uBlock Origin Not Working in Chrome? 5 Fixes (2026)

As of March 2026, uBlock Origin v1.70.0 is available on the Chrome Web Store with full MV3 support. It blocks YouTube ads on Chrome, though with reduced filter effectiveness compared to Firefox. If your install stopped working after the MV2 deprecation, a clean reinstall fixes it in under a minute.

Key takeaways

• uBlock Origin v1.70.0 is live on the Chrome Web Store as of March 11, 2026 — gorhill migrated it to MV3.
• If your copy stopped during the MV2 transition, uninstall and reinstall from CWS. It is not gone or replaced.
• For tab suspension and RAM management alongside blocking, add SuperchargePerformance. The two are complementary.

If uBlock Origin stopped working in Chrome during 2025, the MV2-to-MV3 transition was the cause — Chrome disabled Manifest V2 extensions starting with Chrome 138. But the story has moved on. gorhill migrated uBlock Origin to MV3, and as of March 2026, the full extension is back on the Chrome Web Store at version 1.70.0 (updated March 11, 2026). If your copy is still broken, uninstall it and reinstall from CWS.

What Happened During the MV2 Transition

During the transition period, users who had the MV2 version installed saw it disabled. Some uninstalled it entirely. The confusion was real — many people still think uBlock Origin is permanently gone from Chrome. It’s not. The MV3 version uses declarativeNetRequest and Chrome’s content filtering APIs where the old version used webRequest.

What Changed in the MV3 Version

The MV3 architecture imposes different constraints. Some features work differently than they did under MV2:

• The blocking engine uses Chrome’s DNR rules rather than extension-side interception
• gorhill adapted cosmetic filtering and dynamic rules to work within MV3’s capabilities
• The network request logger and element picker are present in the MV3 version
• Filter list sources (EasyList, EasyPrivacy, Peter Lowe’s list, malware lists) remain the same

For a detailed comparison between uBlock Origin (full) and uBlock Origin Lite (the lightweight alternative), see uBlock Origin Lite vs uBlock Origin.

Alternatives If You Need More Than Ad Blocking

uBlock Origin handles ad and tracker blocking. It does not suspend tabs, manage memory, or speed up page loads beyond blocking resource-heavy content. If you need those features alongside blocking:

When Ad Blocking Isn’t the Whole Problem

uBlock Origin handles ads and trackers. It does not suspend inactive tabs, show RAM usage, or manage tab lifecycle. If you run 20+ tabs regularly, the memory problem isn’t just what loads in each tab — it’s how many tabs stay loaded.

SuperchargePerformance covers that gap: tab suspension via chrome.tabs.discard() with a configurable timer, 186K+ DNR rules for tracker and malware blocking (compiled March 2026), cookie consent auto-dismissal on 100+ sites, a per-tab RAM savings dashboard, and 14 auto-protected web apps. Zero telemetry, 100% local, no account. It runs alongside uBlock Origin — the two handle different problems.

Which Setup Makes Sense

• uBlock Origin stopped working → reinstall from CWS, it’s back as MV3
• Want maximum ad blocking on Chrome → uBlock Origin (full) or AdGuard
• Want lightweight blocking with zero overhead → uBlock Origin Lite
• Want tab suspension + tracker blocking in one tool → SuperchargePerformance
• Want both → uBlock Origin for ads + SuperchargePerformance for tabs (they’re complementary)

Related Articles

• uBlock Origin Lite vs uBlock Origin — detailed comparison of the two versions
• Best Vertical Tab Managers for Chrome in 2026 — for users also looking to improve their tab workflow