A common complaint of internet users is the increasing pervasiveness of ads. Websites increasingly rely on advertisements for revenue, and this reliance has caused many publishers to focus on ads above offering valuable content. It’s now common to find websites fit with more ads than content, annoying users in the process.
However, there’s a simple solution to this problem: an ad blocker. Ad blockers detect and block ads from their roots so they can’t appear on your browser. Even then, you’re free to allow ads from trusted websites but disable them from the rest.
Surfshark offers one of the best ad blockers with its CleanWeb feature. We’re reviewing this tool to help you decide whether it’s worth adopting. This review will cover essential aspects, including Surfshark CleanWeb’s pricing, features, user interface, and customer support.
Surfshark CleanWeb: Plans and Pricing
CleanWeb is included in all Surfshark VPN plans. The Surfshark Starter plan costs $15.45 monthly. A good thing about Surfshark is that you get heavy discounts if you pay for 12 or 24 months in one go. For example, 12 months on the Starter plan costs $42 instead of $232 if you pay month-to-month, and 24 months of this same plan costs $59 instead of $417 if you pay month-to-month.
However, note that the heavy discount is only for the initial purchase. Once the 12 or 24 months expire, you’ll pay a higher renewal price. Surfshark offers a 7-day free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee period. Unfortunately, this platform lacks a free plan.
Surfshark CleanWeb: Features
Surfshark is available as a browser extension or desktop/mobile app. You can download and install it seamlessly from the Surfshark website or your relevant app store.
This platform is best known as a Virtual Private Network (VPN), which encrypts browsing activity by creating a tunnel between your device and a remote internet server. A VPN lets you surf the web without revealing your identity to ISPs and third parties. You can control your location and bypass content geo-restrictions; Surfshark has servers in 100+ countries.
You can turn on CleanWeb in the Surfshark VPN settings. Once it’s switched on, the app starts blocking ads and trackers while you surf the web. The good thing is that you can use CleanWeb even while the Surfshark VPN is off.
Surfshark uses sophisticated techniques to block ads. It maintains a database of ad-serving domains and thwarts any browser request from these domains, meaning you won't see ads from them. This platform helps block malicious ads so that you don’t fall victim.
However, you might have trusted websites you want to see ads on. For example, you might love a particular news site and want to support it by allowing it to show ads. In that case, you can add the specific website to the bypass list, and Surfshark will allow its ads to show.
Excessive ads annoy users, use significant bandwidth, and slow down browsing speed. Removing these ads with Surfshark speeds up your browsing experience and makes it more enjoyable.
Another annoyance you’ll often encounter on the web is those incessant pop-ups asking for consent to install cookies on your browser. This annoyance emerged since the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) took effect in 2018, requiring explicit consent to install cookies and trackers. However, Surfshark solves this problem by setting an automatic no-consent response, and you won’t see the constant popups again.
A good thing we observed while testing Surfshark is that it provides details about the ads and trackers it has blocked. You can see how many trackers and ads it discovers and blocks on every web page. These details enable you to confirm that the app does its job effectively.
The extension version of CleanWeb (2.0) includes additional features like a Data breach alert. You can get immediate alerts whenever your email address appears on a breached database.
Surfshark CleanWeb: Interface and In-Use
Surfshark scores high in the criterion of user-friendliness. One of the best things about this platform is its widespread compatibility. It offers browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge, as well as apps for desktops (Windows, macOS, and Linux) and mobile devices (iOS and Android). It’s compatible with all the popular desktop and mobile operating systems and browsers.
Surfshark has a simple interface that’s easy to navigate. The dashboard is minimal and uncluttered, with sufficient color contrast to highlight features. You can easily find any features you want and change the configurations. The platform offers a user-friendly interface you’ll likely enjoy using.
Surfshark CleanWeb: Customer Support
Surfshark offers extensive customer support resources. You can start with the FAQs and detailed user guides on the official Knowledge Base. These guides cover every aspect of the platform and should be the first place to consult when you face issues.
You can also contact Surfshark’s support team via email and live chat. The company has a large support team that enables it to offer 24/7 service.
Surfshark CleanWeb: The Competition
There’s no shortage of ad-blocking tools competing with Surfshark CleanWeb. Two competitors we’d like to highlight are Ghostery and Adblock Plus. These are two free ad blockers that make your browsing experience better. They’re effective at removing ads and trackers, and you don’t have to pay a dime to use them.
However, Ghostery and Adblock Plus only offer ad-blocking, while Surfshark offers many other features in addition to ad-blocking.
Surfshark CleanWeb: Final Verdict
Surfshark is an excellent choice you’re looking for an all-in-one security tool that offers an ad-blocker, VPN, and other features in one package. It blocks annoying ads effectively and makes your browsing experience easier. However, there are many free alternatives if you only need an ad-blocking tool and no other complementary feature.
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