A YouTube Shorts blocker for kids that actually works
Kivvie is a player built without Shorts. Not a toggle, not an extension, not a setting your kid can switch off. There is no swipe feed, no algorithm, no rabbit hole.
Block Shorts for Your KidFree to try. iOS and Android.
Why blocking Shorts is hard on regular YouTube
YouTube does not give you a permanent off switch for Shorts. The Shorts tab and Shorts inside the home feed keep coming back even when you hide them. Browser extensions and third-party shortcuts work for a week, then YouTube ships an update and everything resets. Restricted mode does not touch Shorts at all.
That is the design. The Shorts feed is one of YouTube's biggest engagement levers. The platform has no reason to make it easy to turn off, especially not for kids who already spend the most time inside it.
The only blocker that does not break is a different player. One that was built without Shorts in the first place.
How Kivvie blocks Shorts by design
No Shorts player
There is no vertical feed. There is no swipe. Kivvie shows full-length videos only.
No algorithm
No recommended Shorts, no autoplay loop, no "you might also like." Your child sees only the channels you approve.
Cannot be bypassed
Shorts are not behind a toggle the child can flip. The architecture is the lock.
What your child watches instead
You build a whitelist of full-length YouTube channels: Bluey, Numberblocks, SciShow Kids, your local football club, whatever you trust. Kivvie shows the latest videos from those channels in a clean grid. No comments, no recommendations, no Shorts strip running across the top.
Want to add or remove a channel later? Open the parent dashboard, search, click, done. Changes hit your child's app instantly.
Going deeper
Frequently asked questions
Is there a YouTube Shorts blocker for kids that actually works?
Yes. Kivvie is a player without Shorts. It is not a toggle, an extension, or a setting your kid can switch off. Shorts are not part of the app. There is nothing to block because there is nothing there.
Why not just turn off Shorts in YouTube settings?
YouTube does not let you permanently turn Shorts off. The Shorts tab and Shorts in the feed cannot be removed through settings, and browser extensions break after every YouTube update. The only reliable answer is a different player built without Shorts. Read more on why this matters.
Does Kivvie also block algorithmic recommendations?
Yes. No recommendations sidebar, no autoplay to unrelated content, no algorithm pushing the next video. Your child sees the latest videos from the channels you have approved. That is it.
Which devices does this work on?
iOS and Android. Shorts are absent on both, and on the parent web dashboard. Unlike browser extensions or YouTube settings that break or reset, Shorts blocking is built into the core architecture and cannot be bypassed.
Block Shorts permanently
Set up Kivvie in 2 minutes. Shorts gone, algorithm gone, peace of mind in.
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