A good ad blocker is basically a necessity these days. Because not only are the invasive ads that fill the internet annoying – and oh, are they annoying – they can be dangerous too.
Fortunately, ad blockers are effective and easy to install. Most of them are free too!
But rather than install them on each of your different browsers or devices, we’re going to show you how to go one step further. Keep reading for info on how to install adblock on your router.
Advantages of Using Adblock on Your Router
There are some perfectly good browser-based ad blockers that are free and easy to install, like uBlock Origin for Firefox.
So, why would anyone need to install an ad blocker on your router? Because it provides some really nice benefits:
- Blocks ads across your entire network, including every device and browser, without needing multiple installations
- Blocks ads in apps that you wouldn’t be able to with a simple browser add-on
- Avoids any potential security risks that may be caused by a browser extension or app
In short, an adblocker on your router provides wider and deeper ad blocking than you’d be able to accomplish by simply installing individual add-ons to every browser on every device. It’ll even block ads on mobile devices connected to your network!
4 Ways to Install Adblock on Your Router
There are a few different ways to accomplish the task, with some being more complicated than others. Here are the top options you have to choose from.
AdGuard
One of the most straightforward ways of blocking ads through your router is by using an alternate DNS, like the one provided by AdGuard. Simply install their app and change your DNS to the AdGuard DNS, and you’ll be able to block ads – and even other content, like adult websites.
You can find full setup instructions on their site.
Pi-Hole
Another option is by turning a Raspberry Pi device into a “Pi-Hole”, or DNS sinkhole, which you can then use to connect your router. However, while this one works pretty similar to the AdGuard option above, it takes a bit more tech know-how. And you’ll need a Raspberry Pi, of course.
You can find more in-depth instructions on the Pi-Hole site.
Flashed Router
If you’re even more tech savvy, you can try flashing your router with either DD-WRT or Tomato software. You can do this yourself, using certain routers, or you can buy one through a company like FlashRouter. This will not only allow you to block ads, you can install a VPN on them too.
You can find out more about installing DD-WRT or Tomato on their sites.
pcWRT
Today, there are actually some routers, like pcWRT, that are specifically built with ad blocking in mind. The good news is, these are a little easier to figure out than flashing a router. The bad news is, you’ll need to buy an entirely new router, and it’s not a particularly cheap one.
You can find prices and other info on pcWRT’s site.
Adblock on Router: Wrap-Up
So, we’ve looked at the biggest benefits of using an ad blocker on your router, along with four different options for installing one.
As you can see, they differ quite a lot in price and difficulty, from free and easy to costing $100+ and requiring a decent amount of tech knowledge.
If you have any thoughts on any of these methods – or any alternatives that we missed – we’d love to hear about them in the comments!