How to remove AdGuard DNS from any device

To remove AdGuard DNS, undo it in the same place where it was added. There is no single off switch, because the name covers different things and each one lives in a different place. Find out which kind you have, then follow only the sections that match.

DNS (domain name system) is the service that turns a name like example.org into an address. If you want the background, read what DNS is and how a lookup works. After you remove AdGuard DNS, your device stops sending these lookups to AdGuard, so any filtering AdGuard did for that device also stops. If trust is your reason for leaving, read whether AdGuard is a Russian company first.

Which kind of AdGuard DNS do you have?

Each kind below is undone differently.

• A device setting. You typed an AdGuard hostname or IP address into a network setting, or you installed a configuration profile. This also covers a router and Chrome's Secure DNS setting.
• An AdGuard app or extension. For example AdGuard Ad Blocker, AdGuard VPN, the AdGuard DNS app, or an AdGuard browser extension.
• AdGuard Home. This is a DNS server with a web interface that you run on your own system. Your devices or your router point at that machine. The guide to AdGuard DNS vs AdGuard Home explains the difference.

One quick test helps. If one device has the problem, start with that device. If every device on one network has the problem, start with the router or AdGuard Home, because devices on automatic settings get their DNS server from the router.

You can have more than one of these at the same time. A phone can hold a Private DNS hostname while its Wi-Fi router also uses AdGuard. Remove each one that you find.

What AdGuard DNS hostnames and addresses should you look for?

AdGuard's current public pages list these hostnames:

• Default server, with filtering: dns.adguard-dns.com
• Non-filtering server: unfiltered.adguard-dns.com
• Family server: family.adguard-dns.com

The default server also appears in these forms: https://dns.adguard-dns.com/dns-query for DoH (DNS over HTTPS), tls://dns.adguard-dns.com for DoT (DNS over TLS, transport layer security) and quic://dns.adguard-dns.com for DoQ (DNS over QUIC).

Plain IP addresses from AdGuard begin like this:

• IPv4: 94.140.14. or 94.140.15.
• IPv6: 2a10:50c0:

These beginnings cover the default, non-filtering and family servers. AdGuard's public DNS page lists each full address if you want to compare an exact value.

A personal AdGuard DNS account uses different values from the public servers, but the addresses in AdGuard's account and router guides begin the same way. On Android, a personal setup uses a hostname in the form {Your_Device_ID}.d.adguard-dns.com.

Your setting may hold a different AdGuard name, such as dns.adguard.com. AdGuard's public DNS page lists dns.adguard-dns.com and does not mention that other name, so this guide cannot tell you if it still works. You remove it in the same way.

How to remove AdGuard DNS on Android

A typed AdGuard hostname on Android lives in the Private DNS setting. See what Private DNS is if the term is new.

1. Open Settings > Network & internet > Private DNS.
2. Look at the selected option. If Private DNS provider hostname is selected and the field holds an AdGuard name, this is your setting.
3. Choose Automatic or Off.
4. Tap Save.

Menu names change between phones and Android versions. AdGuard's Android guide gives the path as Settings > Wi-Fi & Internet > Advanced > Private DNS. Your phone may use Network and Internet in place of Wi-Fi & Internet.

Google says that, by default, your device uses Private DNS with all networks that can use it. So do not look for this setting under one Wi-Fi network. Both Automatic and Off stop using the typed hostname. To choose between them, read should Private DNS mode be on or off.

To remove the AdGuard for Android app, open Settings > Apps (Apps & notifications on some versions), find AdGuard, and press Uninstall. Then check Private DNS again.

The AdGuard DNS app is a separate product. AdGuard's Android page only says to click Enable to start protection. It gives no steps to stop or uninstall that app, so look for the control on the app's own screen, then run the checks near the end of this guide.

How to remove AdGuard DNS on iPhone and iPad

There are three places to check. Check all of them, because one device can use more than one.

Delete the configuration profile

1. Open Settings > General > VPN & Device Management.
2. Select the AdGuard profile.
3. Tap Delete Profile. AdGuard's page calls this button Remove Profile, so the label on your device may differ.
4. Enter your passcode if asked, and follow the prompts.
5. Restart the device.

Apple warns that deleting a profile also deletes the settings, apps and data tied to that profile. On a school or work device, ask the administrator first.

AdGuard says a configuration profile is ignored while you use a VPN (virtual private network). This means a profile can appear to do nothing while a VPN is on. Delete it anyway if you want it gone.

Check the DNS entry and delete the app

AdGuard's iOS guide turns on its DNS at Settings > General > VPN & Device Management > DNS, so look there for an AdGuard entry. This guide could not confirm exactly how that screen turns the entry off, so read the options on your device.

AdGuard's iOS page gives no removal steps for its apps. Apple's normal steps work for any app:

1. Touch and hold the app on the Home Screen or in App Library.
2. Tap Remove App, then tap Delete App.
3. Tap Delete to confirm.

Do not tap Remove from Home Screen, because the app then stays in App Library. After you delete the app, check the DNS screen again.

Check the Wi-Fi network's DNS

Open Settings > Wi-Fi and tap the Info button next to your network. Apple lists DNS among the settings for that network. Tap the DNS setting and remove any AdGuard address from the list above. Apple's guide does not name the options on that screen, so read them on your device. This setting belongs to one network, so repeat the check on other networks where you added it.

How to remove AdGuard DNS on Windows

1. Open Settings > Network & internet.
2. For Wi-Fi, open Wi-Fi > Manage known networks and pick your network. For a cable, open Ethernet and pick your network.
3. Next to IP assignment, choose Edit. AdGuard's Windows guide calls this DNS server assignment, so the label can differ between Windows builds.
4. Choose Automatic (DHCP).

DHCP (dynamic host configuration protocol) means your router or access point sets the IP address and the DNS server for you. Microsoft recommends this option. If you set a fixed IP address on purpose, Automatic (DHCP) replaces that too. In that case stay on Manual and change only the DNS entries.

If you used AdGuard's DoH address on Windows 11, also look at the DNS over HTTPS setting. Its options are Off, On (automatic template) and On (manual template), and there is a Fallback to plaintext toggle. Set it back to Off, or switch the connection to Automatic (DHCP). Microsoft does not describe this as a removal step. It is the logical result of how its page describes these options. With Off, DNS queries go out unencrypted. Microsoft says this setting is not available in Windows 10.

AdGuard's AdGuard Home guide uses an older screen: the IPv4 properties of the active connection, under Use the following DNS server addresses. If you find AdGuard addresses there, remove them on that screen.

To remove the AdGuard for Windows app, open Start > Settings > Apps > Installed apps, select AdGuard, open the three-dot menu, and choose Uninstall. Then restart. The uninstaller saves a backup of your settings to C:\ProgramData\Adguard\Backups. AdGuard's page does not say that network or DNS settings change back on uninstall, so check them afterwards.

How to remove AdGuard DNS on a Mac

For a configuration profile:

1. On macOS 15 or later, open System Settings > General > Device Management.
2. On macOS 13 or 14, open System Settings > Privacy & Security > Profiles. You may need to scroll down. AdGuard's page gives this same path.
3. On macOS 12 or earlier, open System Preferences > Profiles.
4. Select the profile, click the minus button, and confirm.

Apple's warning about deleted settings and work devices applies here too.

For DNS servers you typed by hand:

1. Open the Apple menu, then System Settings > Network.
2. Click a network service, then click Details, then DNS.
3. Select the AdGuard server in the list.
4. Click the Remove button at the bottom of the DNS servers list.

Wi-Fi and Ethernet are separate services, so check each one you use. On older macOS, AdGuard's guide places this list under Network > Advanced > DNS.

To remove the AdGuard for Mac app, open Applications in Finder, right-click AdGuard, and choose Move to Trash. AdGuard also offers an advanced uninstall for leftover files, and it says to use that only if you know what you are doing.

How to remove AdGuard DNS from Chrome

Chrome has its own Secure DNS setting, separate from the operating system. If you typed AdGuard here, the operating system screens will look clean while Chrome still uses it.

1. On a computer, open More > Settings > Privacy and security > Security, and find Use secure DNS under Advanced. On Android, open More > Settings > Privacy and security > Use secure DNS.
2. If a custom provider is selected, choose your current service provider, or turn the setting off.

This setting can break pages in one specific way. In automatic mode, Chrome falls back to an unencrypted lookup if a secure lookup fails. A custom provider does not fall back, so a lookup that fails through that provider gets no second try. Automatic mode is Chrome's default. Chrome's secure DNS feature cannot be used on a managed device or with parental controls on.

To remove an AdGuard extension from Chrome on a computer, right-click its icon to the right of the address bar and choose Remove from Chrome. If you cannot see the icon, open the Chrome menu, choose Extensions > Manage extensions, find AdGuard, select Remove, and confirm. The same page has a switch that turns the extension off without removing it.

How to remove AdGuard DNS from a router

Router menus differ by brand, so no single path works for everyone. AdGuard's universal guide tells you to open the admin page, find the DNS settings, and replace the DNS servers with AdGuard's. To undo that, go back to the same screen.

1. Open your router's admin page.
2. Find the DNS settings. For AdGuard Home, these can be in the router's DHCP settings.
3. Replace every AdGuard address with the values you had before.
4. Save.

AdGuard's guide gives no steps to restore old values. If you did not write them down, look for an automatic option on that screen, or ask your internet provider which values to use. Do not reset the router's password as a shortcut. AdGuard warns that a password reset also resets the router to its factory settings.

After the change, devices may keep the old DNS server until they reconnect. Turn Wi-Fi off and on, or restart the device, then test.

How to remove AdGuard Home

The order matters here. Change your devices first, and uninstall second. If you uninstall first, every device that points at that machine keeps asking a server that no longer answers, so names stop resolving on your whole network.

1. Point your router and any manually set devices at another DNS server, using the steps above.
2. Remove AdGuard Home in the way that matches how you installed it.

For a regular install, run this from the AdGuard Home directory, then delete that directory:

./AdGuardHome -s uninstall

For a Snap install:

snap remove adguard-home

For Docker, AdGuard's instruction is to stop and remove the image. If you plan to replace AdGuard Home, compare Pi-hole and AdGuard Home before you change your devices, so you only change them once.

How to confirm AdGuard DNS is gone

Start with the setting itself. Reopen the screen you changed and confirm that no hostname or address from the list above remains. On a phone, this is your main check.

On a computer, also ask the system which server answers:

nslookup example.org

Read the Server line. AdGuard's FAQ uses this line to confirm that AdGuard Home is in use, and you can read it the other way. If it still shows an AdGuard address, or the machine that ran AdGuard Home, your computer still uses it. You may also see a line that says the answer is non-authoritative. That line is normal, and this guide explains what a non-authoritative answer means.

On Windows, this command shows the full configuration of every adapter, so you can read the DNS entries for the one you use:

ipconfig /all

If AdGuard Home is still running while you test, open its Query Log page. New lookups from the device you changed should stop appearing there.

These checks do not cover Chrome, because Chrome has its own setting. Check that screen separately.

Why do pages still fail after you remove AdGuard DNS?

First, find out if the problem is DNS at all:

ping 1.1.1.1

Press Ctrl+C to stop it on Linux or macOS. If you get replies but nslookup example.org fails, the connection works and the problem is still DNS. If ping also fails, look at the network connection first. Some networks block ping, so one failed result does not prove the link is down.

If the problem is DNS, work through these causes.

The device stored an old result. On Windows, this command flushes and resets the DNS client cache. Microsoft notes that the cache can hold negative entries, which are stored failures, so a name that failed earlier can keep failing until you clear them.

ipconfig /flushdns

On a Linux server, follow how to flush the DNS cache on Ubuntu. On any device, a restart is a simple next step. Apple includes a restart in its profile removal steps.

A second layer still holds AdGuard. The usual pairs are Private DNS and a router, or a profile and a Wi-Fi network's own DNS. Test the same device on another network. If it works there, the first network's router is the place to look. If it fails on both, the setting is on the device.

A profile came back to life. A configuration profile is ignored while a VPN is on, so it can start working again when you turn the VPN off. Check VPN & Device Management again.

Chrome fails but other apps work. Open Use secure DNS and check for a custom provider. A custom provider has no fallback, so it can fail in Chrome alone.

The router or device points at a removed AdGuard Home. The old address stays in the setting after the server is gone. Replace it, then reconnect the device.

Different apps show different results on an Apple device. AdGuard lists iCloud Private Relay, Safari's Advanced Tracking and Fingerprinting Protection (iOS 17 onward) and the per-Wi-Fi Limit IP Address Tracking setting as things that can bypass AdGuard DNS. They can make Safari take a different path from other apps. AdGuard's page is about bypassing its service and does not cover failures after removal, so treat these as places to look, not as known causes.

FAQ

Should I set Android Private DNS to Off or Automatic to remove AdGuard DNS?

Either one stops using a typed AdGuard hostname. Open Settings > Network & internet > Private DNS, choose Automatic or Off, and tap Save. Menu names vary by phone and Android version.

Is dns.adguard.com the same as dns.adguard-dns.com?

AdGuard's current public DNS page lists dns.adguard-dns.com and does not mention dns.adguard.com, so the current status of that name could not be confirmed. If you find either name in a setting, the removal steps are the same.

Does uninstalling the AdGuard app also remove AdGuard DNS?

Do not assume that it does. AdGuard's Windows uninstall page does not say that network or DNS settings change back. A typed hostname, a configuration profile and a router entry are all separate from the app, so check each setting after you uninstall.

How can I tell that AdGuard DNS is really gone?

Reopen the setting you changed and confirm that no AdGuard hostname or address remains. On a computer, run nslookup example.org and read the Server line. If it shows an AdGuard address, the computer still uses AdGuard. Chrome has its own Secure DNS setting, so check that screen as well.

Why did every device lose DNS after I uninstalled AdGuard Home?

Those devices still point at the machine that ran AdGuard Home, and that machine no longer answers DNS lookups. AdGuard says to change your devices before you uninstall. Fix it now by replacing that address in your router's DNS settings and on any device set by hand, then reconnect the devices.