Free Porn Blocker
Summary
The Honest Version First There is no free porn blocker app with a permanent free tier from any of the established vendors. Covenant Eyes, Canopy, Bark, Truple and Accountable2You are all subscription only, each offering a trial or a refund window rather than a free plan (each verified on the vendor's own pricing page, checked 2026-08-16). What is free, and free forever, is the filtering already built into iOS and Android plus a public DNS resolver that refuses to resolve adult domains. That
Key Takeaways
- A genuinely free porn blocker exists, but it is not an app. It is a combination of settings already on your device and a public DNS resolver, and together they cover more than most paid products.
- Setup takes about ten minutes and costs nothing, permanently, with no trial clock.
- Free filtering does not do three things: report to another person, resist tampering, or give you support when it breaks.
- Every named commercial product in this category is subscription only with no permanent free tier. If a site tells you Covenant Eyes or Canopy has a free plan, it is wrong.
The Honest Version First
There is no free porn blocker app with a permanent free tier from any of the established vendors. Covenant Eyes, Canopy, Bark, Truple and Accountable2You are all subscription only, each offering a trial or a refund window rather than a free plan (each verified on the vendor's own pricing page, checked 2026-08-16).
What is free, and free forever, is the filtering already built into iOS and Android plus a public DNS resolver that refuses to resolve adult domains. That combination is not a downgrade from the paid products. On coverage it beats a browser extension and matches what several paid apps do, because it is the same mechanism.
What you give up is covered further down, and it is worth reading before you decide free is enough.
Free Option 1: Filtering DNS
This is the highest leverage free move available. Before loading anything, your device asks a resolver to turn a domain name into an address. Point that at a resolver that will not answer for adult domains and nothing loads, in any browser, in any app using that connection.
Three free resolvers, each documented by its operator:
| Service | Addresses | What it blocks |
|---|---|---|
| Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 for Families | 1.1.1.3 and 1.0.0.3 | Malware and adult content |
| CleanBrowsing Family Filter | 185.228.168.168 and 185.228.169.168 | Adult sites, proxy and VPN domains, mixed content sites, plus SafeSearch enforcement |
| AdGuard family protection | 94.140.14.15 and 94.140.15.16 | Ads, trackers, adult content, and Safe Search where possible |
Cloudflare describes this as free protection for your home Internet (Cloudflare). CleanBrowsing's free tier requires no account but is documented as throttled and without support (CleanBrowsing). AdGuard describes these as free public DNS servers that "block ads, trackers, adult content, and enable Safe Search and Safe Mode, where possible" (AdGuard DNS). All checked 2026-08-16.
Where to set it. On your router covers every device on the home network in one move, including televisions and consoles, and is the version most worth doing. Per device is the fallback when you do not control the router.
The gap you must know about. A router level filter does nothing over cellular data. A phone leaving the house leaves the filter behind. That single fact is why DNS alone is rarely the whole answer on a phone.
Of the three, CleanBrowsing's Family Filter is the one to pick if you want the strongest free option, because it also blocks the proxy and VPN domains that are the usual first bypass.
Free Option 2: The Filter Already On Your Phone
iPhone. Screen Time contains a web content filter. Apple's current documented path is: open Settings, scroll down, tap Screen Time, tap Content & Privacy Restrictions, enter the Screen Time passcode if asked, tap App Store, Media, Web, & Games, then tap Web Content, and choose Limit Adult Websites (Apple Support, checked 2026-08-16). Note that the middle steps have been renamed more than once; if you are following older instructions that say Content Restrictions, the setting is now behind App Store, Media, Web, & Games. Step by step in how to block adult content on iPhone.
Android. The equivalent lives in Family Link. Open Family Link, select the person, tap Controls then Google Chrome and Web, and choose "Try to block explicit sites" (Google For Families Help, checked 2026-08-16). Google states directly that "No filter is perfect, but this should help hide sexually explicit sites."
Both are free, both come with the phone, and both are the correct first step before spending anything. Details in porn blocker for Android.
Free Option 3: SafeSearch
Worth five minutes and worth understanding narrowly. SafeSearch has three settings, Filter which blocks explicit results, Blur which blurs explicit images, and Off. It is the default for signed-in users under 18, and it can be locked by a parent through Family Link, by a school, or by a network administrator.
Google states the limit plainly: "SafeSearch only works on Google Search. It doesn't affect content on other search engines or websites" (Google Search Help, checked 2026-08-16). Treat it as removing an easy on-ramp, not as a filter.
Free Option 4: A Browser Extension
Free extensions exist, and the honest framing is that they are the weakest thing on this page. An extension covers one browser on one computer. Chrome extensions do not run in Incognito windows unless specifically allowed, and removal is a right click and "Remove from Chrome" (Chrome Web Store Help, checked 2026-08-16).
They earn a place on a work laptop where you cannot touch DNS or system settings. More in porn blocker extension.
The Ten Minute Free Setup
- Set your router's DNS to CleanBrowsing Family or Cloudflare 1.1.1.3. Covers every device at home.
- On each phone, turn on the built-in web content restriction.
- Set the Screen Time or Family Link passcode to something you do not know. This is the step people skip, and it is the one that does the work.
- Turn on SafeSearch and lock it if you administer the network.
- On shared computers, add a filtering extension as a fourth layer.
Steps one, two and four take minutes. Step three takes a conversation, and it is the only step here that is genuinely hard.
What Free Does Not Buy You
Three things, stated plainly so you can decide whether they matter to you.
Reporting. No free option tells another person anything. If the plan depends on someone knowing, free does not deliver it, and this is the single strongest reason to pay. See accountability software.
Tamper resistance. Free filters can be switched off by whoever holds the passcode, and nothing is logged when they are. Paid tools notify a partner when the filter goes down, which is a genuinely different product.
Support and precision. CleanBrowsing documents its free tier as throttled and unsupported. Free filters also overblock and underblock without recourse, and when a legitimate site is blocked you have no one to ask.
If This Is About More Than Software
Filtering changes what is easy to reach. It does not change wanting, and it is not treatment. If repeated attempts have failed and it is costing you sleep, work, or a relationship, the next step is a person rather than a tool. The Psychology Today therapist directory filters by concern and location, and many therapists list sliding scale fees for exactly this reason.
If any of this is tangled up with thoughts of self-harm or a crisis of any kind, that comes first. In the US, the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available by call, text, or chat, 24/7, in English and Spanish, free.
A Note on FaithLock
To be direct, since this page is about free tools and a reader could reasonably wonder: FaithLock is neither free nor a porn blocker. It is a subscription app, it does not filter web content, and it does not report to anyone.
FaithLock is an iOS app that shields apps you choose using Apple's Family Controls API, where reopening one requires reading a Bible verse and answering a question about it. If your issue is reaching for an app on autopilot, it addresses that. If your issue is filtering what a browser can load, use the free options above instead.
Get FaithLock on the App Store
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a completely free porn blocker? Yes, if you accept that it is settings rather than an app. Free public DNS resolvers plus the built-in iOS or Android web content filter cost nothing permanently and use the same mechanisms as paid products. What you do not get free is reporting, tamper resistance, or support.
What is the best free porn blocker for iPhone? The built-in Screen Time web content restriction, with the passcode held by somebody else, combined with a filtering DNS resolver. That reaches further than any free iPhone app, because Apple limits what third party apps can do that the system itself can do natively.
Is Covenant Eyes free? No. Covenant Eyes is subscription only with no permanent free tier, offering a 30-day trial with a money-back guarantee (verified on the vendor's pricing page, checked 2026-08-16). The same is true of Canopy, Bark, Truple and Accountable2You.
Do free porn blockers work as well as paid ones? For blocking web content, often yes, because DNS filtering is the same mechanism whether it is free or paid. Paid products differ on reporting, tamper resistance, image level classification, and support, none of which the free options provide.
Can a free porn blocker be bypassed? Yes, in under a minute by anyone who can reach the settings. So can the paid ones. The realistic goal is not a filter nobody can remove but one you cannot remove alone, which means giving the passcode to another person.
Related Reading
- Porn blocker: the full mechanism guide
- Best porn blocker apps, scored
- Porn blocker extension
- Choosing a Christian accountability partner
Sources: Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 for Families, CleanBrowsing filters, AdGuard public DNS, Apple parental controls, Google For Families Help, Google SafeSearch help, Chrome Web Store Help, 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. All checked 2026-08-16.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a completely free porn blocker?
Yes, if you accept that it is settings rather than an app. Free public DNS resolvers plus the built-in iOS or Android web content filter cost nothing permanently and use the same mechanisms as paid products. What you do not get free is reporting, tamper resistance, or support.
What is the best free porn blocker for iPhone?
The built-in Screen Time web content restriction, with the passcode held by somebody else, combined with a filtering DNS resolver. That reaches further than any free iPhone app, because Apple limits what third party apps can do that the system itself can do natively.
Is Covenant Eyes free?
No. Covenant Eyes is subscription only with no permanent free tier, offering a 30-day trial with a money-back guarantee (verified on the vendor's pricing page, checked 2026-08-16). The same is true of Canopy, Bark, Truple and Accountable2You.
Do free porn blockers work as well as paid ones?
For blocking web content, often yes, because DNS filtering is the same mechanism whether it is free or paid. Paid products differ on reporting, tamper resistance, image level classification, and support, none of which the free options provide.
Can a free porn blocker be bypassed?
Yes, in under a minute by anyone who can reach the settings. So can the paid ones. The realistic goal is not a filter nobody can remove but one you cannot remove alone, which means giving the passcode to another person.
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