uBlock Origin Permanently Disabled for Chrome: What Google's Manifest V3 Means for Your Ad-Free Browsing

 

 uBlock Origin Permanently Disabled for Chrome: What Google's Manifest V3 Means for Your Ad-Free Browsing

It’s been quite a talk of the town lately, and if you’re a Chrome user, you might have noticed something significant missing from your browsing experience: uBlock Origin. Google has been making some changes to how extensions work in Chrome, and unfortunately, uBlock Origin, a super popular ad-blocking extension, is caught in the crossfire. It’s no longer available for direct download and installation from the Chrome Web Store because it doesn't follow Google's new "best practices" for Chrome extensions. This is all part of Google's transition to a new extensions platform called Manifest V3, which significantly limits what ad blockers can do.

Many users, me included, rely on uBlock Origin because it does a fantastic job of blocking ads, cookies, warnings, and overlays, making for a much cleaner and safer browsing experience. It’s been around for over a decade and has been a go-to for privacy and security. The removal has sparked a lot of debate, and it seems Google’s primary motivation is to protect its advertising business, with other affected extensions being "collateral damage".

So, what happens if you already had uBlock Origin installed? Well, for many, it's been automatically disabled. Chrome will often show a notification encouraging you to remove it. But don't despair just yet; you have a few options to consider!

Bringing uBlock Origin Back to Chrome (Temporary Workarounds)

If you’re determined to keep the full uBlock Origin experience in Chrome, there are some manual workarounds, but keep in mind these are temporary solutions and might not work indefinitely as Chrome updates.

• Manual Installation from GitHub:
  
  
  
1. First, you'll need to download the latest stable version of uBlock Origin's Chromium zip file directly from its official GitHub repository. You'll typically find a compressed zip folder for Chromium.
2. Once downloaded, extract the file contents from the zip folder to a location on your local drive.
3. Next, open Google Chrome and navigate to your Extensions page (you can usually find this through the three-dot menu, then More Tools > Extensions, or by typing chrome://extensions in the address bar).
4. Enable "Developer mode" using the toggle switch in the top right corner of the extensions page.
5. With Developer mode enabled, you'll see a "Load unpacked" button. Click this.
6. Navigate to the unzipped folder you extracted earlier and select it.
7. If it loads successfully, uBlock Origin should now be available in Chrome. You might see an "errors" button; you can usually click it and select "clear all" to hide it. Important: You must keep developer mode enabled for this to work, or the extension will not function.
• Enabling Experimental Flags: Another method involves fiddling with Chrome's experimental flags. This can re-enable uBlock Origin if it's already installed and disabled or allow manual installation.
1. Type chrome://flags into your Chrome address bar and press Enter.
2. Search for and enable the flag: temporarily-unexpire-flags-m137 (or the corresponding version for your Chrome build, e.g., M138 for Chrome v139). Relaunch your browser as prompted.
3. Go back to chrome://flags and search for "MV2". You'll need to disable these three flags: extension-manifest-v2-deprecation-warning, extension-manifest-v2-deprecation-disabled, and extension-manifest-v2-deprecation-unsupported. Relaunch the browser after disabling them.
4. Finally, search for "manifest" and enable the flag: allow-legacy-extension-manifest-versions. Relaunch your browser again. This process should re-enable your existing uBlock Origin or allow for manual installation. However, these experimental flags can be removed by Google at any time, and some have already been removed in Chrome Canary version 140, meaning this workaround has a limited lifespan.
• Registry Edit Workaround (Windows only): For Windows users, there's a more technical workaround involving the Registry Editor that can enable Manifest V2 extensions.
  
  
1. Open the Registry Editor (type regedit in the Windows search bar).
2. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Google\Chrome. If the "Google" or "Chrome" folders don't exist, you'll need to create them.
3. Inside the "Chrome" folder, create a new DWORD (32-bit) value.
4. Name it ExtensionManifestV2Availability.
5. Double-click the newly created DWORD and set its value data to 2.
6. Close the Registry Editor and restart Chrome (you might need to close all Chrome processes in Task Manager for changes to take effect). This should allow uBlock Origin to work again.

 

Exploring Alternatives to uBlock Origin on Chrome

If these temporary fixes aren't for you, or if they eventually stop working, you still have great options!

• uBlock Origin Lite: Google does allow a "light" version of the extension called uBlock Origin Lite because it's Manifest V3-supported. You can find it on the Chrome Web Store. While it will block ads, many users find it to be a "mere shadow" of the full version, lacking many features like custom filters and being less effective against anti-content blockers. The developer of uBlock Origin, Raymond Hill, even stated that he doesn't consider uBO Lite an "automatic replacement". However, for casual users, it might be "good enough". Setting its filter level to "Complete" or "Optimal" can make it perform better.
• Other Chrome-Compatible Ad Blockers: There are other ad blockers available on the Chrome Web Store that adhere to Manifest V3, such as AdGuard AdBlocker and AdBlock. Some users have also mentioned Genius PRO: Adblocker +Total Web Security as an option. AdGuard, for example, is roughly comparable to uBlock Origin in features in its full, paid system-wide client version, but its free extension version adheres to MV3 like others.
  
  

Switching Browsers (A Popular Choice!)

Many users are choosing to switch browsers entirely due to Google's changes, especially since uBlock Origin continues to work perfectly on non-Chromium browsers.

• Firefox and its Forks: Mozilla Firefox is a top recommendation for many, as it continues to support uBlock Origin (Manifest V2) and has no announced plans to deprecate it. Firefox offers an easy way to import your bookmarks, history, and passwords from Chrome. Some users also recommend Firefox forks like Zen Browser (said to be inspired by Arc Browser, with Betterfox pre-applied for speed), LibreWolf (a hardened version of Firefox focused on privacy), Floorp, Firedragon, Mercury, and Waterfox.
  
  
  
• Chromium-based Browsers with Built-in Ad Blockers: Some Chromium-based browsers have their own built-in ad blockers, meaning they don't rely on extensions for ad blocking.
• Brave is frequently mentioned as a strong alternative. It's Chromium-based but has its own ad blocker built-in, which users report works very well, even on YouTube. Brave developers have also pledged to support MV2 compatibility for privacy-relevant extensions like uBlock Origin for the foreseeable future, even after Google removes underlying V2 code paths in Chrome, thanks to their robust patching process.
• Opera and Opera GX also feature built-in ad blockers and are Chromium-based. However, like Vivaldi, their long-term MV2 support is questionable.
• Vivaldi has a built-in ad blocker and is Chromium-based. While initially thought to maintain MV2 support, current information suggests they expect to drop it by 2025, but their built-in ad blocker will remain.
• Other Chromium forks like Thorium and Supermium have also pledged to continue Manifest V2 support beyond the June 2025 deadline.
• Other Non-Chromium Browsers: Beyond Firefox, other browsers that don't use the Chromium base and can use uBlock Origin without problems include Safari, Pale Moon, and LibreWolf. Some other less common options mentioned are SeaMonkey, Midori, Falkon, and Otter Browser.
  
  
  

Network-Wide Ad Blocking

For a more comprehensive solution that blocks ads across all devices on your local network (even those that can't have extensions), you can look into network-wide ad blockers or ad-blocking DNS servers. These typically provide hostname-based ad blocking, which is less granular than content-aware browser extensions, so using them in conjunction with a browser ad blocker is ideal.

• Self-hosted options include:
• Pi-hole.
• AdGuard Home.
• Custom router firmware like OpenWRT or DD-WRT with ad-blocking support.
• Cloud-based DNS servers with ad-blocking support include:
• AdGuard DNS.
• NextDNS.
• Control D, OpenDNS, and AhaDNS Blitz.

The Bottom Line

Google's decision to remove uBlock Origin from the Chrome Web Store and disable Manifest V2 extensions is certainly a big deal for many users who value an ad-free experience. While there are temporary workarounds to keep uBlock Origin running in Chrome for now, their longevity is uncertain. Many users are making the switch to other browsers, especially Firefox or Brave, which continue to offer robust ad-blocking solutions. Ultimately, the choice is yours, but it's clear that the landscape of ad blocking in Chrome is changing.