Best Website Blockers for ADHD (2026)

If you have ADHD and you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you opened your browser to do something else entirely. Your brain works differently, and you need a blocker that understands that.

Most website blockers are designed for neurotypical brains. They assume you can resist a “Disable Extension” button or remember your intention after a 30-second delay. For ADHD brains, those assumptions fall apart in seconds.

Why ADHD Makes Website Blocking Different

ADHD is a neurological difference in how the prefrontal cortex regulates attention, impulse control, and reward processing. It has nothing to do with willpower.

The prefrontal cortex manages executive functions: prioritizing tasks, inhibiting impulses, planning ahead, and delaying gratification. In ADHD brains, this system is underactive, leading to:

• Impulsive behavior: The gap between “I want to check Twitter” and actually doing it is measured in milliseconds, not minutes.
• Dopamine-seeking: ADHD brains have lower baseline dopamine levels. Social media, news sites, and Reddit provide instant dopamine hits that are neurologically difficult to resist.
• Time blindness: “I’ll just check for one minute” becomes 45 minutes because the internal clock doesn’t work the same way.
• Hyperfocus on the wrong things: Once an ADHD brain locks onto a stimulating distraction, breaking free requires enormous effort.

This means the standard advice - “just close the tab” or “use a timer” - is roughly as useful as telling someone with glasses to “just see better.”

What to Look For in an ADHD-Friendly Blocker

Not every blocker works for ADHD. Here’s what matters:

• Hard enforcement: If it can be bypassed in under 10 seconds, it won’t work. ADHD impulsivity is faster than any “Are you sure?” dialog.
• External accountability: Internal motivation is unreliable with ADHD. The best tools create external consequences - financial, social, or structural.
• System-level blocking: Browser extensions are useless for ADHD. The impulse to open another browser is automatic and unconscious.
• Low setup friction: If it takes 15 minutes to configure, it won’t get used. ADHD brains abandon complex setups.
• Flexibility for emergencies: Total lockout tools create anxiety, which worsens ADHD symptoms. The ideal tool has an escape hatch that’s costly, not impossible.

#1 FocusJar

FocusJar is designed around a principle that’s particularly effective for ADHD: loss aversion.

Instead of locking you out completely (which creates anxiety) or trusting you to resist (which fails with ADHD impulsivity), FocusJar puts a financial penalty between you and your distractions. You set the fee - $5, $25, $100 - and the only way to unblock early is to pay it.

Why this works for ADHD:

• Automatic response: Loss aversion is processed by the amygdala, not the prefrontal cortex. It works even when executive function is compromised.
• No willpower required: The fee does the work your prefrontal cortex can’t.
• System-level blocking: Every browser, every app. No impulsive workarounds.
• Flexible: You can always get through in a genuine emergency - it just costs money.
• Free to start: The free tier uses a $1 unlock fee. No subscription barrier.

Best for: ADHD adults who need consequences stronger than willpower but more flexible than total lockout.

#2 Cold Turkey

Cold Turkey ($39 one-time) is the strictest conventional blocker available. Its “Frozen Turkey” mode locks your entire computer to a whitelist - you literally cannot access anything not on the approved list.

For ADHD, this rigidity is a double-edged sword. The enforcement is genuine - you can’t impulsively bypass it. But the inflexibility can cause problems:

• Forgot to whitelist a site you need for work? Too bad.
• Emergency requiring a blocked site? Wait it out.
• The anxiety of being locked out can worsen ADHD-related emotional dysregulation.

Best for: ADHD adults who want maximum enforcement and can plan their whitelist carefully in advance.

#3 Freedom

Freedom ($8.99/mo) blocks across Mac, Windows, iOS, and Android. It offers session scheduling and a “Locked Mode” that prevents early unlocking.

The ADHD problem: without Locked Mode enabled, Freedom is easy to disable. And Locked Mode has to be turned on each time - which requires the executive function that ADHD brains struggle with. If you forget to enable it (likely), the block is just a suggestion.

Best for: ADHD adults who need cross-platform blocking and can build a consistent habit of enabling Locked Mode.

#4 SelfControl

SelfControl (free, open-source) blocks domains for a set duration on Mac. Once started, the block cannot be overridden - not by deleting the app, restarting, or anything else.

The enforcement is strong, but the limitations are real for ADHD:

• No scheduling - you have to remember to start it each time
• No cross-platform support
• No flexibility if you realize you need a blocked site

Best for: ADHD users on a budget who want strict, free enforcement for individual work sessions.

#5 one sec

one sec takes a different approach: instead of blocking, it adds a mandatory breathing exercise before you can open distracting apps. The idea is that the pause breaks the automatic impulse cycle.

For ADHD, the results are mixed. The interruption can break a compulsive loop, but it can also feel like an annoying speedbump that you learn to tap through on autopilot. It’s also primarily a phone app, so it doesn’t address Mac-based distractions.

Best for: ADHD users who primarily struggle with phone-based distractions and want an interruption-based (not blocking-based) approach.

#6 Screen Time

Apple’s built-in Screen Time is not recommended for ADHD. The “Ignore Limit” button is designed to be pressed - it’s big, it’s obvious, and ADHD impulsivity will find it instantly. Using Screen Time for ADHD focus is like putting a “Don’t Press” button in front of someone whose brain is wired to press buttons.

Why Browser Extensions Don’t Work for ADHD

This deserves its own section because browser extensions are the most common recommendation, and they’re the worst option for ADHD.

The bypass path for a browser extension is:

1. Feel impulse to check blocked site
2. See block page
3. Open different browser (or incognito, or disable extension)
4. Access site

With ADHD, steps 1 through 4 happen in under 5 seconds. The impulse and the action are nearly simultaneous. By the time your prefrontal cortex catches up with “wait, I wasn’t supposed to do that,” you’re already 10 minutes into a Reddit thread.

Beyond Blockers: ADHD Focus Strategies

Website blockers are one piece of the puzzle. These complementary strategies work well alongside a good blocker:

• Body doubling: Working alongside someone else (in person or virtually) provides external accountability that helps regulate ADHD attention.
• Pomodoro technique: Short work sprints (25 minutes) with scheduled breaks work with ADHD’s natural attention rhythms rather than against them.
• Environmental design: Work in a library, café, or co-working space where social pressure discourages visible procrastination.
• Phone in another room: Physical distance is the most reliable phone blocker. ADHD impulsivity can’t bypass a phone that’s upstairs.
• Visible timers: External time references help counteract ADHD time blindness.

The Bottom Line

For ADHD brains, the hierarchy is clear:

1. Best: System-level blocking with external consequences (FocusJar). Loss aversion works through the amygdala, bypassing the impaired prefrontal cortex entirely.
2. Good: Strict lockout tools (Cold Turkey, SelfControl). Strong enforcement, but inflexible.
3. Situational: Interruption-based tools (one sec). Helpful for phone habits, limited for desktop.
4. Avoid: Browser extensions and Screen Time. Their bypass mechanisms are faster than ADHD impulse control.

The right tool doesn’t ask your ADHD brain to do what it can’t. It creates an external structure that does the work your prefrontal cortex struggles with - automatically, every time, without requiring motivation or discipline you may not have in the moment.