The Ad & Tracker Blocker is free. Here's what it blocks — and what it doesn't

Open almost any news site on your phone and count what loads. There's the article you came for. Then there are the banners, the video ad that starts playing on its own, the pop-up asking you to subscribe — and, behind all of it, a crowd of requests you never see, going out to companies you've never heard of. Most of those requests aren't there to show you anything. They're there to watch.

Vela has a built-in Ad & Tracker Blocker, and it's free on every plan — including the Free plan. This post explains what it actually does, what you'll notice when it's on, and, just as important, what it can't do. We'd rather you know the limits up front than find them out yourself.

What a tracker actually is

A tracker is a small piece of code, usually belonging to a third party, that a website or app loads alongside its own content. Its job is to record what you do: which page you opened, how long you stayed, what you tapped, what device you're on. That record is sent back to the company that owns the tracker.

On its own, one tracker on one site doesn't learn much. The problem is that the same few tracking companies sit on a huge number of sites and apps. Each visit adds a little to the picture, and over weeks those small pieces add up to a detailed profile — your interests, your routines, sometimes your health worries or your money problems — built without you ever being asked. That profile is then used to decide which ads you see, and sometimes it's sold on.

Ads and trackers usually arrive together. Many ads carry their own tracking, and much of the tracking exists to serve ads. That's why Vela treats them as one problem.

How DNS-level filtering works

Every time your phone needs to reach a website or a server, it first asks a question: 'What's the address for this name?' That lookup is called DNS, and it's like checking a phone book before you dial. Your browser does it for the site you opened, and it does it again for every ad network and tracking service the site tries to load.

When the Ad & Tracker Blocker is on, those lookups go through a filtering DNS resolver while you're connected to Vela. When the name being looked up belongs to a known ad or tracking domain, the lookup simply isn't resolved. There's no address to connect to, so the request goes nowhere. Everything else — the site you actually wanted — resolves normally.

This happens at the network level, before anything is downloaded. That's the key difference from a browser extension that downloads a page and then hides parts of it. With DNS filtering, the blocked pieces never arrive in the first place.

What changes for you

Because blocked requests are never made, the benefits are practical rather than abstract:

• Faster pages. A page that doesn't have to wait for a pile of ad and tracking scripts tends to load and settle sooner, especially on a slow or busy connection.
• Cleaner browsing. Fewer banners, fewer auto-playing ads, fewer layouts that jump around while you're trying to read. Not zero — see the limits below — but noticeably calmer.
• Less mobile data. Ad scripts, images and videos all cost data. When they aren't downloaded, you don't pay for them.
• Less battery. Every extra request and script means work for your phone's radio and processor. Cutting the ones you never wanted can mean a little less drain over a day.
• Less tracking. Every tracker that can't be reached is one fewer company adding to a profile of you.

We don't show a counter of 'ads blocked' or 'megabytes saved' in the app, and that's on purpose: we don't measure it, so we won't invent a number. How much difference you notice depends on what you do. Heavy news reading and browsing will feel the change most; a video call won't feel it at all.

Why it's free on every plan

Some features cost us real money to run for each user — unlimited data, more server locations, more devices. Those are what Premium pays for. Blocking lookups to known ad and tracker domains is different. It's cheap to provide, and it makes the internet better for everyone who uses it.

There's also a simple consistency argument. We don't show ads in Vela — 'zero ads, ever' is on our pricing page for the Free plan, too. It would be odd to promise you an ad-free app and then keep the tool that cuts ads elsewhere behind a paywall. And for Free users, whose plan includes 5 GB of data each month, not spending that allowance on ads and trackers matters more, not less.

The honest limits

DNS filtering is effective, but it has a clear boundary, and it helps to know where it is.

Ads served from the same domain as the content

DNS filtering works by name. If an ad comes from a separate ad domain, it can be stopped. But if a service delivers its ads from the very same servers as its content, blocking the ads would mean blocking the content too. There's no way, at the DNS level, to tell the two apart.

The best-known example is YouTube. Its in-video ads come from the same place as the videos, so the Ad & Tracker Blocker can't remove them. The same is true of many large apps and social platforms that serve their own ads from their own infrastructure. If a product tells you a DNS blocker removes YouTube video ads, be skeptical.

Sites that detect blockers

Some sites notice when their ads don't load and respond by showing a message asking you to turn your blocker off, or by holding back part of the page. That's their choice. If you want to support a site or need to get past that wall, you can switch the blocker off for a while and turn it back on afterwards.

The occasional broken link

Some links — often in marketing emails or on shopping sites — pass through a tracking domain before sending you on to the real page. If that tracking domain is filtered, the link may fail to open. Turning the blocker off briefly usually fixes it.

It isn't a security scanner

The Ad & Tracker Blocker is about ads and tracking. It isn't designed to judge whether a link you've been sent is dangerous. For that, use Scan, which checks a link or QR code on your phone before you open it.

One more practical point: the blocker works while you're connected to Vela, because the filtering happens inside the VPN tunnel. When Vela is disconnected, your phone goes back to its normal DNS and nothing is filtered.

A few common questions

Does it work on Wi-Fi and on mobile data?

Yes. It follows the VPN, not the network. Whenever Vela is connected — at home, on café Wi-Fi, or on 4G and 5G — lookups go through the filter.

Will it break my banking or government apps?

It's rare, because those apps don't normally depend on ad or tracking domains to work. If something you rely on stops loading properly, switch the blocker off, check whether that fixes it, and let our support team know so we can look into it.

Can I choose what gets blocked?

Not item by item. The blocker is a single switch, designed to be sensible without any setup. If you want full control, Premium includes custom DNS settings, so you can point Vela at a DNS service of your own choosing instead.

Does using it count against my data?

The filter itself doesn't add anything meaningful to your usage. If anything, it works the other way: the ads and trackers it stops are data you no longer download, which helps a Free plan's monthly allowance stretch a little further.

How to turn it on or off in Vela

1. Open Vela. On the Home screen, find the Ad & Tracker Blocker card.
2. Tap it to switch it on. If you aren't connected yet, it will say On when you connect — it starts working the moment the tunnel is up.
3. Once you're connected, the card shows Blocking ads & trackers. If you switch it on or off while connected, Vela reconnects briefly to apply the change straight away.
4. To turn it off, tap the card again.

You'll find the same option under DNS settings as Block Ads. Premium users who have set a custom DNS don't lose it: when you switch the blocker off again, Vela puts your previous setting back.

It's a small switch, and it won't make the internet ad-free. What it will do is make your phone quieter, a little quicker, and a lot less chatty with companies you never chose to talk to. That seems worth giving to everyone.