To turn off ad tracking on your phone, open your privacy settings. On iPhone: Settings, Privacy & Security, Tracking, switch off Allow Apps to Request to Track, then Delete Advertising Identifier. On Android: Settings, Google, Ads, tap Delete advertising ID and turn on Opt out of Ads Personalization. The whole job takes about five minutes per device.
That is the honest answer, and it is also the disappointing one. Turning off ad tracking does not delete the ads. It breaks the link between a unique identifier on your phone and the profile advertisers have been building from it, which means you see more generic ads instead of the ones that follow you around after you search for a pair of shoes.
Most guides stop at the toggle. This one covers the exact tap paths for both platforms, the per-brand menu drift that makes half of Android look broken, the greyed-out switch on iPhones that Apple never explains, and an honest list of what none of these settings stop.
Table of Contents
What You Need
Nothing. No app, no account, no paid tool, no computer. Every switch this guide covers already ships inside iOS and Android.
What you do need is to know which system you are running, because the menus are named differently and Apple and Google both move things around between releases. Check Settings, General, About for the version number on iPhone, or Settings, About phone for the Android version.
Menu labels shift more than most articles admit. The Google Ads screen moved from Settings, Google, Ads on older Android to Settings, Security & privacy, Privacy, Ads on Android 12 and later. Samsung buries part of it under its own Customization Service, and Xiaomi and Redmi run a different settings app entirely that users rarely know about. If a label below does not match your screen exactly, look for the nearest equivalent rather than assuming you are on the wrong page.
One more case worth flagging: if the phone is a work, school or parental-control device, some of these switches are locked by a configuration profile. That is not a bug, and there is no way around it from the phone. The greyed-out reasons are covered further down.
Step-by-Step: How to Turn Off Ad Tracking on Your Phone
How to Turn Off Personalized Ads on iPhone
Apple introduced App Tracking Transparency, or ATT, in iOS 14.5. It is the framework that forces every app to ask before it tracks you across other companies’ apps and websites. Turning it off is the single most effective thing you can do on an iPhone.
1. Open Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Tracking.
2. Turn off Allow Apps to Request to Track. This is the master switch. With it off, no app can prompt you for cross-app tracking permission, and apps that already asked get an automatic denial.
3. Tap Delete Advertising Identifier. The IDFA, or Identifier for Advertisers, resets to all zeros. Your apps stay signed in and nothing breaks. Apple lets you generate a new one later from the same screen, so this is reversible.
4. Turn on Limit Ad Tracking, which is on the same Tracking screen. This tells the system not to share your device data with ad networks and data brokers.
5. Scroll to the list of apps with tracking permission and check it. Anything you do not recognise, or do not use, can be denied individually by tapping it and selecting Don’t Allow.
6. Open Settings, Privacy & Security, Analytics & Improvements and turn off Share Device Analytics. This stops Apple sending usage data to Apple. It has nothing to do with ads and almost nobody changes it.
Apple’s own support page on App Tracking Transparency documents four cases where Allow Apps to Request to Track cannot be turned on. You are signed in to a child account, typically under 13 with a Family Sharing group. You are signed in with an Apple Account that is managed by an organisation or school. You bought the iPhone less than a couple of days ago, or you just created the Apple Account. Or a configuration profile is restricting it, which is what a managed work or school phone looks like.
In the child account case, the toggle being greyed out is the privacy working correctly. There is nothing to fix.
On iOS 17 and later, Tracking still sits under Privacy & Security, but the wording inside changed slightly: Delete Advertising Identifier replaced the older Reset Advertising Identifier label, and Allow Apps to Request to Track sits at the top of the list. On iPad and Apple TV, the same switches live in Settings, Privacy & Security, Tracking, so the path holds across Apple devices.
How to Reduce Ad Tracking on Android
Android has no equivalent of ATT, which is why most people give up here. The switch you want is the advertising ID, and Android lets you delete it outright rather than just asking nicely.
1. Open Settings, then Google, then Ads. On Android 12 and later this lives at Settings, Security & privacy, Privacy, Ads instead. Search for “Ads” in the settings search bar if neither path matches your phone.
2. Tap Delete advertising ID. The GAID, or Google Advertising ID, becomes all zeros. A new one is generated the next time any app requests it, so treat this as a recurring reset rather than a permanent state.
3. Turn on Opt out of Ads Personalization. This is the broad switch that tells Google you do not want personalized ads based on your activity, your searches and the apps you use.
4. On the same screen, turn off Ad topics. These are the interest categories Google infers about you, and the list of topics attached to your account is the closest thing to a profile you can actually read.
5. Turn off App suggested ads, which is the older, separate Google ad program that ran on other apps even when you had personalization switched off. Plenty of people miss this one.
6. Turn off Ad measurement. This stops apps from sending events to Google for ad attribution. The trade-off is real: free apps may lose income, and a few developers have shipped measurement-lagging updates in response.
7. On some versions, turn off Usage & diagnostics under Settings, Google, Usage & diagnostics. It is not an ad setting, but it is a switch a lot of reviewers forget.
On Android 14, the Ads screen looks almost identical to Android 12 and 13 apart from a reworded confirmation dialog. The bigger change in recent versions is permission-based: apps with ads now have to declare advertising ID access in the Play Store listing, so you can check it in Google Play, App info, App permissions, and revoke it for any app you dislike.
Manufacturer menus diverge from here. On a Samsung Galaxy running One UI 6 or later, the Google ads controls are at Settings, Google, Manage All Apps or at Settings, Accounts and Backup, Google, Ads, and the manufacturer-specific advertising option is a separate switch called Customization Service under Settings, Privacy and security, Permission manager, or on newer builds under Special app access, then Customization service. Turn that one off as well, because it is Samsung’s own ad identifier, separate from Google’s.
On a Google Pixel, you are already in the right place. On Xiaomi, Redmi or Poco phones running HyperOS, the equivalent of the Google ads screen is buried under Settings, Passwords & security, Privacy, Ads, and the MIUI or HyperOS ads setting is a completely different toggle at Settings, Passwords & security, Privacy, Ad services. Both need to be handled. On OnePlus and Oppo phones the Google path works as normal, and the manufacturer layer lives under Settings, Security & privacy, Data privacy.
That is the honest reason people say Android has no ad setting. The setting exists; it is just split across three different apps depending on who made the phone.
If the Ads menu genuinely is not present at all, you are probably on a build with Google services stripped out, such as a Huawei phone in markets where Google Mobile Services is unavailable. On those devices there is no Google advertising ID, and ad tracking is handled at the individual app and browser level instead.
| Device and version | Exact menu path | What it stops |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone, iOS 14.5 and later | Settings, Privacy & Security, Tracking | Cross-app tracking prompts and IDFA access for apps |
| iPhone, iOS 17 and later | Settings, Privacy & Security, Tracking, then Delete Advertising Identifier | Resets the advertising identifier to zeros |
| Android 12 and later | Settings, Security & privacy, Privacy, Ads | Deletes the Google Advertising ID and opt-out switches |
| Android 13 and 14 | Settings, Google, Ads, then per-app App permissions | Per-app advertising ID access |
| Samsung Galaxy, One UI 6 and later | Settings, Accounts and Backup, Google, Ads, plus Customization Service | Google ads plus Samsung’s own advertising identifier |
| Xiaomi, Redmi, Poco, HyperOS | Settings, Passwords & security, Privacy, Ads and Ad services | Google advertising ID plus the manufacturer ad layer |
| Safari, iOS | Settings, Privacy & Security, Safari, Advanced Tracking and Fingerprinting Protection | Known tracker fingerprinting and cross-site tracking |
| Chrome, Android | Chrome, Settings, Privacy and security, Third-party cookies | Cross-site cookies used for retargeting in the browser |
Check Browser and App Tracking
The operating system switch only covers what happens inside apps. Your browser is a separate machine, and it is where most cross-site retargeting actually happens.
If you have already worked through how to turn off ad tracking on your phone at the system level and ads still follow you from site to site, this is the gap that is left. Safari, Chrome and every app you have installed keep their own layer.
On Safari, open Settings, Privacy & Security, Safari and set Prevent Cross-Site Tracking to on. Then set Advanced Tracking and Fingerprinting Protection to Standard, which strips known fingerprinting parameters from every request, and switch on Hide IP Address, which sends an approximate rather than your real IP.
To clear what Safari already stored, go to Settings, Apps, Safari and tap Clear History and Website Data. That logs you out of any site you were signed into, so expect to sign back in once.
On Chrome for Android, open Chrome, then the profile icon, Settings, Privacy and security. Set Third-party cookies to Block them in incognito if you want browsing during private sessions to stay clean, and turn on Send a “Do Not Track” request, noting that a small number of sites still ignore it. Under Site settings, Permissions, revoke Notifications, Camera, Microphone and Location for any site that does not need them.
There is an important distinction here, and it is the one that causes most frustration. Blocking personalized ads means you see the same ad everywhere. Blocking ads entirely is a different job done by a different tool, usually a filter app or a network-level blocker. Stopping measurement means nothing is recorded about whether you looked or tapped. You can do all three, but each needs a different switch, and turning on one does nothing for the other two.
Reviewing app permissions is the last layer and the one with the best ratio of effort to payoff. Go through Settings, Apps, then each app, Permissions, and revoke anything a game or a flashlight does not need. Revoke Background activity for apps you only open occasionally.
What these switches do not stop
This is the part most articles skip, and skipping it is why people assume the settings are broken when ads keep appearing.
- Carrier-level data. Your mobile carrier sees the domains and packets your phone touches. Nothing in the phone’s settings changes that.
- Server-side records. When you sign into an app, the company already knows your account. Deleting the advertising ID does not delete the account-level history on the server that is already attached to your name.
- Browser fingerprinting. A combination of screen size, fonts, language, time zone and hardware can identify a device with no ID at all. Safari’s advanced protection targets the known fingerprinters; it does not cover everything.
- Cross-device matching. If you are signed into the same account on a laptop and a TV, activity can be joined across devices without any advertising identifier being involved.
- First-party data. The shops you search inside, the streaming services, the delivery apps. They know what you bought from them because you gave them your email.
- In-app sponsored results. Map and search apps that sell placement inside their own interface. There is generally no opt-out for this on Apple Maps.
On top of that, opting out does not delete the identifier permanently. Delete the advertising ID and a new one is generated the next time an app asks, and the profile starts building again from that point. On iPhone the identifier stays at zeros as long as you leave Limit Ad Tracking on, which is the stronger setting. Resetting the ID every month or two is a reasonable habit for Android.
Common mistakes that undo your settings
Changing only the browser settings. The most common failure. A private browser stops web tracking and does nothing about 40 apps reading the identifier. Work through the operating system switch first, then the browser.
Treating the advertising ID as a password. It is not a secret and it is not a security credential. Anyone who can reach it can pass it around, and it is meant to be resettable. People who assume they are compromised after reading about it do nothing at all, which is the worst outcome.
Reinstalling apps to fix it. Uninstalling and reinstalling does not change a system-level identifier, and on Android a fresh install often requests a brand new one. It also signs you out and, on some apps, loses local data. Delete the identifier instead.
Expecting every ad to disappear. Turning off personalization means generic ads, not no ads. Free apps are supported by advertising, and the developer still gets to serve something. If the goal is fewer ads rather than less profiling, that is a different tool and worth a separate decision.
Stacking three blockers at once. Multiple DNS filters and ad-blocking apps on the same phone interfere with each other, and broken pages are usually blamed on the tracking settings rather than on the filter stack. One is enough.
Assuming a VPN solves it. A VPN hides your IP address from the network. It does not stop advertising identifiers, cookies, tracking pixels or server-side records. Users on privacy forums describe this constant confusion in almost identical terms.
Forgetting the per-app list. The system switch and the per-app permission list are separate. An app that was allowed before the reset can still hold permission. The list under Tracking on iPhone, and under App permissions on Android, is where you catch that.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can ad tracking be completely disabled on a phone?
No. Turning off the switches removes the advertising identifier, denies cross-app tracking prompts and stops ad personalization, but carrier-level data, server-side account records, browser fingerprinting and cross-device matching all continue outside the phone’s control. You can reduce what advertisers can profile you on. You cannot reach zero, and any guide promising zero is selling something.
Is the advertising ID the same as my IMEI?
No, and the difference matters. The IMEI is the hardware serial number identifying the cell radio, and it is tied to the device. The advertising ID is a resettable software identifier handed to apps for ad purposes only. Deleting the advertising ID leaves your IMEI, your accounts and your device fully intact, which is why the reset is safe and reversible.
What happens after I delete my advertising ID?
The identifier becomes all zeros and apps immediately lose their key to your existing profile. On Android, the next app that requests it receives a newly generated one, so the profile starts building again from that moment. On iPhone, leaving Limit Ad Tracking switched on keeps the identifier at zeros until you change the setting. Nothing is signed out and no app data is lost.
Why is Allow Apps to Request to Track greyed out on my iPhone?
Apple documents four cases: a child account managed through Family Sharing, an organisation-managed or school Apple Account, an iPhone or Apple Account created in the last day or two, and a configuration profile restricting the setting. The child account case means the privacy control is already doing its job. Work and school devices need the administrator, not the phone.
Should Limit Ad Tracking be on or off?
Keep it on. It is a no-lose setting: it tells the system not to share your device data with ad networks and data brokers, and it keeps the advertising identifier at zeros after a delete. The visible cost is that ad-supported content shows you less relevant ads, which most people notice once and never miss again.
Is there a hidden Android setting that turns off all ads?
There is no switch that stops all ads, and the widely shared tip about a hidden Ads menu only leads to the same Google screen as the normal path. What that screen genuinely does is delete the advertising ID and turn off ad personalization, ad topics, app suggested ads and ad measurement. It changes what gets tracked. It does not remove ad slots from free apps.
Conclusion
Start with one thing: open your phone’s tracking or Ads settings right now and delete the advertising identifier. It takes under a minute, it is reversible, and it is the change that actually cuts the profile advertisers have built about you.
Then repeat the routine after a major software update. A new iOS release can move a menu, and an Android update can reset manufacturer ad services back to their defaults without telling you.
Once a month, spend ten minutes on the rest: revoke an app permission you do not recognise, clear browser site data, and check whether the per-app tracking list on iPhone or the advertising ID permission on Android has grown back. Small settings drift back open more often than most people expect, and a ten-minute check is cheaper than rebuilding the whole thing later.