AdguardBrowserExtension

AdGuard browser extension

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Quick Overview

AdguardBrowserExtension is an open-source browser extension for ad blocking and privacy protection. It offers advanced features like custom filtering rules, stealth mode, and protection against tracking. The extension is available for various browsers and is maintained by the AdGuard team.

Pros

Powerful ad blocking capabilities with customizable filter lists
Enhanced privacy protection features, including anti-tracking and stealth mode
Regular updates and active development by a dedicated team
Open-source, allowing for community contributions and transparency

Cons

May interfere with some website functionalities due to aggressive blocking
Requires some technical knowledge to fully utilize custom filtering rules
Can potentially slow down browsing speed on older devices or with many filters enabled
Some advanced features may be overwhelming for casual users

Code Examples

As this is a browser extension and not a code library, there are no specific code examples to provide. However, users can create custom filtering rules. Here's an example of a basic filtering rule:

example.com##.ad-banner

This rule would hide elements with the class "ad-banner" on example.com.

Getting Started

To get started with AdguardBrowserExtension:

Visit the project's GitHub repository: https://github.com/AdguardTeam/AdguardBrowserExtension
Download the extension for your browser from the official website or browser store
Install the extension in your browser
Configure the extension settings according to your preferences
Optionally, create custom filtering rules or enable additional protection features

For developers interested in contributing:

Fork the repository
Clone your fork: git clone https://github.com/your-username/AdguardBrowserExtension.git
Install dependencies: npm install
Make your changes and submit a pull request

Competitor Comparisons

uBlock

62,285

uBlock Origin - An efficient blocker for Chromium and Firefox. Fast and lean.

Pros of uBlock

Lighter on system resources, offering better performance
More customizable with advanced features for power users
Larger community-driven filter lists and frequent updates

Cons of uBlock

Less user-friendly interface for beginners
Fewer built-in features compared to AdGuard's comprehensive suite
Limited official support channels

Code Comparison

uBlock (manifest.json):

{
  "manifest_version": 2,
  "name": "uBlock Origin",
  "version": "1.44.4",
  "description": "Finally, an efficient blocker. Easy on CPU and memory."
}

AdGuard Browser Extension (manifest.json):

{
  "manifest_version": 2,
  "name": "__MSG_name__",
  "short_name": "__MSG_short_name__",
  "version": "4.1.55",
  "description": "__MSG_description__"
}

The code comparison shows that uBlock uses a simpler manifest structure with hardcoded values, while AdGuard utilizes localization placeholders for multi-language support. This reflects uBlock's focus on efficiency and AdGuard's emphasis on user-friendly features and broader accessibility.

privacybadger

3,697

Privacy Badger is a browser extension that automatically learns to block hidden trackers

Pros of Privacy Badger

Automatically learns to block trackers without relying on predefined lists
Focuses on protecting user privacy rather than just blocking ads
Open-source and maintained by a non-profit organization (EFF)

Cons of Privacy Badger

May not block as many ads as AdguardBrowserExtension
Less customizable and fewer features compared to AdguardBrowserExtension
Potentially higher false-positive rate due to its learning algorithm

Code Comparison

Privacy Badger (JavaScript):

function updateOrigin(tabId, frameId, origin, action) {
  if (!origin) {
    return;
  }
  if (action == constants.NO_ACTION) {
    return;
  }
  badger.storage.touchDNTRecheckTime(origin, Date.now());
  badger.storage.setupHeuristicAction(origin, action);
}

AdguardBrowserExtension (TypeScript):

export const updateContentBlockerInfo = (
    tabId: number,
    frameId: number,
    documentUrl: string,
    filteringInfo: ContentBlockerInfo,
): void => {
    const tab = tabsApi.get(tabId);
    if (!tab) {
        return;
    }
    tab.updateContentBlockerInfo(frameId, documentUrl, filteringInfo);
};

Both extensions use similar approaches to update blocking information for specific origins or frames, but AdguardBrowserExtension uses TypeScript for improved type safety and maintainability.

adblock-rust

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Brave's Rust-based adblock engine

Pros of adblock-rust

Written in Rust, offering better performance and memory safety
Designed as a library, allowing easier integration into various projects
More actively maintained with frequent updates

Cons of adblock-rust

Less feature-rich compared to AdguardBrowserExtension
Primarily focused on ad-blocking, while AdguardBrowserExtension offers additional privacy features
Steeper learning curve for developers not familiar with Rust

Code Comparison

AdguardBrowserExtension (JavaScript):

export function isThirdParty(requestUrl, documentUrl) {
    const requestHost = getHost(requestUrl);
    const documentHost = getHost(documentUrl);
    return !isFirstParty(requestHost, documentHost);
}

adblock-rust (Rust):

pub fn is_third_party(request_url: &str, document_url: &str) -> bool {
    let request_host = get_host(request_url);
    let document_host = get_host(document_url);
    !is_first_party(&request_host, &document_host)
}

The code comparison shows similar functionality implemented in different languages. AdguardBrowserExtension uses JavaScript, while adblock-rust utilizes Rust's strong typing and ownership model. The Rust implementation may offer better performance and memory safety, but the JavaScript version might be more accessible to web developers.

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README

AdGuard Browser Extension

Ad blocker with advanced privacy protection features

AdGuard is a fast and lightweight ad blocking browser extension
that effectively blocks all types of ads and trackers.

AdGuard.com | Reddit | Twitter | Telegram

AdGuard Browser Extension

AdGuard is a fast and lightweight ad blocking browser extension that effectively blocks all types of ads and trackers on all web pages. We focus on advanced privacy protection features to not just block known trackers, but prevent web sites from building your shadow profile. Unlike its standalone counterparts (AG for Windows, Mac), the browser extension is completely free and open source. You can learn more about the difference here.

AdGuard does not collect any information about you, and does not participate in any acceptable ads program. The only source of income we have is selling premium versions of our software, and we intend to keep it that way.

Installation
Contribution
Development
Getting Started
Permissions
Auto-publish builds
Versioning Schema
Minimum supported browser versions
Documentation

Installation

Chrome and Chromium-based browsers

Install from the Chrome Web Store.

Firefox

Install from the Mozilla Add-ons website.

Opera

Install from the Opera Add-ons store.

Microsoft Edge

Install from the Microsoft Store.

Contribution

We are blessed to have a community that does not only love AdGuard, but also gives back. A lot of people volunteer in various ways to make other users' experience with AdGuard better, and you can join them!

We, on our part, can only be happy to reward the most active members of the community. So, what can you do?

Translating AdGuard

If you want to help with AdGuard translations, please learn more about translating our products here: https://adguard.com/kb/miscellaneous/contribute/translate/program/

Testing AdGuard

You can get a beta version of AdGuard Browser Extension for any browser. All necessary information on this topic can be found on a dedicated page on our website.

Reporting issues

GitHub can be used to report a bug or to submit a feature request. To do so, go to this page and click the New issue button.

[!NOTE] For the filter-related issues (missed ads, false positives etc.) use the dedicated repository.

Other options

Here is a dedicated page for those who are willing to contribute.

Getting Started

After installing the extension from your browser's store:

Click the AdGuard icon in the browser toolbar to open the popup. Ad blocking is enabled by default with a recommended set of filter lists.
Toggle protection on or off for the current website using the main switch in the popup.
Open settings by clicking the gear icon in the popup to access the full options page.
Use the Assistant â click the AdGuard icon, then select "Block an element on this page" to visually pick and block unwanted page elements.

The extension works out of the box with sensible defaults.

Permissions required

Common permissions for all browsers and manifest versions

tabs - required to get the URL of the options page tab
webRequest - required to apply cosmetic rules, detect and remove tracking cookies, and count blocked resources
cookies - required to delete cookies from requests or change their lifetime
contextMenus - required to create a context menu
storage - required to save user settings, user rules, and custom filters
unlimitedStorage - required to save large filter lists
webNavigation - required to catch the moment for injecting scriptlets
privacy - allows access to browser privacy settings; required in Firefox, optional in Chrome/Edge/Opera

Permissions for MV2 only

<all_urls> - grants access to all websites to apply content scripts and filtering rules
webRequestBlocking - required to block or modify HTTP requests synchronously

Permissions for MV3 only

host_permissions - grants access to all websites (MV3 uses this instead of <all_urls>)
userScripts - required to let the user subscribe to custom filter lists and evaluate rules from these lists
scripting - required to inject the assistant script into pages
declarativeNetRequest - required to block, redirect, and modify URL requests
declarativeNetRequestFeedback - required to create a log of the blocked, redirected, or modified URL requests

Auto-publish builds

Due to the transition from MV2 to MV3, we cannot update our filters remotely. To keep the filters as fresh as possible, we have configured automated tasks in our CI plans. These tasks will build a new version of the extension with only the updated @adguard/dnr-rulesets package, which contains new static rulesets.

Auto-update cycle

We have set up an automated update cycle that regularly syncs with fresh releases from the @adguard/dnr-rulesets npm package. The update frequency is configured in our CI build schedule. This ensures our extension stays up-to-date with the latest filter rules.

To deploy new releases as soon as possible, we have implemented all the steps outlined in Chrome's Skip Review documentation. This allows us to publish updates to the Chrome Web Store without waiting for the full review cycle.

Skip review restrictions

However, there is an important restriction when using the "skip review" option: we cannot update the extension with skip review if it contains changes to filtering script rules. This is because all script rules are collected during build time into a file called local_script_rules.js (for safe use them with the scripting API).

Therefore, any updates that include changes to script rules will require the full review cycle in the Chrome Web Store as usual.

Build process

These automated tasks will run all necessary checks: unit tests, translation checks, and linter. After that, they will update resources, including filters and local script rules, create a build, and run integration tests to ensure the update is safe.

Finally, the new version of the extension will be published to the Chrome Web Store.

Versioning Schema

The extension uses the following versioning schema:

major.minor.patch+autoBuildIncrementVersion.buildTag.dnrRulesetsVersion

major.minor.patch: Standard semantic versioning for the extension codebase.
autoBuildIncrementVersion: An incrementing number used as the fourth part of the manifest version (e.g., 88 in 5.2.1.88).
buildTag: A delimiter indicating the build's readiness.
dnrRulesetsVersion: The patch version of the DNR rulesets, which includes the build date for those rulesets.

Example: 5.2.1+88.beta.20251014

But for build versions we will use following format: major.minor.patch.autoBuildIncrementVersion to comply with the browser requirements for version.

Minimum supported browser versions

The extension supports both Manifest V2 (MV2) and Manifest V3 (MV3) platforms. MV3 is the newer extension platform required by Chrome and other Chromium-based browsers going forward.

Browser	Version
Chromium-based browsers MV2	â 106
Chromium-based browsers MV3	â 121
Firefox	â 78
Firefox Mobile	â 113
Opera	â 67
Opera MV3	â 107
Edge Chromium	â 80
Edge Legacy	â

Documentation

Development â development setup and build instructions
Changelog â version history
LLM agent rules â guidance for AI coding assistants

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