What is Auto Block?
Auto Block is Detox's automatic block for compulsive use. You pick a continuous-use threshold (for example, 5 minutes), and Detox blocks the apps in your initial group the moment you've been using one of them for that long without a break. To change which apps Auto Block watches, you edit that group.
It's the doomscroll catcher: when you go past your threshold on Instagram, TikTok, or any app in your initial group, Detox steps in.
Auto Block is not the same as Block Now (which you start manually for a fixed duration) or a Scheduled Block (which runs on days and time windows you set). Auto Block runs continuously in the background, fires only when you cross your continuous-use threshold, uses Snooze (not Pause) when you need to bypass it briefly, and is the one block that is always tied to your initial group rather than letting you pick a group each time.
If you meant something else: start a block right now for a set time → see What is Block Now?. A recurring time-window block → see What are Scheduled Blocks?. Save more than one set of apps so different blocks cover different apps → see What are App Groups?.
How it works
Auto Block watches the apps in your initial group (your original list of monitored apps, now shown as "Your initial group" or "My apps"). The moment continuous use of one of them passes your threshold, Detox applies a block. Apps unblock automatically after the configured block duration, and monitoring resumes from zero, so if you keep using the same app continuously, the next block fires after another full threshold.
Auto Block runs in the background. You don't need to keep Detox open for it to work.
What apps Auto Block watches
Auto Block always uses your initial group. It does not have its own separate app list, and it does not ask Which apps? the way a Scheduled Block or a Block Now does. To change what Auto Block watches, edit your initial group:
- Open Detox and go to the Settings tab.
- Tap Monitored Apps. This opens your list of groups.
- Open your initial group ("Your initial group" or "My apps").
- Add or remove apps, categories, and websites.
If your initial group is being blocked right now, your edits re-apply to that live block immediately.
You have one Auto Block, and it stays tied to your initial group. More Auto Blocks are marked Coming Soon in the app and are not available yet. See What are App Groups? for how groups work across your other blocks.
Setting it up
Auto Block is enabled by default after onboarding. To customize it:
- Open Detox and go to the Blocks tab.
- Tap the Auto Block card.
- Adjust your settings:
Setting | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
Consecutive use limit | 5 minutes | How long continuous use is allowed before the block fires |
Block duration | 1 minute | How long apps stay blocked after the limit hits |
Max snooze duration | 5 minutes | When you snooze, you can pick a duration up to this number |
Watched apps | (your initial group) | The apps Auto Block watches, edited through your initial group |
You can only have one Auto Block per device. The same threshold and duration apply to every app in your initial group.
How to turn off Auto Block
Auto Block doesn't have a separate on/off toggle. To stop it from running, delete your Auto Block configuration:
- Open Detox and go to the Blocks tab.
- Tap the Auto Block card to open the active configuration.
- Tap Modify in the top right.
- Tap the trash icon in the top right.
- Confirm with Delete in the popup.
If the trash icon isn't visible: Auto Block is currently blocking one of your initial group's apps. Detox shows a message at the top of the edit screen saying the block is active, and the trash icon stays hidden until the current block finishes. Wait for the block to end (1 minute by default, and your block duration is configurable in the settings above), then tap Modify again to access Delete.
Auto Block will no longer run on this device. If you want it back, configure a new Auto Block from the Blocks tab.
What you see when a block triggers
When a watched app is blocked, Detox shows a block screen on top of that app. The block screen is a single iOS screen layered over the app you tried to open. It is not the full Detox app appearing on top: to do anything beyond closing the block screen, you need to open Detox itself.
The block screen shows:
- Title: "[App name] is Blocked by Detox"
- Message: "Auto block detected too much screen time."
- Close [App name] dismisses the block screen and returns you to your home screen.
- Manage Block sends you a notification you can tap to open Detox. iOS does not let the block screen launch Detox directly, so it goes through a notification. If notifications are off for Detox, close the block screen and open Detox manually from your home screen.
The block screen disappears automatically when the block duration ends.
Auto Block and your other blocks
Auto Block suspends itself only while its own group is actively blocked. In other words, when a Scheduled Block or a Block Now is actively blocking your initial group, Auto Block stands down for that window so it doesn't fire on top of an existing block. If a different group is being blocked, Auto Block keeps watching your initial group as usual.
Snoozing before a block fires
If you know you need a few minutes on a watched app without getting blocked, you can snooze Auto Block from the home page widget. The snooze pauses monitoring for the duration you pick. It's only available before a block fires; once Auto Block has triggered, you can't snooze your way out (wait for the block to end, or use Urgent Unblock). See What is Snooze? for the full mechanic, where the action button lives, and the max-snooze-duration setting.
What Auto Block doesn't do
- It doesn't track total daily time on an app. Auto Block only counts a continuous session. If you put your phone down for a moment, the counter doesn't keep ticking. There's no "1 hour per day" limit feature in Detox.
- It doesn't tell apart different activities inside the same app. Apple's Screen Time API only reports total time on the app, so Detox can't allow messaging on Instagram while blocking the feed.
- It doesn't trigger on custom websites. Custom websites get blocked when any block is active, but they can't drive Auto Block on their own.
- It doesn't let you point it at a group other than your initial group, and you can't have more than one Auto Block yet. Both are tied to the initial group for now.
Related
Updated on: 23/06/2026
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