Android phone keeps popping up ads? How to find and stop them

Full-screen ads that appear over your home screen, lock screen or other apps are not normal Android behavior. They come from an app you installed, often a free cleaner, battery saver, QR scanner, flashlight or game, that has permission to draw over other apps. The ad itself rarely names the app, which is what makes it frustrating, and some adware waits hours or days after installing before it starts, so the culprit is not always the most recent app. The steps below help you track it down and stop it for good, usually in less than 15 minutes, without resetting the phone.

What kind of ads are you seeing?

• Full-screen ads over the home screen or other apps: adware. An installed app is showing them.
• Ads in the notification shade: usually a website you allowed to send notifications, or an app’s marketing notifications.
• Ads on the lock screen or while charging: a lock screen, charging or wallpaper app.
• Browser opening pages by itself: site notifications or redirects in Chrome or Samsung Internet.
• Ads inside one app you are using: normal for free apps and games. Only that app shows them.

How to stop an Android phone popping up ads

Another quick way to spot the culprit: open the Play Store, tap your profile picture, then Manage apps & device › Manage, and sort by Recently added. Compare the list with when the ads started. On Samsung, Settings › Apps can also be sorted by install date. Anything you do not remember installing, or have not used in weeks, is a suspect. Apps with generic names and no clear purpose, such as Phone Booster or Smart Cleaner, are the most common offenders. Also check the Galaxy Store if you use it.

Samsung Internet has the same controls under Settings › Sites and downloads, and it also supports ad blocker add-ons from the Galaxy Store, found in the app’s menu under Ad blockers.

Is adware dangerous?

Most adware is more annoying than harmful, but it is not harmless. It drains battery and data, slows the phone, and some versions collect information about your device and browsing. The bigger risk is what the ads lead to: fake virus warnings, fake prize pages and download links that install worse apps. Remove it rather than living with it, and never tap inside the ads themselves, including the small X, which is sometimes part of the ad. Use the Home or Back button to leave instead.

On Pixel, Motorola and other phones

The steps are the same, with slightly different menu names. On Pixel, go to Settings › Apps › Special app access › Display over other apps, and for device admin apps, Settings › Security & privacy › More security & privacy › Device admin apps. Motorola uses nearly the same paths as Pixel. If you cannot find a menu, search for it with the search bar at the top of Settings.

Shortcuts or widgets you did not add

Some adware adds shopping or game shortcuts to the home screen or a search widget that opens ad pages. Removing the icon is not enough. Touch and hold it and choose App info to see which app it belongs to, then uninstall that app. If the shortcut belongs to the launcher itself, you may be using an unfamiliar launcher; switch back to the phone’s own launcher in Settings › Apps › Choose default apps › Home app.

Samsung and carrier notifications

Some promotional notifications come from preinstalled apps rather than adware. On Samsung, long-press a promotional notification to see which app sent it, then tap the settings icon to turn off that category. The Galaxy Store and some Samsung apps have marketing notification switches in their own settings. Carrier apps preinstalled on Verizon, AT&T or T-Mobile phones can also send offers; turn off their notifications in Settings › Notifications, or disable the app if you never use it. If new apps keep appearing on their own, see why a Samsung downloads apps automatically.

Block ads system-wide with Private DNS

Android can send its web lookups through a Private DNS provider, and some providers filter ad and tracking domains for every app. Go to Settings › Connections › More connection settings › Private DNS on Samsung, or Settings › Network & internet › Private DNS on Pixel, choose Private DNS provider hostname, and enter the hostname of an ad-filtering DNS service you trust. It reduces many ads and malicious sites. It does not remove adware already installed, and a few apps or public Wi-Fi sign-in pages may not work while it is on, so turn it back to Automatic if something breaks.

Ads inside free apps and games

If ads appear only while you use a particular app or game, that is how the app makes money, not adware. Your options are to pay for the ad-free version if the app offers one, turn off personalized ads in Settings › Google › Ads (or Settings › Privacy › Ads) so they are less targeted, or switch to a different app. Uninstalling it is the only way to make those ads stop completely. If an app shows ads even after you close it, or covers other apps, treat it as adware and remove it.

Pop-ups on a child’s or parent’s phone

Kids and older relatives are often the ones who install a game or cleaner that brings adware along. Check their phone with the steps above, turn off Install unknown apps for their browser, and on a child’s phone use Google Family Link so new apps need your approval. Setting Chrome to block site notifications by default in Site settings › Notifications prevents most notification ads from ever starting.

Ads keep coming back?

• Check Device admin apps again, since adware can re-enable itself if one helper app is left behind.
• Look for a second launcher or keyboard app and uninstall it; set the Samsung or Pixel launcher as default in Settings › Apps › Choose default apps.
• Clear Chrome’s browsing data, including cookies and site data, in case a site is still redirecting you or showing notifications.
• Back up and factory reset as the last step. See how to factory reset an Android phone.

Keep adware off your phone

• Install apps only from the Play Store or Galaxy Store, and check the developer and reviews.
• Skip cleaners, boosters, battery savers and flashlight apps; the phone already does all of these jobs itself.
• Tap Block, not Allow, whenever a website asks to send you notifications.
• Never install an app just because a pop-up says your phone has a virus.
• Keep Play Protect turned on, and on a Samsung phone also turn on Auto Blocker in Settings › Security and privacy.