AdBlock Not Working on YouTube: Here’re Quick Fixes

Ads are always annoying when watching videos on YouTube, and the AdBlock extension is supposed to help us block these ads easily. However, you may find AdBlock not working on YouTube and ads still appear frequently. What is the reason why AdBlock doesn’t work properly?

In this post, we will thoroughly analyze this issue and provide effective solutions to help you restore a fresh YouTube browsing experience and get rid of the annoying ads.

Why Is AdBlock Not Working on YouTube?

YouTube allows users to view various video content for free. However, it needs to profit through ads to support its vast infrastructure, share of content creators, and other related services. As a result, advertising revenue has become one of YouTube’s main sources of income.

YouTube often updates its ad mechanics to enhance the way ads are loaded and avoid interference from adblockers, which includes:

• Deliver ads from the same domain as the video content.
• Encrypt YouTube content to hide its ads.
• Dynamically load ads and change where they are placed to bypass ad blockers.
• Randomly change URLs and parameters used for advertisements.
• Integrating ads into video content.
• Google’s Manifest V3 update significantly limits the performance of ad blocker extensions.

Troubleshoot AdBlock Not Working on YouTube

Fix 1: Clear Cookies and Cache

If you access YouTube via browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, or Safari), the cache and cookies may interfere with the proper functioning of the AdBlock extension. Below are detailed steps to help you fix AdBlock not working on YouTube by clearing cookies and cache. Here we take Chrome as an example.

Method 1:

Click the three-dot menu at the right corner of Chrome, and then choose Delete browsing data > Delete data.

Method 2:

1. Tap the three-dot button.
2. Select Settings from the dropdown menu.
3. Choose Privacy and Security> Delete browsing data > Delete data.

Fix 2: Update AdBlock

YouTube is constantly adjusting its advertising technology, which may cause older versions of AdBlock to fail to recognize and block ads effectively. Besides, Browser updates may also affect the operation of AdBlock, and older versions of AdBlock extensions may have compatibility issues.

To update AdBlock from Chrome, you can go to Settings > Extensions. Make sure the Developer mode is open, and then choose the Update button to update all extensions, including AdBlock. After that, relaunch Chrome to see if it works.

Fix 3: Remove and Re-enable the AdBlock

The steps are available for most browsers. Here we introduce how to remove and re-enable the Adblock on Chrome.

Step 1: Launch Chrome and click the three-dot menu.

Step 2: Choose Settings > Extensions. Alternatively, you can click the “shard” icon next to your profile for quick access. Then you can see all the extensions you’ve installed.

Step 3: Find AdBlock and click the Remove button.

Step 4: Visit AdBlock’s official website and reinstall it.

Fix 4: Disable Other Extensions

Some extensions may conflict with AdBlock, resulting in AdBlock not working on YouTube. Apart from that, multiple extensions running at the same time may take up too many system resources or network bandwidth, which will affect the performance of AdBlock. Thus, you can disable some unnecessary extensions.

Fix 5: Try Another Free YouTube Ad Blocker

If the ads are still displayed before or during the YouTube video, then AdBlock may have expired or been detected. At this time, you can solve the problem by trying other free YouTube ad blockers. Here are some recommendations.

• AdBlock Plus: It not only offers a browser extension but also provides an app for mobile devices to block video ads on YouTube.
• AdGuard: AdGuard: Optimizes the loading of YouTube videos by blocking intrusive ads, pop-ups, banner ads, video ads, and more.
• Ghostery: An open-source ad blocker for YouTube that makes your online experience more private.
• uBlock Origin: It is free and easy to use for ad blocking.

Fix 6: Change Your Browsers or Devices

Sometimes, some browsers may not be compatible with the AdBlock extension, or the browser settings may prevent AdBlock from working properly. You can try switching to another browser to see if the problem is solved.

In addition, you can try to access YouTube using another device and check if AdBlock is working properly. Different devices (e.g. PC, Mac, mobile phone, tablet, etc.) may have different AdBlock performance.

Additional Tip: Choose the YouTube Premium Plan

If you don’t want to struggle with ads anymore, consider subscribing to YouTube Premium, a paid service from YouTube. After you subscribe, you can watch YouTube without ads. In addition, YouTube Premium offers other features such as background playback and access to YouTube Music to enhance your overall viewing experience.

To get YouTube Premium:

1. Visit https://www.youtube.com/ via your browser and log into your account.
2. In the left menu bar, scroll down and choose YouTube Premium.
3. Click Get YouTube Premium and choose your preferred plan.

Can Using a VPN Improve Your Security on YouTube?

If AdBlock not working on YouTube, you may receive many unwanted ads. Sometimes, YouTube may track your browsing activities and push some specific ads based on this information. To protect your online privacy, you can use LightningX VPN.

This VPN provides strong encryption to protect your data while using YouTube. In addition, it disguises your real IP address as a virtual location.

LightningX VPN offers 2000+ servers in more than 50 countries to easily change your IP address. Apart from YouTube, you can quickly access other popular platforms such as Netflix, Instagram, TikTok, and more.

Available on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, Mac, and TVs, you can download and connect with one click.

Conclusion

The AdBlock not working on YouTube issue is caused by multiple reasons, try these solutions we provided to fix it. Hope you’ll be able to restore a smooth, ad-free YouTube and enjoy your video content without interruptions.