How to Block Ads on Android TV and Google TV (2026)

Ads on Android TV and Google TV come from three different places, and no single trick removes all of them. There are the sponsored rows and recommendations on the home screen, the banner and video ads inside free apps and FAST channel apps, and the video ads inside streaming apps such as YouTube. This guide walks through the methods that actually work in 2026, what each one can and cannot block, and how to undo them if an app stops working.

Short version: clean up the home screen in Settings, then add DNS-level ad blocking (Private DNS, AdGuard, Pi-hole or your router). That combination removes most in-app ads and tracking. It will not remove YouTube video ads, because those come from the same servers as the videos themselves.

Quick comparison

Method	What it blocks	Difficulty	Cost
Home screen settings	Sponsored rows, personalised ads	Easy	Free
Private DNS (via ADB)	Most in-app ads and trackers on one TV	Medium	Free
AdGuard for Android TV app	In-app ads and trackers, with per-app control	Easy to medium	Paid licence
Pi-hole or AdGuard Home	Ads and trackers on every device at home	Advanced	Free (needs an always-on device)
Router DNS	Ads and trackers on every device at home	Easy	Free

Method 1: Clean up the home screen

Start here, because it costs nothing and removes the most visible ads.

• Google TV: go to Settings → Accounts & profiles → your account and turn on Apps only mode. The home screen then shows only your installed apps instead of sponsored recommendations. (It also hides Google’s content suggestions, so try it and see if you prefer it.)
• Android TV (older interface): scroll to the bottom of the home screen, choose Customize channels and switch off the rows you do not want.
• Ad personalisation: open Settings → Privacy → Ads (the exact menu names vary by TV brand) and turn off ad personalisation or delete the advertising ID. You will still see ads, but they are no longer targeted using your profile.

Method 2: Private DNS with an ad-blocking DNS server

Android 9 and newer support Private DNS, which sends all of the device’s DNS lookups to an encrypted DNS server of your choice. If that server refuses to resolve ad and tracking domains, those ads simply fail to load. Phones show this option in Settings, but most Android TV and Google TV devices hide it, so you set it once with ADB (Android Debug Bridge) from a computer on the same network.

1. On the TV, open Settings → Device Preferences → About (or System → About) and click Build seven times to unlock Developer options.
2. In Developer options, turn on USB debugging (and Network debugging if your device offers it). Note the TV’s IP address under Network settings.
3. On your computer, install Google’s Android SDK Platform-Tools, then run the commands below, replacing the IP address with your TV’s. Accept the debugging prompt that appears on the TV.

adb connect 192.168.1.50
adb shell settings put global private_dns_mode hostname
adb shell settings put global private_dns_specifier dns.adguard-dns.com

dns.adguard-dns.com is AdGuard DNS’s free default server, which blocks ads and trackers. You can use another provider that supports DNS-over-TLS, such as NextDNS, if you want a dashboard and your own block lists. To undo the change, run:

adb shell settings put global private_dns_mode opportunistic

Turn USB and network debugging off again when you are done. The setting survives reboots, but a factory reset removes it.

Method 3: AdGuard for Android TV

AdGuard makes a dedicated Android TV app. Instead of DNS alone, it filters traffic through a local VPN on the device, so you get per-app control and statistics without needing a computer. Get it from AdGuard’s official website rather than a third-party APK site, and install it with a sideloading app such as Downloader. If you use a Downloader code to get it, check where the code really points first; our guide to vetting Downloader codes shows how.

The app needs an AdGuard licence after any trial, so check current pricing on AdGuard’s site. Because it works as a local VPN, it may conflict with a separate VPN app on the same TV.

Method 4: Pi-hole or AdGuard Home for the whole house

If you already have a Raspberry Pi, a NAS or an always-on PC, Pi-hole or AdGuard Home can block ads for every device on your network, not just the TV. You install it once, then set your router to hand out its address as the DNS server. Both give you a dashboard showing exactly which domains each device contacts, which is also a good way to spot a cheap box that is phoning home; see our guide to checking and blocking an Android TV box that phones home.

Method 5: Change your router’s DNS

The quickest whole-home option is to set your router’s DNS servers to an ad-blocking service, for example AdGuard DNS at 94.140.14.14 and 94.140.15.15. Every device that uses the router’s DNS is covered. The trade-offs: there is no per-device control, and some apps use their own encrypted DNS and bypass the router, which is why Methods 2 to 4 are more reliable on the TV itself.

What about YouTube ads?

DNS blocking does not reliably remove YouTube video ads, because YouTube serves ads from the same servers as the videos. Blocking those servers breaks playback. The official way to remove them is YouTube Premium. Unofficial YouTube clients for Android TV exist, but they are not from Google, break YouTube’s terms of service and can stop working at any time, so install them only if you understand that risk.

The same applies to the ad-supported tiers of Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video: their ads are stitched into the stream on the server side, so DNS blocking usually cannot remove them and may cause playback errors.

If an app stops working

• Check your DNS dashboard (AdGuard DNS, NextDNS, Pi-hole or AdGuard Home) for the domain the app was trying to reach when it failed, and add it to the allowlist.
• With Private DNS, temporarily switch back with the opportunistic command above to confirm the blocker is the cause.
• With the AdGuard app, exclude the problem app from filtering instead of turning protection off completely.

Frequently asked questions

Is blocking ads on Android TV legal?

Ad blocking is legal in most countries. Individual streaming services can still forbid it in their terms, and may limit playback if they detect it.

Will an ad blocker slow down my TV?

DNS-level blocking (Methods 2, 4 and 5) adds no noticeable load to the TV. An on-device filtering app uses a little memory and CPU, which can be noticeable on low-end boxes with 1 to 2 GB of RAM.

Does this work on Fire TV?

Fire TV runs Fire OS, which is based on Android but handles some settings differently. Router DNS, Pi-hole and AdGuard Home work the same way; the Private DNS commands and home-screen settings in this guide are written for Android TV and Google TV.

The bottom line

For most people, the best setup is Apps only mode (or customised channels) plus one DNS-level blocker: Private DNS if you are comfortable with ADB, the AdGuard app if you want a simple interface, or Pi-hole if you want to protect the whole house. Expect most in-app ads and trackers to disappear, and keep YouTube Premium in mind if YouTube ads are the main annoyance.