Ad vs AdsBlockers
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.
AdsBlockers
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AdsBlockers is a device-wide ad and tracker blocker for iPhone and iPad. It works at the DNS level, so ads are blocked system-wide — in apps, browsers, and anywhere else your device makes network requests. How it works When an app on your device tries to resolve a domain name (like a tracking or ad-serving server), the DNS proxy checks it against locally stored blocklists. If the domain is blocked, the request is silently dropped — the ad never loads. If it's allowed, the query is forwarded to your chosen DNS resolver over encrypted DNS-over-HTTPS. The included Safari content blocker adds a second layer of protection specifically for web browsing inside Safari, catching cosmetic and path-level ad rules that DNS-only blocking can't reach. What's included — Filter lists from EasyList, EasyPrivacy, StevenBlack hosts, OISD, AdGuard DNS filter, and 1Hosts Lite. Toggle each list on or off independently. — Custom allowlist and blocklist for per-domain control. — Pause protection temporarily (or until you turn it back on). — Kill switch stops all internet if the DNS filter loses resolver access, preventing unfiltered traffic. — Daily blocked-count charts and a 7-day activity log on the Activity screen. Your privacy Nothing leaves your device. There are no accounts, no analytics, and no server logs. The only third-party DNS resolver you interact with is the one you choose — Cloudflare, Google, Quad9, or AdGuard DNS. Queries are encrypted by default via DNS-over-HTTPS. The app cannot see your browsing content, search history, usernames, or passwords — only the domain names in DNS queries, and only those that were blocked appear in the local activity log (kept for 90 days). Requirements iOS 18 or later. A physical iPhone is required to use the DNS proxy; the Safari content blocker works on iPad without one.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is device support: Ad at 4 against AdsBlockers's 2. On price, ads, in-app purchases and iOS requirement 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.
| Parameter | Ad | AdsBlockers |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.4 — better | 16.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 163 MB | 96 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hashim Abdul | Noah M |
In-app purchases
Ad
No in-app purchases
AdsBlockers
No in-app purchases









