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On a laptop or desktop device:
- Open a Safari browser window.
- Select the “Safari” menu, and then select “Preferences” from the drop down menu.
- The preference pane will open and then select “Security” on the top row.
- Uncheck the checkbox "Block pop-up windows".
- Close the Preferences window.
From your tablet or iPhone:
- Open the Settings app on your device
- Select "Safari"
- Under “General”, locate “Block Pop-ups” and slide the button to the disabled position in order to allow pop-ups.
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It seems like we put so much effort into blocking things like pop-ups and ads when we’re browsing the web that we forget about sites that actually use pop-ups for good reasons. It could be a shopping site where you get a confirmation, a CMS where you can use tools, or a social site where you log in.
In Safari on iPhone or iPad, you can allow pop-ups globally; and on Mac, you can even allow them just for the specific sites you want. Here’s how to do both.
On iPhone and iPad, you cannot currently specify which sites you want to allow pop-ups for. It’s a global setting that you can enable or disable. The best option to allow pop-ups for a particular site is to turn off the setting, visit the website you want to see the pop-ups for, and then turn the setting back on.
Open Settings and select Safari. Turn off the toggle for Block Pop-ups.
When you finish visiting the site whose pop-ups you want to see, you should strongly consider turning the Block Pop-ups setting back on. Otherwise, you could end up inundated with ads or even unsafe pop-ups on your device.
Related: How to increase privacy in Safari on iPhone and iPad
Allow pop-ups in Safari on Mac
You have a couple of ways to allow pop-ups in Safari on Mac for the sites you trust. You can do this in the Preferences or with the site active in Safari. By taking a few moments to configure certain sites, you’ll save some aggravation later, waiting for that pop-up that never comes.
Allow when on the website
Suppose you clicked a link that triggered a new pop-up window. But if you have restricted pop-up windows in Preferences, the pop-up window won’t open and display a message temporarily in the Safari address bar. Besides that, it will show a tiny pop-up icon. Simply click that icon in the address bar, and it will open the blocked pop-up window.
When starting a live chat with Apple Support or downloading booked train tickets, I always use this method to allow the website to open the requested pop-up window.
Allow pop-ups in Preferences
- Open Safari and click Safari > Preferences from the menu bar.
- Select the Websites tab.
- On the left, scroll down to and pick Pop-Up Windows.
- To the right, you have your Currently Open Websites at the top with any Configured Websites at the bottom. Next to each, select the drop-down box and pick Allow for those you want to allow pop-ups.
For any sites that you don’t want to allow or that you want to be notified, select either Block or Block and Notify in that drop-down box.
At the bottom, next to When visiting other websites, you have a drop-down box with those three options as well. This is a global setting that covers all other sites you visit that you have not yet configured.
Allow pop-ups in the Safari window
- Right-click the address bar for the site you’re viewing and select Settings for site name or Settings For This Website.
- In the small window that appears, go down to Pop-up Windows.
- Use the drop-down box to choose Allow to see pop-ups for that website. Obviously, you can choose Block or Block and Notify for those you don’t want to see pop-ups.
When you use this method to adjust pop-ups for particular websites, these sites will then be added to the Configured Websites list in your Preferences, as explained above.
Hopefully, Apple will offer the ability to configure pop-ups for specific sites in Safari on iPhone and iPad at some point, just like on Mac. But in the meantime, you do have a way to allow pop-ups for the sites you want on all your devices.
Which types of websites do you want or need to see pop-ups for? And will you take the time to make sure you can? Let us know!
More Safari tips:
- How to open multiple websites at once on Mac
- 11 tips to customize and personalize Safari on iPhone and iPad
- How to stop name, address, email, and payment autofill suggestions in Safari
- How to safely install and use Safari extensions on iPhone