How to Block Threads on iPhone (Without Touching Instagram)

Threads is quietly becoming your new doomscroll. How to block the Threads app and threads.net on iPhone, separately from Instagram, step by step.

Léo LitricoOctober 27, 20264 min read

Yes, you can block Threads without touching Instagram. Threads is its own app on your iPhone, so a Screen Time limit on it leaves your Instagram DMs alone. Add threads.net and threads.com to Safari's blocked sites, switch the feed to Following, and you've removed most of the pull.

Quick answer

App: Settings > Screen Time > App Limits > Add Limit > Threads only, Block at End of Limit on.

Browser: threads.net and threads.com under Never Allow.

In the app: switch to the Following feed.

Instagram stays open unless you add it too.

Why is Threads so hard to put down?

It started as the calmer text app next to Instagram. Now it mixes people you follow with a heavily recommended For You feed, so there's always more. Posts are short, replies are endless, and because it borrows your Instagram network, it feels personal from the first scroll.

It's also light. Text loads instantly, so "just a quick look" has no friction at all. And it doesn't feel like a video binge, which makes it easy to tell yourself it doesn't count.

How do you block Threads with Screen Time?

These steps work on iOS 16 through iOS 26.

Open Settings > Screen Time and turn it on if needed.
Tap App Limits > Add Limit.
Find Threads and select it. Leave Instagram unticked.
Pick a time: 1 minute for a near-total block, around 15 minutes for a cap.
Turn on Block at End of Limit, which needs a Screen Time passcode (Settings > Screen Time > Lock Screen Time Settings, or Use Screen Time Passcode on iOS 16).

Without a passcode you just get Ignore Limit. See how to remove "Ignore Limit".

Want Instagram DMs at night but not Threads? Set Downtime (Settings > Screen Time > Downtime > Scheduled, say 9:30 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.), then put Instagram on Always Allowed and leave Threads off. Because they're separate apps, one stays open and the other locks.

How do you block Threads in Safari?

Instagram links to Threads posts, and those open in the browser.

Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions, and turn it on.
App Store, Media, Web & Games > Web Content > Limit Adult Websites (on iOS 16 to 18.0, the first menu is Content Restrictions or Store, Web, Siri & Game Center Content).
Under Never Allow, add threads.net and threads.com.

What can you change inside Threads?

Very little time control, but you can shrink the feed:

Switch to Following at the top of the home screen: people you chose, in order. This one change cuts most of the endless recommended posts.
Turn off notifications you don't need in Settings > Notifications.
Mute or hide accounts and words that pull you into long reply chains.

A Face ID lock (long-press the icon, Require Face ID) stops other people, not you.

Why don't these blocks hold?

Threads leaks through the website and through Instagram's links to it. Every built-in block can also be undone by the person who set it, and "it's only text" makes that easy to justify. See Screen Time loopholes.

Threads use also tends to be many short opens that occasionally become one long scroll. A daily total can't tell them apart.

How do you block Threads so it holds?

Detox (iPhone and iPad) targets the long scroll, not the quick look.

Add Threads to a Detox rule, plus threads.net and threads.com. Leave Instagram out if you want its DMs free.
Set a session limit, say 15 minutes in a row. Opening one post a friend shared is fine. Once you have scrolled continuously past your limit, Threads locks for a short break.
Let quick looks reset. A couple of minutes away and the count goes back to zero.
Add a schedule to block Threads every night from 9:30 p.m.
Turn on Strict mode so you can't edit or delete the rule while it blocks. An urgent unblock covers real emergencies, once every 24 hours.

It's iOS only and paid, with a free trial.

The bottom line

Limit the Threads app on its own (it's separate from Instagram), block threads.net and threads.com, and switch to the Following feed. If Threads has become your new doomscroll, a limit on continuous sessions keeps quick looks possible and stops the spiral.

Frequently asked questions

Can I block Threads without blocking Instagram?

Yes. Threads is a separate app, so a Screen Time App Limit or Downtime rule on Threads doesn't affect Instagram.

How do I block Threads on iPhone?

Settings > Screen Time > App Limits > Add Limit, select Threads, choose a time and turn on Block at End of Limit. Add threads.net and threads.com to Never Allow for Safari.

Does Threads have a time limit?

No. You can switch to the Following feed and turn off notifications, but for a real limit you need Screen Time or a blocker.

Will deleting Threads delete my Instagram?

Deleting the Threads app from your phone doesn't affect Instagram. Deleting your Threads profile is a separate account action, so check Meta's current rules first.