Apps that block YouTube Shorts on iPhone but keep regular videos (2026 comparison)

minulo is an iPhone app that opens YouTube with the Shorts shelf and the Shorts tab hidden while regular videos, search and subscriptions keep working, and hiding is free with no time limit. The paid part, minulo Pro, adds longer blocks, schedules and Hard Mode. Unlike a Safari extension, it isn't tied to youtube.com in Safari: it can also lock the official YouTube app with Screen Time (free for up to 2 hours per block), so tapping the red icon shows a block screen with a button that opens minulo's Shorts-free YouTube. YouTube's own Shorts feed limit can be dismissed when you reach it, so it doesn't really stop you. (I'm the developer of minulo.)

You can't fully turn off Shorts in the YouTube app on an adult account. The closest built-in option is the Shorts feed limit, which you can set to 0 minutes, but when you hit it you can dismiss the reminder and keep watching. If you want Shorts gone while normal videos, search and your subscriptions keep working, you need an app that shows YouTube somewhere else (its own browser or Safari) with Shorts hidden. Below are 15 of them, compared on the same points.

A quick disclosure first. I'm Ayumu Kitabayashi, and I build one of these apps, minulo, on my own in Japan. So this comparison may lean my way. To keep it fair, everything about the other apps comes from their US App Store pages and official websites, and every rating count has the date I checked it. If something is wrong or out of date, tell me in the comments and I'll fix it.

What can YouTube's own settings do?

Shorts feed limit. In the YouTube app, go to You → Settings → Time management → Shorts feed limit and pick a time. Zero is one of the options, and since April 2026 everyone can choose it. When you reach the limit, a reminder appears. In the words of YouTube's help page, you are then "prompted with an option to dismiss or ignore your set limit." So on an adult account it's a reminder, not a lock.

A few other things to know about it:

• It only works in the YouTube app. YouTube's help doesn't describe it for youtube.com.
• Shorts in Subscriptions and in links people send you still show up.
• The help page talks about the Shorts feed only. It doesn't say whether the limit covers Shorts on Home, in search results or on channel pages.

Show fewer Shorts. Tap ⋮ at the top of a Shorts shelf on Home. It tells YouTube to show fewer Shorts on pages such as Home and Watch Next. Fewer, not none, and YouTube doesn't say how long it lasts.

Supervised teen accounts. Parents can set how long a teen spends scrolling Shorts. This only applies to supervised accounts.

iPhone Screen Time. It can limit or block the whole YouTube app, but it can't target Shorts alone. If you watch lectures or tutorials on YouTube, blocking the app blocks those too.

Which apps hide Shorts but keep regular videos?

No app on iPhone can change what the official YouTube app shows. Only YouTube can do that. These apps work in one of two ways:

• In-app browser: the app opens YouTube's website (and often other networks) inside itself with Shorts hidden.
• Safari extension: hides Shorts when you visit youtube.com in Safari. The YouTube app isn't touched.

Rating counts are from the US App Store as of October 24, 2026, except where a date is given. They change every day, so treat them as a snapshot. The prices of minulo, FeedOff, noShorts, ShortformBlock, Nope, Stillfeed and Reelmute were rechecked against each app's In-App Purchases list on the US App Store on November 11, 2026.

Is there a completely free option?

Yes. In minulo, hiding Shorts is free, with no subscription, no trial, no account and no time limit, and it works in its own app, not only in Safari. minulo Pro is optional and has nothing that hides Shorts: it only adds Sleep mode, Work mode, Hard Mode, a Daily limit and blocks longer than 2 hours.

Here is the same question for every app, using what the US App Store lists under In-App Purchases (checked November 11, 2026):

• No in-app purchases at all: FeedOff (its own app) and Nope (Safari only).
• Free, with only an optional tip: ShortformBlock ($0.99, Safari only).
• Hiding free, with an optional paid tier: minulo (Pro $9.99/month or $39.99/year), noShorts (Pro $4.99 once), Stillfeed and Reelmute (subscriptions).

Across these apps, the paid parts are enforcement and extras, not the hiding: schedules, strict lock modes and multiple accounts.

If you only want YouTube cleaned up in Safari and would rather pay once, No Shorts: Blocker for YouTube and tubetidy are $2.99 one-time purchases.

How do I stop opening the YouTube app out of habit?

Even with a Shorts blocker installed, your thumb can still go straight to the red YouTube icon. A Safari extension can't help there, because the official app is unchanged.

The fix is an app that locks the official app with Screen Time and points you somewhere else. In the table, minulo, SocialLite, noShorts and FeedOff do this, and Reelmute does it in Premium.

In minulo it works like this: in the Block tab, allow Screen Time and choose YouTube. When you tap the YouTube icon, a "Blocked" screen appears, and "Open in minulo" takes you to YouTube with Shorts hidden. Locking the official app is free for up to 2 hours per block. Longer blocks, schedules and Hard Mode are Pro.

What if Shorts aren't my only problem?

If you also lose time to Instagram Reels or TikTok, check which networks each app covers:

• Nope, Stillfeed: Instagram and YouTube.
• Dull: Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, X and Reddit.
• UNDOOMED: Instagram, Threads, Reddit, Facebook, X, YouTube and LinkedIn (no TikTok or Snapchat).
• noShorts: Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook and X, with Reddit, Bluesky and Tumblr as add-ons.
• FeedOff: Instagram, YouTube, X, Reddit, LinkedIn and Facebook (TikTok only by blocking the whole app).
• minulo: Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, X, Threads, Facebook, Pinterest, Reddit, LinkedIn and Snapchat (10).
• No Shorts, ShortformBlock, tubetidy: YouTube only.

Do more ratings mean a better app?

On the US App Store, SocialLite is far ahead with 15,058 ratings, followed by SocialFocus (326), #blockit (168), ScrollGuard (117) and UNDOOMED (108). minulo is new and has no US ratings yet.

Ratings tell you how many people have tried an app. They don't tell you whether it hides Shorts in the places you care about, so check the Shorts column and the price too.

What minulo can't do

Since it's my app, here are its limits:

• No Android version. It's iPhone and Mac only.
• YouTube opens in minulo's in-app browser (YouTube's website), not the official app. Normal videos, search, subscriptions and Watch later work, but the layout is a bit different from what you're used to.
• While the official app is locked, its notifications don't arrive. If you rely on YouTube notifications, use hiding without the lock or keep lock periods short.
• It's new. No US ratings yet.

You sign in on Google's own login page inside minulo. minulo doesn't receive or store your password, and it has no account of its own.

Which one should I pick?

• You only want a nudge and use the YouTube app: the Shorts feed limit at 0
• Free, Safari only, YouTube only: ShortformBlock
• Pay once, Safari only, more YouTube clean-up: tubetidy or No Shorts: Blocker for YouTube
• The most widely used in-app option: SocialLite
• Shorts, Reels, TikTok and Snapchat in one app, hiding free, with a lock on the official YouTube app: minulo

Free tiers and prices change, so it's worth a look at the App Store page before you install.

Every way to block Shorts on iPhone, with sources for the YouTube settings, is here:
https://minulo.app/en/block-youtube-shorts.html?ref=devto-shorts-1024

Related questions

• Free way to block YouTube Shorts on iPhone but keep normal videos
• Can you turn off YouTube Shorts on iPhone?
• Can you use YouTube in Safari without Shorts on iPhone?