The Best App Blockers for Samsung Galaxy Phones (2026)

A Galaxy runs Android, so every Android app blocker works on it. Two things are different on a Samsung: it has its own blocking tools in Settings, and it is one of the most aggressive phones at shutting down apps in the background, which is exactly what a blocker needs to keep running. Fix that first, then pick a blocker. We make Drill Sergeant, one of the apps below.

Step 1: stop Samsung putting your blocker to sleep

Samsung's battery saving puts apps to sleep in the background, and a blocker that's asleep can't block anything. Don't kill my app, which tracks how phone makers treat background apps, gives Samsung its worst score^[4]. Samsung's own fix is a list of apps it never puts to sleep^[3]:

Tap +, pick your blocker and tap Add. The menus are named slightly differently on some One UI versions, but the list always sits under Background usage limits. While you're there, make sure Put unused apps to sleep is off. Samsung can put apps back on its sleep lists after a firmware update, so check again after a big update^[4].

Samsung's built-in tools

App timers

Choose the apps or app categories, then set how long you can use them each day. In the same place, Screen time goal sets a daily target for the whole phone^[1]. On older phones the menu is called Digital Wellbeing and parental controls.

A focus mode that restricts apps

Name it (Study, Work), then under Choose what this mode does tap Stay focused and turn on Restrict app usage and Do not disturb. With Turn on automatically the mode can start by itself, for example at a set time or place^[2]. Samsung moved some of the old Digital Wellbeing options here, which is why Focus mode seems to have disappeared^[1].

Where they fall short

Both are a few taps to undo: you can switch the mode off or raise a timer whenever you like. Samsung's parental controls can lock settings with a PIN, but they're built for a parent managing a child's phone^[1]. If you want a block you can't talk yourself out of, add an app.

The comparison

Installs and ratings are from each Google Play listing on 1 November 2026. For all 14 Android blockers, see the best app blockers for Android.

Which one should you pick?

• You keep switching your blocker off: AppBlock with Strict Mode^[14], Lock Me Out or Regain. See is there an app blocker you can't turn off?
• You want to pay nothing: StayFree, ScreenZen or Samsung's own App timers. More in free app blockers with no subscription.
• You only lose time to Reels or Shorts: one sec, Regain or Stay Focused. Step by step: block Instagram Reels and block YouTube Shorts.
• You're studying: Regain or Stay Focused, which pair a timer with a block. See apps to stop using your phone while studying.
• A hard block makes you rebel: make scrolling cost effort instead. In Drill Sergeant, ten push-ups counted by your camera buy ten minutes, or you report real work. More in apps that make you do push-ups first.

The strictest: AppBlock, Lock Me Out and Regain

AppBlock is the most installed dedicated blocker, with 249,000 ratings averaging 4.7. It blocks on schedules by time, location or Wi-Fi, and its Strict Mode locks your settings and stops it being uninstalled^[5][14]. Lock Me Out password-protects entry, uninstall and tampering^[11]. Regain's Strict Mode won't let you edit or disable a limit until the time ends, and it can block uninstalling^[7].

The free ones: StayFree and ScreenZen

StayFree has the best usage stats here, plus limits and schedules, with no ads^[6]. ScreenZen puts a pause in front of the apps you pick and lets you in for short bursts; it's free and rated 4.8^[9].

The one that makes you earn it: Drill Sergeant

Instead of a wall, Drill Sergeant makes you pay for scrolling with effort: ten push-ups, counted by your phone's camera, buy ten minutes, or you report a piece of real work. Captain Jack turns your goals into daily objectives. On Android it blocks the ten apps that eat the most time: Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X, Threads and the Lite versions of Instagram and TikTok^[12]. Like any blocker on a Galaxy, add it to Never sleeping apps.

Put your blocker on the never-sleep list. Then turn it on.

Before you install any of them

• Accessibility permission: most blockers need it to see which app is open. Check what the privacy policy says the app does with it.
• One blocker at a time: two running at once can get in each other's way, and a Samsung mode that restricts apps counts as one.
• Your way out: with strict modes, set up an emergency unlock before you need one.

How we compared them

We read each app's Google Play listing on 1 November 2026 for installs, rating and features, and Samsung's own support pages for the built-in settings. Menu names can differ a little by model and One UI version. We didn't rank by affiliate deals; there aren't any. Not on a Samsung? See the best app blockers for Android or for iPhone.