Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

uBlock Origin VS NetGuard

Compare uBlock Origin VS NetGuard and see what are their differences

uBlock Origin logo uBlock Origin

Popular and efficient blocker for Chromium, Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Opera, Safari, Thunderbird.

NetGuard logo NetGuard

NetGuard
  • uBlock Origin Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-28
  • NetGuard Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-27

uBlock Origin features and specs

  • Efficient Performance
    uBlock Origin is highly optimized and lightweight, consuming fewer system resources compared to many other ad blockers, which helps in maintaining smoother browsing performance.
  • Customizability
    uBlock Origin offers extensive customization options. Users can create their own filters, whitelist websites, and adjust settings to suit their specific needs.
  • Open Source
    As an open-source project, uBlock Origin's source code is publicly available for review and contribution, ensuring transparency and fostering community trust.
  • Wide Range of Filters
    uBlock Origin supports numerous filter lists for blocking ads, trackers, and malware, ensuring a comprehensive browsing protection experience.
  • Improves Privacy and Security
    By blocking ads and trackers, uBlock Origin helps to enhance user privacy and security online, reducing the risk of data collection and potential malware exposure.

Possible disadvantages of uBlock Origin

  • Learning Curve
    For users new to ad blockers or those without technical knowledge, the wealth of customization options and settings might be overwhelming initially.
  • Potential Website Breakage
    In some cases, uBlock Origin might block essential elements of a website, causing parts of the site not to function correctly, which can disrupt the user experience.
  • Manual Updates for Filter Lists
    Some filter lists may require manual updates, which can be inconvenient for users who prefer a more hands-off approach.
  • Dependency on Community Support
    Being an open-source project, ongoing development and support depend heavily on community contributions, which might affect the speed and efficiency of updates and bug fixes.

NetGuard features and specs

  • Privacy Enhancement
    NetGuard helps in enhancing user privacy by blocking unwanted internet traffic, preventing personal data from being sent without the user's consent.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    The application has a straightforward and intuitive interface, making it easy for users to configure and manage their network settings.
  • No Root Required
    NetGuard does not require root access to function, making it accessible to a broader range of Android users who may not want to root their device.
  • Battery Efficiency
    The app is designed to use minimal battery power, ensuring that it does not significantly impact device battery life.
  • Open Source
    NetGuard is open-source software, which allows users to inspect the code for transparency and potentially contribute to its development.

Possible disadvantages of NetGuard

  • Limited to Android
    NetGuard is currently only available for Android devices, which limits its usefulness for users of other operating systems.
  • Paid Features
    While the basic functionality is free, some advanced features require a purchase, which could be a barrier for some users.
  • Network Performance
    In some cases, users may experience a decrease in network performance due to the filtering process used by NetGuard.
  • Complexity for Novices
    Despite a generally user-friendly interface, users unfamiliar with network configuration may find it challenging to fully utilize the application's capabilities.
  • Limited Customer Support
    As an open-source project, NetGuard might not offer as robust customer support as commercial alternatives, which could be a drawback for some users.

uBlock Origin videos

Trying uBlock Origin w/ Brief Review of Features

More videos:

  • Tutorial - How to use uBlock Origin to protect your online privacy and security | uBlock Origin tutorial 2018

NetGuard videos

How to Block Android Apps in connecting to Internet with NetGuard

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to uBlock Origin and NetGuard)
Security & Privacy
84 84%
16% 16
Monitoring Tools
52 52%
48% 48
Ad Blockers
88 88%
12% 12
Privacy
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare uBlock Origin and NetGuard

uBlock Origin Reviews

The Best Ad Blockers for YouTube 2024
We also like that uBlock Origin is an open-source platform. Applications with open-source code often give transparency into vulnerabilities that can be found and fixed quickly. uBlock Origin also has advanced settings that allow users to customize the ad-blocking features. However, these are focused more on power users who understand how to manage and change these settings....
List of 10 Best Ad Blockers in 2024
With its powerful fеaturеs and widеsprеad popularity, uBlock Origin has еstablishеd itself as a rеliablе and еfficiеnt tool for blocking intrusivе advеrtisеmеnts. It is highly rеgardеd for its ability to еffеctivеly block ads across various platforms, including wеb browsеrs and mobilе dеvicеs. uBlock Origin boasts a lightwеight dеsign that minimizеs its impact on systеm...
Best Ad Blockers in 2023: Adblock Plus vs AdGuard vs uBlock Origin and More
Any of these options will block ads without a second thought, but they’re not all the same. uBlock Origin, for example, works on all types of ads, whereas Adblocker for YouTube blocks autoplay video ads only. Let’s take a closer look so you can see which of these options is the right one to block ads and trackers on your device.
Best Ad Blockers
uBlock Origin (not to be confused with uBlock or µBlock) is a stellar extension that runs on a wide variety of browsers. But be careful which version you’re installing — those with similar names are not the same program. The project went through several name changes as different people contributed or modified it, but the most advanced version and the one sustained by the...
22 NextDNS Alternatives
uBlock Origin is an effective ad blocker that is sleek on memory and CPU to lets you have a frustration-free atmosphere. uBlock Origin is a wide spectrum content blocker with security-enhanced functionality that doesn’t harm your online activities. More lists are also available for you so you can select from Fanboy’s Enhanced Tracking List, spam404, Dan Pollock’s host's...

NetGuard Reviews

We have no reviews of NetGuard yet.
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, NetGuard seems to be a lot more popular than uBlock Origin. While we know about 48 links to NetGuard, we've tracked only 3 mentions of uBlock Origin. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

uBlock Origin mentions (3)

  • Donefirst reviews
    They're advertising on this sub? They can go fuck themselves. I've got ad-blocking enabled (and mods can't see ads on their own subs anyway) so I had no idea. I super recommend ublock origin for ad and content blocking. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • Browsing in 2022
    No, it does not. It's open source and non profit. If you want you could make your own adblock with it's source code. https://github.com/gorhill/ublock. Source: about 3 years ago
  • cURL to add native JSON support
    Firefox has its own "Enhanced Tracking Protection", Which is eclipsed by pretty much any specialized content blocker (such as uBlock Origin). Anyone who cares for that stuff has probably turned it off And installed a better extension for that, And for people who don't, well, it's completely unnecessary. Source: over 3 years ago

NetGuard mentions (48)

  • Sniffnet – monitor your Internet traffic
    There is OpenSnitch [0] on Linux, but it us a bit clumsy to setup. I tried it once and didn't get far, but have it again on my todo list. Not aware of something similar on Linux. On Android there is NetGuard [1] which is awesome (not affiliated, just a happy customer). [0] https://github.com/evilsocket/opensnitch. - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
  • Little Snitch: Network Monitor and Application Firewall for macOS
    Netguard if you want to use it on Android https://netguard.me/. - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
  • The Global Surveillance Free-for-All in Mobile Ad Data
    Additionally to an OpenWRT [1] Wi-Fi router or Adguard Home [2] server that you can run for yourself, there's also this excellent project called NetGuard [3]. The developer got kicked out of the Play Store for bogus reasons, and had to continue to develop it as an externally funded effort. Support him, buy a pay what you want license, and give him a couple bucks for it if you value open source software like this.... - Source: Hacker News / 7 months ago
  • OpenSnitch is a GNU/Linux interactive application firewall
    There's netguard[1], although most of the convenience features are behind a small payment. [1] https://netguard.me. - Source: Hacker News / 10 months ago
  • Ash HN: My country is undergoing a coup, which encryption software should I use?
    Use briar. Use LineageOS without gapps (aka without Google Play Services). Obviously don't use Meta or Google apps, because that's where the backdoors are for governments. Use AppWarden to enable/disable/verify the usage of known trackers in your apps. Use NetGuard as an Android firewall. [1] https://briarproject.org/ [2] https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices [3] https://gitlab.com/AuroraOSS/AppWarden [4]... - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing uBlock Origin and NetGuard, you can also consider the following products

AdGuard - Surf the Web Ad-Free and Safely. Shield up!

Blokada - The best ad blocker for Android. Free and open source.

Adblock Plus - AdBlock Plus is a browser extension for Firefox, Chrome, Opera, and several other popular browsers that prevents intrusive ads like pop-ups and malicious code from appearing on websites you visit.

RethinkDNS - 2B+ Android users deserve access to a safer and open Internet.

AdBlock - Ad blocker for Chrome, Safari and Opera on desktop and Safari for iOS devices.

AFWall+ - AFWall+ (Android Firewall +) - iptables based firewall for Android