Chrome does not include one simple Block this site button for every situation. The right method depends on whether you are protecting a child account, reducing your own distractions, or blocking a site across the whole computer.
Does this affect you?
Use this for Google Chrome on Windows or Mac when you want a site to stop opening. For child accounts, use account-level controls such as Google Family Link. For personal focus, a browser extension may be enough.
Block sites for a child with Google Family Link
This is the strongest option because the controls live with the parent account.
- Install or open Google Family Link on your device, or go to families.google.com.
- Link and select your child Google Account.
- Open Controls > Content restrictions > Google Chrome.
- Choose Manage sites under the approve or block sites area.
- Tap Block a site, enter the web address, and add it.
- Wait a few minutes for the signed-in child device to receive the change.
Family Link can also try to block explicit sites automatically, which can be useful alongside specific blocked addresses.
Block sites for yourself with an extension
This is fast for distraction control, but it is not a serious lock.
- Open the Chrome Web Store.
- Search for a reputable site blocker such as BlockSite or StayFocusd.
- Install it with Add to Chrome.
- Open the extension settings from the toolbar or puzzle-piece menu.
- Add the website address to the block list and save.
Anyone who can disable or remove the extension can bypass this method, so treat it as a focus tool rather than parental control.
Block a site without an extension using the hosts file
The hosts file blocks the site for all browsers on that computer, but it requires administrator access.
- On Windows, run Notepad as administrator, open C:WindowsSystem32driversetchosts, and switch the file picker to All Files if needed.
- On Mac, open Terminal and run sudo nano /etc/hosts.
- Add a line such as 127.0.0.1 example.com, replacing example.com with the site you want blocked. Add www.example.com too if needed.
- Save the file. In nano, press Ctrl+O, Enter, then Ctrl+X.
- Restart Chrome and test the site.
More control
Remove a block
In Family Link, return to the child Chrome site list and remove the blocked site. For the hosts file, delete the line you added and save the file again. For an extension, remove the site from the extension block list.
Cover phones and tablets separately
A hosts-file block applies only to that one computer. Family Link can cover managed mobile devices, while iPhone and iPad users may need Screen Time controls.
Administrator access can bypass local blocks
Extensions and hosts-file blocks can be changed by someone with enough access. If the block must survive active attempts to remove it, use account-level parental controls.
Sources
- Google Family Link Help – Filter content and manage apps and websites (2025)
- Google Chrome Help – Manage extensions (2025)
- Microsoft Support – Edit the hosts file (2025)