# NoScript 61 Hacker News commenters recommended NoScript and 11 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 12 of 13 months; owners who said how long report a median of 10 years (4 owners). It meets the Hacker Approved badge rule. **Verdict:** People recommend it for blocking JavaScript by domain, which cuts trackers, pop-ups and junk, with selective whitelisting. The common caveat is that it breaks many sites and needs frequent per-site allowing. ## Why people recommend it - Per-domain script whitelisting (8 comments): "I've found NoScript actually very usable, as long as you allow yourself to be fairly liberal in marking domains "trusted."" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49559139)) "I've found NoScript actually very usable, as long as you allow yourself to be fairly liberal in marking domains" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49603895)) "Whitelisting per-domain and per-site what can run Javascript does more for my privacy than anything else" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49428758)) - Strong protection against web attacks (6 comments): "you can disable extensions and run noscript. that should take care of most attack vectors that people roll." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50279335)) "we can achieve security through extensions like noscript or ublock origin or firefox containers" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47869322)) "you need to run NoScript to block all javascript if you want to be remotely secure on the web" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47725301)) - Pairs well with uBlock Origin (6 comments): "Give it just enough capability to run uBlock Origin and NoScript." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46422586)) "uBlock Origin and NoScript can block almost all these annoyances" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46452777)) "run uBlock Origin and NoScript and you probably won't need it" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47395290)) - Blocks trackers, pop-ups and nag screens (5 comments): "This cuts down on the volume of garbage sites I waste time on and shields me from novel trackers not on any block list." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49553746)) "Run NoScript and cut out all the data broker bloat, allowing just a limited number of critical scripts to run." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46494892)) "You really need NoScript and LocalCDN in the arsenal to pare back the invasive abuse of privacy." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49276279)) ## What people warn about - Breaks many sites and features (7 comments): "This is why I put up with NoScript, it's frustrating sometimes to determine what a site actually needs to function" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47480562)) "blocking scripts actually breaks too much to be a good, general workaround against web pages being too heavy" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47395963)) "I still block Javascript everywhere just so that things will actually work and won't crash my browser" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46454084)) - Constant per-site allowing is tedious (3 comments): "I'd given up on that a while ago because I basically had to disable it everywhere" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47374617)) "I don't want to have to allow the minimum for each site" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46304854)) "that's a big pain for an average person" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48764252)) - Too advanced for average users (2 comments): "NoScript and uMatrix were a great help - for very advanced users." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49515806)) "that's a big pain for an average person" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48764252)) ## Alternatives hackers recommend - [SponsorBlock](https://hackerapproved.com/p/sponsorblock.md): 137 recommend - [Firefox Multi-Account Containers](https://hackerapproved.com/p/firefox-containers.md): 76 recommend - [Consent-O-Matic](https://hackerapproved.com/p/consent-o-matic.md): 36 recommend - [LibRedirect](https://hackerapproved.com/p/libredirect.md): 35 recommend - [uMatrix](https://hackerapproved.com/p/umatrix.md): 31 recommend ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "NoScript", https://hackerapproved.com/p/noscript/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).