Best for Complete Ad Blocking

4.5

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On NordVPN Threat Protection's website

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NordVPN Threat Protection

• Threat protection - Block ads, trackers, and malicious downloads
• Works on multiple devices and browsers
• 30-day money-back guarantee
• Lacks a dedicated firewall

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Best for Set and Forget

4.5

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On Total Adblock's website

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Total Adblock

• Remove ads & trackers on YouTube, Facebook, and most websites
• Hands-off ad-blocking experience
• Easy to set up
• Free version excludes top 15,000 websites

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Best for Bundled Features

4.9

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On Surfshark's website

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Surfshark

• Lots of useful extras like rotating IP addresses
• Dashboard is user-friendly
• Monthly or yearly fee

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Best for Anyone on a Budget

4.8

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On uBlock Origin's website

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uBlock Origin

• Free and open-source
• Compatible with multiple browsers
• Some features require technical knowledge

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Best for Intense Privacy

4.0

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On Brave's website

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Brave

• Layers of customizable protection
• Free
• Some features may disable certain sites

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Twitch.tv was launched in 2007 as a streaming platform for gamers as a branch of Justin.tv. While it might seem wild to think of watching live streams of others playing video games, it’s no wilder than sitting in your friend’s basement after school waiting for your turn on the SEGA. Recently, however, Twitch fans have complained extensively that the ads are making the experience almost impossible.

NordVPN Threat Protection, Total Adblock, Surfshark CleanWeb, uBlock Origin, and Brave browser are some of the best apps we’ve found for eliminating Twitch ads and getting a clean stream. While there are a few other notable mentions, the features and customization available in these three services make them ideal for Twitch streamers. What’s better is that they all provide the option to toggle ad blocking off to allow support for your favorite creators.

Top 5 ad blockers for Twitch compared

Ad blocker	Best Overall NordVPN Threat Protection	Total Adblock	Surfshark CleanWeb	uBlock Origin	Brave
Compatibility	Windows, macOS, iOS, Linux, Android	Android, Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera, Edge	Windows, macOS, iOS, Linux, Android, Chrome, Firefox	Chrome, Chromium, Edge, Firefox, Opera, Pale Moon, as well as versions of Safari prior to 13	Windows, macOS, iOS, Linux, Android
Features	Ad blocking, tracker blocking, malware blocking	Different levels of ad, tracker, and script blocking	Lots of extra features like dark web monitoring included with VPN	Various browser support, small footprint	Various browser support, customizable blocks
Learn more	Get NordVPN Threat Protection	Get Total Adblock	Get Surfshark	Get uBlock Origin	Visit Brave

A VPN might be your best Twitch ad blocker

Sites like Twitch are in a constant battle with ad blockers. While services like uBlock Origin, Brave, and Total AdBlock are dedicated to keeping you ad-free, sites like Twitch are dedicated to stopping them. This back-and-forth can be exhausting.

VPNs, on the other hand, can access servers in a variety of countries. Depending on the advertisement laws, ads may naturally get blocked in those regions. Poland is a country with specific laws for ads on social media sites. Twitch doesn’t offer ads in Poland so it can avoid navigating the social media laws. NordVPN, ExpressVPN, and Surfshark are all great choices for a VPN to use, as they have servers in Poland and other countries that don’t show Twitch ads.

Other countries where Twitch ads aren’t shown:

• Ukraine
• Russia
• Serbia
• Columbia

Best VPNs for blocking Twitch video ads

NordVPN Threat Protection: Best for complete ad blocking

Once again, as in previous reviews, NordVPN wins on all accounts. It comes with NordVPN Threat Protection, which is a built-in ad blocker. It was also easy to switch to a Polish server and enjoy streaming Twitch ad-free.

Being able to tip streamers that gave us content we enjoyed, rather than being forced to watch a bazillion ads, made the experience that much more enjoyable.

What we liked

NordVPN is an extremely easy-to-use VPN service that blocks ads easily. All you have to do is hit the shield icon on the left side of your NordVPN app and toggle on Threat Protection. You don't even need an active VPN connection to use this feature. Threat Protection can be used on Windows and macOS without a VPN connection, and Threat Protection Lite works while you're conencted to a VPN.

Threat Protection also provides additional safety for malicious scripting and ads. Parents can enjoy that feature knowing their kids won’t be able to click a link in the comments section of a stream and accidentally download malware.

What we didn’t like

NordVPN Threat Protection is part of NordVPN, so you can't buy the feature separately. Nord also doesn't come with a free tier so you’ll always have to pay for the service. There are other services in this review that are free but they also don’t come with the same features NordVPN has.

And while navigating to a no-ads country like Poland isn’t necessarily difficult, it’s still a very specific method for blocking ads. This also means we’ll either have to split tunnel our usage or stay off regional content for other countries while streaming on Twitch.

Split tunneling is when you route some of your internet traffic through a VPN and the rest either through another VPN connection or unprotected. If we’re watching Netflix in the U.K. and trying to access Twitch through a Polish server, this could be an example of regional content accessed through split tunneling. Most people won’t necessarily need to do this, but it’s still a drawback worth mentioning.

NordVPN Threat Protecttion pros and cons

Get NordVPN Threat Protection | Read NordVPN Threat Protection Review

Total AdBlock: Best for set and forget

Total Adblock is a simple, effective, and easy-to-use browser extension that works on a variety of browsers. It comes with very few bells and whistles, which means once you set your few options you can forget about it. This may or may not be a problem depending on what you’re looking for in an ad blocker. 

What we liked

We were impressed by how easy it is to use Total Adblock from the start. As soon as our extension was installed, Total Adblock got right to work at decluttering our browsing. Total Adblock also makes sure to walk you through a couple of steps so you know how to manage your search history and access custom filters, but this only took less than five minutes to complete.

While there is a paid version of Total Adblock, the free version works great at blocking ads. During our testing, it received a 100/100 score from Adblock Tester, which tests for an ad blocker's ability to block banner ads, contextual ads, analytics tools, and more. If you choose to pay and upgrade to the premium version, you’ll receive additional features like TotalAV antivirus protection and PC Tune-Up to enhance your computer's performance (a must for gamers).

What we didn’t like

Depending on your needs, Total Adblock may be too limiting. The free version excludes the top 15,000 websites based on Alexa.com, which is a bummer if you were hoping for a completely ad-free experience.

It can also be really persistent about getting you to upgrade to premium. Total Adblock has been reported to show you pop-ups fors its premium or not allow users to access certain features, which is ironic considering it's an ad blocker.

Total Adblock pros and cons

Get Total Adblock | Read Our Total Adblock Review

Surfshark CleanWeb: Best for bundled features

Surfshark is like Mary Poppins’ bag — there’s always something new to discover. The CleanWeb feature is easy to toggle off and on, and blocks ads for you even if you aren’t connected to a specific country server like Poland.

The rotating IP feature is particularly useful when surfing the web. It randomly changes your IP address automatically so you can continue to stay safe no matter where you are or how long you’re online.

What we liked

Surfshark is a great VPN. It has features like CleanWeb and rotating IP along with settings that automatically choose the fastest connection for you. It blocked all ads on Twitch and even allowed us to choose our own protocol if we wanted. If you’re looking for an ad blocker with a ton of extra features for other web security, Surfshark is a great choice.

What we didn’t like

All those features come at a cost. While Surfshark isn’t the most expensive product on the market, it still will set you back monthly or yearly depending on the plan you choose.

Another aggravating problem with Surfshark is where it's headquartered. The Netherlands is a 14 Eyes country, which means your data may be subject to the laws and regulations of that country and others.

Surfshark CleanWeb pros and cons

Get Surfshark | Read Our Surfshark Review | Read Surfshark CleanWeb Review

uBlock Origin: Best for users on a budget

uBlock Origin is a great, simple solution for a free ad blocker. As an open-source, cross-platform browser extension, it should be available to most people. We were also excited that it’s free to use and continually maintained by founder and lead developer Raymond Hill.

What we liked

uBlock Origin has a clean interface and easy design. The web browser extension allows for quick toggling between blocking and not blocking ads. The service itself blocked all ads on Twitch and even gives some diagnostics about what’s blocked.

There are also many options for customizations and controls. One of the best is the pop-up blocker feature. This means you won’t need to worry about streaming ads or pop-ups while using the uBlock Origin extension. All of these features together make it a reliable ad blocker.

What we didn’t like

The additional uBlock Origin features found on Github, like filter lists and rules, require more technical knowledge.

Additionally, we weren’t thrilled that support only works on certain versions of Safari. The Safari issue has an easy workaround, but to be able to truly customize the plugin, you may need to do additional reading. If you’re looking for basic ad blocking, this might not be a concern.

uBlock Origin pros and cons

Read uBlock Origin Review

Brave browser: Best for intense privacy

When it comes to extreme privacy and blocking features, Brave is here for you. We love the levels of customization, like the toggle to “aggressively block trackers & ads” that appear right in the dashboard. We’re also impressed by the cookie consent blocker that appears to be new. It’s clear Brave’s goal is to make the internet safer and easier for you to use.

What we liked

Brave is dedicated to its fight to block advertisements. There are options to lightly or aggressively block ads as well as the ability to block fingerprinting, cookies, and scripts. They’ve also recently released a feature that auto-declines cookies for you so you won’t have to worry about customizing those when you land on a webpage.

What we didn’t like

Brave is pretty user-friendly for such an advanced tool, but that doesn’t mean it’s 100% decipherable either. Some of the aspects of customization may get a bit too technical for the average user.

Additionally, when all protections are turned on there’s a chance a site won’t load or load correctly. Brave warns you about this and helps you toggle what you need to run the site, but that means reducing some privacy settings.

Brave browser pros and cons

Best ad blockers for Twitch FAQs

Bottom line: The best ad blockers for Twitch

The best paid ad blocker for Twitch is NordVPN Threat Protection because of its price, offerings, and Nord's location of origin outside of the 14 Eyes alliance.  

We also agree that the free services uBlock Origin and Brave browser come with enough additional features to really eliminate using some paid services. Surfshark CleanWeb and Total Adblock are also solid options that have a few unsavory factors that kept them from the top three.

Whether you decide to use an ad blocker like uBlock Origin, a privacy powerhouse like Brave, or an all-encompassing VPN like NordVPN, you’ll have plenty of options to get through a Twitch stream without constant interruptions. You’ll also have the ability to reward creators you find valuable. These tools give you back the power.

5 best ad blockers for Twitch 2023

How to choose the best ad blocker for Twitch

Scouring sites like Reddit can take forever, which is why we did it for you. If you’re looking to block all ads while also having the ability to support a creator, you’ll want to try a VPN. We strongly recommend NordVPN with your location set to Poland. This gave us the best results with a completely ad-free experience.

If you aren’t thrilled about having to use a paid service to block ads, you can choose a free browser extension like Total Adblock or uBlock Origin. If you’re spying some other options, the following features are ones to consider:

• Ability to toggle between blocking and unblocking to support creators
• Disable tracking
• Pop-up blocking
• Mobile compatibility
• Open-source code (so bugs are identified and fixed quickly)
• Browser compatibility
• Whitelisting capabilities
• Script-blocking (to help stop malware)
• Parental controls

How we tested the best ad blockers for Twitch

While we have an extensive list of technology that we know of, use, and test, we went to Reddit to find the complaints Twitch users and gamer communities were finding with their streaming experience. After pouring through multiple posts and hundreds of comments, we pulled out the most-mentioned methods for blocking ads and tested them for you.

Testing was done on macOS with an M2 chip running the latest version of Ventura. The browsers we used to test were Safari, Brave, and Chrome. We frequently used Hasan Piker’s page to test, as he is the kind of Twitch streamer who employs the most ads. We found this information in a chart from Twitch.[1]

@TwitchStuff/Twitter

4.9

Limited-time offer: 69% off + 3 extra months

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On NordVPN's website

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NordVPN

• High-quality VPN offering safety and speed
• Loads of servers for multiple connection options
• Works with popular streaming services, including Netflix
• Too many confusing plans

Author Details

Mary James

About the Author

Mary lives in Los Angeles and has been writing about tech for over 5 years. When she's not writing for work or fun, you'll find her in a theatre, at the movies, volunteering, or hiking the gorgeous SoCal landscape.