Key Takeaways: Block Amazon Prime Video Ads
- Amazon Prime Video’s Freevee content shows ads, and upgrading to a paid subscription doesn’t remove them.
- No VPN with a built-in ad blocker we tested can remove the ads. However, with Surfshark’s browser extension, you can connect to VPN servers.
- Other ad-blocking extensions that work without offering VPN protection include uBlock Origin, AdGuard and Ghostery.
Amazon Prime Video is included in every Amazon Prime subscription, allowing subscribers to watch movies, series and live channels. Most of its content doesn’t have ads, but they may pop up in the “free with ads” section. The ads ruin the experience, so you might wonder how to block ads on Prime Video.
Our team at Cloudwards tested whether streaming videos ad-free on this popular platform was possible. While ad-blocking browser extensions worked, virtual private networks (VPNs) with built-in ad blockers mostly failed. However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use a VPN to keep your location hidden and preserve your online privacy — it just won’t work for this particular task.
Why Am I Seeing Ads on Amazon Prime Video?
If you have an Amazon Prime subscription, you may have noticed the “free with ads” section. This content is provided to Amazon through Freevee, a rebrand of IMDb TV. When you watch this content, you’ll encounter ads. Movies and shows included in your Amazon Prime subscription never display ads.
Freevee is a free streaming platform, but the price of watching anything on it is to sit through long ads. There’s plenty of popular content and some 150 always-on FAST channels, but all run ads. Amazon ads (even those via Freevee) rely on gathering your personal data, and you’ll slowly notice the platform personalizes ads based on what you click.
Amazon may introduce premium packages with ads in the future to provide cheaper plans. However, these rumors are unconfirmed. The only ads you see on the streaming site right now are on the Amazon Prime videos from Freevee.
How to Block Ads on Prime Video
Our tests show that Surfshark’s browser extension with CleanWeb 2.0 is the only VPN extension that lets you block Amazon ads. It also works on other popular streaming services. Here’s how you can watch “free with ads” video content without being interrupted by advertisements.
- Register for Surfshark
Visit Surfshark’s official website and click “pricing.” Purchase a subscription and provide your payment details. Verify your account, and you’re ready to get the browser extension.
- Get the Browser Extension
Open the Chrome web store and search for Surfshark’s browser extension. Add it to Chrome and log in with your new credentials.
- Activate the Ad Blocker
After logging in, turn on the ad blocker and start watching “free with ads” videos on the Amazon website. If the content isn’t available where you are, you’ll have to connect to a VPN server to bypass the geo-restrictions.
{“@context”:”https:\/\/schema.org”,”@type”:”HowTo”,”name”:”How to Block Ads on Prime Video\u00a0″,”description”:”These step-by-step instructions show how to block ads on Prime Video using the Surfshark browser extension.”,”totalTime”:”P00D01M00S”,”supply”:0,”tool”:0,”url”:”https:\/\/www.cloudwards.net\/block-ads-on-prime-video\/#how-to-block-ads-on-prime-video”,”image”:{“@type”:”ImageObject”,”inLanguage”:”en-US”,”url”:”https:\/\/www.cloudwards.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/How-to-Block-Ads-on-Prime-Video-1.png”},”step”:[{“@type”:”HowToStep”,”name”:”Register for Surfshark”,”position”:1,”url”:”https:\/\/www.cloudwards.net\/block-ads-on-prime-video\/#register-for-surfshark”,”itemListElement”:{“@type”:”HowToDirection”,”text”:”Visit Surfshark\u2019s official website and click \u201cpricing.\u201d Purchase a subscription and provide your payment details. Verify your account, and you\u2019re ready to get the browser extension.\n”},”image”:{“@type”:”ImageObject”,”inLanguage”:”en-US”,”url”:”https:\/\/www.cloudwards.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/surfshark-vpn-pricing.png”}},{“@type”:”HowToStep”,”name”:”Get the Browser Extension”,”position”:2,”url”:”https:\/\/www.cloudwards.net\/block-ads-on-prime-video\/#get-the-browser-extension”,”itemListElement”:{“@type”:”HowToDirection”,”text”:”Open the Chrome web store and search for Surfshark\u2019s browser extension. Add it to Chrome and log in with your new credentials.\n”},”image”:{“@type”:”ImageObject”,”inLanguage”:”en-US”,”url”:”https:\/\/www.cloudwards.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/surfshark-add-extension.png”}},{“@type”:”HowToStep”,”name”:”Activate the Ad Blocker”,”position”:3,”url”:”https:\/\/www.cloudwards.net\/block-ads-on-prime-video\/#activate-the-ad-blocker”,”itemListElement”:{“@type”:”HowToDirection”,”text”:”After logging in, turn on the ad blocker and start watching \u201cfree with ads\u201d videos on the Amazon website. If the content isn\u2019t available where you are, you\u2019ll have to connect to a VPN server to bypass the geo-restrictions.\n”},”image”:{“@type”:”ImageObject”,”inLanguage”:”en-US”,”url”:”https:\/\/www.cloudwards.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/surfshark-extension.png”}}]}
Best VPN With Amazon Prime Video Ad Blocker
Unfortunately, we discovered that there aren’t any VPNs with ad blockers that successfully remove ads — except Surfshark’s browser extension. While it’s not necessary to connect to a VPN to block ads, the connection lets you change your IP address to see Amazon’s libraries in other countries.
1. Surfshark
Pros:
- Unlimited connections
- Effective ad blocker
- Affordable plans
Cons:
- Built-in ad blocker is weak
To our knowledge, Surfshark is the only premium VPN that manages to prevent Amazon Prime Video from showing ads. However, only the browser extension CleanWeb 2.0 can get past Amazon’s defenses, not the CleanWeb 1.0 ad blocker built into the desktop and mobile apps.
Fortunately, CleanWeb 2.0 works even without a VPN connection, allowing for better speeds. What’s more, each account supports unlimited simultaneous connections.
We still recommend using Surfshark for watching content on Amazon Prime Video, as you can protect yourself from trackers and find movies or shows that aren’t available in your area. Surfshark uses some of the best security and privacy solutions to protect you and collects zero logs on your browsing activity.
The Surfshark VPN client and CleanWeb 2.0 browser extension are designed to work with each other, so you can download both on a single account. Once the extension is active, you can watch all Freevee video offerings without running into Amazon advertising. Check out our Surfshark review for more info.
Other Effective Ways of Blocking Ads on Prime Video
Surfshark’s extension lets you stream Prime Video without ads, but it’s not the only method. You can watch Freevee without ads by using an ad blocker without a VPN. Here are our recommendations.
1. uBlock Origin
uBlock Origin is the best ad-blocking extension available. It is free and open-source, meaning you can trust it’s being improved regularly. uBlock successfully blocks ads on Prime Video and many other streaming sites. Besides being practical, it doesn’t consume a lot of resources just to block ads. You’ll barely notice it’s there.
After installing uBlock Origin, it will start blocking ads right away. There’s no need to configure any of the advanced settings, as the default ones work well.
2. AdGuard
AdGuard is another ad blocker that skips ads effortlessly. The extension is free and quietly prevents ads from playing. We like how there are seven filters you can independently toggle to customize your ad-blocking experience. You can block ads, social media widgets, annoying pop-ups and even ads in specific languages.
The desktop and mobile apps let you select parental controls and more, but you can only try these for 14 days on desktop and seven days on Android without paying. If you only want to block ads, the free extension is enough.
3. Ghostery
At third place on our list of best ad blockers is Ghostery. Its free plan is solid, preventing ads from appearing while we loaded Freevee movies on Prime Video. It’s also available on mobile devices, so you can watch content ad-free on the iOS and Android Amazon apps.
The free version is effective, but those who want to see exactly what attacked them can get the paid plan. You gain access to detailed insights and even real-time data.
Even though all of these extensions work without a VPN, you can use them alongside any effective VPN service. That way, you have extra protection against tracking and can enjoy geo-blocked content.
Final Thoughts: Ad-Free Streaming on Prime
Many of the most popular streaming services have ads, and Prime Video is no exception, albeit only for Freevee content. Upgrading to an Amazon Prime membership doesn’t remove these ads, so using an ad blocker is necessary. We highly recommend Surfshark’s extension for the job, but you can also use uBlock Origin, AdGuard or Ghostery.
These ad blockers work without a VPN, but you may need one to watch geo-restricted content. Connecting to a VPN server is also a good idea due to privacy concerns, as changing your IP address prevents ads from tracking you.
What do you think about the rumors that Amazon will put ads on all of Prime Video soon? Are there any good ad blockers or VPNs we missed? Let us know in the comments section below. Thanks for reading.
FAQs: Blocking Ads on Amazon Prime
-
Amazon Prime supports ads, but only if you watch content on Amazon Freevee.
-
You can block Amazon Prime ads by installing an ad-blocking browser extension like AdGuard or uBlock Origin or using Surfshark’s VPN with the CleanWeb 2.0 extension.
{“@context”:”https:\/\/schema.org”,”@type”:”FAQPage”,”mainEntity”:[{“@type”:”Question”,”name”:”Does Amazon Prime Run Ads?”,”acceptedAnswer”:{“@type”:”Answer”,”text”:”
Amazon Prime supports ads, but only if you watch content on Amazon Freevee.\n”}},{“@type”:”Question”,”name”:”How Do I Block Ads on Amazon Prime?”,”acceptedAnswer”:{“@type”:”Answer”,”text”:”
You can block Amazon Prime ads by installing an ad-blocking browser extension like AdGuard or uBlock Origin or using Surfshark\u2019s VPN with the CleanWeb 2.0 extension.\n”}},{“@type”:”Question”,”name”:”What Ad Blocker Works on Amazon Prime?”,”acceptedAnswer”:{“@type”:”Answer”,”text”:”
AdGuard and uBlock Origin work on Amazon Prime videos.\n”}},{“@type”:”Question”,”name”:”How Much Is Amazon Prime Video Ad Free?”,”acceptedAnswer”:{“@type”:”Answer”,”text”:”
Amazon Prime Video costs $8.99 per month alone or is included with the standard $14.99 Prime subscription in the US. Even after paying, you can\u2019t stream content on Freevee without ads unless you block them with another app.\n”}}]}
The post How to Block Ads on Prime Video: Avoiding Advertisement in 2023 appeared first on Cloudwards.
