Why do ad blockers have similar names?
People often ask us about the confusing names of extensions and apps similar to AdBlock, such as Total Adblock, AdGuard, Ad Lock, and more. While none of these are products we make, they are often mistaken for our software. Besides that, their logos often look very much like AdBlock's. And even more confusing, since the code we use is open source, some other ad blockers look very much like AdBlock.
Unfortunately, even though we were around long before these imitators, there's not much we can do to stop them. Where there is a clear violation of our trademarked logo or other intellectual property, or if our code has been adapted to infect users' computers with adware, we report them to Google, Mozilla, Microsoft, or Apple, as appropriate. Product names can't be trademarked, however, so we can't stop other ad blockers from using a name similar to ours.
Since logos and names can be misleading, the best way to make sure you're downloading our product is to do so directly from our website: https://getadblock.com/.
Should I use more than one ad blocker?
If you have more than one ad blocker enabled, we recommend disabling or uninstalling all but one. You might think that more ad blockers mean more blocked ads, but many ad blockers can interfere with each other’s functionality, making it more difficult to block ads and even slowing down your browser's speed. It also makes it more difficult when you encounter anti-adblocking notifications asking you to disable your ad blocker.
If you’re not sure whether you have more than one ad blocker installed, follow our instructions for checking if AdBlock is installed: Making sure AdBlock is installed. If you have other ad blockers installed, you should find them in the same place.
What about Adblock Plus (ABP)?
Despite having similar names, AdBlock (https://getadblock.com) and Adblock Plus (https://adblockplus.org) are two separate products. The reason they're similarly named is an interesting bit of internet history:
Long, long ago, somebody (not us) created a Firefox add-on called Adblock. Later on, another team created a different Firefox add-on and adopted the name Adblock Plus (ABP). When Google Chrome came along, the Adblock Plus team didn't initially support the new browser. Michael Gundlach, AdBlock's creator, decided to make AdBlock for Chrome. Later, the Adblock Plus team decided to make a Chrome extension as well. Over time, both AdBlock and Adblock Plus added support for additional browsers and platforms. And that's why the two most popular ad blockers have such similar names.
In early 2021, we announced that we joined forces with ABP. We look forward to this collaboration to make both products that much better!
What's the difference between AdBlock and ABP?
There aren't all that many differences between the two products. It's really just a matter of preference as both extensions use the same ad-blocking technology. You can compare our products here: Should I use AdBlock, AdBlock Plus, or AdBlock VPN?