How to Block Channels on YouTube Kids (+ Main YouTube) 2026

Short answer: yes. In YouTube Kids, sign in, open a video from the channel, tap More (⋮) → Block → Block entire channel → Block, then enter the passcode. For a supervised kid account on main YouTube, use your linked parent account: channel page → More → Block channel for kids. A teen's own account has no channel block.

Blocking only stops that one channel. Re-uploads and look-alike channels still get through, so pair it with a time limit and a look at what was actually watched.

See what they're watching →

What to actually do

Lock Restricted Mode through Family Link — 30 seconds.
Use YouTube Kids if your child is under about nine, and block channels there directly.
Add time limits and visibility so YouTube doesn't crowd out homework and sleep, and so you can see what's being watched.
Talk about it. Ask your child to show you their favourite channels. When something inappropriate turns up, treat it as a conversation, not a lockdown — kids who understand why make better choices when you're not watching.

The rest of this guide is each method in detail, ranked by how much it actually gives you.

Why channel-by-channel blocking doesn't work

There are millions of channels and new ones appear every day. Even where blocking works, you are reacting — you have to discover a channel, decide it's a problem, and block it, and by then it's been watched. Meanwhile the algorithm has three more like it queued up.

The two things that genuinely change your child's YouTube experience are how much time it gets and whether you can see what was watched. Everything below is ranked by how much of that it gives you.

Method 1: Block a channel in YouTube Kids or on a supervised account

In the YouTube Kids app: sign in, open a video from the channel, tap More (⋮) at the top → Block → Block entire channel → Block, then enter the numbers on screen or your passcode. Blocks only hold while you're signed in. Google says blocked content comes back if you sign out of YouTube Kids.

On main YouTube, for a supervised kid account: in your own YouTube app, signed in with the parent account linked to your child, go to the channel page → More → Block channel for kids → Continue → Block next to your child. On a computer it's the channel's About tab → Report user → Block channel for kids. If your child uses the same Google Account in YouTube Kids, the block applies there too.

Set it up by installing YouTube Kids, signing in with your own Google account, and creating a profile with your child's age — Preschool (4 and under), Younger (5–8) or Older (9–12). There's also Approve content yourself, which limits your child to videos, channels and collections you've picked by hand, with search turned off.

The catch: the library is much smaller than real YouTube, so most kids push back on it around age eight or nine. Approve content yourself means curating everything. And its built-in time control is just a timer in the app's parent settings, which isn't available on youtubekids.com.

Method 2: Restricted Mode — 30 seconds, worth doing

YouTube's own filter hides mature content based on titles, metadata and age restrictions. It cannot block specific channels.

Do it through Family Link so your child can't switch it off: Family Link → your child → Controls → Content restrictions → YouTube, then pick the level for their age. Set directly in the app (Settings → General → Restricted Mode) your child can just turn it back off.

The catch: YouTube says itself it isn't 100% accurate, and it applies per account — signing out or using another browser drops it.

Method 3: "Don't recommend channel" — a soft block

On the channel page, three-dot menu → Don't recommend channel. The algorithm stops surfacing it.

The catch: it isn't a block. Your child can search the channel name and watch every video. Useful for steering the feed, useless for anything you actually need kept away.

Method 4: Manage time and get visibility — what most families end up needing

YouTube's own settings can't schedule when YouTube opens, and they show you nothing about what was watched. That's the gap a parental control app fills. With ParentalEdge:

Allowed hours for YouTube. Set the YouTube app to open only in the hours you choose — for example 4–6pm on weekdays — and it stays shut the rest of the day, Shorts included. It runs on the schedule, so there's no nightly negotiation. (Supervised accounts can also get a Shorts-only feed limit from YouTube itself.)
Video titles and channels, not just hours (on Android). You see the actual videos, so "three hours on YouTube" becomes something you can talk about.
Web filtering underneath it. youtube.com blocked as a site as well as an app, so the browser route closes with the app route — in every browser, incognito included.

The catch, honestly: this manages the YouTube app. It doesn't filter inside YouTube, so pair it with Restricted Mode. And a child using YouTube in a browser sidesteps app rules — which is why web filtering across every browser matters too. Our guide to blocking adult content on Android covers that side.

Set YouTube limits in 2 minutes →

Method 5: Router blocking — a bedtime switch, not a daily tool

You can block youtube.com, youtu.be and googlevideo.com in your router's access-control settings, or point the router at a filtering DNS like OpenDNS FamilyShield.

The catch: it hits everyone in the house including you, it's all-or-nothing with no time limits, it does nothing on mobile data or at a friend's house, and a VPN walks around it. Fine as a bedtime measure for the whole household. Too blunt for daily use.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I block a specific YouTube channel completely on the main YouTube app?

Only on a supervised kid account. From your linked parent account, open the channel page → More → Block channel for kids, and pick your child. On an ordinary or teen account there's no channel block: "Don't recommend channel" only removes it from suggestions, and your child can still search for it and watch. No parental control app can add a channel block YouTube doesn't offer.

My child watches YouTube Shorts constantly. Can I block just Shorts?

Yes — if their Google account is supervised through Family Link, YouTube's Family Center now lets you set a daily Shorts feed limit, down to zero. Pair it with ParentalEdge allowed hours for the YouTube app, and you'll also see the Shorts actually watched, not just the minutes. Full steps in our guide to limiting YouTube Shorts.

Which Indian YouTube channels should I be cautious about?

Watch for prank channels, "dark side of" compilations, channels pushing dangerous challenges, and misleading thumbnails aimed at children that carry adult humour or violence. Some popular Hindi gaming channels also use strong language. Review the video titles in your activity reports to spot patterns, then watch a few together and discuss them.

Is it better to block YouTube entirely or set time limits?

For most families with children over eight, time limits work better. YouTube has genuinely good educational content, and blocking it outright removes that along with the bad. Restricted Mode for content, plus allowed hours for the YouTube app, gives your child the good parts without letting YouTube take over the day.

How do I block YouTube for certain hours?

YouTube itself can't schedule when it opens. YouTube Kids has a timer, and supervised accounts can cap the Shorts feed, but neither sets hours. With ParentalEdge, set the YouTube app to allowed hours (for example 4–6pm on weekdays) and block youtube.com as a website, so the browser route stays closed.

My child uses YouTube for school projects. How do I allow that while restricting entertainment?

Keep YouTube on a daily limit or allowed hours, so entertainment stays capped, and check that the learning apps your child needs still open at study time. If they genuinely need YouTube for a project, extend their time or pause restrictions from the dashboard.

Bottom line

YouTube gives you a real channel block in YouTube Kids and on supervised kid accounts, and only a soft one on teen and ordinary accounts. Once your child is past YouTube Kids age, the honest answer is that you can't curate the platform for them — but you can decide how much of their day it gets, and you can see what they watched.

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