How to Block Ads and Tracking on iOS 17 with AdGuard DNS

Welcome to the future – iOS 17 is here! The newest version of iOS comes packed with features like system-wide drag and drop, new Dynamic Island capabilities, and improvements to Messages, Mail, and more. But iOS 17 still delivers ads and sends usage data back to Apple. Thankfully, with a few quick settings changes, you can leverage AdGuard DNS to block ads and protect your privacy across all your apps and browsers on iOS 17.

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Intro – What AdGuard DNS Does

AdGuard DNS is a free, alternative DNS (Domain Name System) service that filters out ads, tracking scripts, malware sites, and other unwanted content before it reaches your device. By routing your iOS 17 device’s web traffic through AdGuard’s DNS servers instead of your ISP’s default DNS servers, AdGuard can block a large percentage of ads, trackers, and threats that would normally display in your apps and load in your mobile browsers.

The best part is that configuring AdGuard DNS only takes a couple minutes, requires no apps or profiles to manage, and works across your entire iOS system, not just your browsers. Let’s check out how to set it up!

How to Enable AdGuard DNS on iOS 17

Enabling AdGuard DNS on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod running iOS 17 only takes a few taps:

  1. Open Settings > Wi-Fi and tap the “i” icon next to your connected Wi-Fi network.
  2. Scroll down and tap on Configure DNS.
  3. Tap Manual.

Tap Add Server and enter:

176.103.130.130

and

176.103.130.131
  • Tap Save in the upper right corner, then tap Done.

That’s it! Your iOS 17 device is now routing all domain name lookups through AdGuard DNS’s filtering servers.

The Immediate Benefits

  • As soon as you complete the steps above, you’ll notice:
  • Advertisements blocked in apps and browsers
  • Decreased web page load times
  • Protection from malware and phishing sites
  • Improved privacy with less tracking and analytics scripts loading

The difference can be immediately seen in Apple’s own apps like News and Stocks, which normally contain ads. Apps like Facebook and Safari will also be ad-free.

How to check if AdGuard DNS is working on iOS?

Check AdGuard DNS Status on iOS

To verify that AdGuard DNS is active and blocking ads, you can:

  • Open Safari and go to AdGuard’s test page.
  • Scroll down and look for “AdGuard DNS” – it should say “Running” if enabled.
  • The test page also shows your current DNS server and filtering status.

You can also install the AdGuard for iOS app and enable system-wide ad blocking. This will let you see and control your DNS filtering across all apps, not just Safari.

How to switch between different DNS servers on AdGuard for iOS?

Switching Between DNS Servers on iOS

If you want to switch between AdGuard DNS and another DNS provider:

  1. Go to Settings > General > VPN & DNS > DNS.
  2. Tap on your preferred DNS server.
  3. It will now override any DNS set individually in apps.

This allows you to easily swap between DNS services right from your iOS settings.

The Immediate Benefits

As soon as you complete the steps above, you’ll notice:

  • Advertisements blocked in apps and browsers
  • Decreased web page load times
  • Protection from malware and phishing sites
  • Improved privacy with less tracking and analytics scripts loading

The difference can be immediately seen in Apple’s own apps like News and Stocks, which normally contain ads. Apps like Facebook and Safari will also be ad-free.

How to Disable AdGuard DNS on iOS

If you want to disable AdGuard DNS filtering:

  1. Go back to your Wi-Fi settings.
  2. Tap on Configure DNS.
  3. Tap on Automatic to revert back to the default DNS.

You can also disable it in the AdGuard app under DNS Protection settings. This will turn off DNS filtering across your entire iOS device.

How to turn off AdGuard DNS for a specific app on iOS

Unfortunately there is no native way to disable AdGuard DNS on a per-app basis on iOS. Since AdGuard DNS is configured at the network level, it impacts all traffic and apps equally.

However, there are a couple potential workarounds:

  • You can temporarily switch your DNS settings to use your ISP’s default DNS instead of AdGuard. This will disable filtering for all apps, but you can then open the app you want ads enabled on. Just remember to switch back to AdGuard DNS when done.
  • For apps that allow configuration of a custom DNS server, like some browsers, you can manually set that app to use a different DNS so it ignores the system-wide AdGuard settings. Traffic from that app would route through the custom DNS and not be filtered.
  • On a jailbroken iOS device, there may be tweaks that can override DNS on a per-app basis. But this would require a jailbreak.

The only native option is to fully disable AdGuard DNS system-wide if you need to allow ads in certain apps. There is no setting in iOS to disable DNS filtering for only specific apps unfortunately. Let me know if you have any other questions!

FAQs

Q1. Does AdGuard DNS slow down my connection speed?

Nope! AdGuard DNS maintains fast response times and should not impact your web browsing or streaming speeds. The only thing you’ll notice is pages loading faster without heavy ads bogging things down.

Q2. What are the IP addresses again?

AdGuard DNS uses two servers:

176.103.130.130

176.103.130.131

Q3. Does this only work on Wi-Fi?

AdGuard DNS will filter traffic on both Wi-Fi and cellular data. The filtering protection remains active whenever your device is online.

Q4. Can I use another DNS service?

Absolutely! You can use Cloudflare (1.1.1.1 / 1.0.0.1) or NextDNS instead. The steps are the same – just change the IP address to the ones for the DNS provider you want to use.

Conclusion

AdGuard DNS is a quick, free way to block ads and protect your privacy across iOS 17 without any profile management or apps required. Configure it in less than a minute and immediately enjoy a faster, more private ad-free mobile experience!

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