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iOS allows you to restrict specific apps from accessing the internet when using cellular data.

Is it possible to do the same when Wi-Fi is turned on?

Is there any way to restrict an iOS app from using Wi-Fi?

I want to restrict messenger apps like WhatsApp and Line from accessing the internet when my phone is using aWi-Fi connection.

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  • You can use the LetMeBe app (you can find it in App Store) to block the internet for certain apps on both Wi-Fi and cellular data.
    – Silviu
    Jul 23, 2021 at 16:36

5 Answers 5

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On stock (unjailbroken) iOS it is not quite possible.

However, if your device is jailbroken, then you can use some tweaks to make it possible. Firewall iP7 allows you to monitor all applications & decide whether to allow or deny any outgoing connection.

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  • Sorry to say but my device is not jailbroken. Thanks anyways.
    – I-M-JM
    Oct 16, 2015 at 11:41
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    Just for the sake of completeness, the "Protect my Privacy" app from Cydia can also do this. As can a new tweak, "ConditionalWiFi".
    – newenglander
    Aug 19, 2016 at 7:23
  • Now (6 years later) there are apps that use the VPN support to be able to selectively block apps IIRC.
    – Paul Stelian
    Oct 3, 2022 at 18:22
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It is possible to restrict WiFi or Cellular data for all the apps on your iPhone, but only for iPhones sold in China.

Chinese iPhones have an extra option called "Apps using WLAN & Cellular" in Settings > Wi-Fi.

In that section you can control apps from accessing data on Wi-FI or Cellular. If you don't want that app to access data, there is "Off" option and the app can't access data on cellular or Wi-Fi.

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  • 2
    According to a reply in this reddit thread (which is itself about this SE Q&A), phones sold in China do not have an option to disable WiFi on a per app basis. Can anyone please provide a definitive answer, video, screenshot, etc.?
    – Miles Wolbe
    Apr 8, 2020 at 23:56
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    I I confirm the phone sold in China do have this option, please see this screenshot. ibb.co/W0VZr13
    – JIE WANG
    Jan 24, 2022 at 17:19
  • Thank you @JIEWANG. It does indeed appear that iPhones sold in China include the ability to disable both cellular and WiFi for specific apps. This post includes a few more screenshots and a link to this page with more details.
    – Miles Wolbe
    Sep 8, 2022 at 9:13
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I'm sorry for it's not possible but you can disabled the app from running. These are the steps to follow:

Go to General,

Click on Restrictions,

Enter your device password,

Switch off the App you want to disconnect.

I use it to stop Facebook from consuming Data at the background.

FOR NEWER OS VERSION 12.4.6, YOU CAN FIND SIMILAR OPTION IN:

Go to Screen Time,

Click Content & Privacy Restrictions,

Turn on Content & Privacy Restrictions,

Then select what you want to restrict e.g Background App Activities.

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  • What version of ios are you on? Newer versions don't have Restrictions in Settings > General.
    – sfxedit
    May 9, 2020 at 14:27
  • Yes because Apple have moved it to Screen Time. Will update my Answer.
    – ellooku
    Jun 11, 2020 at 8:48
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For iOS 13 (2020), it appears that what you want is called Background App Refresh. This is located in Setup > General > Background App Refresh.

You can set each app individually, and you can make the controls active with Wifi+Cellular, Wifi only, or off.

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  • 1
    Background App Refresh has nothing to do with Wi-Fi usage. OP wants to disable an app access to internet, whether it is Wi-Fi or cellular.
    – ramazan polat
    Apr 27, 2020 at 21:29
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    @RamazanPolat - That's not correct - if background app refresh is turned OFF for an app, that app cannot use the internet when you are not using it. So the answer is partially useful and correct.
    – sfxedit
    May 9, 2020 at 14:33
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    @Mei OP is asking to block an app to access internet completely, whether it is in foreground or background. If you disable Background App Refresh, the app cannot access internet while in background, that is correct. But what about if the app is in foreground?
    – ramazan polat
    May 10, 2020 at 1:14
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Here is the solution:

  • Go to Settings.
  • Now scroll down until you find the app for whom you want to stop wifi (eg. Facebook)
  • Click on it.
  • Toggle off the option which says local network.

Image

Now app(eg. Facebook) would not be able to use wifi network. You can also Toggle off the mobile data there.

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    Disabling "Local Network" does not disable WiFi access support.apple.com/en-us/HT211870
    – nohillside ♦
    Nov 22, 2021 at 15:48
  • I haven't tried it on facebook but in some games the ads which show up stops
    – Jaskaran Singh Batth
    Nov 22, 2021 at 15:51
  • @nohillside sometimes some apps also show dialog box saying to alow wifi access for them
    – Jaskaran Singh Batth
    Nov 22, 2021 at 15:58
  • This setting is confusing to many. It should say, allow this app to sniff all network traffic and be promiscuous. The apps asking for this want peer to peer control or worse, they want to snoop on your setup - possibly to do ad-hoc peer to peer traffic or to fingerprint you for analytics, advertising, tracking. Turning off network still lets Facebook app connect to the internet. Turning off Bluetooth still lets you use Bluetooth accessories. Disabling these lets the OS manage Bluetooth and and network privacy and not grant unlimited access to the app code.
    – bmike ♦
    Nov 23, 2021 at 13:21
  • @bmike Thank you for telling that. I didn't knew it. May apple add that option in near future
    – Jaskaran Singh Batth
    Nov 23, 2021 at 13:32

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