Where ads come from on your phone
Ads on your phone come from two different places, and you control them differently. The first is app-based ads — the banners and pop-ups inside apps you've downloaded. The second is targeted ads — the ones that follow you across apps and websites because companies have built a profile of your interests and behavior. You can reduce both, though you can't eliminate them entirely without paying for ad-free versions of apps.
Most free apps make money by showing you ads. Some apps let you pay a one-time fee or monthly subscription to remove ads completely. Others show ads no matter what, but you can at least stop them from being personalized to you based on your browsing history and location.
Key Takeaways
- You can turn off personalized ads by disabling ad tracking in your phone's settings — this stops companies from building a profile of your interests, though ads will still appear.
- On iPhone, go to Settings > Privacy > Tracking and toggle off "Allow Apps to Request to Track"; on Android, go to Settings > Google > Manage Your Google Account > Data & Privacy and turn off ad personalization.
- Many free apps contain ads you cannot remove without paying for a premium version, but you can mute or close them when they appear.
- Ad blockers work on web browsers (like Safari or Chrome) but not inside most apps, because apps control their own ad display.
Turning off personalized ads on iPhone
On iPhone, the setting that controls personalized ads is called App Tracking Transparency. When you turn this off, apps have to ask your permission before they can track your activity across other apps and websites. Most people decline when asked, which stops the tracking.
Go to Settings > Privacy > Tracking. You will see a toggle that says "Allow Apps to Request to Track." Turn it off. This tells all apps on your phone that you do not want to be tracked. Apps can still show you ads, but those ads will be generic rather than based on your location, search history, or what you've clicked on before.
You can also control which individual apps are allowed to track you. In the same Settings > Privacy > Tracking menu, scroll down and you will see a list of every app that has asked for permission to track you. You can toggle each one on or off separately if you want to allow tracking for some apps but not others.
Turning off personalized ads on Android
On Android, Google manages most of the ad tracking through your Google Account. Go to Settings > Google > Manage Your Google Account. Tap the "Data & Privacy" tab at the top. Scroll down to "Ad personalization" and tap it. You will see a toggle that says "Ad personalization is on." Turn it off.
This stops Google from using your search history, YouTube watch history, and location data to show you targeted ads. Like on iPhone, ads will still appear in apps and websites, but they will not be tailored to your interests. The change takes effect within 24 hours.
Some Android phones also have a setting called "Advertising ID" that you can reset. This clears the identifier that companies use to track you across apps. Go to Settings > Google > Manage Your Google Account > Data & Privacy > Ad personalization and look for "Reset advertising ID." Tapping this generates a new ID, which makes it harder for companies to connect your old profile to your new one.
Blocking ads in web browsers
Ad blockers are tools that remove ads from websites you visit in Safari, Chrome, or Firefox. They work by identifying the code that loads ads and preventing it from running. You can install ad blockers as browser extensions on both iPhone and Android.
On iPhone, open Safari and go to Settings > Safari > Extensions. You can read free ad blockers like Adblock Plus or 1Blocker from the App Store, then enable them in Safari settings. On Android, open Chrome and go to Settings > Extensions. You can install ad blockers the same way.
Ad blockers only work on websites, not inside apps. If you are seeing ads in a specific app like Instagram or TikTok, an ad blocker will not remove them because those apps control their own ad display. For those, your only option is to pay for a premium version of the app if one exists, or to live with the ads.
Removing ads from specific apps
If a particular app shows too many ads, check whether the developer offers a paid version without ads. Open the app's store page (App Store on iPhone, Google Play on Android) and look for a "premium," "pro," or "ad-free" version. Some apps charge a one-time fee of a few dollars; others charge a monthly subscription.
If no paid version exists, you have limited options. You can close or mute ads when they appear — most ads have an X button or a "skip" button after a few seconds. You can also uninstall the app and look for a different app that does the same thing with fewer ads. Many categories of apps (weather, calculator, notes) have dozens of alternatives.
What you cannot control
Even after turning off personalized ads and installing ad blockers, you will still see ads in most free apps and on most websites. This is how the internet works: free services are paid for by advertising. Turning off tracking just means the ads are not tailored to your specific interests.
You also cannot block ads that are built into an app's design — for example, a banner at the bottom of a game or a sponsored post in your social media feed. These are part of the app itself, not loaded from an external ad network. Only paying for a premium version removes these.
Some websites and apps will ask you to turn off your ad blocker before you can use them. This is their choice — they can require it as a condition of access. You can either disable the ad blocker for that site, pay for an ad-free subscription, or leave and use a different service.
Why companies track you with ads
Companies track your behavior because detailed information about what you like, where you go, and what you buy is valuable. The more they know about you, the more they can charge advertisers for showing you ads. Advertisers pay more for ads shown to someone who has already looked at similar products than for ads shown to a random person.
When you turn off tracking, you are telling companies you do not want to participate in this system. Your data is still collected in some form — your internet service provider, your phone manufacturer, and the websites you visit all see some of your activity — but you are at least opting out of the most aggressive form of profiling.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will turning off ad tracking stop all ads from appearing?
No. Ads will still appear in apps and websites. Turning off tracking just means those ads will not be personalized based on your interests, location, or browsing history. They will be generic ads instead of targeted ones.
Can I use an ad blocker on all websites?
Ad blockers work on most websites, but some websites detect them and will not let you use the site unless you turn the blocker off. You can disable the ad blocker for specific sites you trust, or you can choose not to visit sites that require it.
If I pay for an app, will it have fewer ads?
Paid apps typically have no ads at all. Free apps with a paid upgrade usually remove all ads when you pay. Check the app's store page to see what the paid version includes before you buy it.
Does resetting my advertising ID actually protect my privacy?
Resetting your advertising ID makes it harder for companies to connect your old profile to your new one, but it does not stop them from building a new profile starting from that moment. It is a minor privacy improvement, not a complete solution.
Why do some apps show ads even after I turned off tracking?
Apps show ads because that is how they make money. Turning off tracking controls whether those ads are personalized, not whether ads appear at all. The only way to remove ads completely is to pay for a premium version of the app or uninstall it.