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Tell HN: You can block YouTube ads on iOS 15 using Safari Extensions

77 points by busymom0 ↗ HN
I just upgraded my 7 year old iPhone 6S to iOS 15 and discovered that Safari Extensions now lets you block YouTube ads if you use YouTube via safari. This is one of the things I used android as my media consumption device and glad to see iOS allowing it too. I used “Adblock Pro” which I got for free from App Store (I am not affiliated with them). Other adblocker should work too.

37 comments

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nicbou
I prefer the web version of YouTube because the app has way too many ads.

I was really disappointed to see that uBlock doesn't work on Firefox for iOS. I bought an iPad for other purposes, but if was meant as a media consumption device, I'd return it. The internet is unusable if you can't block ads and cookie notices.

Does Safari have something better? I'd lose my history/password sync, but at least the web would be a bit more usable.

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Larrikin
Firefox Focus has some limited ad blocking built in.
TechBro8615
The web version of YouTube on mobile Safari has some Javascript that prevents you from using the native iOS picture in picture. It literally hijacks it. You open the video, click the picture-in-picture button, and then when it minimizes, the YouTube website forces it back into its canvas player (I have confirmed this in a debugger). They obviously do this because they want you to download the YouTube app which has its own picture-in-picture mode and advertisements that are more difficult to block.

It's basically an antitrust micro-aggression. Not serious enough to get any attention, but combined with the rest of Google's behavior, it's death by 1000 cuts.

Mindwipe
> They obviously do this because they want you to download the YouTube app which has its own picture-in-picture mode and advertisements that are more difficult to block.

They do it because their agreements with the record labels prohibit it, as the labels do not want YouTube to be a free Spotify competitor.

It appears that YouTube recently have made a little bit of ground convincing (or at least are doing AB testing in the hopes of convincing) the labels this doesn't happen and enabling it in the app, but there's no anti-trust concern here as Apple would have the same issue. Indeed, I suspect the reason Apple do not raise a stink about it is because they do not want to endanger their relationship with the labels for Apple Music.

TechBro8615
Yes, there are many ad blocker extensions on the App Store. I use 1Blocker. These work by providing declarative rule and filter lists to the browser; they do not execute code.

As of iOS 15 you can also install web extensions which is what this post is about. They can execute code.

0XAFFE
You can also pay 12 euros per month and don’t have any ads.
busymom0
I am moving away from YouTube to Odysee and other platforms. Don't want a penny going to YouTube. I pay to people I follow via Substack, Locals boards and other merchandise ways.
TechBro8615
This is a reasonable stance. It's funny that the common retort to YouTube censorship is not to use it and to go somewhere else, but then you get downvoted for saying that's exactly what you're doing.
busymom0
Looks like few people read my comment and then went and downvoted many of my recent comments on HN.
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nsoxo
I don't know where you are going with this. If your argument is that ad blocking is immoral then say it so you can be downvoted.
kobalsky
I don't think ad-blocking is immoral, on the contrary I think it's necessary, and I despise the amount of ads thrown at us. My computers and phones have every form of adblocker/sponsorblocker available.

That being said, I can afford it so I would be a humongous hypocrite if I didn't support services when an ad-free option exists.

Nextgrid
The problem I have with this solution is that I don't trust Google not to take my money and then still stalk me. This requires providing valid billing & payment information (otherwise the payment wouldn't go through) where as without it you could technically create an account with fake details.

Even when paying for it the YouTube UX is pretty terrible and you're still locked-in to their apps (even though if the service is paid there should be no commercial reason for why third-party clients couldn't be allowed, unless Google wants to "double-dip" by taking money and still tracking or annoying their users with engagement-generating UX).

sircastor
I have YouTube premium (freebie holdover from Google music) and I don’t trust Google here either. In fact, I would be surprised if they (or anyone else for that matter) don’t track.

I think many people and outlets have wrongly attributed paying with not tracking because we associated tracking and ads with not paying.

Really, they have very little incentive to not track, unless that’s explicitly what you’re buying.

Adjacent: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/09/23/iphone-...

arepublicadoceu
> You can also pay 12 euros per month and don’t have any ads.

How can I pay 12 euros per month and not have ANY ads on YouTube?

By that I mean YouTube ads and native video ads (I can’t) if I need to pay 12 euros per month to ONLY get rid of YouTube ads then I will continue to use ublock + sponsorblock.

If YouTube forced content creators to tag the timeframe for in video ads and auto skipped it for premium users I would gladly pay the subscription fee.

Just as I’m not interested in paying for internet news just to still have ads shoved down my throat and pay for streaming service that still serve ads. I also refuse to pay YouTube to still see ads by sponsors.

peruvian
If you sign up while under a Russian or Indian VPN, it is <$4 a month. You will need a Russian or Indian "address" for billing (at least I did) but any card will work.
beezischillin
You can also install the app "X.app" from the app store and just use the Share menu inside the YouTube app to open videos in X.app without ads, then you can go fullscreen from there or activate PiP. You used to be able to do this with the Scriptable app and Shortcuts but it stopped working under iOS 15.
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SHAKEDECADE
I've used AdBlock by Future Mind for years. Paid something minuscule like $2 and it's DNS based with a High granularity of control.
cassianoleal
DNS-based ad blockers usually don't work with YouTube because ads are served from the same domains as the videos. Have you had a different experience with this blocker?
smbv
I use a dns level blocker on iOS. Blocks ads in apps too.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dnscloak-secure-dns-client/id1...

giuliomagnifico
DNS blocker blocks ads based on domain, and YouTube delivers the ads from the same domain it serves videos. Like on Pi-Hole, is not possible block YouTube ads via dns blockers, you should use an extension.
DavideNL
To clarify: you should use both.

(because only browsers have content blockers, most other apps don’t.)

[dead] bradydjohnson
For those looking for the app OP is referring to, here’s a referral link that will unlock an additional feature (like blocking of video ads, tracking, or cookie prompts).

https://adblockpro.app/?r=355EAC

Nextgrid
You can also run your own instance of Invidious (https://github.com/iv-org/invidious) which provides a lightweight web-based replica of YouTube, with no ads or dark patterns. There are public instances: https://redirect.invidious.io but I suggest running your own as the public ones are often overloaded.
rafael_c
Videos are all capped at 720p, though, right?
Nextgrid
I believe you can go higher if you enable DASH streaming.
cl3misch
I have been blocking ads in Safari in iOS with AdGuard for "content filters" forever. What is the difference on iOS 15?
busymom0
Before iOS 15 that didn't block the video ads on YouTube.
hybridtupel
I am also using AdGuard for several years now and it always blocked the YouTube ads in mobile Safari for me. Recently some quirks appeared which require to refresh the page one time to load the actual video. Other than that it works very well.
f0e4c2f7
For general adblocking on Android you can also use Firefox with unlock origin which is supported in the mobile version.

Firefox on Android seems like it works a little worse than chrome but is completely worth it to me to avoid ads.

As an aside I'll also say that youtube music comes with YouTube premium so you can get a Spotify like music service + no ads on YouTube for $12/mo

freediver
Orion browser blocks Youtube ads on iOS even before version 15 thanks to a built in adblocker. It also allows Picture in Picture support for Youtube videos. (disclaimer: developer)

https://browser.kagi.com

thejackgoode
You can also avoid ads in iOS Safari YouTube by just refreshing the page immediately. Here, I said it.
replwoacause
Are there any extensions that can do this without putting a drain on the battery? That seems to be a popular complaint with many of these ad blockers.