How to Fix: Block YouTube Ads (uBlock Origin Dead)
Infopackets Reader Jay P. writes:
" Dear Dennis,
I'm running Windows 11 on the latest version of Chrome. I watch a decent amount of YouTube and have been using the uBlock Origin ad blocker extension for years, but it's no longer supported with the latest release of Chrome. Now when I visited Youtube.com I'm seeing an overlay that says:
Video player will be blocked after 3 videos
It looks like you may be using an ad blocker. Video playback will be blocked unless YouTube is allowlisted or the ad blocker is disabled. Ads allow YouTube to be used by billions worldwide. You can go ad-free with YouTube Premium and creators can still get paid from your subscription.
I don't want to pay for Youtube. On the other hand, their ads are extremely annoying - some of the ads play longer than the original video. Is there any way to block Youtube ads in 2025? "
My response:
Thanks for your question.
The issue you're having with the 'Video player will be blocked after 3 videos / It looks like you may be using an ad blocker' error has to do with Chrome's Manifest v3 which was recently introduced. In general, Manifest v3 is responsible for governing how extensions (such as the uBlock Origin ad blocker) interact with Chrome and Chrome-based browsers. Since the release of Manifest v3, most ad blockers are no longer working.
Why uBlock Origin No Longer Works
Manifest v3 limits the ability of extensions to modify web requests (such as disabling the retrieval of ad code on a webpage), which is a key functionality for ad blockers.
While Google claims that security and privacy are paramount with Manifest v3, most users have found that ad blockers are no longer as effective or that their preferred extensions have been removed altogether.
Was this done on purpose? I believe so.
Need to Block Youtube Ads in 2025? Here's What You Can Do
Switch browsers: Brave is a Good Choice
As soon as Manifest v3 rolled out, I tried getting around the Youtube ad issue by trying various ad blockers - but none of them worked.
When that happened, I dumped Chrome and moved to Brave. Brave is similar to Chrome (it's built on the same code), but looks slightly different. If you enable Brave's Shields to the maximum, it is able to successfully block all of the ads that play in a Youtube videos, including the annoying 'Video player will be blocked after 3 videos / It looks like you may be using an ad blocker' error message.
Note that I've also installed 'popup blocker strict' for extra ad popup protection which I found to be lacking with Brave Shields.
Also, keep in mind that Brave doesn't look exactly like Chrome - but you can tweak it to pretty much look almost identical if you don't mind wading through some of the settings.
Steps to Maximize Brave Shields
- Launch the Brave browser and navigate to any website - in this case, we'll choose Youtube.com.
- Click the Lion icon on the right side of the address bar to reveal the Shields panel. Make sure 'shields are up' is enabled. This should show the 'Advanced
Controls' pull down.
- Under Advanced Controls, you will have another pull down menu. Choose "Aggressively block trackers and ads."
If you want to enable aggressive ad blocking for all sites, you can do it globally by clicking the Menu bar (3 horizontal lines at the top right of the Brave browser) -> Settings -> Privacy and security -> Shields -> Trackers and ad blocking -> and choose 'Aggressive.' Note that I don't recommend doing this because it can break functionality for a lot of websites beyond just ad blocking. I suggesting leaving it on Standard and then set it to aggressive for sites like Youtube.com if you are targeting a specific site known for highly annoying and in-your-face ads.
Brave Also Works with uBlock Origin
Another option is to disable Brave Shields entirely and download and install the uBlock Origin extension for Chrome. At the time of writing, uBlock Origin is still supported with Brave and similar browsers that use Chrome code - however, once Google removes Manifest v2 code entirely from Chrome, uBlock Origin is most likely going to stop working with Brave as well as similar Chrome-based browsers.
You can Also Try Firefox
Another option is to move to Firefox and download and enable the uBlock Origin extension for Firefox. Firefox doesn't use Manifest v3 as it's only for Chrome-based browsers.
Personally I stopped using Firefox a few years ago because it constantly ate too much of my memory and made the browser slow. This was an ongoing issue for years that never seemed to get resolved. I had to keep closing Firefox multiple times in a day because of it.
uBlock Origin Lite
Yet another option is to try uBlock Origin Lite, as it's compatible with Manifest v3 and will work with the latest version of Chrome.
That said, I think the last time I tried to use uBlock Origin Lite, I got the "Video player will be blocked after 3 videos / It looks like you may be using an ad blocker" message, which is what prompted me to move to Brave. This issue may have already been resolved as uBlock Origin Lite is constantly evolving.
Clear Your Cookies
Another quick fix for the "Video player will be blocked after 3 videos / It looks like you may be using an ad blocker" error message is to clear your cookies on Youtube. This is a quick fix and probably the least effective because it will be only a matter of time before you have to do it again. Note that you will have to login to Youtube if you want your custom feed to appear - and most likely when you do that, it will start blocking you.
Change the URL to YouT-ube to Prevent Cookies
This was sent in from a reader John P: if you modify the video path of youtube.com to yout-ube.com, it will redirect to youtube-nocookie.com and should bypass the video block.
1. Enter in the address for the youtube video you want to watch.
Example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2RzmGOnplQ
2. Change the web address (URL) to YouT-ube.
Above now becomes: https://www.yout-ube.com/watch?v=G2RzmGOnplQ
3. You will be redirected to youtube-nocookie.com:
This method works for desktop and mobile browsers without having to specifically clear cookies in your browser.
Side note: www.youtube-nocookie.com is a subdomain of YouTube designed to limit the tracking of users who embed YouTube videos on other websites. It prevents the automatic placement of cookies on users' devices when the video embed loads. While it reduces the initial cookie impact, it still allows for the use of local storage and sets cookies when the video is actually played.
Other Options
I'm sure there are more workarounds and other browsers available (Vivaldi browser, Zen browser, Librewolf, etc), but the solutions I've mentioned above are the most obvious / most popular choices. Also, as time moves on and more developers get accustomed to Manifest v3, there will - hopefully - be more solutions in the future.
I hope that helps.
Got More Tech Questions? Ask Dennis!
I can fix most problems remotely using my remote desktop support. Or, if you have a simple tech question you'd like me to answer like the one above, send me an email through the contact page and I'll consider writing an article about it.
About the author: Dennis Faas is the CEO and owner of Infopackets.com. Since 2001, Dennis has dedicated his entire professional career helping others with technology-related issues with his unique style of writing in the form of questions-and-answers; click here to read all 2,000+ of Dennis' articles online this site. In 2014, Dennis shifted his focus to cyber crime mitigation, including technical support fraud and in 2019, online blackmail. Dennis has received many accolades during his tenure: click here to view Dennis' credentials online DennisFaas.com; click here to see Dennis' Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science (1999); click here to read an article written about Dennis by Alan Gardyne of Associate Programs (2003). And finally, click here to view a recommendation for Dennis' services from the University of Florida (dated 2006).
My name is Dennis Faas and I am a senior systems administrator and IT technical analyst specializing in cyber crimes (sextortion / blackmail / tech support scams) with over 30 years experience; I also run this website! If you need technical assistance , I can help. Click here to email me now; optionally, you can review my resume here. You can also read how I can fix your computer over the Internet (also includes user reviews).
We are BBB Accredited
We are BBB accredited (A+ rating), celebrating 21 years of excellence! Click to view our rating on the BBB.
Comments
Change browsers
After seeing an earlier article on the Chrome changes, I removed it from my PC. I also use Brave, Firefox, and Opera. They have their differences. Some store sights do not work on Firefox, so I pay those bills using Brave. At least we have alternatives.
Thanks
Thanks for this very helpful article.
I've also found Firefox to be a huge memory drain, but I still use it because it's configurable. I like all my privacy and usability-enhancing extensions. I hate Chrome, but use it for admin tasks on a few websites, one of which uses Drive, and turn off the privacy stuff.
There's also Seamonkey, that I seem never to get round to installing to check out.
These days the shine has gone off puting and I'm on and off as quick as poss.