uBlock Origin has officially confirmed that the latest update is the final stable one to hit the Chrome Web Store. On August 31, it will be entirely removed from the Web Store, making this the last stable release. It still includes a bunch of useful fixes.

A moderator from the uBlock Origin team posted this information on Reddit. You can view the changelog in the image below. It’s mostly a maintenance/security update that changes a few things.

uBlock changelog.

Here are some of the important changes, simplified:

  1. Security fixes: The update fixes a potential issue where certain advanced blocking scripts could be injected from untrusted sources.
  2. Better YouTube/video ad handling.
  3. Updated Korean filter list.
  4. Improved core blocking tools: The system that runs the anti-ad/anti-tracker scripts is now more reliable and flexible overall.
  5. Brave browser support: Filters can now specifically detect and work better on Brave.
  6. Stronger cookie controls.
  7. Better blocking of hidden content: A new way to find and block elements that are inside special HTML “template” tags.
  8. Improved clipboard protection.
  9. Better JSON editing.

The previous update to this extension was earlier reported as being one of the potential last ones, but it turns out they decided to push another one to address more issues.

As to why uBlock Origin is on the way out of the Web Store, it’s because Chrome is entirely dropping support for the older MV2 extensions. You can’t find them on the store anymore; you can’t reinstall or install any MV2 extensions.

All extensions have to migrate to MV3, which is a newer system with better security, but the limitations severely weaken ad-blockers. uBlock has an intentionally weaker extension that’s compatible with MV3 called “uBlock Origin Lite.”

uBlock Lite.

However, this won’t include the entire feature suite. The developer of uBlock intentionally didn’t port uBlock to MV3, since it would severely restrict the ad-blocker.

If you don’t want to stop using uBlock, some viable alternatives are dropping Chrome itself and moving to Brave (if you need a Chromium-based browser). Brave is a safe bet, because the company has publicly confirmed that they’ll support MV2 extensions as long as it’s possible.

If your use case doesn’t require a Chromium-based browser, Firefox continues to support MV2 extensions. The extension itself isn’t going away or losing support entirely; you just won’t be able to find it on the Chrome Web Store.

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Sudhanshu K
238 Posts

I have been a consumer technology enthusiast for over 5 years. Thanks to my experience in software beta testing and product reviews, I've understood and learnt a lot about what bugs and issues bother people, and I spend time trying to simplify their solutions. I cover smartphones, software, social media, apps, AI, and most consumer tech gadgets. Actively pursuing a Computer Science bachelor’s degree. I'm mostly active on Twitter/X (@TechWhirlUlt), drop a DM or tag me if you want to share info or connect!