How to block gambling sites and apps on every device

By Charlie G, a compulsive gambler in recovery. Not medical advice. Updated October 16, 2026.

When I got serious about quitting, I realized I had more doors to gambling than I could count. Apps, websites, emails, texts, ads in every game, a debit card that worked anywhere. I couldn't rely on willpower to guard all of them. So I locked them, one by one. This is the full checklist I wish I'd had on day one.

Why blocking matters so much

Urges come fast and leave fast. If I could place a bet in eight seconds from bed, I lost that race every time. When betting took twenty minutes of hoops, the urge usually passed first. Blocking isn't about being weak. It's about doing the hard work on a good day so the bad days can't take you down.

Think of it in layers. No single block catches everything, but together they make gambling a real pain to reach.

Layer 1: A blocker app on every device

• BetBlocker is free, covers thousands of gambling sites, and works on unlimited devices. Their support won't remove a block early, which protects you later.
• Gamban is a paid option that's very thorough and hard to get around.

Install it on your phone, tablet, laptop, and work computer if you ever bet there. Pick the longest block period offered.

Layer 2: Your phone's own settings

• iPhone: Screen Time can block betting websites and stop new app installs. Follow our iPhone guide.
• Android: Google Play has a gambling ad and app setting, and Family Link or Digital Wellbeing can add limits. See our Android guide.
• Let someone you trust set the passcode. If you know the code, it's a speed bump, not a wall.

Layer 3: Self-exclusion with your state and every operator

Blockers stop the screen. Self-exclusion stops the account. Even if you find a way around a blocker, licensed sportsbooks and casinos have to turn you away.

• Enroll through your state's program. Choose lifetime if it's offered, or the longest term available, and renew it before it ends. There's no room for gambling in our lives going forward. Even after a few years of cooling off, the addiction comes back and we end up gambling the same way again. We never get back to doing it just for fun. We always take it too far.
• Then exclude directly in every app you've used: DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, and Caesars.

Layer 4: Block the money

If the money can't move, the bet can't happen. Ask your bank or card company about a gambling block. Our bank guide covers what to ask for, since many big US banks don't offer a self-serve switch.

• Set your credit card cash advance limit to zero.
• Remove saved cards from payment apps like PayPal, Venmo, and Cash App.
• Stay away from crypto exchanges. For a lot of us they became a back door.

Layer 5: Shut off the noise

Marketing is designed to pull you back in. I didn't realize how much until it was gone.

• Unsubscribe from every sportsbook and casino email, and reply STOP to their texts.
• Unfollow betting accounts, tipsters, and parlay pages on social media. Mute words like "odds" and "parlay" where you can.
• Turn off odds and betting features in your sports apps, or delete them for a while.
• On YouTube and Google, turn off gambling ads in your ad settings where offered.

Test it, then keep it tight

After you set everything up, test it. Try to open your old sportsbook site. If it loads, fix that gap now. Then check again every month or so, because new apps and sites pop up all the time.

Blocks buy you time. People and purpose get you through. Pair this checklist with a meeting, a counselor, or a call to 1-800-GAMBLER, and track your days on My Progress. All of our step-by-step walkthroughs live on the guides page.

Don't forget the sneaky back doors

Once the obvious stuff is locked, the addiction gets creative. These are the gaps people in my meetings talk about most:

• Sweepstakes and social casinos. They market themselves as free games, but many let you buy coins and cash out prizes. Block and delete them.
• Prediction and fantasy apps. Daily fantasy and pick'em apps scratch the same itch. Exclude from those too.
• Offshore sites. Unlicensed sites ignore state self-exclusion, which is exactly why a blocker app and a bank block matter.
• A second phone or old laptop. Put the blocker on every device in the house, or get rid of the spare.

If you find a gap, don't beat yourself up. Close it and tell someone.