Top 7 best ad blockers for Android in 2023
Besides the ability to block ads and trackers, there are additional elements that can help you decide which Android ad blocker is best for you. Below we’ve listed some of the key criteria we looked at while picking the best ad blockers:
| Compatibility: | Android app, browser extensions |
| Types of ads blocked: | Social media ads, banners, pop-ups, etc. |
| Privacy: | No-logs |
| Features: | Filters, VPN, antivirus |
- Compatibility with Android and browsers. Make sure to take a look at whether the tool offers an app or a browser extension for Android, its ease of use, and its setup. Some ad blockers are limited to certain operating systems they’re compatible with. Choose the one that’s accustomed to mobile devices, including Android.
- Blocking filters. With this feature, you can select which ads you want to avoid and which ones to keep. It gives you the option to configure your settings according to your preferences. Usually, the filters are provided in collections called filter lists.
- Privacy measures. Make sure to double-check the provider's privacy settings, whether or not it has a no-logs policy. Many free ad blocker providers have been known to record users' data. Implementing a no-logs policy will ensure none of your data will be compromised.
- Additional features. The ad blocker can provide you with much more than just blocking the ads. Look out for Android ad blockers with a built-in VPN, antivirus, and malware scanner. Everything depends on your needs but the additional features will enhance the security of your Android device like no ad blocker will do on its own.
- Pricing. A reliable and high-quality Android ad blocker doesn’t need to break the bank. There are plenty of providers with good value for money that offers flexible pricing, free trials, or money-back guarantees if you’re not entirely satisfied with the service.
The best Android ad blockers – our detailed list:
There’s a great many various ad blocker tools available. However, it might be tricky to choose the best tool for use. We’ve compiled a list of the top Android ad blocker providers to make it easier. Let’s take a look.
1. Total Adblock – the best ad blocker for Android devices
| Free version: | Yes (7-day free trial) |
| Supported platforms: | Android, iOS |
| Customer support: | Knowledge base, video tutorials, blog, email, FAQs |
| Current deal: | 🔥 Get 75% OFF Total Adblock! 🔥 |
Our best ad blocker pick for Android is Total Adblock. It’s designed to remove pop-ups and mute all notifications in your browser and apps. This tool also blocks banners, video ads, and third-party trackers, this way protecting private user data.
Compatibility. Even though you can’t download Total Adblock from Google Play Store (as it doesn’t allow system-wide ad blockers), you can get an app file from Total Adblock’s website and install it on your Android device manually.
Features. For fully-fledged protection, you can get the whole Total Security pack – you’ll get a real-time antivirus, safe browsing (VPN), and an ad blocker included. You'll be able to block ads, and trackers, disable push notifications, in-video ads on YouTube, and more. Also, Total Adblock offers blocking filters: Base filter (necessary for quality ad blocking); Tracking Protection filter (for trackers); Social Media filter (for widgets like “share and “like” buttons); Annoyances filter (blocks cookie notices and pop-ups).
Test results. In the Adblock tester, Total Adblock scored really well. It blocked all the ads, except the ones in the Google Analytics tool, GIF images, and error trackers but showed good results overall.
In terms of pricing, premium plans start at $2.42/month. You can try the premium service for free with its 7-day free trial and disable unwanted ads, notifications, and intrusive trackers on Android devices.
Learn more in our Total Adblock review.
2. Surfshark CleanWeb – budget-friendly Android ad blocker with a VPN
| Free version: | Yes (7-day free trial) |
| Supported platforms: | Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, FireTV, Android TV |
| Customer support: | 24/7 live chat, email, guides and articles, FAQs |
| Current deal: | 🔥 82% OFF Surfshark CleanWeb 2.0 + 2 months FREE! 🔥 |
Surfshark is another choice of ours falling into the best ad blockers list for Android devices. This provider offers a VPN service with an ad blocker feature called CleanWeb. It’s quite powerful and can block all types of adware, phishing attempts, and more.
Compatibility. To enable CleanWeb (newly released CleanWeb 2.0) feature on Android devices, you’ll be required to use a VPN. Luckily, it is compatible with all popular OS and can be set up as a browser extension as well.
Features. With Surfshark, you’re going to have full protection over your devices, as your traffic is going to be encrypted, and your real IP address is hidden with the VPN. The CleanWeb feature will automatically detect malicious sites and block them, protecting you from malware. In addition, you’ll be able to save your mobile data, as the intrusive ads that take up a lot of space and data won’t be loading for you anymore. Also, if you enjoy streaming – it blocks YouTube ads both in the app and the browser.
Test results. Overall, during our tests, Surfshark’s CleanWeb scored fairly well. It hasn’t passed Google Analytics tools, GIF image, static image, and error monitoring tests.
As for pricing, Surfshark offers really affordable plans. Its services start only from $2.30/month. If you want to try this provider for free, it also has a 7-day free trial or a 30-day money-back guarantee. If you’re already a registered Surfshark user – the CleanWeb feature is yours to use for free.
You can learn more about this service in our Surfshark One review.
3. Atlas VPN SafeBrowse – user-friendly Android ad blocker with a VPN
| Free version: | No (only the VPN has a free version) |
| Supported platforms: | Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows |
| Customer support: | 24/7 live chat, email, knowledge base, FAQs |
| Current deal: | 🔥 81% OFF Atlas VPN SafeBrowse! 🔥 |
Atlas VPN is offering ad blocking features suitable for Android and other devices. It’s a decent ad blocker for beating malvertising, third-party trackers, video ads, and more. The built-in SafeBrowse feature is really easy-to-use and is definitely great for beginners.
Compatibility. To use the SafeBrowse feature, you have to acquire a VPN service. Luckily, Atlas VPN is compatible with Android devices and can be set up really easily.
Features. This ad blocker will not only let you use all the perks of the VPN and safeguard your online security and privacy – it will automatically block malicious websites and ads on Android devices, be it a tablet or mobile phone. The trackers that have been detected will be instantly blocked, and you’ll get the lists of them. For extra security, there’s a two-factor authentication – every time you log into your Atlas VPN account, you’ll be asked to confirm your identity.
Test results. During our tests, Atlas VPN scored high marks with blocking ads, pop-ups, in-video ads, and other online threats. It only struggled with blocking static images and gifs.
Try out the SafeBrowse ad-blocking feature with a VPN – use a 30-day money-back guarantee or get the premium plan for as low as $2.05/month.
For more information on the features and extras of this provider, read our Atlas VPN review.
4. Proton VPN NetShield – secure Android ad blocker with a VPN included
| Free version: | No (only the VPN has a free version) |
| Supported platforms: | Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, and Windows |
| Customer support: | Email, knowledge base, FAQs |
| Current deal: | 🔥 Get up to 50% OFF Proton VPN NetShield! 🔥 |
Proton VPN is a VPN service provider with a powerful ad blocker called NetShield that is well-suited for Android devices. Like other leading providers, it does not only block ads but also protects you from malicious websites, intrusive trackers, and malware.
Compatibility. NetShield comes with Proton VPN which can easily be set up on different devices – it supports all popular OS.
Features. NetShield works with DNS blocking and can locate and block the trackers, usually used by companies that are collecting data across the web. So, instead of a DNS database supplied by your ISP or a search engine, you’re using a DNS resolver managed by Proton VPN. Aside from that, Proton VPN with NetShield will unblock the geo-restricted streaming platforms, such as YouTube – and NetShield will make sure to block ads on the YouTube app on whichever Android device you’d be using.
Test results. When we performed our tests with Proton VPN NetShield, the results confirmed a solid performance. This ad blocker can block most of YouTube ads, banners, and trackers. However, it didn't work with pop-ups, notification requests, and images.
Proton VPN and ad blocker combination pricing starts at $4.99/month, and you can test out a full-featured version with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
For more information about full package, read our Proton VPN review.
5. Avast – free secure browser with a built-in ad blocker for Android
| Free version: | Yes |
| Supported platforms: | Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS |
| Customer support: | Live chat, phone, email, knowledge base |
| Current deal: | 🔥 Get Avast AntiTrack, now $54.99/year! 🔥 |
Avast is one of the very few secure services that provide a free browser with a built-in ad blocker for Android devices. It’s able to block all kinds of ads (banner ads, video ads), pop-ups, browser notifications, browser fingerprinting, and trackers.
Compatibility. There is no separate app for Android devices. However, to use Avast ad blocker, you can download the Avast Secure Browser from the Google Play store, it’s very easy to set up and use.
Features. Avast Secure Browser blocks online ads by default and can significantly improve website loading times. Also, it blocks online tracking, which stops the third-parties from seeing your online activity.
The secure browser has adjustable ad-blocking modes: Basic, Balanced, and Strict Blocking. What’s more, there’s whitelisting available – you can manage the sites on which you have enabled the ad blocker. Android devices also can get the Encrypted Media Vault, where downloaded files can be kept encrypted and accessed through the Avast browser.
Test results. During our tests, Avast secure browser managed to get an outstanding score. It only hasn’t passed the Google Analytics tool test.
All in all, besides not having an app for Android devices, it worked perfectly on the browser. So, if you’re looking for an ad blocker focused on a clean browsing experience, Avast is going to be the one.
For more information, read our Avast Antivirus review
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6. AdLock – safe Android ad blocker with multiple filtering options
| Free version: | Yes (browser extensions only) |
| Supported platforms: | Windows, Android, iOs, Chrome |
| Customer support: | 24/7 email, blog, FAQs, user guide |
| Current deal: | 🔥 Get up to 70% OFF Adlock! 🔥 |
Compatibility. There's no available app to download to your Android device. However, you can set up this ad blocker on all popular browsers as an extension. Additionally, it cannot work simultaneously with other VPNs.
Features. AdLock works by blocking DNS – it uses a local VPN to filter out traffic and blocks requests for phishing and malicious sites. More so, AdLock has whitelisting and multiple filtering options for system applications: you can adjust the behavior of the apps that you’re using on Android devices by disabling filtering, enabling, or blocking. Specifically, on Android devices, HTTPS filtering allows the blocking ads on websites that use this protocol. Moreover, AdLock blocks video ads on the YouTube app with the share button and selecting AdLock from the app list (it works like a custom YouTube player).
Test results. During our tests, AdLock scored really well and hasn’t passed only the error monitoring test, which is a nearly-excellent result.
In terms of pricing, you can use it for free on browser extensions on Android devices.
7. Ghostery – reputable ad blocker for Android devices focused on tracker blocking
| Free version: | Yes |
| Supported platforms: | Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Opera, and Edge |
| Customer support: | FAQs, email, GitHub repository, blog |
| Current deal: | 🔥 Check out all coupons 🔥 |
Using AI anti-tracking technology, Ghostery stands as a reputable ad-blocking option for Android. It’s a completely free service customized to maintain your browsing as private and secure as possible.
Compatibility. Ghostery has a private browser, which can be downloaded on Android and other platforms. It doesn’t collect any personal user data, has an integrated private search engine, and protects devices from trackers.
Features. This ad blocker works by blocking DNS. It’s known to speed up the sites and the intuitive extension panel displays how long it takes to load the page. It’s quite an expressive set of features for a free service. Even though Ghostery is mostly focused on blocking trackers, it does block ads, pop-ups, and cookies. If you get annoyed by YouTube ads – great news. Ghostery was able to block auto-play ads on YouTube, so you won’t be bothered by them anymore.
Test results. During our tests, Ghostery scored well (only failed at error monitoring) – which is not that bad of a result at all.
As mentioned, you don’t have to spend a buck on Ghostery – the browser is free for Android devices.
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