Self Control -- Block sites and stay focused

Name: Self Control -- Block sites and stay focused
Rating: 4.020833333333333 (240 reviews)
Author: nhandyal

A simple web site blocker to keep you focused and enhance your productivity

Download

Install Compare

Self Control is a powerful yet simple Chrome extension designed to help you stay focused by blocking websites that distract you. It operates by blocking URL patterns — for instance, blocking "book" will restrict access to any site containing "book" in its URL, like facebook.com and books.google.com.

Features include a customizable block message, focus mode with a timer preventing premature removal of blocking patterns, and an 'Always on' toggle for flexible use. Recent updates improved performance and fixed key bugs for a smoother user experience. Whether you want to enhance productivity or limit time on distracting sites, Self Control is an effective tool to keep your online habits in check.

Productivity Utilities

By:

nhandyal

Users:

20,000+

Rating:

4.02

(240) 1 ratings

Version:

3.2.0 Last updated: 2025-02-05

Creation date:

2017-05-15

Risk:

Permissions:

alarms
declarativeNetRequest
storage

Host permissions:

<all_urls>

Size:

967.68K

Email:

nh*****@gmail.com

Full description:

See detailed description ⏷

Source:

Chrome Web Store

Updated:

14 hours ago

Ranking

# 5,583 ▲ 2

Other rankings

#2981 in Workflow & Planning ▲ 2

#1 in control keyword 37

#1 in self control keyword 32

#10 in stay keyword 45 ▲ 1

#19 in website blocker keyword 59

Upgrade to see more rankings

User reviews

Self Control is praised for effectively blocking distracting sites and improving productivity with useful features like wildcard blocking and customizable messages. Users appreciate that it is free and reliable compared to alternatives. However, many report issues after recent updates, including erased block lists and lack of scrolling in the UI that complicate management of blocklists. The maximum 24-hour distraction-free mode limit and lack of recent updates causing bugs are common complaints. Overall, it is a simple, powerful tool with some usability and stability problems needing improvement.

Pros

Effectively blocks distracting sites like YouTube and social media to help users stay focused.
Free to use and one of the few extensions that works reliably compared to alternatives.
Allows customizable messages to motivate users during block periods.
Supports wildcard blocking to restrict specific phrases in URLs, offering precise control.
Simple and life-changing tool for productivity and concentration enhancement.

Cons

Recent updates caused bugs where blocked sites are erased and cannot be added again.
User interface lacks scroll functionality making it hard to manage large block lists and access controls.
Limited duration for "Distraction Free Mode" (maximum 24 hours), users desire longer blocking periods.
Extension hasn't been updated in a while, resulting in some features not working properly or UI glitches.
Does not work well in incognito mode and sometimes fails to block sites as expected.

Recent reviews

I am trying to get myself off of youtube, and this is helping me very much. Great extention

Jimmy Jogalano, 2025-03-29

It's not letting me add anything, it installs, the notification from chrome comes, but does nothing more than that. There's nowhere I can go to add to the blocklist. Could someone help?

Rahael Mathew, 2025-03-26

This is the only extension that actually works that is free. I have tried others like "StayFree" but it doesn't work that well for online. I very much do enjoy the editable message that you can write for yourself. I found out that for some reason I deleted it and immediately got it back. Don't want to spend any time online without it.

Isaac Harding, 2025-03-03

View all user reviews ›

Extension safety

Risk impact

Self Control -- Block sites and stay focused requires a few sensitive permissions. Exercise caution before installing.

Risk impact analysis details

Critical Allows access to all websites, posing a significant security risk as it can monitor and modify data from any visited site.

Risk likelihood

Self Control -- Block sites and stay focused has earned a good reputation and can be trusted.

Risk likelihood analysis details

High This extension has low user count. Unpopular extensions may not be stable or safe.
Low **** ********* *** ******* **** **** * ****** **** ***** ******** *** **** ****** ** ** ****** *** *****
Low **** ********* *** ***** **** **** * ****** **** ***** ********** *** **** ****** ** ** ****** *** *****
Good **** ********* ** * ******** ********* ** ****** *** *****
Good **** ********* *** **** **** *******