Guide for Disabling Political Advertisements on Social Platforms
In today's digital age, maintaining control over your social media experience is more important than ever. Here's a guide on how to minimize political ads on major social media platforms and Google.
Facebook and Instagram (Meta)
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, announced that it will stop all political, electoral, and social issue advertising in the European Union starting October 2025 due to new EU transparency laws [1][3]. Outside the EU, users cannot fully turn off political ads but can limit ad targeting by going to Settings > Ads > Ad Preferences and managing interests or categories related to politics.
Twitter allows users to control some ad preferences. Go to Settings and Privacy > Privacy and Safety > Ads Preferences and disable "Personalize ads based on inferred identity" or interests including political topics. However, complete blocking of political ads is not available.
As Instagram is owned by Meta, the same restriction in the EU applies, with a ban starting October 2025 in the EU [1][3]. Elsewhere, Instagram users can manage ad preferences via Settings > Ads similarly to Facebook.
YouTube
YouTube users can limit political ad exposure by adjusting ad settings in their Google account. Go to Google Account > Data & Privacy > Ad Personalization and turn off personalization or remove interests related to politics. You can also use YouTube Premium to avoid ads altogether.
LinkedIn does not offer a direct "turn off political ads" option. Users can customize ad preferences under Settings & Privacy > Advertising > Ad Settings, where you can control ad personalization. Direct political ad blocking is not yet possible.
Google has stopped serving political ads to EU users ahead of regulation enforcement similar to Meta’s move [3]. For others, go to Google Ads Settings (adssettings.google.com) and turn off ad personalization or remove political interest categories.
Third-Party Tools
Using third-party tools such as ad blockers and filters can help users avoid unwanted ads, including political content.
Reporting Ads
Users can provide feedback on specific ads they find misleading or inappropriate, and platforms offer "Report Ad" features for this purpose.
Staying Informed
Following neutral news outlets, using independent fact-checkers, or subscribing to newsletters that offer ad-free civic updates can help users stay politically aware without watching ads.
Understanding the algorithms behind social media platforms can help users curate their feeds to align with their interests while minimizing unwanted political content. Regularly updating preferences and using the 'report' or "hide" options on ads to fine-tune the ad algorithm to your preferences can help further minimize political ads.
Election Transparency Centers on platforms like Meta, Google, and others let users see who is running political ads and how much they’re spending. This transparency can empower users to make informed decisions about their online experience.
By taking control of your ad preferences, you can create a more serene and enjoyable online environment, keeping your feed focused on personal interests and less on political discourse.
- To limit political ads on Facebook and Instagram (Meta), users can manage their ad preferences by going to Settings > Ads > Ad Preferences and adjusting interests or categories related to politics.
- On Twitter, users can control some ad preferences by disabling "Personalize ads based on inferred identity" or interests in the Ads Preferences section under Settings and Privacy > Privacy and Safety.
- To minimize political ads on YouTube, users can adjust ad settings in their Google account by going to Google Account > Data & Privacy > Ad Personalization and turning off personalization or removing interests related to politics.
