Use AdBlock's hiding wizard to block ads and more | AdBlock Help Center

What does the hiding wizard do?

If you're seeing a pesky unblocked ad (or something else that you'd like to block on a page), you can try AdBlock's blocking wizard to remove it. This does not apply to our AdBlock for Safari Mac app, which does not support manual ad blocking.

How does the hiding wizard work?

The hiding wizard lets you manually hide ads or other unwanted elements on a webpage that AdBlock doesn’t remove automatically. Instead of blocking every ad of a certain type across the web, it hides only the specific element you select on the page you’re viewing.

When you open the hiding wizard, you can point and click on the ad (or other page element) you want to hide. Behind the scenes, AdBlock looks at the HTML tags and attributes for that element and creates a custom filter rule. This filter tells AdBlock to hide anything on that page—or sometimes across the site—that matches those same tags and attributes.

Because of this, you might notice that more than just the single ad you clicked gets hidden. That’s because multiple items on the page may share the same underlying HTML. If that happens, you can go back into the wizard and adjust your selection to make the filter more precise.

It’s important to know that the hiding wizard doesn’t always work perfectly. Some ads are built in ways that make them indistinguishable from real page content, so hiding them might also remove parts of the site you want to see: The AdBlock hiding wizard blocked too much.

Before you block an ad

AdBlock is designed to block most ads automatically on the sites you visit. If you’re seeing ads on a site, first double-check your AdBlock settings: Seeing unblocked ads? Start here! If you've checked and the ad still appears, then try using the hiding wizard.

How to use the hiding wizard

There are two methods for accessing the wizard:

Hide Something on this Page

This method allows you to activate the hiding wizard, then select the ad:

Click the AdBlock icon in your browser’s toolbar.
Click the More menu (three vertical dots) and select Hide something on this page.
Tip: You can also right-click anywhere on the page, then choose AdBlock > Hide something on this page from the menu.
A dialog will open, and a blue highlight will follow your cursor around the page. When the highlight surrounds the ad or element you want to block, click it.
If the ad disappears as expected, continue to the next step. If part of it remains, or if too much of the page is hidden, use the slider to adjust the highlighted area. (Be careful—blocking too much may break the page.)
Click Looks good.
If everything looks correct and you want the change to stick, click Confirm.
Advanced users can click Edit to fine-tune the filter rule before saving.

Block this Ad

This method lets you choose the ad first, then activate manual blocking:

Right-click the ad you want to block.
In the menu that appears, select AdBlock > Block this ad.
A blue highlight will show the selected area. If the ad is gone, continue to the next step. If part of it remains—or if too much of the page is hidden—use the slider to adjust the highlighted area. (Be careful: blocking too much can break the page.)
Click Looks good.
If everything looks correct and you want the ad to stay hidden, click Confirm.
Advanced users can click Edit to fine-tune the filter rule before saving.

💡

Tip: Advanced users can enable more options in the hiding wizard by going to AdBlock icon > gear icon > General > “I’m an advanced user, show me advanced options.”

Can't block the ad manually?

If the hiding wizard doesn’t block the ad, or if the ad reappears when you reload the page, it usually means the ad is too complex for the wizard to handle.

If that happens—and you’re comfortable digging deeper—you can try creating a custom filter instead: How to use custom filters.

Remember, not every ad or element can be blocked. Some sites make it impossible to hide certain elements without also removing parts of the page you want to see.

Want to undo your blocked items?

See this article for how to remove any blocks you've created: The AdBlock hiding wizard blocked too much.