How to Block Ads on Google Chrome

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Enjoy an ad-free browsing experience on Chrome with this complete guide

Co-authored by Luigi Oppido and Cory Stillman

Last Updated: June 12, 2023 Fact Checked

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Blocking Pop-ups and Redirects (Desktop)

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Blocking Pop-ups & Redirects (Mobile)

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Using AdBlock

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Using Adblock Plus

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Q&A

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Tips

This wikiHow guide teaches you how to block pop-up ads in Google Chrome on your computer, phone, or tablet. We'll also show you how to block even more ads in Chrome on your PC, Mac, or Chromebook using the AdBlock and AdBlock Plus browser extensions. Ad-blocking extensions remove embedded ads on sites like Facebook and YouTube on your computer, but they aren't available in the Chrome mobile app.

Things You Should Know

You can block most pop-ups and intrusive ads by editing the site settings for each individual site within the "Privacy and security" section of your Chrome settings.
Add the AdBlock extension to Chrome on your computer to block most ads across websites.
You can also add the AdBlock Plus extension and uncheck "Allow Acceptable Ads" box to block most ads.

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Blocking Pop-ups and Redirects (Desktop)

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1
Open Google Chrome
. Its app icon resembles a red, yellow, green, and blue sphere.
- You can make quick changes to your Chrome settings to block ads and pop-ups on a website-by-website basis. Google defaults to blocking the most intrusive ads on each site, but if you are still experiencing these ads, you can use this method to block them.
It's in the top-right corner of the window. A drop-down menu will appear.

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You'll find this option near the bottom of the drop-down menu. Doing so opens the Settings page.
It's towards the top of the lefthand column. Clicking it opens a new section of options.
You'll find this at the bottom of the "Privacy and security" section.
You can find a list of recently visited sites under Recent Activity, or click View permissions and data stored across sites to view a full list of websites you have visited.
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Click the drop-down next to "Pop-ups and redirects" and "Intrusive ads". Make sure these are set to Block.
- Google defines intrusive ads as advertisements that are misleading, so this method will not block ads entirely on Chrome.

Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Blocking Pop-ups & Redirects (Mobile)

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1
Open Google Chrome on your Android, iPhone, or iPad
. This app is a red, yellow, green, and blue sphere.
- While you can't block ads in the Chrome mobile browser entirely, you can prevent pop-ups from appearing and taking over your screen.
- If you have an Android, you'll also be able to block the ads and sites that redirect your browser to other websites. This particular option is not available on iPhone or iPad.
It's in the bottom-right corner of the screen on iOS, and at the top-right on Android.
You'll find this option near the bottom of the drop-down menu on Android, or atop the menu on iOS.
You'll find this option near the top of the screen (iPhone) or near the bottom of the screen (Android).
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Disable pop-ups. This will vary slightly depending on whether you're using an iPhone or an Android:
- iPhone — Tap the gray "Block Pop-ups" switch to turn on pop-up blocking. The switch will turn blue.
- Android — Tap the blue "Pop-ups" switch to turn on pop-up blocking. The switch will turn gray.
This option is not available on iPhone or iPad. On Android, make sure the switch is turned off and grayed out so the Chrome app can block intrusive or misleading ads.

Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Using AdBlock

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1
Go to the AdBlock site in Google Chrome. Go to https://getadblock.com/ in Chrome's address bar.
- You can use the AdBlock extension to block ads all across the web. The extension will work on any PC (even running Ubuntu!), Mac, or Chromebook, but you can't use it on mobile.
This red button is in the middle of the page. Doing so will take you to your browser's installation page.
You'll see this blue button at the top-right corner of the AdBlock page.
Chrome will refresh the page when the AdBlock extension finishes installing.
5
Click the AdBlock icon. It's a red stop sign with a white hand in the top-right corner of Chrome.
- If you don't see the icon, click the puzzle piece icon. You will see it in your extension list.
- If you want the AdBlock icon to appear in the toolbar with other extensions, click the pushpin icon next to its name on the puzzle piece menu.
You'll see it at the top of the AdBlock extension.
It's on the left side of the page.
This option is near the top of the page. Doing so will increase the number of ads that AdBlock blocks.
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Check additional ad-blocking options. Your options for further ad-blocking include the following:
- Adblock Warning Removal list - This will remove warnings on websites about running AdBlock.
- Antisocial filter list - This will remove the Facebook “Like” button along with all other social media buttons.
- Cryptocurrency (Bitcoin) Mining Protection List – This option protects websites from hijacking your browser to mine for cryptocurrency.
- EasyPrivacy - Helps to protect your privacy by blocking tracking.
- Fanboy's Annoyances - Removes pop-ups, social media widgets, and other small annoyances around the web.
- Fanboy's Notifications – Blocks pop-up notifications from websites.
- I Don't Care About Cookies – Blocks cookie notifications from websites.
Chrome will now be almost completely ad-free.

EXPERT TIP

Luigi Oppido
Computer & Tech Specialist
Luigi Oppido is the Owner and Operator of Pleasure Point Computers in Santa Cruz, California. Luigi has over 25 years of experience in general computer repair, data recovery, virus removal, and upgrades. He is also the host of the Computer Man Show! broadcasted on KSQD covering central California for over two years.

Luigi Oppido
Computer & Tech Specialist

If you're still seeing ads after you install an ad blocker: Since ads and websites are constantly changing, your ad blocker might not always recognize an ad, especially if the blocker isn't updated. If you do see an ad, right-click your ad blocker to pause or turn off the ad. That will teach the ad blocker to recognize that ad, so you shouldn't see it again.

Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Using Adblock Plus

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1
Go to the Adblock Plus site. Go to https://adblockplus.org in Chrome's address bar.
- Adblock Plus has no relation to AdBlock, but it works just as well to block ads on Chrome.
- Adblock Plus is not available on Android, iPhone, or iPad.
It's a green button on the left side of the page. Doing so will take you to your browser's respective extension installation page.
You'll see this blue button at the top-right corner of the AdBlock page.
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Click Add extension. Chrome will refresh the page when the AdBlock extension finishes installing.
- Chrome will refresh the page when the Adblock Plus extension finishes installing.
5
Click the Adblock Plus icon. It's a red stop sign with "ABP" at the top-right corner of Chrome.
- If you don't see the icon, click the puzzle piece. You will see it in your extension list.
- If you want the AdBlock Plus icon to appear in the toolbar with other extensions, click the pushpin icon next to its name on the puzzle piece menu.
You'll see this at the top of the ABP window.
It's in the "Acceptable Ads" section near the bottom of the page. This option allows some ads to display, so unchecking it will ensure that as many ads as possible are blocked.
Google Chrome should now be almost completely ad-free.

Community Q&A

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Question

How do I stop ads from Google Chrome from popping up once I click on something?

Community Answer

Adblock usually does the job for you, as does Google Chrome's setting that blocks pop-ups. But some ads still will pass through.

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Question

How do I remove ads that appear when I watch YouTube?

Community Answer

They should be automatically gone. If not, try installing different ad blockers.

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Question

How do I download an ad blocker?

Community Answer

If you're on Chrome, just go to the Chrome web store and search up adblockers and download the one you want.

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Tips

You can easily disable AdBlock and Adblock Plus at any time.

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You can add custom filters that target specific types of ads (e.g., sidebar ads on Facebook) to both Adblock Plus and AdBlock from within the respective extensions' Options menus.

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Some websites will be inaccessible while using an ad-blocker. To access these sites, you'll need to whitelist them by opening your ad-blocker's Options page, selecting the Whitelist option, and entering the websites' URLs.

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