Ad blocker

Add an ad blocker. Or just use Private DNS.

As of 17 Oct 2026, start with Private DNS (no app), then these 8 blockers with a named operator.

Every ad blocker here passed the rulesApps that fail one are not listed. The rules
  1. Named operatorA company or person you can look up, not a remote VPN with no owner.
  2. Blocks on the phone or through named DNSThe blocking runs here, or through a DNS whose operator is shown.

What this does

  • Stops a lot of ads and trackers on websites
  • Private DNS can run next to a real VPN

Honest limit

  • DNS can't block ads served from the same place as the content, like YouTube or social feeds
  • A local-VPN blocker uses the VPN slot, so you can't run it alongside a real VPN

Private DNS. Two minutes, no app.

Settings › Network & internet › Private DNS › hostname. Paste one of these.

  • AdGuard DNSdns.adguard-dns.comdocs
  • NextDNSdns.nextdns.iodocs
  • Mullvad DNSdns.mullvad.netdocs

DNS can't block ads served from the same place as the content, like YouTube or social feeds. NextDNS as Private DNS can run alongside a real VPN.

The top 3

Best overall

NextDNS

NextDNS

Private DNS in two minutes, plus an app when you want more. A named operator, no extra VPN slot.

Owner
NextDNS Inc. · United States

Checked 17 Oct 2026—

Get it on Google PlayDetails
Best for in-app ads

AdGuard

AdGuard Software Limited

Blocks ads inside apps, not just in the browser. Get it from the maker; it is not on Play.

Owner
AdGuard Software Limited · Cyprus

Checked 17 Oct 2026—Uses the VPN slot

Get it from the makerDetails

Also great. Five more.

Picked by hand, 17 Oct 2026
Skip these

Ad blockers that are really free VPNs.

Some "ad blockers" are remote VPNs with no named owner. Others are browsers full of their own ads.

More on Be careful

  • A free VPN in an ad-block costumeIf it asks you to connect to a mystery server, it is a VPN. See the free-VPN notes.
    Tech Transparency Project, 2025 · source
  • Ads in your ad blockerA browser that blocks some ads and then shows you its own is not an ad blocker.
    Behaviour only; we name no app · source
AllFreeUpdated this year
8 apps · sorted by name
All 8 apps
App ▼ What it does Price Updated ▼ Min Android ▼ Get it
TrackerControlTop 8Konrad Kollnig
 See which apps phone home — Hand-checked 17 Oct 2026 — F-Droid
RethinkDNS + FirewallTop 8Celzero
 A local firewall and DNS you can see — Hand-checked 17 Oct 2026 — Google Play
NextDNSTop 8NextDNS
 Private DNS plus an app, from a named operator — Hand-checked 17 Oct 2026 — Google Play
NetGuardTop 8Marcel Bokhorst
 Per-app internet blocking on the phone — Hand-checked 17 Oct 2026 — Google Play
Mullvad DNSTop 8Mullvad VPN AB
 Mullvad's Public DNS, free, no account — Hand-checked 17 Oct 2026 — Website
Blokada 5Top 8Blokada
 A simple local blocker — Hand-checked 17 Oct 2026 — F-Droid
AdGuard DNSTop 8AdGuard Software Limited
 A named Private DNS hostname. No app — Hand-checked 17 Oct 2026 — Website
AdGuardTop 8AdGuard Software Limited
 Blocks ads inside apps. Get it from the maker; it is not on Play — Hand-checked 17 Oct 2026 — Website

'Top 8' marks the apps above. Data from F-Droid and hand-checked entries, as of 17 Oct 2026.

Questions

Do I need an app?

Often no. Private DNS in Settings takes two minutes and uses no VPN slot. NextDNS as Private DNS can run next to a real VPN.

Why can YouTube ads still show?

DNS cannot block ads served from the same place as the content.

How we pick the top 8: a person tries the apps and checks each maker's page, then writes the labels down with a date. How we choose