Question 1

Is AdBlock Pro really free?

Accepted Answer

Yes - every feature, forever. There is no pro tier and nothing to unlock. The single "Explore on Gumroad" card at the bottom of the popup is the project's only monetization; it opens an affiliate page in a new tab and does nothing else.

Question 2

Does it collect any data?

Accepted Answer

No. There is no telemetry, no analytics and no account. Statistics are computed and stored only on your device. See the privacy policy.

Question 3

How does blocking work on Manifest V3?

Accepted Answer

Six cooperating layers: curated static rules that work from second zero, dynamic rules compiled from community filter lists (EasyList, EasyPrivacy, Peter Lowe, Fanboy), CSS cosmetic filtering, a live DOM cleaner for injected ads and overlays, a visual element picker, and your own custom rules. Details in the project's ARCHITECTURE.md document.

Question 4

Why do I sometimes still see an ad?

Accepted Answer

MV3 caps dynamic rules (30 000) so no blocker can apply every EasyList rule; we prioritize exceptions and high-value rules and count everything skipped (Settings → Filter lists). First-party ads served from the site's own domain (e.g. some YouTube formats) are also hard limits of MV3's declarative engine. The element picker removes anything that slips through - permanently.

Question 5

A site broke. What do I do?

Accepted Answer

Click the toolbar icon → Pause site (or whitelist it), reload, and it will behave as if no blocker existed. If a specific list causes it, toggle lists in Settings → Filter lists. The "Chat bubbles" annoyance toggle is off by default precisely because support widgets are sometimes wanted.

Question 6

How accurate are the statistics?

Accepted Answer

Blocked-request counts come from Chrome's matched-rules API (polled within Chrome's quota, so a burst may take up to a minute to appear) plus exact counts of elements hidden cosmetically. Derived figures are estimates: 52 KB per blocked request, 65 ms per blocked request, and 0.35 g CO₂ per MB (Sustainable Web Design model). They are directional, not billing-grade.

Question 7

Does it slow pages down?

Accepted Answer

The opposite, usually - blocked requests are bandwidth and CPU never spent. The engine itself is declarative (native Chrome code) for network rules; the content script batches all DOM work into animation frames.

Question 8

Can I sync my setup between computers?

Accepted Answer

Yes - Settings → Privacy → "Sync settings across devices" mirrors settings and rules through Chrome's own profile sync. You can also export/import a JSON backup (Settings → Backup & data).

Question 9

Can I use my own filter lists?

Accepted Answer

Yes: Settings → Filter lists → "Add list by URL" (ABP/uBO-syntax or hosts-format lists). You can also write rules directly under Custom rules.

Question 10

Which languages are supported?

Accepted Answer

22 locales ship today (including Arabic, Hebrew and Persian with RTL). The UI follows your browser language automatically and falls back to English.

Question 11

Why does it need access to all websites?

Accepted Answer

Cosmetic hiding and the element picker must run on whatever page you're viewing. All processing is local; the permission is never used to read or transmit your data.

Frequently asked questions

Basics

Blocking

Setup & control

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