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Learn what pop-up windows are and what settings Firefox has for blocking or allowing them.

__TOC__ = What are pop-ups? = Pop-up windows, or pop-ups, are windows that appear automatically without your permission. They vary in size, but usually don't cover the whole screen. Some pop-ups open on top of the current Firefox window, while others appear underneath Firefox (pop-unders). Firefox allows you to control both pop-ups and pop-unders in Firefox [[Template:optionsorpreferences]]. Pop-up blocking is turned on by default, so you don't have to worry about enabling it to prevent pop-ups from appearing in Firefox. When blocking a pop-up, Firefox displays an information bar (if it hasn’t been previously dismissed – see below), as well as an icon [[Image:popup_icon_fx57]] in the address bar. {for win}[[Image:PopupFx89]]{/for}{for mac,linux}[[Image:Fx90Popup-mac]]{/for} When you click either the {button {for win}Options{/for}{for mac,linux}Preferences{/for}} button in the info bar or the icon in the address bar, a menu is displayed with the following choices: * {menu Allow/Block pop-ups for this site} * {menu Edit [[#w_pop-up-blocker-settings|Pop-up Blocker {for win}Options{/for}{for mac,linux}Preferences{/for}…]]} * {menu Don't show this message when pop-ups are blocked} * (show the blocked pop-up) {note} * '''Blocking pop-ups may interfere with some websites''': Some websites, including some banking sites, use pop-ups for important features. Blocking all pop-ups disables such features. To allow specific websites to use pop-ups, while still blocking all others, you can add those specific websites to the list of allowed sites. * '''Blocking pop-ups doesn't always work''': Although Firefox blocks most pop-ups, some websites may show pop-ups using uncovered methods, even when they are blocked. {/note} = Pop-up blocker settings = To access the pop-up blocker settings: # [[T:optionspreferences]] # Select the {menu Privacy & Security} panel. * Under the '''Permissions''' section, uncheck the box next to '''Block pop-up windows''' to disable the pop-up blocker altogether. * A click on {button Exceptions…} opens a dialog box with a list of sites that you want to allow to display pop-ups. * The dialog box offers you the following choices: <br>[[Image:Allowed Websites Pop-ups]] ; '''Allow''': Click this to add a website to the exceptions list. ; '''Remove Website''': Click this to remove a website from the exceptions list. ; '''Remove All Websites''': Click this to remove all the websites in the exceptions list. {note}'''Note:''' Blocking pop-ups may not always work and may interfere with some websites. For more information, see the [[#w_what-are-pop-ups|What are Pop-ups?]] section above.{/note} = Pop-ups not being blocked = == Is the pop-up coming from Firefox? == The pop-up may not actually be coming from Firefox. You can determine where the pop-up is coming from by the appearance of the window. * If you see the address bar with the Tracking Protection button and the Site Identity button (a shield and a padlock) in the pop-up window, the pop-up is coming from Firefox. * If you don't see these buttons, you may have malware on your computer that causes the pop-ups. For help, see [[Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware]]. == Is the pop-up blocker on and enabled for this site? == # [[T:optionspreferences]] # Select the {menu Privacy & Security} panel and go to the '''Permissions''' section. # Make sure the '''Block pop-up windows''' checkbox is checked. # To the right of '''Block pop-up windows''', click the {button Exceptions…} button. A dialog box will open with a list of sites that are allowed to show pop-ups. # If the site that's opening pop-ups is listed here, select it and press {button Remove Website}. # Click on {button Save Changes} to update your changes. # [[T:closeOptionsPreferences]] == Is the pop-up shown after a mouse click or a key press? == Certain events, such as clicking or pressing a key, can spawn pop-ups regardless of if the pop-up blocker is on. This is intentional, so that Firefox doesn't block pop-ups that websites need to work. == Is it a true pop-up window? == Sometimes ads are designed to look like windows, but really aren't. Firefox's pop-up blocker can't stop these ads. == Mozilla surveys == When you visit a Mozilla website, sometimes you'll see a pop-up asking you to participate in a survey. The only third-party that Mozilla ever uses for surveys is [https://www.alchemer.com/ Alchemer] (formerly SurveyGizmo), which has been vetted by our legal and privacy teams. The Firefox pop-up blocker doesn't block these pop-ups.