How to Get Rid of Pop‐Ups

Written by Jack Lloyd

Last Updated: September 3, 2020 Tested

This wikiHow teaches you how to prevent the bulk of pop-ups in your computer or mobile browsers. You can block pop-ups from the settings in Google Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, and Safari, and you can download a mobile app for your iPhone or Android in order to block most pop-up ads. If enabling your browser's pop-up blocker isn't blocking enough pop-ups for you, you can also install an ad-blocking extension in your browser. Remember that not all pop-ups are malicious, and some pop-ups aren't blockable.

Method 1

Method 1 of 11:

Using Google Chrome on Desktop

1
Open Google Chrome
. Its app icon resembles a red, yellow, green, and blue sphere.
2
Click ⋮. It's in the upper-right corner of the window. A drop-down menu will appear.

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3
Click Settings. You'll find this near the bottom of the drop-down menu.
4
Scroll down and click Advanced. It's at the very bottom of the page. Clicking Advanced expands the Settings page to include more options.
5
Scroll down and click Content Settings…. It's near the bottom of the "Privacy and security" section.
6
Scroll down and click Popups. You'll find this near the bottom of the menu.
7
Click the blue "Allowed" switch
. It's near the top of the menu. Clicking it will turn it grey
. Chrome will now block the majority of web page pop-up ads.
- If this switch is grey, Chrome is already blocking pop-ups.
- You can block pop-ups from individual sites by clicking Add under the "Blocked" section of the menu and entering the URL of the site from which you wish to block the content.
- To allow pop-ups from specific sites, click on Allow and enter the URL from the site(s) from which you'd like to see pop-ups.

Method 2

Method 2 of 11:

Using Google Chrome on Mobile

1
Open Chrome
. Tap the Chrome app icon, which resembles a red, yellow, green, and blue sphere.
2
Tap ⋮. It's in the top-right corner of the screen. Doing so prompts a drop-down menu.
3
Tap Settings. This option is near the bottom of the drop-down menu.
4
Tap Content Settings. It's near the middle of the Settings page.
- On Android, tap Site Settings instead.
5
Tap Block Pop-ups. This option near the top of the screen.
- On Android, tap Pop-ups near the bottom of the screen instead.
6
Tap the white "Block Pop-ups" switch. It's near the top of the screen. It will turn blue, signifying that pop-ups are blocked.
- On Android, you'll instead tap the colored "Pop-ups" switch
  . When the switch is grey, pop-ups are disabled.

Method 3

Method 3 of 11:

Using Firefox on Desktop

1
Open Firefox. Its app icon resembles an orange fox wrapped around a blue globe icon.
2
Click ☰. You'll find this in the upper-right corner of the window. A menu will appear.
3
Click Options. It's near the middle of the menu.
- On Mac, click Preferences"' instead.
4
Click the Privacy & Security tab. You'll see this option on the left side of the window.
5
Scroll down to the "Permissions" section. This section is near the bottom of the page.
6
Click the "Block pop-up windows" checkbox. It's at the bottom of the "Permissions" section.
- If there's already a checkmark in this checkbox, your Firefox browser is already blocking pop-up windows.
- You can add exceptions to this rule by clicking Exceptions... to the right of the checkbox, entering a web address, and clicking Allow.

Method 4

Method 4 of 11:

Using Firefox on iPhone

1
Open Firefox. Tap the Firefox app icon, which resembles an orange fox wrapped around a blue globe.
2
Tap ☰. It's in the bottom-right corner of the screen. A menu will appear.
3
Tap Settings. This option is near the bottom of the menu.
4
Tap the white "Block Pop-up Windows" switch
. It will turn blue. This signifies that Firefox will block the majority of pop-up ads.

Method 5

Method 5 of 11:

Using Firefox on Android

1
Open Firefox. Tap the Firefox app icon, which resembles an orange fox wrapped around a blue globe.
2
Tap the search bar. It's at the top of the Firefox screen.
3
Go to the configuration page. Type in about:config and then tap Search or ⏎ Return in the keyboard.
- If there's any text in the search bar, remove it before typing in about:config.
4
Tap the "Search" text field. You'll find this below the search bar at the top of the screen.
5
Search for the pop-up blocker. Type in dom.disable_open_during_load and wait for the dom.disable_open_during_load option to appear.
6
Select the pop-up blocker. Tap the dom.disable_open_during_load section to expand it. You should see the pop-up blocker's status (which should be "true") listed on the left side of the screen.
- If the status says "false" instead, your Firefox browser is already blocking pop-ups.
7
Tap Toggle. It's in the bottom-right corner of the pop-up blocker's section. Doing so will change the pop-up blocker's status from "true" to "false", signifying that the pop-up blocker is enabled.
- Even with the pop-up blocker enabled, not all pop-ups will be blocked.

Method 6

Method 6 of 11:

Using Microsoft Edge

1
Open Edge. The Edge icon resembles a blue or white "e".
2
Click ⋯. You'll see this in the upper-right section of the window. A menu will appear.
3
Click Settings. It's near the bottom of the menu.
4
Scroll down and click View advanced settings. This option is near the bottom of the menu.
5
Click the white "Block pop-ups" switch
. It will turn blue
. Edge will now block the bulk of Internet pop-ups.

Method 7

Method 7 of 11:

Using Internet Explorer

1
Open Internet Explorer. It's a light-blue "e" icon with a yellow band wrapped around it.
2
Click Settings
. This gear-shaped icon is in the top-right corner of the window. A drop-down menu will appear.
3
Click Internet options. It's near the top of the drop-down menu.
4
Click the Privacy tab. This option is at the top of the Internet Options window.
5
Check the "Turn on Pop-up Blocker" box. It's in the "Pop-up Blocker" section of the Internet Options window.
- If this box is already checked, your Internet Explorer browser is already blocking pop-up windows.
6
Click OK. The majority of pop-up windows will now be blocked whenever you encounter them in Internet Explorer.
- You can block pop-ups from individual sites by clicking Settings to the right of the checkbox, entering a web address, and clicking Add.

Method 8

Method 8 of 11:

Using Safari on Desktop

1
Open Safari. Its app icon resembles a blue, compass-shaped icon.
2
Click Safari. It's in the top-left corner of the menu bar. A drop-down menu will appear.
3
Click Preferences…. This option is near the top of the drop-down menu.
4
Click the Security tab. It's at the top of the "Preferences" window.
5
Check the "Block pop-up windows" box. It's in the "Web content" section. Most pop-up windows will now be blocked whenever you encounter them in Safari.
- Pop-ups from individual sites cannot be blocked in Safari.

Method 9

Method 9 of 11:

Using Safari on Mobile

1
Open your iPhone's
Settings. Tap the Settings app icon, which resembles a grey box with gears on it.
2
Scroll down and tap Safari. It's near the middle of the Settings page.
3
Scroll down to the "GENERAL" section. You'll find this section near the middle of the Safari page.
4
Tap the white "Block Pop-ups" switch
. It's in the "GENERAL" section. The switch will turn green
which signifies that your iPhone's Safari browser will block pop-ups from now on.
- If this switch is already green, Safari is blocking pop-ups.

Method 10

Method 10 of 11:

Using Adblock Mobile on iPhone

1
Download Adblock Mobile. Open your iPhone's
App Store app, then do the following:
- Tap Search
- Tap the search bar.
- Type in adblock and tap Search
- Tap GET to the right of the "Adblock Mobile" heading.
- Enter your Touch ID or Apple ID password when prompted.
2
Open Adblock Mobile. Tap OPEN in the App Store, or tap the Adblock Mobile app icon which resembles a red cancel sign.
3
Tap Get Started. You'll find it near the bottom of the screen.
4
Complete the introduction. Tap Next three times, then tap Awesome! at the bottom of the screen.
5
Tap Enable Adblock. It's a white button at the bottom of the screen.
6
Tap Allow when prompted. This will allow Adblock Mobile to create a virtual private network (VPN) configuration on your iPhone.
- The configuration is what prevents ads and pop-ups from appearing.
7
Enter your Touch ID or Apple ID password. When prompted, scan your fingerprint or type in the password that you use to log into your Apple ID account.
8
Wait for the VPN to connect. Once you see a small icon labeled "VPN" appear in the upper-left side of your iPhone's screen (just right of the Wi-Fi indicator), you can proceed.
9
Browse without pop-ups. Adblock Mobile's VPN will allow you to skip most ads in most apps (including mobile browsers) which will prevent unnecessary pop-ups from appearing.
- You can disable the VPN by opening your iPhone's Settings and tapping the green "VPN" switch near the bottom of the screen.

Method 11

Method 11 of 11:

Using Brave on Android

1
Download the Brave Browser app. This app blocks most ads—including pop-ups—by default, though you'll have to use it as your browser. Open the
Google Play Store app, then do the following:
- Tap the search bar.
- Type in brave
- Tap Brave Browser: Fast Adblocker
- Tap INSTALL
- Tap ACCEPT when prompted.
2
Open Brave. Tap OPEN in the Google Play Store, or tap the Brave app icon which resembles an orange-and-white lion.
3
Browse free of pop-ups. You can use Brave like any other web browser; by default, Brave will block ads up to and including pop-ups.

Community Q&A

Question

How can I block Google ads on a mobile phone?

Community Answer

If you are on Android, use Firefox for Android and install UBlock Origin. You can configure the blocking lists.
Question

Is there a pop-up blocker app/extension for the iPhone/Safari that can be installed?

Community Answer

Nope. In this case, you have to hope/trust that Apple will make one for you.
Question

How do I block pop up ads on my computer?

Community Answer

Use an extension that is called pop-up blocker or popper blocker. Search for these in association with your browser type and download the add-on, then follow its instructions. These should prevent further pop-ups from happening.

Warnings

Disabling pop-ups will prevent you from being able to open certain links or receive notifications from some websites.

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