Website Blocker With a Password: What Works on Chrome, and What Does Not

Last updated September 2026.

Searching for a website blocker with a password usually means one of two things. Either you are setting up blocks for someone else, like a child, or you are trying to stop yourself from switching your blocker off. Passwords are excellent for the first job. For the second, they have a flaw that is easy to miss: you know the password.

This guide covers which Chrome tools actually offer password protection, which ones are free, and what tends to work better when the person you are locking out is you.

Can you block websites on Chrome with a password?#

Not with Chrome alone on a normal profile. Chrome has no built-in setting that blocks a site behind a password, so you need an extension or a separate app.

The exception is supervised accounts for kids. With Google Family Link, a parent can manage which websites a child can visit in Chrome on Android and ChromeOS devices, including blocking specific sites (Google For Families Help). That control sits with the parent's account, which is exactly why it works.

Why a password you set yourself is not a lock#

A lock works because the person being kept out does not have the key. When you set a blocker password for yourself, you are both the person locked out and the keyholder. At 3pm, when the urge hits, typing a password you already know takes about three seconds.

That does not make passwords useless for self-control. They add a small step, and a small step does some good. But they fail in a predictable way:

• You remember it. Or you write it down somewhere handy, which amounts to the same thing.
• It is fast. A few keystrokes is not enough time for an impulse to fade.
• It is all or nothing. Once you type it, you usually have full access to the settings, not a short, limited break.

So if you are blocking sites for yourself, the goal is not a better password. It is a barrier that either someone else controls or that costs real effort every time.

Better options than a password you know#

1. Give the password to someone else

This turns a speed bump into a real lock. Ask a partner, friend or accountability buddy to set the password and keep it. Some tools even suggest this: Cold Turkey describes its password lock as "useful for parents or with an accountability partner" (Cold Turkey features). The downside is that you have to ask them when you genuinely need access, which is also the point.

2. Use an effort-based pause instead

Instead of a secret you know, put a task in front of the site: type a paragraph exactly, write your reason, or wait out a 60 second countdown. You cannot shortcut effort the way you can shortcut a password, and it costs the same every time. There is good evidence this kind of friction works: in a 2023 PNAS field study of the one sec app, people closed a target app in 36% of attempts after a short pause. We explain the pause types in website blocker with a typing challenge.

3. Use schedules so the rule is not always in your way

A rule that blocks a site you need for work gets disabled. A schedule that runs only during your focus hours is easier to live with, which means you are less tempted to break it.

4. Send yourself somewhere useful

A blocked page leaves the urge nowhere to go. Redirecting to your goals or task list gives it a next step. More on this in why website blockers don't work.

Website blockers that do have password protection#

If a password is what you want, these tools offer one. Details come from each tool's official pages, checked in September 2026.

LeechBlock NG

LeechBlock's documentation describes an option to restrict access to the whole options page by requiring a password or a random access code. Separately, a block set can show a password page before a blocked site opens (LeechBlock documentation). It is the strongest free option if you specifically want a password. Our Redirect vs LeechBlock comparison goes deeper.

BlockSite

BlockSite's site lists Password Protection: "When you're tempted to change your settings, you'll have to enter your password" (BlockSite). A parent guide from the San Francisco Unified School District notes that password protection is only available in the paid version (SFUSD). See BlockSite alternatives if you are comparing.

Cold Turkey Blocker

Cold Turkey has several lock types, including a password lock, random text, delay and restart (features). Its pricing page lists all locking features under the Pro version (pricing). It is a desktop app, so it can also block apps outside the browser, which an extension cannot.

StayFocusd

StayFocusd does not center on a password. Its Chrome Web Store listing describes a Require Challenge before you can change settings, and a Nuclear Option that blocks sites for a set number of hours and cannot be canceled (Chrome Web Store).

How to block a website on Chrome with a password#

Here is the free route with LeechBlock NG, set up so the password actually works.

1. Install LeechBlock NG from the Chrome Web Store

It is free and works in Chrome and other Chromium browsers.

2. Create a block set with your sites

Add the sites you want blocked and choose when the block applies.

3. Turn on the options password

In the options, set the requirement for access to options to a password. If you are the one being blocked, choose the random access code instead, or have someone else type the password.

4. Let someone else keep the password

If the goal is self-control, do not keep the password yourself. Give it to someone you trust and do not write it down.

5. Check Incognito

Like any Chrome extension, a blocker only runs in Incognito windows if you turn on "Allow in Incognito" in chrome://extensions. Otherwise Incognito is an easy way around it.

Where Redirect fits#

Redirect is a Chrome extension that sends distracting sites to your goals instead of a blocked page. It has no password lock, and no uninstall prevention. That is a deliberate choice: instead of a secret you already know, it asks for effort.

• Pauses cost effort. Before temporary access, you complete that rule's task: a typing challenge, reason prompt, math challenge, breathing pause, 60 second wait, or no task.
• The off switch costs effort too. Turning off all redirects means typing a long fixed paragraph, and disabling, deleting or loosening an active rule requires that rule's pause task. Turning back on is instant.
• Breaks are capped. You choose a pause length from 1 to 60 minutes and a daily pause limit per rule.

Be honest with yourself about fit. If you need to lock settings for a child or want a password someone else holds, a tool from the table above is the better choice. If you are the one you are trying to stop, effort is harder to shortcut than a password you know. Redirect is free for one site, with Pro and Lifetime plans for unlimited sites (see pricing).

The bottom line#

A password is a real lock only when someone else holds it. For blocking sites for kids or with an accountability partner, LeechBlock NG (free), BlockSite and Cold Turkey all offer one. For blocking sites for yourself, give the password away, or use effort-based pauses and schedules that make every visit a small, deliberate choice.

Close the tab. Open your goals.

Redirect sends distracting sites to the goals you wrote down, and makes every pause a choice.

Add to Chrome, free to start