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- Stop watching YouTube so much
- Time limits
How to set a time limit on YouTube
YouTube’s own tools are reminders. Take a break and bedtime pause the video in the app until you dismiss them, and the Shorts feed limit works the same way unless a parent sets it. Limits that actually stop YouTube come from elsewhere: the YouTube Kids timer, and screen-time controls on the phone, tablet or computer. FeedCut has no timer; it makes the time you do spend less sticky.
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No timer here. Instead, Hide Home feed and Hide Shorts remove the two places where minutes turn into hours.
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Which limit does what
- Reminders you can dismiss: take a break, bedtime, your own Shorts feed limit.
- Limits that lock: the YouTube Kids timer, a Shorts limit set by a parent, Screen Time, Digital Wellbeing, Family Link, Microsoft Family Safety.
- On a computer, for yourself: a timer extension, or Screen Time on a Mac.
Every option in one table
| Tool | Where | What happens at the limit |
|---|---|---|
| Take a break reminder | YouTube app | Video pauses until you dismiss it |
| Bedtime reminder | YouTube app | Reminder at a set time; you can snooze 15 minutes |
| Sleep timer | YouTube app | The video pauses after the time you pick |
| Shorts feed limit | YouTube app | A reminder; enforced only when a parent sets it |
| YouTube Kids timer | YouTube Kids app | “Time’s up!” and the app locks |
| Screen Time | iPhone, iPad, Mac | App or website blocked for the rest of the day, unless the passcode allows more |
| Digital Wellbeing app timer | Android | The app is paused for the rest of the day |
| Family Link | A child’s Android or Chromebook | App or device locked until the parent allows more |
| Microsoft Family Safety | A child’s Windows PC or Xbox | Screen time or the app ends for the day |
| Timer extension | Desktop browser | The site is blocked until the next period |
YouTube’s reminders
Both live in the phone and tablet app. YouTube’s help pages put them under your profile picture, Settings, then General, and both can also be reached from Time watched under your profile picture.
- Remind me to take a break pauses the video after the interval you choose. It’s on by default for ages 13 to 17 and off for adults. The timer resets if you close the app, sign out, switch devices or pause for more than 30 minutes, and it doesn’t run while casting or watching downloads.
- Remind me when it’s bedtime takes a start and an end time. You can let it wait until the current video ends. Remind Me Again gives you 15 more minutes.
The website on a computer has neither reminder. The Shorts feed limit is also app-only.
For children
The YouTube Kids timer is the one built-in limit that locks the whole app. In the app, tap Settings, answer the multiplication question or enter your passcode, tap Set Timer, choose the time and tap Start Timer. When it runs out, your child sees “Time’s up!” and the app locks until a parent opens it.
On regular YouTube, a parent can set the Shorts feed limit for a supervised account in Family Center, and the child can’t dismiss it. For the app as a whole, use the device’s controls below.
On a phone or tablet
- iPhone and iPad: Screen Time can set an app limit for YouTube. App limits also have a Websites category, so you can add youtube.com and cover Safari too. If the Screen Time passcode belongs to someone else, “ignore limit” needs them.
- Android: in Settings, Digital Wellbeing and parental controls has an app timer. When the time is up, the app is paused and its icon grayed out for the rest of the day.
- A child’s Android: Family Link sets daily limits for individual apps, YouTube included.
On a computer
YouTube’s website has no time controls, so a limit has to come from outside it:
- A child’s account: Microsoft Family Safety sets screen time and app limits on Windows; Family Link does the same on a Chromebook.
- A Mac: Screen Time’s website limits work in Safari.
- Any desktop browser: a timer extension. LeechBlock NG, for example, is free and open source, and blocks the sites you list after a time limit or during set hours, in Firefox, Chrome and Edge.
Where FeedCut fits
A timer decides how long; FeedCut changes what’s on the page during that time. With the Home feed, Shorts and Up next hidden, a session ends when the video you came for ends, rather than when the timer finally fires. Use both if you want a hard stop as well.
Questions
Does YouTube have a daily time limit for adults?
No hard one. The app’s take a break and bedtime reminders pause the video, and you can dismiss them. Hard limits come from your phone’s or computer’s own controls.
Can I limit YouTube on a computer without an extension?
For a child’s account, yes: Microsoft Family Safety on Windows and Family Link on a Chromebook set screen-time limits. For yourself, Screen Time on a Mac can put a limit on youtube.com in Safari. Otherwise you need an extension with a timer.
Does the YouTube Kids timer apply to the regular YouTube app?
No. It’s part of the YouTube Kids app only. For a supervised account on regular YouTube, use the device’s screen-time controls or the Shorts limit a parent sets in Family Center.
Does FeedCut have a time limit?
No. FeedCut hides the parts of YouTube that keep you watching, and blocks channels and words. Pair it with one of the timers on this page if you want both.
Take YouTube back to what you came for
Block channels, words and Shorts everywhere on YouTube. Free, no account, nothing leaves your browser.