Alternatives to AdGuard Ad Blocker

System-wide ad and tracker blocker apps for Windows, macOS, Android and iOS with DNS filtering. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.

Replacements

Listings that take over the same core job as AdGuard Ad Blocker.

  • Blokada

    Mobile ad blocker with a local filter and an optional VPN tier.

    FreemiumOpen sourceAndroidiOS

    Blokada covers only Android and iOS but is open source, with free local filtering and an optional paid VPN tier.

  • AdAway

    System-wide Android ad blocker using hosts files or a local VPN.

    FreeOpen sourceAndroid

    AdAway is free and GPL-3.0 licensed but Android only, blocking through hosts files with root or a local VPN without it.

  • Rethink DNS

    Android firewall and encrypted DNS client with per-app rules.

    FreeOpen sourceAndroid

    Rethink DNS is a free, open-source Android app adding a per-app firewall and encrypted DNS, with no desktop or iOS versions.

  • personalDNSfilter

    Lightweight Java DNS filter proxy that blocks ad and malware domains on Android and desktops.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinuxAndroid

    personalDNSfilter is free and open source for Android and Java-enabled desktops, filtering by domain only with DNS over HTTPS and DNS over TLS support.

  • DNSNet

    An Android app that filters DNS requests through a local VPN to block ad and tracker domains.

    FreeProprietaryAndroid

    DNSNet is a free Android-only app that blocks ad and tracker domains through a local VPN without root.

  • Maza

    A Bash script that blocks ads system-wide by filtering DNS through the hosts file or dnsmasq.

    FreeOpen sourcemacOSLinuxCommand line

    Maza is a free open source Bash script that blocks ads on a single Mac or Linux machine from the command line, with no graphical interface.

Also worth comparing

These listings name AdGuard Ad Blocker as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.

  • uBlock Origin

    A free, open-source content blocker for browsers that blocks ads, trackers and malware domains with a small footprint.

    FreeOpen sourceBrowser extension

    AdGuard Ad Blocker is a set of freemium apps for Windows, macOS, Android and iOS that filter ads and trackers system-wide, including outside the browser.

  • 1Blocker

    Safari content blocker that strips ads, trackers, and cookie popups on-device.

    FreemiumProprietarymacOSiOS

    AdGuard Ad Blocker filters ads and trackers across all apps on macOS and iOS, and also runs on Windows and Android, rather than working only inside Safari.

  • AdBlock

    A browser extension that blocks ads, pop-ups and third-party trackers, with a paid Premium tier.

    FreemiumProprietaryBrowser extension

    AdGuard Ad Blocker moves filtering from a browser extension to system-wide apps for Windows, macOS, Android and iOS, covering ads in other apps as well.

  • Adblock Plus

    An ad-blocking browser extension with customizable filter lists for Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera and Safari.

    FreeOpen sourceiOSBrowser extension

    AdGuard Ad Blocker replaces the extension with freemium closed-source apps that filter ads system-wide on Windows, macOS, Android and iOS.

  • AdGuard Browser Extension

    A browser extension that blocks ads, pop-ups and trackers, with cosmetic filtering of page elements.

    FreeOpen sourceBrowser extension

    AdGuard Ad Blocker extends the same company's filtering to all apps on Windows, macOS, Android and iOS, but it is freemium and not open source.

  • Intra

    An Android app from Jigsaw that encrypts DNS lookups to get around DNS manipulation and blocking.

    FreeOpen sourceAndroid

    AdGuard Ad Blocker is a freemium, closed source app on Android and other systems that combines DNS filtering with ad and tracker blocking.

  • Lockdown Privacy

    Open-source on-device firewall that blocks trackers and badware, showing what it blocked.

    FreemiumOpen sourcemacOSiOS

    AdGuard Ad Blocker filters ads and trackers across apps on Windows, macOS, Android and iOS, but it is closed source and features differ per platform.

  • Malwarebytes Browser Guard

    A free browser extension from Malwarebytes that blocks malicious sites, scams, trackers and unwanted ads.

    FreeProprietaryBrowser extension

    AdGuard Ad Blocker is a freemium app for Windows, macOS, Android and iOS that filters ads and phishing sites across all apps, not only the browser.

  • Privoxy

    A non-caching web proxy that filters HTTP headers and page content to remove ads and trackers.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    AdGuard Ad Blocker filters ads and trackers across all apps on Windows, macOS, Android and iOS, but is not open source and offers a freemium model.

  • TrackerControl

    Monitor and restrict Android application tracking connections.

    FreeOpen sourceAndroid

    AdGuard Ad Blocker is a freemium, closed-source app blocking ads and trackers across apps on Android, iOS, Windows and macOS, with phishing protection.

  • uBlock Origin Lite

    A Manifest V3 content blocker from the uBlock Origin project that filters ads and trackers.

    FreeProprietaryBrowser extension

    AdGuard Ad Blocker moves filtering out of the browser into freemium apps for Windows, macOS, Android and iOS that block ads and trackers system-wide.

  • YogaDNS

    A Windows DNS client that intercepts system DNS requests and sends them over encrypted protocols by rule.

    FreemiumProprietaryWindows

    AdGuard Ad Blocker is a freemium system-wide blocker for Windows and other platforms with DNS filtering and phishing protection, focused on ads rather than DNS routing.

Similar software

Related functionality, not a direct replacement.