Ad vs Very Good AdBlock
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Ad
This privacy-focused content blocker for Safari removes ads, trackers, and unwanted pop-ups across your devices. It offers customizable filtering categories and shows you exactly what is being blocked on each page.
- Blocks ads, trackers, and analytics
- Removes cookie banners and pop-ups
- Customizable content categories
- Shows blocked domains per page
- Privacy-first, zero data collection
- Works on iPhone and Mac
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Ad Engine — Ad Blocker & Privacy Block ads, trackers, and malicious content in Safari. Fast, private, and completely free. Blocks everything that slows you down Ad Engine uses Safari's built-in content filter — no VPN, no proxy, no battery drain. Rules run on-device before a single request leaves your phone. One tap to choose your profile • Default — removes ads and trackers across the web • Family — adds adult content, drug, and gambling site filtering • Maximum — strictest blocking: all of the above plus P2P and extra annoyances European ad networks blocked Dedicated rule lists for German, French, Dutch, Italian, Spanish, and Polish ad networks — six languages, one toggle per region. Block anything from Safari See an ad-heavy site? Tap the Share button → Ad Engine → Block this domain. Done. The block applies immediately, no app switch required. Built-in privacy • No account, no sign-in, no iCloud sync • Zero analytics, zero telemetry • All filtering happens locally — nothing leaves your device Widget & Siri Add the home screen widget to see how many ads were blocked today and your lifetime total. Use Siri or Shortcuts to pause blocking for 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour, or 2 hours — then it resumes automatically. Always free No subscription. No paywall. No "Pro" tier. Ad Engine is free to download and free forever.
Very Good AdBlock
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Very Good AdBlock blocks ads, trackers, cookie banners, and intrusive pop-ups in Safari on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. It uses Safari's content-blocking and web-extension APIs to stop requests before they load, helps reduce page clutter and data use, and gives you simple per-site controls. Privacy first: no telemetry, no browsing-history collection, no selling or sharing of data. Settings and blocking statistics remain on your devices. Optional browser-account sync is handled by your browser vendor, not our servers. Features: • Network-level ad and tracker blocking • YouTube and Twitch ad defenses • Pop-up and pop-under protection • Per-site pause, allowlist, and blocklist controls • Optional cookie-banner hiding • Local blocking and savings statistics Install the app, then enable Very Good AdBlock in Settings > Apps > Safari > Extensions on iPhone or iPad, or Safari > Settings > Extensions on Mac.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Very Good AdBlock at every 3 days against Ad's every 2 months. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Ad ships an update every 2 months, Very Good AdBlock every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Ad | Very Good AdBlock |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.0 (2 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 2 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 3 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 15.4 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 163 MB | 12 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hashim Abdul | Chris Breuer |
In-app purchases
Ad
No in-app purchases
Very Good AdBlock
No in-app purchases







