in thirty seconds.
So set one you don't know. WaitToUnlock generates a random passcode, walks you through entering it without learning it, and only reveals it after a waiting period. The iPhone porn blocker setup guide covers the full flow. Having a trusted friend or partner set the passcode works too, if you have someone you're comfortable asking.
Then close the recovery loophole: iOS lets you reset a Screen Time passcode with your own Apple Account unless you set things up carefully. Here's how to disable that.
What if you need Reddit?
There's no iPhone setting that keeps the Reddit app and filters only NSFW posts in a way you can't turn off. If you use Reddit for work or a hobby community, the practical option is to use it on a laptop and keep it off your phone. Most people find that the phone is where the problem happens anyway.
Common questions
Does Screen Time block porn on Reddit?
Not inside the Reddit app. Limit Adult Websites filters web pages in Safari and doesn't look inside apps. In Safari it treats reddit.com as a general site, so it doesn't reliably catch NSFW subreddits either. To block it, remove the app with the 13+ restriction and add Reddit's domains to the Never Allow list.
Is turning off NSFW content in Reddit's settings enough?
It hides mature posts until you switch the setting back on, which takes a few seconds. It's a reasonable extra layer, but it won't hold during an urge because you control it.
Will this block Reddit links from Google search?
Yes. Once Reddit's domains, including its image and video domains, are on Safari's Never Allow list, Reddit links from Google or anywhere else won't load.