Adblock Plus Review & Cost 2024: Scam, Safe or Legit?

Adblock Plus has been around for a long time, blocking ads for hundreds of millions of users. It is safe to say that ABP is one of the most popular and best ad blockers out there. Founded in 2006 as an open-source project with a vision for a better internet, Adblock Plus was later housed by the company eyeo GmbH in Germany. 

Now, there is a fair bit of controversy surrounding Adblock Plus. In 2011 they decided to allow ads that they deemed “acceptable”. Many believed that Adblock Plus was veering from its purpose, and moved away towards alternatives. 

During our testing, we found out that the “acceptable ads” setting can be turned off, and it performs admirably in blocking ads and trackers. But is that enough? Let’s take a deep dive and find out. 

⭐ Rating7.8 out of 10
💵 Price$40/year, or $4/month
🏷️ Free versionYes
▶️ Blocks YouTube Ads?Yes
⛔ Blocks Trackers?Yes
💻 CompatibilityChrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge

Pros and Cons

Adblock Plus has quite a few strengths as well as weaknesses. You’ll have to judge whether one outweighs the other. 

Pros and Cons

Pros

  • Effective ad blocker
  • Free and Open-Source
  • Large community of users
  • Blocks YouTube ads

Cons

  • Allows “acceptable ads” by default
  • Terrible at blocking trackers

Adblock Plus Features Overview

Just like every other ad blocker, ABP blocks ads. Video ads, pop-ups, banner ads, and every other annoyance that make your browsing experience worse. It does so by using open source community filters. While it doesn’t offer a lot of options in terms of built-in filters, it does offer a fair number of localised filters. Moreover, it lets you add your own. 

Now, this next one may not be a feature for everyone, but the ABP team seems to think that it is. By default, Adblock Plus allows “acceptable ads”. It’s basically ads that they think are non-intrusive. Their justification for this so-called “feature” is that many websites rely on ads, and if they follow the best practices for ad implementation, they should be allowed. However, this feature can be turned off.

To keep you anonymous online, Adblock Plus uses the EasyPrivacy tracking protection filters. According to research by Stanford Law School’s Center for Internet and Society, these filters are the most efficient of all available tracking protection solutions. Adblock Plus also deals with social media widgets, making sure you are not tracked for your activities outside your social networks. 

Now let’s see if Adblock Plus checks all our boxes for ad blocker features.

Ad Blocker Features

Ad Blocker Features

Features Status
Blocks Banner Ads? Yes
Blocks Video Ads? Yes
Blocks Pop-ups? Yes
Blocks Social Media Widgets? Yes
Blocks Sponsored Posts? Yes
Blocks Floating/Overlay Ads? Yes
Blocks Trackers? Yes
Blocks Malicious Sites? No
Blocks Notification Requests? Yes
Hides Cookie Prompts? Yes
Score (Out of 10): 9

Performance Test

Adblock Plus on default settings would not likely perform well, so before the performance test, we disabled the “acceptable ads” and enabled some extra settings. 

How Do We Test Ad Blockers?

To evaluate an ad blocker, we use a five-stage testing process. We first check its compatibility and ease of installation across various platforms. Then, we dive into ease of use and customization options, ensuring both simplicity and control. Next, we assess pricing and customer support to see if the ad blocker delivers value for money. Finally, we put it through real-world testing on popular websites like YouTube and Reddit, followed by benchmark tests to validate its performance against industry standards.

Want to learn more about our comprehensive testing process? Check out the full article How We Test Ad Blockers.

Testing Websites

Let’s check how Adblock Plus performs on some of the internet’s most popular sites such as YouTube, Forbes, The New York Times, Reddit, X (formerly Twitter), Twitch and Crocs. These sites have various ads, pop-ups, and other annoyances, and serve a great reference point for our tests. 

YouTube

On YouTube, we first check for banner ads on the homepage and next to the videos. But we know what you really wanna know. It’s the annoying advertisements that come before, during and after your videos. We checked videos from various channels and content creators such as Linus Tech Tips, Austin Evans, IGN, The Verge, IGN, WatchMojo, ChuChu TV, and Cocomelon. And we found unskippable pre-rolls. For some videos, there were back to back two unskippable advertisements before the video even started. Then we moved on to YouTube Shorts and scrolled through about 25 videos. And surely enough, we found ads after every few shorts. All banner and bumper ads were blocked.

  • Skippable ads: Blocked
  • Non-skippable ads: Blocked
  • In-feed video ads: Blocked
  • Bumper ads: Blocked
  • Masthead ads: Blocked
  • YouTube Shorts ads: Blocked

Ad Type

Ad Type Status
Video Ads Blocked
Banner Ads Blocked
Shorts Ads Blocked
Score (Out of 10): 10

Forbes

If you’ve ever been on Forbes’ site, you know how it is. Huge banner ads on the homepage, plus those sneaky video ads on the side of articles that float as you scroll. But with Adblock Plus, none of that was visible. However, once we hit the paywall after reading a few free articles, ABP couldn’t get us around that. But on the bright side, it did get rid of those newsletter pop-ups and notification prompts.

  • Homepage: Blocked 12 ads and trackers
  • Banner Ads: Blocked
  • Floating Video Ads: Blocked
  • Newsletter Pop-ups: Blocked
  • Paywall: Could not bypass

The New York Times

Moving on to The New York Times, we usually see some splashing large and small banner ads all over the place, sometimes even animated ones. But with Adblock Plus, the ads were all wiped out. Again, similar to Forbes, the paywall stopped us from browsing further.

  • Homepage: Blocked 11 ads and trackers
  • Banner Ads: Blocked
  • Paywall: Could not bypass

Reddit

If you’ve ever scrolled through Reddit, you’ve probably noticed the “Promoted” posts sneakily disguised as regular posts. These usually pop up after every few posts on the homepage. Adblock Plus was able to get rid of those adverts.

  • Homepage: Blocked 5 ad or tracker
  • Promoted Posts: Blocked

Twitch

Twitch is full of self-promo banners for things like sign-ups and discounts. Adblock Plus was unable to block any of that. However, it should be noted that any sponsored content on the profile of a creator won’t be considered an ad and therefore won’t be blocked.

  • Homepage: Blocked 1 ad or tracker
  • Self-promotion Banners: Not blocked

X

Like Reddit, X has tons of “sponsored posts” scattered across the homepage. But after enabling ABP, all of these were effectively blocked.

  • Promoted Posts: Blocked

Crocs

On the Crocs website, you’ll usually encounter discount banners and newsletter pop-ups as soon as you arrive. Adblock Plus took care of the pop-ups. But the discount banners stayed.

  • Homepage: Blocked 29 ads and trackers
  • Pop-ups: Blocked

Category

Category Subcategory Status
Websites Forbes Blocked
New York Times Blocked
Reddit Blocked
Twitch Allowed
X Blocked
Crocs Blocked
Score (Out of 10): 8.3

Adblock Plus performed admirably on our website test, securing a 10 out of 10 on YouTube and an 8.3 on other sites.

Third-Party Ad Block Testing

  • Adblock Plus achieved an impeccable score of 100/100 on the AdBlock Tester website, passing all 22 checks. This shows its effectiveness in blocking different types of ads, including contextual advertising, analytics tools, banner advertising, and error monitoring. 
  • In d3ward ad block test, Adblock Plus managed to score 68%. It could not block 43 of the 135 elements tested.
  • Adblock Plus failed the advanced test on Can You Block It, as it was easily detected.
  • In Cover Your Tracks, ABP failed to protect against tracking ads and invisible trackers. And the site detected a nearly unique fingerprint on our browser. 

Test Name and Scores

Test Name Test Score
Adblock Tester 100
d3ward Ad Block Test 68
Cover Your Tracks 0/3
Can You Block It 2/3
Score (Out of 10): 6.7

Adblock Plus Plans, Pricing, Free Tier, and Trial

While the name Adblock Plus sounds like it is the premium tier of AdBlock, another ad blocking tool that is currently owned by the same company, the extensions are actually different, and there is a free tier of Adblock Plus known as Adblock Plus Premium. For $4 a month or $40 a year, you can subscribe to this plan. There is no free trial. However, they offer up to a 60-day money-back guarantee. 

The premium tier adds two extra functionalities. It blocks additional annoyances such as floating videos and pop-ups, and it lets you get rid of cookie consent notices. We tested these features, and surely it does what it says.

Now, ad blocking wise, we tested both the free and the premium plans, and there were no differences in our test results. Which makes the free version very usable. However, at the same time, the premium version does not add any real value. When we take into account that many free ad blockers like AdGuard and uBlock Origin have ABP’s premium functionalities on their free tier, it becomes a very hard sell. 

Category and Score

Category Score
Value for Money 2/5
Free Version Usability 4/5
Score (Out of 10): 6

How Usable is Adblock Plus?

Compatibility

Adblock Plus was originally created as a Firefox add-on back in 2006. Now it is available on all major browsers, including Chrome and Safari. On Chrome, you will also get Manifest V3 support. While it is available on Android as a browser, it does not offer any system-wide support. Alternatively, if you use Firefox on Android, you can install the extension there too. 

Platform Availability

Platform Availability
Chromium Extension Yes
Firefox Add-On Yes
Safari Extension Yes
MV3 Compliance (Chrome) Yes
Windows App (System-wide) No
macOS App (System-wide) No
Android App (System-wide) No
iOS App (System-wide) No
Score (Out of 10): 6

Installation

Installing Adblock Plus is fairly easy. You should find it in the extension store of your browser. Alternatively, you can visit the Adblock Plus website, and it should redirect you to the right place. From there, you just add it to your browser, and it should be installed. As soon as the installation finishes, you will be greeted with the donation page for Adblock Plus. While you can donate, there is a paid subscription plan that could be more your cup of tea.

Installation Status

Installation Status
Quick Installation Yes
Beginner Friendly Yes
Clarity of Instructions Yes
Score (Out of 10): 10

Ease of Use

While Adblock Plus has an easy-to-use interface, it’s not exactly usable from the get-go. None of the free features like blocking additional trackers, push notifications, and social media tracking are on by default. So you need to dig into the settings for that. And there you will also find that it has something called “acceptable ads” enabled. If you want your ad blocker to actually block ads, we recommend disabling that. And we do not like the fact that basic features like blocking cookie consent pop-ups and other annoyances are locked behind a premium subscription. 

From the main page, you should be able to enable or disable ad blocking for the website you are on. It also offers the same toggle just for the web page, which is a nice bonus. If you have the premium, you can also toggle cookie consent pop-ups and other distractions. And finally, there is an option to block elements manually.

Ease of Use

Ease of Use Status
One Click Use No
User Friendly Settings Yes
Automatic Updates Yes
Score (Out of 10): 6

Customizability

Now that element blocking feature right on the main page, is really nice to have, but the customizability does not end there. On the general settings page, there is a language filter list for ad blocking on a more localised level. There is also an allowlist if you want ABP to ignore select websites.

In the advanced tab of the settings, you should find a filter list, and it should let you enable or disable select filters. Right below that list, there is the option to add your own filters and rules. Overall, Adblock Plus checks all the boxes in our customizability list.

Customizability

Customizability Status
Accessible Filter List Yes
Custom Filters Yes
Manual Element Blocking Yes
Score (Out of 10): 10

Customer Support

Adblock Plus only has a support email available. We could not find any live chat, or phone call feature. There’s a decently detailed help centre. And when we reached out to them via email, they responded within one hour, and the support was satisfactory.

Customer Support

Customer Support Description / Score
Availability of Support Email, Help Center
Response Time 3/3
Support Quality 3/3
Score (Out of 10): 7

Top Alternatives for Adblock Plus

While Adblock Plus has been out there for a while now, there are a good number of competitors that are on the same level or even better at blocking ads and trackers compared to Adblock Plus. Let’s have a look at how well ABP holds up against the alternatives. 

AdGuard

 uBlock Origin

Total Adblock

Ghostery

Stands AdBlocker

Score

9.6

9.4

8.2

8.8

8

Best For

System-wide ad blocking

Customizability

Security features

Online privacy

YouTube & Facebook ads

Adblock Tester Scor

95

96

100

98

53

Cover Your Tracks

2/3

2/3

2/3

0/3

0/3

Compatibility

Browsers, Windows, macOS,

Android, and iOS

Browsers

Chromium Based Browsers,

Android, and iOS

Browsers

Browsers

MV3 Compliance

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Open-Source

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

No

Support

Email, Knowledge Base

Community

Email, Phone

Email

Email

Starts At

$29.88/
per year

Free

$19.99/
per year

Free

Free

Full Reviews

Verdict

Adblock Plus performs well all throughout the categories, but really underperforms when it comes to benchmarks. Even with all the filters and tracker blocking options on, it does a terrible job at blocking trackers. Moreover, there are some allegations against the Adblock Plus parent company, eyeo GmbH, that their acceptable ads are essentially a way for ad providers to pay them to allow their ads. All these really hurt our overall confidence towards them. 

At the same time, they are one of the most popular ad blocker out there with millions of active users. So they are clearly doing something right. If you just need an ad blocker that blocks most of the ads, and maintains their own whitelist to support websites with fair advertising practices, you can go with Adblock Plus. 

Now it’s time to round-up all the scores and see how it stacks up.

Category Scores and Weights

Category Score Weight
Features 9 20
YouTube 10 10
Websites 8.3 10
Independent Tests 6.7 15
Pricing 6 15
Compatibility 6 5
Installation 10 5
Ease of Use 6 10
Customizability 10 5
Support 7 5
Final Score: 7.8 100

Frequently Asked Questions about Adblock Plus

Is Adblock Plus Totally Free?

The ad blocking in Adblock Plus is completely free. However, it does not block cookie consent pop-ups and other annoyances like autoplaying flowing videos, and newsletter pop-ups in the free tier. Moreover, Adblock Plus runs on user donations but the donating does not get you any added benefits, only Premium subscription does. Learn how to easily cancel, delete, or uninstall Adblock Plus with our step-by-step guide.

Is AdBlock and Adblock Plus the Same?

No, AdBlock and Adblock Plus are two different browser extensions. While they share a lot of similarities in their practices and UI, and there is a resemblance in their branding too, their development teams are separate. Adblock Plus was originally created for Firefox in 2006, and AdBlock came into the scene in 2009 as an extension for Google Chrome. A lot of their similarities is a result of ABP’s parent company, eyeo’s acquisition of AdBlock in 2021. 

Does Adblock Plus Sell Your Data? 

As clearly stated in their privacy policy, eyeo GmbH, the parent company of Adblock Plus, does not sell data to third-parties. However, if you are worried about your data, you should keep in mind that while Adblock Plus does not sell your data, by default, it shows ads that it deems “acceptable” and those ads may include trackers. So, you can be tracked by third parties.