Use Screen Time for a basic limit, Downtime for scheduled access, or an iPhone app blocker when picking a song turns into browsing music videos, without deleting your account. Worth asking first: is blocking the right fix here?
Before blocking YouTube Music, it's worth being honest about what the app is actually doing for you. Like other music apps, it often runs in the background while you work, study, or exercise, exactly the kind of use a blanket block can interrupt. If that's your main pattern, restricting the app entirely may remove something genuinely useful.
What's different here compared to a pure audio player is the video and recommendation system underneath. YouTube Music shares that foundation with YouTube itself, so opening it to play one song can pull you toward watching a music video, or following a recommendation into content that isn't really about listening anymore.
1. Open Settings, then tap Screen Time. If needed, turn on App & Website Activity. Tap App Limits, then Add Limit.
2. Select YouTube Music. Open the Entertainment or Music category, select YouTube Music, tap Next, choose the daily allowance, then tap Done. Selecting it on its own avoids sharing a limit with other apps you still need.
3. Know what happens when the limit is reached. iPhone shows a Screen Time limit screen, but an App Limit can be ignored by default. That's a reasonable outcome if background listening genuinely matters to you, an ignorable limit at least leaves the choice in your hands rather than cutting off music mid-task.
Check that the App Limit applies to YouTube Music itself, not the main YouTube app. Open Settings > Screen Time > App Limits, tap the rule, and confirm YouTube Music is selected specifically, since they're separate apps with separate limits.
Do not confuse an override with a failed limit. If you see an Ignore Limit option, the limit has triggered as designed. It is an expected iPhone override, not proof the app was never restricted. See how to stop ignoring Screen Time limits if that override has become automatic for you.
Check the workaround you are actually using. Muting notifications or hiding the icon doesn't block YouTube Music. If the pull is actually toward the main YouTube app, that needs its own separate restriction.
Downtime blocks most apps during a scheduled period. Go to Settings > Screen Time > Downtime, choose Scheduled, and set the days and hours. If you know a specific window, right before bed or during a study block, is when browsing tends to happen, Downtime can cover that period specifically rather than blocking music around the clock.
Turn on Block at Downtime for a real scheduled block. Apple lets Downtime show a reminder by default; with Block at Downtime enabled, restricted apps cannot open during that period. Apps in Always Allowed can remain available, so review that list if YouTube Music is not behaving as expected.
Focus Mode is not a YouTube Music blocker. Focus can silence notifications and reduce visual cues; it does not stop you opening the app directly.
| Approach | Good for | Weak point |
|---|---|---|
| Delete YouTube Music | Removes immediate access on this iPhone. | Loses playlists and stops useful background listening along with the browsing. |
| Screen Time app limit | Basic limits and awareness. | You can choose Ignore Limit, and a category-wide limit may unintentionally cover music you needed. |
| Fella | Blocking YouTube Music by default when browsing, not listening, is the actual problem. | Built for one 5-minute emergency unlock per session, not open-ended access. |
A dedicated blocker fits when opening YouTube Music has become a route into watching, not just listening. If you're honest that a song search regularly turns into a video you weren't looking for, a default-off rule removes the opening that leads there. If you are still deciding whether a blocker is the right tool at all, see our iPhone app-blocking options.
With Fella, add YouTube Music to the apps you want blocked. It stays unavailable by default while the apps you did not select remain accessible.
Use the emergency unlock only for a practical need. Each blocking session includes one 5-minute emergency unlock, enough to start a specific playlist before a workout or a call. When the five minutes end, YouTube Music locks again automatically.
That is the trade-off, and it's worth restating clearly. Blocking YouTube Music blocks the app, including the moments you genuinely need quick, intentional access to music. If that's most of your usage, a scheduled Downtime window for specific browsing-prone hours may serve you better than an all-day default block.
Good fit: people who open YouTube Music to play a song and end up watching videos instead. If browsing or watching consistently replaces listening, that's the pattern Fella is built to interrupt.
Not a good fit: people who rely on it running quietly in the background for work, study, or exercise. An all-day block removes that utility along with the browsing. A scheduled Downtime window during your specific risk hours is likely the better tool here.
People who've already tried app limits during browsing-heavy sessions specifically. If "Ignore Limit" became a habit of its own in those windows, a harder default during those hours is the next step.
Use Screen Time App Limits for a daily allowance, Downtime for a scheduled block, or a focused app blocker like Fella to keep YouTube Music blocked by default with one 5-minute emergency unlock per session.
It depends on how you use it. If it plays music in the background while you work, study, or exercise, blocking it removes something useful. If opening it to play a song turns into browsing music videos, recommendations, or related content, that's a different problem blocking can help with.
No. Fella blocks access to the app on your iPhone. Your account and playlists are untouched, and you can still reach them during your one 5-minute emergency unlock per session.
They're separate apps with different focuses, but YouTube Music shares the same underlying video and recommendation system as YouTube. Since it's built for video as well as audio, browsing can pull toward watching content, not just listening, in a way a pure audio player wouldn't.
A blocker restricts opening the app; it's designed around restricting access to the app itself, not interrupting audio already in progress in the background. If background listening while you work matters to you, weigh that before blocking the app entirely.
Yes. Use App Limits for a daily allowance, or Downtime for scheduled hours. A reached App Limit can be ignored by default. Fella is a narrower blocker with one 5-minute emergency unlock per session.
Yes. You choose which apps Fella blocks. YouTube Music can be on your list while other apps you rely on stay fully accessible.
