# Google AdSense Hacker Approved page: https://hackerapproved.com/p/google-adsense/ 7 people recommended Google AdSense in Hacker News comments, 4 had mixed feelings and 46 criticized it, November 2025 to October 2026. It was recommended in 4 of 12 months, in 6 threads. It does not meet the Hacker Approved badge rule. **Verdict:** Criticized more than recommended: critics most often cite sudden account bans and falling earnings; those who recommend it cite steady early income from websites, with many recalling payouts that paid for rent and school. Summary written by Claude from the comments below. ## What people warn about - Accounts suspended or banned without payment (3 comments in the sample): "Google support was not helpful and after a series of reviews, they permanently shut down Adsense for this site." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47669263)) "My AdSense account was suspended three times because I had an exclamation mark in my ad." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45799248)) "Every person and company I know who had an Adsense account was banned and not paid." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47669424)) - Malware and privacy concerns (3 comments in the sample): "they don't need breaches for them to have privacy issues given that elephant sized conflict of interest" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47002851)) "Ad blocking is necessary to avoid malware and spyware which is spread by google adsense all the time." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46215663)) "Hasn't AdSense been known to be a malware delivery vector for over a decade by now?" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46947780)) - Intrusive, repetitive ads (3 comments in the sample): "Google had initially a good program that was based on keywords and non-intrusive ads. They killed that in the pursuit of more profits." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47670291)) "Because ads are cancerous, it may make you a few dollars, it massively reduces the usage of the internet" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47673033)) "the typical Google Adsense garbage where the same ad is plastered in 4 different places on the page" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48117833)) - Income falling despite more visitors (2 comments in the sample): "I noticed it ticking down year over year after 2018." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47669385)) "Then one month it suddenly halved for no apparent reason. And it kept dropping." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47669213)) ## Why people recommend it - Early income for small websites (3 comments in the sample): "Google AdSense was like the cambrian explosion allowing tons of businesses to get traction in the early days" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47615669)) "that first couple cents/bucks a month from Adsense convinced me to spend more time on it" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48768502)) "That first check bought us a freezer. The next paid our rent." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47669971)) - Paid for education and living costs (2 comments in the sample): "thanks Google Adsense for paying for practically half my education" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47671058)) "I owe my life to ads. Thank you Google AdSense and Yahoo! Ads" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49433776)) ## Other advertising platforms people recommend - [Google Ads](https://hackerapproved.com/p/google-ads/): 14 recommend, 9 mixed, 138 criticize - [Instagram ads](https://hackerapproved.com/p/instagram-ads/): 11 recommend, 1 mixed, 4 criticize - [Meta Ads](https://hackerapproved.com/p/meta-ads/): 11 recommend, 1 mixed, 24 criticize ## Where to get it - [Visit the official site](https://adsense.google.com/start/) ## The badge A product earns the Hacker Approved badge when at least 10 people recommend it, recommenders outnumber critics at least 2 to 1 (mixed feelings count toward neither side), it was recommended in at least 4 of the 12 months and in at least 5 different threads, and no single thread supplies more than half of the people who recommend it. Health and money products are never badged. ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "Google AdSense", https://hackerapproved.com/p/google-adsense/ (7 recommend, 4 mixed, 46 criticize; Hacker News comments, November 2025 to October 2026). Counts updated 2 Nov 2026, with data through October 31, 2026.