How to block apps on Android
To block apps on Android: install a blocker that uses the Accessibility API, choose which apps to block, and set how they unlock — a scan, a tag, or a code. No root needed. A cooldown stops instant bypass.
Free. Android. No account needed.
The one permission that matters
App blocking on Android rests on a single permission: the Accessibility service. Android does not otherwise let one app know what another app is doing, so without it there is no blocking to speak of.
What it does is narrow. The service is notified when an app comes to the foreground; the blocker reads that app’s package name, checks it against your blocklist, and if it matches, shows a lock screen over it.
What it does not have to do is read your screen. The permission is broad enough to allow that, which is exactly why you should care what any given app does with it. MassBlocker reads the foreground package name and nothing else — it does not capture screen content or what you type, and accessibility data never leaves the device.
You grant it in Settings › Accessibility, and you can revoke it there at any time.
Choosing your blocklist
Block the apps you open without deciding to, not the apps you use a lot. Those are different lists, and only the first one is the problem.
Three or four entries is usually right. Long blocklists feel decisive on the first evening and get switched off by the third, because at some point one of them will be the app you actually needed and the friction stops feeling fair.
Leave calls, messages and maps alone unless you have a specific reason to include them.
Unlock methods compared
The unlock is the part that decides whether the block holds. Pick the one whose friction you can live with and won’t route around.
QR scan (free)
A reusable code you save or print and place somewhere out of reach. Highest friction, because the distance is whatever you decide it is. No camera to hand? The same printout carries a 3-word code you can type instead. You can also bring your own — turn any sticker or card into the key.
NFC tag (Pro)
Tap your own enrolled tag. Same walk, no camera, works in the dark. Costs a few rupees for a tag.
Charging cable (Pro)
Unlock only while plugged in. Anchors the phone to one spot at home. Weak if you carry a power bank.
PIN or unlock code (Pro)
Strict mode adds a PIN in front of the settings that would weaken the block, and single-use codes let someone else grant one-off access. Strongest when the code is held by another person, weakest when you hold it yourself.
Feature differences only — see the pricing page for what each plan costs.
Adding the cooldown
Whichever unlock you pick, the cooldown is what stops the block being a formality. When you ask for access, a timer runs before the unlock is accepted, and there is no button to shorten it.
That gap does most of the work. The urge to open a blocked app is sharp and short, and it usually does not survive a few minutes of nothing happening.
The free tier also caps how many unlock sessions you get in a day, which stops the whole thing degrading into a slower version of the same habit.
Adding a schedule
Starting a lock by hand works until the evening you decide not to. A schedule removes that decision: you set a window, and the blocked apps lock themselves inside it.
Name it, set the times, pick the days. An overnight window such as 21:00 to 07:00 carries past midnight and ends the next morning; work hours might be 09:00 to 18:00 on weekdays only.
Profiles let you run several at once — a different set of apps and a different way out for each. A charging-only “Focus” during work hours, a hard-block “Bedtime” overnight. Recurring auto-relock handles the other case: after an unlock, the apps re-lock and the cycle repeats.
Making the block stick
One more step, and it is the one people skip: close the uninstall exit. A blocker you can long-press off the home screen is not blocking anything.
Turn on uninstall protection, which uses Android’s Device Admin API to refuse removal until a PIN is entered, and turn on strict mode so changing the blocklist or the cooldown needs the same PIN.
Honest limit: on stock Android a determined person can still disable an accessibility service. This is a strong deterrent against your own worst hour, not a jail.
The app in this guide
MassBlocker does all of the above on Android: pick the apps, pick how you unlock, set a cooldown and a schedule, and lock the exits with strict mode.
Related guides
- Block apps you can't uninstall — the uninstall loophole, and how Device Admin closes it
- Dopamine detox on Android — a starter blocklist and a reset that lasts past day two
- Block apps with an NFC tag — tap-to-unlock, no camera needed
Questions
Does blocking work without root?
Yes. App blocking on Android runs on the Accessibility API, which any app can request and you grant in Settings. No root, no unlocked bootloader, no ADB. Rooting a phone to block apps would be the hard way round.
Will it drain battery?
Very little. The service is event-driven — Android tells it when an app comes to the foreground rather than the app polling in a loop — so it spends almost all of its time doing nothing. It is far cheaper than the apps it is blocking.
Can I still get calls?
Yes. Only the apps you put on the blocklist are affected. Calls, messages, alarms, maps and everything else you left off the list carry on as normal.
Can I block apps for free?
Yes. The free tier blocks the apps you choose with a reusable QR unlock, an enforced cooldown and a daily limit on sessions. Pro removes the daily limit and adds strict mode, extra unlock methods, recurring auto-relock and family sharing.
What happens if I switch the blocker off in Settings?
Any accessibility-based blocker stops working when its service is disabled — that is true of all of them, and any app claiming otherwise on stock Android is overstating it. MassBlocker detects that the service was turned off and flags it, and strict mode puts a PIN in front of the settings that would let you weaken it.