I recently found myself staring at an ad for a very specific type of niche outdoor gear—gear I’d only mentioned casually to a friend, not even searched for. It was the final straw. For years, I’d just accepted the background hum of targeted ads, assuming it was a lost cause. But that particular instance made me decide to properly dedicate an afternoon to turning off as much of this personalized ad nonsense as possible on Facebook, Instagram, and Google. Not just blocking ads, mind you, but telling the platforms themselves to dial down the tracking for targeting.
Why the usual tricks fall short
Most folks I talk to think that simply using an ad blocker or clearing browser cookies is enough. And for some things, it helps with the sheer volume of ads. But when it comes to the highly specific, “how did they know that?” kind of ad, those methods barely scratch the surface. Facebook, Google, and Instagram aren’t just serving ads based on your current browsing session. They build deep profiles based on your activity *within their ecosystems*—what you click, what you like, who you connect with, even data from third-party partners. My approach focuses on going into their own settings and explicitly telling them to stop using that profile data to personalize ads. It’s about taking the fight directly to their internal mechanisms, which is the only real way to make a difference in what they *show* you, not just what your browser *displays*.
How to turn off personalized ads
Google’s ad settings are fairly comprehensive, though you’ll need to dig a bit. This is for your main Google Account, which affects Search, YouTube, and other Google services.
- Log in to your Google Account.
- Click on your profile picture in the top right, then select Manage your Google Account.
- On the left-hand navigation menu, click Data & privacy.
- Scroll down to the “Ad settings” box and click on My Ad Center.
- At the very top of the “My Ad Center” page, you’ll see “Personalized ads” with a toggle switch. Flip this off. You’ll likely get a confirmation prompt; confirm it.
- Even after turning off personalized ads, it’s worth reviewing the other sections here. I usually check:
- Customize ads: Even if personalized ads are off, you can review “sensitive categories” and other settings.
- Manage privacy: Go through this to see what data Google *still* collects and stores (e.g., Web & App Activity, Location History, YouTube History). Turning personalized ads off doesn’t stop data collection, only its use for personalization.
Facebook and Instagram
Since Facebook owns Instagram, many of the ad controls are centralized on Facebook’s platform, even for ads you see on Instagram. It means you generally only need to do this once.
- Log in to Facebook on a desktop browser. The mobile app has fewer options here, in my experience.
- Click on your profile picture in the top right corner.
- Select Settings & privacy, then click Settings.
- In the left-hand menu, scroll down and click Ads. This takes you to the “Ad Preferences” page.
- Navigate to Ad Settings in the left column. This is where the real work begins.
- Go through each section and adjust the settings:
- Advertisers you’ve seen recently: I usually click Hide Ads for any advertiser I’m tired of seeing or don’t care about.
- Ad topics: Review this list. If you see topics you have no interest in, or that feel too personal, click on them and select See Fewer or Turn off if available.
- Categories used to reach you: This is a critical one.
- Demographic Categories: Review and remove anything inaccurate or too specific.
- Interests: This list can be alarmingly long. Go through it and remove interests by clicking the ‘x’ next to them. Be ruthless.
- Audience-based advertising: This is where advertisers upload lists of customers (e.g., your email) to target you.
- Set Do you want to see ads based on audience lists? to No.
- Data about your activity from partners:
- Set Do you want to see ads based on data from partners? to Don’t allow.
- Third-Party Data: Ensure this is also restricted.
- **For Instagram specific settings (mostly mirrors Facebook):**
Open the Instagram app on your phone:
- Go to your profile page.
- Tap the three horizontal lines (hamburger menu) in the top right.
- Select Settings and privacy.
- Scroll down to the “Ads” section and tap Ad preferences.
- You’ll mostly find options like Ad topics and Advertisers here. Most deeper controls will direct you back to Facebook’s main Ad Settings page for comprehensive management, which is why I recommend starting there.
Things people often get wrong
The first time I really dug into Facebook’s settings, I thought I was being thorough by just focusing on “Ad topics” and “Advertisers.” I spent a good half hour cleaning those up, feeling quite pleased with myself. Only to realize later I was still getting eerily specific ads because I’d completely missed the deeper “Categories used to reach you” and “Audience-based advertising” sections. Advertisers were still targeting me directly based on uploaded lists or incredibly granular demographic categories I hadn’t explicitly turned off. It meant the ads weren’t *less* targeted, just differently targeted. Had to go back and do it all over, much more thoroughly.
- This isn’t an ad blocker. You will still see ads. They just won’t be tailored to your specific interests or recent searches. You’ll likely see more generic, contextual, or brand-awareness ads.
- Data collection continues. Turning off personalized ads doesn’t stop Google or Meta from collecting your data. It just instructs them not to *use* that data for the purpose of personalizing the ads *they show you*. They still gather information for other purposes, like analytics and service improvement.
- Settings can move or reset. These platforms are notorious for shuffling their privacy settings around or occasionally re-enabling certain options after major updates. It’s not a set-and-forget task. I usually check mine every few months or whenever I feel the ads are getting too specific again.
- Desktop vs. Mobile. While mobile apps have some privacy controls, the most comprehensive and granular options are almost always found on the desktop versions of Facebook and Google’s account pages. Always use a browser on a computer for the initial setup.
- “Why am I seeing this ad?” is your friend. On Facebook and Instagram, there’s often an option on an ad (usually a small “…” menu) that lets you select “Why am I seeing this ad?” This can be incredibly revealing, showing you the exact reason they’re targeting you (e.g., “you liked page X,” or “an advertiser uploaded a customer list that includes you”). Use this feedback to go back and refine your settings further.
Ultimately, taking direct control over these platform-specific ad settings is the most effective way to reclaim a degree of privacy and reduce the feeling of constant surveillance in your digital life.
