How to Stop Pop-Up Ads on Your Android Phone in 3 Easy Steps

People hate pop-up ads so much that their inventor, Mr. E  Zuckerman, apologized publicly for creating them. However, this doesn’t stop marketers from using pops to push sales of their products or services.

Viewing ads is like thanking content creators or app developers as they earn through clicks. Regardless, these ads can be annoying, distractive, and frustrating. Not to mention that some may contain viruses that could harm your device. 

Blocking these ads will help you enjoy your Android phone without intrusive interruptions, enhancing your peace of mind. Below are several ways to stop ad pop-ups on your Android phone. 

Method 1: Stop Ad Pop-Ups on Your Browser

Most pop-up ads on your Android phone often appear on your browser. But don’t worry; you can eliminate most, if not all, of these ads by blocking them. Here are steps for stopping ad pop-ups in commonly used Android browsers like Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge, and Opera. You can scroll and jump to steps that involve your default browser. 

On Chrome

Chrome is one of the most popular Android browsers. Here is how to stop ads from popping up on Chrome. 

Step 1: Open Chrome browser

Search the Chrome app among your list of apps and open it. When in the app, click on the three dots at the top right corner and scroll down to settings. 

Step 2: Navigate to site settings 

Scroll down the settings menu till you get to the advanced section. Under advanced, select site settings. 

Step 3: Go to pop-ups and redirects 

Under site settings, scroll down till you get to pop-ups and redirects, and tap that. 

Step 4: Turn Off pop-ups and redirects 

Toggle the button next to pop-ups and redirects. This will inform you that you have blocked “Allowed” sites from showing pop-ups. With this setting, you won’t receive ad pop-ups while browsing Chrome. 

Step 5: Allow Chrome to block ads on sites with misleading ads

If some sites still send intrusive ads, you can block those pop-ups by allowing Chrome to block ads on sites with misleading ads. 

Go back to site settings as in step 3 above and select ads below pop-ups and redirects. Toggle the button next to block ads on sites that show intrusive and misleading ads. 

On Firefox

Unlike Chrome, Firefox lacks an in-built ad pop-up blocking feature. You will need to install add-ons to block ads on this browser. Here is how you do it. 

Step 1: Open Firefox and go to settings 

Click the Firefox icon to open the app, then tap the hamburger menu (three dots) at the bottom right corner and select settings. 

Step 2: Go to Add-ons 

Under settings, scroll down to the advanced option and select Add-ons. 

Step 3: Add the uBlock Add-on to Firefox 

Click the plus icon next to uBlock Origin, a pop-up blocker, to add it to Firefox. Click add to confirm your action. 

On Microsoft Edge

Step 1: Open the app and select the menu 

Tap on the Microsoft Edge icon to open the app. Click the hamburger menu (three dots) at the bottom center to open the app menu. 

Step 2: Go to settings 

On the menu, click the settings icon to open the browser settings. 

Step 3: Find the block ads section 

Under settings, select privacy and security, then click on block ads.

Step 4: Block the ads 

Tap the block ads option, and under advanced settings, turn off the allow acceptable ads section. 

On Opera

Step 1: Open Opera and go to settings 

Click on the Opera app icon to open it, then click on the settings icon on the app to access the settings menu. 

Step 2: Turn on block pop-ups 

Under settings, scroll to the block pop-ups and toggle on this option. This stops pop-ups from appearing in the browser. 

Method 2: Stop Ad Pop-Ups in Apps or Home Screen

Sometimes you could be offline, on your home screen, or using a different app from your browser but still get some ads popping up. When this happens, the pop-up is mainly caused by a third-party app installed on your device. 

Unfortunately, there is no system-wide app to identify and block all the pop-ups on the phone. For this reason, to stop the ad pop-ups, you must identify the app causing these pop-ups and take action. To identify the app causing the pop-ups, you can: 

Check the Most Recent App

When you get the pop-up, check the most recently used app. You can do so by tapping the recent apps key next to the home button. Alternatively, open apps under your android setting and sort them by time to see the most recent app. 

Check the Notifications Panel

After receiving the ad notification, open the notification panel by swiping your screen up or down based on your Android model. Long press the ad till you see the app it came from. 

Use Third-Party Apps

You can use a third-party app such as Popup Ad Detector to identify the source of any pop-up ad. The app locates the source apps for ads on the home screen, notification bar, lock screen, and those displaying over other apps. 

Stopping the Ad-Causing App

Having identified the app, it’s now easy to stop the pop-ups. You should restrict the app’s permission to display over other apps. Here are the steps for doing this, although they might vary slightly based on your device manufacturer and Android version. 

Step 1: Open apps under settings 

Search through your list of apps and click on the gear icon to open settings. Scroll through the settings options until you locate apps and notifications. 

Step 2: Locate the ad-causing app

Click see all apps to open a list of all apps installed on your phone, most likely in alphabetic order. This makes it easier for you to locate the ad-causing app. Tap it to view all your applications. 

Step 3: Toggle off notifications

Locate and open any application sending notifications or pop-up ads. Select the notification option, and toggle the button next to show notifications to turn off any notifications caused by this app. 

After turning off notifications from the app, you will not have any pop-ups from this app, whether it’s in use or not. If the app still sends annoying pop-up ads, consider uninstalling it.

Method 3: Stopping ads by Removing a Pop-Up Virus

If your phone suddenly shows ads, even if you have not installed a new app, it is likely infected with an adware program. This pop-up virus affects your device, especially if you accidentally or intentionally click a malicious ad. 

Here is how to remove a pop-up virus from your phone to stop the ads.

Step 1: Reboot your phone in safe mode

Press the power button for about five seconds when restarting or shutting down the phone until you get a Reboot into safe mode message. Click ok to reboot your device in safe mode. When in safe mode, all third-party apps are deactivated.

Step 2: Find the app causing trouble

After the phone restarts in safe mode, go to settings, apps, and notifications. Select the see all apps option to view apps on your phone. Scroll through to try and locate the app with the malware.

Step 3: Disable permissions on the app

Tap on the app with the problem and turn off notifications. You can also be on the safer side by uninstalling the app. 

Step 4: Enable Play Protect and scanning

Open settings on the Google app and go to play protect settings. Under that, turn on the scan apps with the Play Protect option. This will scan your device for any possible viruses or potentially harmful apps. You can reboot your device back to normal mode, and hopefully, you won’t get any online or offline pop-up ads.

In just 2:16 minutes, the following video from Guiding Tech demonstrates how to block pop-up ads on your Android phone.

Wrap up

Few things are more annoying than pop-up ads, especially when they disrupt you when using your phone. Some advertisers try to target consumers accurately by serving them popups with relevant services or products. If popups get under your skin, you can block them using the above methods.

Lastly, remember to be careful with the apps you install and sites you visit to avoid falling prey to malicious viruses sent to your device through pop-up ads. 

The image featured at the top of this post is ©Pedal to the Stock/Shutterstock.com.