Use a Free YouTube Ad Blocker to Block Ads on YouTube

Due to the advertising model, YouTube contains various ads (pop-ups, banners, long video ads, etc.). Ads on YouTube may often disrupt your viewing experience. Luckily, you have some ways to block these ads.

Below is a list of the best free YouTube ad blockers that help you easily block ads on YouTube. Whether you use YouTube on desktop or mobile, we’ve got you covered. Select your preferred tool to get a clean and immersive video viewing experience on YouTube.

Table of contents Hide

1 5 Best Free YouTube Ad Blockers

2 How to Use a YouTube Ad Blocker to Block Ads on YouTube

3 YouTube Premium – A YouTube Ad Blocker Alternative

4 Conclusion

5 Best Free YouTube Ad Blockers

1. Adblock Plus (Browser Extension and Mobile App)

Platform: Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, Opera; Android.

Pros:

Block unwanted ads, pop-ups, banners, and trackers from various websites when you browse the internet.
Block video ads including ads shown before, during, or after the YouTube videos. Improve the viewing experience on YouTube. Watch YouTube content ad-free.
Speed up page load times. Get a faster video loading speed on YouTube.
Get fewer unexpected interruptions when watching videos on YouTube and reduce distractions.
Block third-party tracking to increase your privacy.
The whitelisting feature lets users allow ads on certain websites.
Not only offers a browser extension for various browsers but also provides an app for Android now.
Free and open-source.

Cons:

For content creators on YouTube who rely on ad revenue, they may get less revenue.

2. AdGuard (Browser Extension and Ad Blocker App)

Platform: Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, Opera, Yandex; Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, Android TV.

Pros:

Enhance your browsing experience by blocking intrusive ads, popups, banners, video ads, tracking scripts, and malicious websites.
Block ads and trackers before the page loads to speed up page loading.
Prevent tracking and minimize data collection to protect your privacy.
System-wide ad blocking. Block ads not only in browsers but also in apps, games, and other software on the internet.
Works for various browsers and devices. Help you block ads on the YouTube website or in the YouTube mobile app.

Cons:

The free version offers limited features.
Some apps or services that rely heavily on ads for revenue may not function properly due to ad-blocking. In this case, you may whitelist those apps/websites.

3. Adblock for YouTube (Browser Extension)

Platform: Google Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge

Pros:

Help you remove all ads on YouTube.
Block ads, banners, and popups from YouTube.
Load the YouTube website and videos faster.
Free to download and use. No need for account sign-in.

Cons:

AdBlock for YouTube is tailored for YouTube, so it can’t block ads on other websites.
Occasional overblocking of content.

4. uBlock Origin (Ad Block Browser Extension)

Platform: Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera

Pros:

Easy-to-use open-source free ad blocker.
Block all types of ads on various websites, including YouTube.
Block pop-ups and even some types of malware. Block third-party tracking scripts to protect your privacy.
Highly customizable. Let you adjust ad block settings and rules and add custom filter lists.
Download and install uBlock Origin from the Chrome Web Store or other browser’s add-on store with one click.

Cons:

Some users may feel the advanced features are a bit complex.

5. Ghostery (Ad Blocker Extension)

Platform: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera, Edge.

Pros:

Free and open-source ad blocker for YouTube and other websites. Ghostery can help you block ads, video ads, pop-ups, banner ads, etc. on YouTube.
Block ads, cookies, popups, and other trackers to give you a private and transparent internet environment.
If many resources are loading on a website, it may get a slow load speed. This ad blocker blocks those elements and improves the site loading speed.
Prevent third-party trackers from loading or collecting your data to protect your privacy.

Cons:

The free version offers essential features. Some advanced privacy and blocking features are only available in the paid version.

How to Use a YouTube Ad Blocker to Block Ads on YouTube

Step 1. Install a free YouTube ad blocker.

Select one of the ad blockers introduced above and install it as a browser extension or mobile app. Here we take AdBlock Plus as an example.

Visit its official website https://adblockplus.org/ in your browser and click “Get AdBlock Plus for Chrome” to open it in the Chrome Web Store. Alternatively, you can open Chrome Web Store to search for “AdBlock Plus” to open it.

Click “Add to Chrome” and click “Install” to install AdBlock Plus extension to your Chrome browser. After installation, you can see the AdBlock Plus icon in your browser toolbar.

Step 2. Test the ad blocker on YouTube.

After installing the ad blocker, open YouTube’s official website in your browser, open and watch a video. If the ad blocker is working properly, you will not see any video ads in the video content. You can get an uninterrupted viewing experience on YouTube.

Step 3. (Optional) Adjust ad-blocking settings.

If you want, you can adjust the block settings for YouTube ads. Click the AdBlock Plus icon in your browser toolbar and select Settings or Options. Customize the filter settings or exclude certain websites.

YouTube Premium – A YouTube Ad Blocker Alternative

If you want to watch YouTube without ads, YouTube Premium is also a great option. It provides you with an ad-free watching experience on YouTube. It also allows you to play YouTube videos in the background, download videos for offline watching, and access YouTube music with 100M+ ad-free songs and playlists, etc.

YouTube Premium comes with a subscription fee. Check the price of YouTube Premium below. Please note that the pricing of YouTube Premium may vary depending on the region.

Individual plan: $13.99/month.
Family plan: $22.99/month (add up to 5 family members).
Student plan: $7.99/month.

How to use YouTube Premium:

You can visit https://www.youtube.com/ in your browser. Click “Sign In” to sign into YouTube with your Google account.
Next, visit https://www.youtube.com/premium in your browser and choose your preferred plan to pay.
Once you’ve subscribed, you can start enjoying YouTube Premium’s features including blocking ads on YouTube when watching videos.

Conclusion

This post introduces 5 free YouTube ad blockers for your reference. You can select your preferred tool to help you block ads on YouTube and watch YouTube videos without ads.

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