The internet and social media were once believed to be a new frontier for technology. But over the years, they have become inundated with digital advertising from countless brands.

Although advertising and marketing are instrumental initiatives to help brands get more business visibility, online ads have become problematic for consumers. Online ads are known to provide misinformation, track your data, and slow down your web browser.

To combat that, a surge of applications and browser extensions have been launched that help block ads and prevent user tracking. One of those browser extensions is uBlock Origin, which we put to the test. Overall, it performed as promised and worked effectively to block ads. Read on to learn about how we tested the uBlock Origin ad-blocker extension, how well it blocked ads, its features, and more.

uBlock Origin overview

uBlock Origin pros and cons

uBlock Origin features

uBlock Origin offers several features to block ads, tracking, malware, and more, which makes it a comprehensive content blocker.

The ad-blocker counter tells you the number of ads and trackers blocked on both the website and individual webpages. Its block counter also shows you the number of ads blocked to date as well as on the current browser page. In addition to the ad-blocker counter, uBlock Origin also provides warnings if you navigate to websites that are malicious, have spyware, or have notable privacy and tracking issues.

uBlock Origin offers EasyList filters, which can be used for specific privacy and filtering capabilities. This is useful if you want to support a trustworthy website or block specific ads or trackers. It also allows users to enable default filter lists, such as EasyPrivacy, Peter Lowe's ad server list, and the Online Malicious URL Blocklist.

This extension is user-friendly for most non-technical users because it runs effectively in the background once installed. It also offers easy, medium, and hard blocking modes for all levels of users. Elevated features for more advanced users include the “zapper,” which removes specific social media icons and buttons from webpages.

uBlock Origin user resources

Along with uBlock Origin’s beneficial features, it also offers several resource libraries. uBlock’s repository of help for installation includes a dedicated Wiki page and a guide on github.com.

Although this ad blocker works effectively for less tech-savvy users, more advanced users may want to create custom filters or change privacy settings. In addition to the Github site, which offers guides on these customizations, uBlock has a page on Reddit designed to help users connect and share their experiences with this tool.

uBlock Origin test results

To review uBlock Origin, we used ad-block website testers, including AdBlock Tester and Cover Your Tracks. Each of these tools tested several factors to determine whether uBlock Origin works effectively.

AdBlock Tester tested uBlock Origin against contextual advertising, traffic analytics tools, banner advertising, and error monitoring. Contextual advertising collects data about users in order to find the right ads for you. Traffic analytics tools are used to monitor your actions on a website and collect information about you. Finally, error monitoring is used to track and measure errors on websites.[1]

Cover Your Tracks tests for blocking ad tracking, invisible tracking, and fingerprinting. Invisible tracking is when data tracking elements are hidden in websites to obtain information on you. Fingerprinting is the term for how tracking sites piece together user data to form a “fingerprint” of your device.[2]

You can view the test results for each in the table below and the corresponding screenshots.

uBlock Origin scores

Does uBlock Origin block YouTube ads?

Advertisers and content creators have been able to monetize on YouTube thanks to ads and sponsored content. However, it can make the viewing experience challenging for subscribers and users.

From our research and testing, we determined uBlock Origin was effective at blocking banner ads and even many video ads on the YouTube website. Currently, there are no restrictions or listed policies on the YouTube terms and conditions pages stating users are forbidden from using ad blockers. However, our testing did find there were some limitations to blocking YouTube ads.

The majority of the successfully blocked ads happened while using the desktop version. You won’t find as much success while using the YouTube mobile app, as uBlock Origin is currently only available for web browsers.

Our uBlock Origin experience

In our experience, uBlock Origin was effective at blocking ads across most websites. It was easy to install and effectively blocked ads from initial deployment. uBlock Origin functions by filtering out elements on webpages that would otherwise interrupt your viewing experience. When you load a page, it checks it against a database of filters and removes anything that might cause issues, such as ad trackers and other ad placements. uBlock also doesn’t receive payments to allow what’s known as “acceptable ads:” ads deemed by other ad blockers like Adblock Plus to not interfere with your content.[3]

For more advanced users, you can whitelist certain sites. With whitelisting, you can mark a website as trusted to allow ads. This works great if you want to support your favorite creators on sites like YouTube. You can also remove specific buttons and ad placements. This ad blocker also works well at blocking invisible tracking and other ad tracking issues that can impede your privacy.

If you decide to use uBlock Origin, you need to install the extension on all your web browsers to fully protect your privacy. For Google users, the extension will only successfully block ads on that browser profile. For example, if you have multiple browser profiles for various members of your household, you will need to download the extension for each browser profile. Additionally, this extension is not available for Android or iOS, except when using it within the Mozilla Firefox add-on.

uBlock Origin compatibility

uBlock Origin is compatible with some browsers, but not on all device applications. At this time, there is no support available for Safari or mobile devices. The following browsers support uBlock Origin:

• Google Chrome
• Mozilla Firefox
• Microsoft Edge
• Opera

uBlock Origin FAQs

Bottom line: Is uBlock Origin good?

Whether you're looking to block ads on YouTube or reduce ad tracking, uBlock Origin is a great selection for an ad blocker. It can remove ads from YouTube videos and social media sites, as well as website takeover ads. In addition to removing ads on most websites, uBlock Origin also prevents pop-up windows and other distractions from interfering with your browsing experience.

The ad blocker works effectively from installation, so you can set it once and trust it will work for you. The only downfall to this ad blocker is that it is not compatible with all browsers and does not have a mobile app. It could also require more technical knowledge depending on what features you want to use. But if you want a good ad blocker for the most widely used browsers, uBlock Origin delivers on its promises.

If you’re still looking for an ad blocker for your Apple devices, we compiled a list of the best ad blockers for Mac and Safari.

Learn More

On uBlock Origin's website

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• Free and open-source
• Compatible with multiple browsers

• Some features require technical knowledge

Author Details

Amanda Scheldt

About the Author

Amanda is a technical content writer based in Illinois, USA. She has a Master of Science in Cybersecurity. After years of working in the tech and cybersec field, she pivoted her career to content marketing and writing within these industries.