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DuckDuckGo now blocks pre-roll and mid-roll ads.

- July 10, 2026
- Updated: July 10, 2026 at 4:20 PM

Watching videos on YouTube has become, for many, a habit, but also associated with a low-quality viewing experience with ad interruptions before and during playback. With this in mind, DuckDuckGo has released an update to its browser, one in which we can enjoy YouTube without interruptions and without paying anything at all.
A privacy-focused browser with no ads on YouTube
For those unfamiliar with it, DuckDuckGo is an alternative to Google that lets us search the internet without compromising our privacy. A few years ago, after the success of its search engine, they launched a browser with the same name.
That browser follows the same privacy-respecting philosophy and includes more than a dozen protections, such as blocking ad trackers and removing cookie notices, which makes browsing much smoother and cleaner.
In its most recent update DuckDuckGo has introduced its own YouTube ad-blocking feature. The system removes the ads that appear before and during videos, letting us keep enjoying our playlist, history, and the usual features without any distraction. In addition, we can turn on Duck Player to watch videos in a distraction-free mode.
To make this work, the company has combined community filters from uBlock Origin with its own rules to keep playback stable and minimize errors. Although videos may take a few extra seconds to start, once they load, playback is completely uninterrupted.
For those wanting a YouTube that is fast, private, and focused on the content, DuckDuckGo is a very appealing browser. Not only will we watch videos without interruptions, we’ll browse the web with strong privacy protections.
Architect | Founder of hanaringo.com | Apple Technologies Trainer | Writer at Softonic and iDoo_tech, formerly at Applesfera
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