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Browser Extensions · head to head

Night Eye vs uBlock Origin

Night Eye logo

Night Eye

Browser Extensions

Dark mode on any website

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
uBlock Origin logo

uBlock Origin

Browser Extensions

Free, open-source ad content blocker

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Night Eye can impact browser performance, especially on older or less powerful devices due to color conversion processing; uBlock Origin cNAME uncloaking of third-party trackers disguised as first-party is only available on Firefox, because the required DNS API does not exist in Chromium
  • They diverge on capability: Night Eye covers Dark mode, uBlock Origin covers Ad blocking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Night Eye and uBlock Origin actually diverge.

Attributes where Night Eye and uBlock Origin differ
AttributeNight EyeuBlock Origin
Pricing modelUnknownfree
PlatformsChrome, Safari, Edge, Firefox, Opera, BraveChrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera
Founded20182014

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Browser Extensions).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Night Eye

  • Dark mode
  • Color analysis
  • Image preservation
  • Per-site settings
  • Safari support

Only in uBlock Origin

  • Ad blocking
  • Tracker blocking
  • Malware domain blocking
  • Custom filter lists

Both cover

  • Chrome support
  • Firefox support
  • Edge support
  • Opera support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Night Eye

  • Force a consistent dark mode on websites that don't natively support onenot uBlock Origin
  • Reduce eye strain and blue light exposure during night browsing via a built-in blue-light filternot uBlock Origin
  • Per-site color, brightness, contrast, and saturation customizationnot uBlock Origin
  • Selectively convert only icons/small images rather than full images to preserve visual fidelity in dark modenot uBlock Origin

uBlock Origin

  • Blocking advertisements and third-party trackers in the browsernot Night Eye
  • Running a default-deny policy on third-party scripts and resourcesnot Night Eye
  • Element picking and cosmetic filtering of unwanted page contentnot Night Eye

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Night Eye

  • Can impact browser performance, especially on older or less powerful devices due to color conversion processing
  • Ineffective on web applications with fixed color schemes that cannot be altered
  • Does not work offline or on non-web content
  • Limited customization on websites that have their own built-in dark mode implementation

uBlock Origin

  • CNAME uncloaking of third-party trackers disguised as first-party is only available on Firefox, because the required DNS API does not exist in Chromium
  • HTML filtering of response bodies requires the webRequest.filterResponseData API, which is only available in Firefox
  • On Chromium-based browsers uBO is not reliably ready at browser launch, so tracker and advertisement payloads can reach already-open tabs before filtering starts
  • Pre-fetch blocking is not reliable on Chromium-based browsers because they give websites precedence over user settings
  • The Chromium build does not use the WebAssembly filtering code paths, because the extra manifest permission would create friction publishing to the Chrome Web Store
  • LZ4 storage compression is Firefox only, and on Chromium in incognito mode IndexedDB resets, so uBO launches with out-of-date filter lists

Pricing, plan by plan

Night Eye

Free
  • LiteFree
    • Dark mode on up to 5 websites
    • No ads
  • Pro$9/year
    • Up to 3 browsers
  • Pro Max$14/year
    • Up to 6 browsers
  • Lifetime$40/mo
    • Unlimited browsers
    • Lifetime updates

uBlock Origin

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Ad blocking
    • Tracker blocking
    • Custom filter lists

Which should you pick?

Choose Night Eye if

  • You need dark mode.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Chrome, Safari, Edge, Firefox, Opera, Brave.
  • You also want color analysis.
Night Eye review

Choose uBlock Origin if

  • You need ad blocking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera.
  • You also want tracker blocking.
uBlock Origin review

Questions people ask

Is Night Eye or uBlock Origin better?
Neither clearly leads. Night Eye starts at Free and uBlock Origin at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Night Eye or uBlock Origin?
Night Eye starts at Free and uBlock Origin at Free.
Does Night Eye or uBlock Origin run on more platforms?
Night Eye runs on Chrome, Safari, Edge, Firefox, Opera, Brave. uBlock Origin runs on Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera.
Can I use Night Eye for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Night Eye best used for?
Night Eye is most often used for force a consistent dark mode on websites that don't natively support one, reduce eye strain and blue light exposure during night browsing via a built-in blue-light filter, per-site color, brightness, contrast, and saturation customization, selectively convert only icons/small images rather than full images to preserve visual fidelity in dark mode. Of those, force a consistent dark mode on websites that don't natively support one and reduce eye strain and blue light exposure during night browsing via a built-in blue-light filter are not what uBlock Origin is typically brought in for.
What can Night Eye do that uBlock Origin cannot?
Night Eye covers Dark mode, Color analysis, Image preservation, Per-site settings. uBlock Origin covers Ad blocking, Tracker blocking, Malware domain blocking, Custom filter lists. Both handle Chrome support, Firefox support, Edge support, Opera support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Night Eye: What is Night Eye?

Night Eye is a browser extension that applies dark mode to websites by analyzing page colors and converting them into a comfortable dark theme. It preserves photos and videos and offers customization options for brightness, contrast, and blue light filtering.

Source
Night Eye: What is the pricing for Night Eye?

Night Eye Lite is free with dark mode on up to 5 websites. Night Eye Pro costs $9/year for up to 3 browsers, Night Eye Pro Max costs $14/year for up to 6 browsers, and lifetime updates cost $40 for unlimited use across 10 browsers.

Source
Night Eye: Which browsers does Night Eye support?

Night Eye is available for Chrome, Safari, Microsoft Edge, Firefox, Opera, Brave, and other Chromium-based browsers.

Source
Night Eye: Does Night Eye track my browsing?

No. Night Eye does not monitor, process, or store browsing activity. Webpage conversion is performed locally on the user's device. No ads appear in the free Lite version.

Source
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