How to Block Apps on Android

This wikiHow will teach you how to control Android by blocking certain app downloads (including automatic updates), and how to prevent apps from sending you notifications.

Table of Contents

Block app downloads from Play Store

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Open Play Store

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. You’ll usually find this in the app drawer.

Use this method to set up parental controls to restrict users from downloading age-inappropriate apps.

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Press . This button is located in the top left corner of the screen.

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Scroll down and tap Settings . This button is near the bottom of the menu.

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Scroll down and tap Parental contrps .

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Slide the switch to the on position

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. You will now be prompted to create a PIN.

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Enter the PIN and press OK . Choose a sequence that’s easy to remember, as you’ll need this PIN to bypass the controls later.

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Confirm the PIN and press OK . Parental controls are now enabled.

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Tap Apps & games . A list of age groups will appear.

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Choose an age limit. This depends on what you want to allow users to download. App developers entered these ages when adding their apps to the Play Store.

For example, if you want to block apps with adult content, but still be suitable for a “Teenage” audience, select Teen .
To block all apps except those rated as “Everyone” (all ages), select Everyone ( Everyone ).

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Click OK to confirm. This message tells you that future downloads of the app from the Play Store will be restricted based on your choice.

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Press SAVE (save). Now that you’ve enabled parental restrictions, this Android user won’t be able to install apps from the Play Store outside of their age group.

To disable this limited feature, return to the parental controls screen and slide the toggle to the off position.

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.

Block app updates

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Open Play Store

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. You’ll usually find this in the app drawer.

Use this method to prevent apps from automatically updating to their latest versions. ^{[1] X Research Source}

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Press . It’s in the top left corner of the screen.

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Scroll down and tap Settings . This button is near the bottom of the menu.

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Tap Auto-update apps . The menu menu will be displayed.

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Tap Do not auto-update apps . This is the first option on the list. App updates will no longer automatically download.

To manually update an app, open the Play Store , press ≡ , select My apps & games , and then tap UPDATE ( UPDATE ) next to the app name.