How to block ads on any Android phone

Getting rid of pesky and unwanted ads was one of the main reasons I started rooting my Android phones years ago. However, today the process of blocking ads has been significantly simplified, allowing you to use third-party browsers, for example, to make sure you don’t see ads during your browsing sessions.

However, this still means that you will see advertisements on your phone when using browsers such as Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox. The good news is, you can block all browser hints and even ads that come with apps with a simple feature called Private DNS.

Private DNS configuration options can be found on most modern Android phones, and you can use them to block ads. Here’s how to do it.

How to block ads on your Android phone

•  1: Find the Private DNS setting

Find the Private DNS option on your phone. This option will usually be tucked under the Network and Connectivity banner or something similar. However, if you can’t manually find it, simply go to the Settings search bar and type “private DNS” and the option should pop right up.

If you still cannot find the Private DNS option on your phone, your device doesn’t support the feature and this trick will not work for you. Private DNS is usually configurable on Android 9.0 Pie and higher.

•  2: Select ‘Private DNS provider hostname’

The Private DNS feature, when tapped on, will show you three options – Off, Auto, and Private DNS provider hostname. Choose the last one and you should see a column to enter your own DNS hostname provider.

•  3: Type ‘dns.adguard.com’ (without the quotes)

In the column, simply type in ‘dns.adguard.com’ without the quotes and hit save. That’s it. Your phone will now use AdGuard’s DNS server and block out and ads from reaching your device.

You should now be completely ad-free in browsers as well as some apps. You, however, may still see some blank spaces/greyed-out boxes in place of ads that have been blocked.

Disclaimer:- The trick will not block app-driven ads like Spotify ads and YouTube ads. Using the Private DNS feature may also mean you will not be able to connect to some websites like Chartbeat.

To disable the same, simply go back to the Private DNS option in Settings and choose the first option, named ‘Off’ to not use a private DNS. This should fix any connectivity issues you may have because of the feature, but you will also no longer be able to easily block ads.