Setup CleanBrowsing on Chromebook

Step 1: Download the CleanBrowsing Chromebook App

The CleanBrowsing Chromebook app is a dedicated APK designed to run on ChromeOS. Visit cleanbrowsing.org/setup, select the Chromebook tab, and download the latest version.

The app is not available on the Google Play Store — it is distributed as a direct APK download. Make sure you have enough storage space (approximately 7 MB).

Step 2: Install the APK

Once the APK is downloaded:

1. Open the Files app on your Chromebook
2. Navigate to Downloads and find the CleanBrowsing APK file
3. Double-click (or tap) the file to open it — ChromeOS will prompt you to install it
4. If prompted with "Allow install from this source", enable the option and tap Install
5. Wait for the installation to complete, then open the app

If ChromeOS shows a warning about installing from unknown sources, this is expected for sideloaded apps. The CleanBrowsing app is safe to install.

Step 3: Select Your Filter

When you first open the app, you will be prompted to choose a filter:

• Family Filter — Blocks adult content, pornography, malware, and phishing. Forces Safe Search on Google, Bing, and YouTube. Best for households with children.
• Adult Filter — Blocks adult content and malware. Allows mixed-content sites like Reddit and social media.
• Custom / Paid Filter — If you have a paid CleanBrowsing plan, select this option and enter the activation code from your CleanBrowsing Dashboard. Custom filters support block/allow lists, 26+ content categories, and per-device policies.

Select your filter and tap Enable or Apply to continue.

Step 4: Approve VPN Permission

After selecting a filter, ChromeOS will show a system dialog asking you to allow CleanBrowsing to create a VPN connection:

1. Read the VPN connection request dialog
2. Tap OK to approve the connection

This is required for the app to work. The VPN runs locally on your Chromebook — it only intercepts DNS queries to route them through CleanBrowsing's servers. Your actual web browsing data (page content, downloads, etc.) is not tunneled through the VPN.

Once approved, a VPN icon will appear in your ChromeOS status bar. This indicates filtering is active.

Step 5: Set an App Passcode (Optional)

You can set a PIN to prevent unauthorized changes to the app's settings. With a PIN set:

• Changing the active filter requires the PIN
• Disabling the app requires the PIN
• Resetting the app requires the PIN

To set a passcode, go to Settings within the app and tap Set Password.

Step 6: Verify Filtering is Working

To confirm that CleanBrowsing DNS filtering is active:

1. Open the CleanBrowsing app — the status screen should show your filter name in green (or orange while in VPN fallback mode)
2. Visit our DNS leak test to confirm your DNS queries are being handled by CleanBrowsing
3. Try visiting a blocked domain (e.g., a known adult site) — it should fail to load

If filtering does not appear active, check that the VPN icon is visible in the ChromeOS status bar. If the icon is missing, re-open the app and enable your filter again.

Managed Deployment (Schools and Businesses)

For organizations managing multiple Chromebooks through the Google Admin Console, you can deploy the CleanBrowsing app centrally:

1. Upload the CleanBrowsing Chromebook APK as a private Android app in the Google Admin Console under Apps > Android Apps
2. Set the install policy to Force install for the relevant organizational units
3. Configure Google Admin policies to prevent users from removing the app
4. Pair with a CleanBrowsing paid plan to use custom filtering with per-device policies and account-based activation codes

For large deployments, CleanBrowsing's network-level DNS filtering (configuring the DNS resolvers on your network or router) may be more practical than deploying an app to each device. See our Router and Network Setup guides.