Pi Hole Ad Blocker Setup Guide

What you’ll need:

-Your Pi Hole device (included)

-The power adapter (included)

-The Ethernet cable (included)

-A phone/tablet/computer already connected to your home network/WiFi

-Access to your home router (admin login & password)

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Step 1: Plug in and connect Pi Hole

Place the Pi Hole device near your router if possible (or near a network switch connected to your router).

Plug the Ethernet cable in:

-One end → into the Pi Hole device

-The other end → into an open LAN port on your router (or your network switch)

-Plug in the power adapter to the Pi Hole device.

-Wait 2–3 minutes for it to fully start up.

✅ At this point, Pi Hole is on your network and should have an IP address from your router.

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Step 2: Find the Pi Hole IP address on your network

You’ll need the Pi Hole’s IP address to access its dashboard and to set it as your DNS server.

Option A: Check your router’s “Connected Devices” or DHCP list

Open a web browser on a device already connected to your home network or Wi-Fi.

Log into your router’s Admin portal IP address. Sometimes the Router’s IP and login info is on a sticker on the Router itself (see some common router addresses below):

http://192.168.0.1

http://192.168.1.1

http://10.0.0.1

Once logged in, look for a section like:

-Connected Devices

-Device List

-DHCP Clients

-LAN Client Status

Find the device named:

pihole

Or a “raspberry pi” device with a new IP address

Write down that IP address (for example: 192.168.1.25)

Option B: Use a computer (Windows)

On a Windows PC, press Windows Key + R on the keyboard or search CMD

-In the pop-up box Type: cmd → press Enter

-In the Command Prompt box Type: ping pihole → press Enter

-Find the “Reply From” IP (for example: 192.168.1.25) → this is your Pi Hole IP

-Write down that IP address (for example: 192.168.1.25)

Option C: Use a free Network Scanning Tool

If you can’t find it in the router:

Install a free network scanning tool like Advanced IP Scanner or Angry IP Scanner

Scan your network and look for pihole or Raspberry Pi listed as a device. 

Write the IP address down.

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Step 3: Open the Pi Hole dashboard (via web access)

Once you have located your Pi Hole IP address on your network:

On any device connected to your network, open a web browser (Chrome, Edge, Safari).

In the browser address search bar, using the located IP address, type:

http:// YOUR Pi Hole IP address/admin

(*Replacing YOUR Pi Hole IP address with the located Pi Hole IP address)

For example: http://192.168.1.25/admin

*You should now see the Pi Hole Admin Dashboard.

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Step 4: Log into Pi Hole Admin Portal

If you are prompted for a login password, use the Pi Hole admin password that was provided with your device/setup paperwork. 

By default, this password is: password

If you were not locate yours, contact us via Ebay Messenger. 

✅ After logging in, you can view queries blocked, top clients, and basic settings.

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Step 5: Set your router to use your Pi Hole as DNS (*most important step)

This is what makes Pi Hole Ad Blocker work for your whole home network.

Router DNS Setup (General Steps)

Log into your router again using your web browser:

Again, common router IP addresses: 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1

Find the DNS settings. They’re usually under one of the below:

-Internet Settings

-WAN Settings

-LAN Settings

-DHCP Settings

Look for settings fields named:

-DNS Server

-Primary DNS

-Secondary DNS

Set the Primary DNS IP to the IP Address for your Pi Hole:

Primary DNS → Set to Pi Hole IP address

 For example: 192.168.1.25

What to use for Secondary DNS?

Best blocking (recommended): leave Secondary DNS blank (*if your router allows it)

If your router requires a secondary DNS, use the Pi Hole IP again or an alternate below:

Secondary DNS → Set to Pi Hole IP address, 127.0.0.1 or 0.0.0.0

⚠️ If you put an active DNS server, like Google DNS (8.8.8.8) or Cloudflare (1.1.1.1) as the Secondary DNS, some devices may bypass your Pi Hole and ads may still appear.

*Save/Apply changes.

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Step 6: Prevent problems by reserving a “static” IP for your Pi Hole device

If your router gives Pi Hole a different IP address in the future, your DNS settings will break, and you may not be able to browse the internet.

Reserve the Pi Hole IP in your router (recommended)

In your router’s settings, find:

-DHCP Reservation

-Address Reservation

-Static Lease

Select the Pi Hole device and choose:

-Reserve this IP or Set Static

-Save changes.

✅ Now your Pi Hole will always keep the same IP address on your network. 

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Step 7: Restart devices so they pick up the new DNS

After changing the router's DNS, it may be a good idea to restart your home devices. Laptops, Tablets, etc, so it will pull the new settings from your router.

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Step 8: Confirm Pi Hole is working

Quick test (easy)

Go back to the Pi Hole dashboard:

via http:// YOUR Pi Hole IP address/admin

On the dashboard, you should see:

Queries increasing and Blocked count increasing over time

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Allowing or Blocking additional domains (if needed):

If you need to manually add a domain that still shows Ads, or allow a domain to not be blocked, you can do so by the following:

Log into your Pi Hole admin dashboard, on the left side, click ‘Domains’. 

Here you can ‘Add to denied domains’ or ‘Add to allowed domains’.

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Update the Gravity Global Blocking List (as needed):

You can update the global list of blocked Ad domains periodically (*we suggest once a month).

Log into your Pi Hole admin dashboard, on the left side, click ‘Tools’. 

Under ‘Tools’, click ‘Update Gravity’, then click ‘Update’.

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Turn off Ad Blocking for whole network (as needed):

If you need to temporarily turn off Ad blocking for your home network, do the following:

Log into your Pi Hole admin dashboard, on the left side, click ‘Disable Blocking’.

Then select the time frame you wish to disable Ad blocking for your network.

To turn Ad blocking back on, click ‘Enable Blocking’.

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Common troubleshooting Issues

“Pi Hole page won’t load”

Make sure you’re connected to the same home network/Wi-Fi for all devices

Confirm the Pi Hole IP hasn’t changed (Step 2)

Try: http://YOUR Pi Hole IP address/admin

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“Ads still show up”

Make sure router DNS server setting is pointing to Pi Hole IP Address (Step 5)

Secondary DNS may be bypassing Pi Hole (leave it blank, Pi Hole IP, 127.0.0.1 or 0.0.0.0)

Restart the device (Step 7)

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“Some apps still show ads”

Some apps use built-in ad delivery services or encrypted DNS methods (DoH/DoT). Not all Ads can be or will be blocked, but a substantial portion of website Ads will be blocked. 

Pi Hole blocks many ads, but not every in-app ad is blockable. Some streaming services may utilize different Ad injection methods, so don’t be alarmed if some Ads still come through via streaming services.

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Quick Reference Info (*record this info for future use)

Access the Pi Hole Dashboard at: http:// YOUR Pi Hole IP address/admin

Router DNS → Set Primary DNS: Your Pi Hole IP Address

Router DNS → Set Secondary DNS: Your Pi Hole IP, 0.0.0.0 or 127.0.0.1