TV Debloat Guide

webOS debloat for LG TVs: remove ads and bloatware, what works

LG TVs run webOS, not Android. There is no ADB shell, so the package lists and commands on the rest of this site do not apply. You still have five real options.

Short answer: you cannot disable LG's own system apps from a computer on retail firmware. You can delete the apps LG lets you delete, turn off the ad and tracking settings, block ad servers with DNS, add an ad-free home app through Developer Mode, or plug in a Google TV streamer and debloat that instead.

Samsung TV? Tizen has its own menus and limits: see Samsung TV debloat (Tizen). Hisense? See Hisense TV debloat.

Why the Google TV method doesn't work here

Debloating Google TV relies on adb shell pm disable-user. On webOS that shell does not exist, and Developer Mode does not add it (see below). Claims of a full "LG debloat" or "webOS debloat" usually mean the steps on this page.

How to remove bloatware from an LG TV: delete the apps you can

Apps you installed can always be removed this way. LG's guide does not promise that every preloaded app can be; if one has no delete option, it is part of the system.

Option 1: Turn off ads and viewing tracking in settings

LG ships automatic content recognition (ACR), which identifies what is on screen, plus ad personalisation and promoted content on the home screen. Menu names and places change between model years, so look for these words:

SystemLook forWhat it does
LG (webOS)Live PlusLG's ACR viewing tracker. Turn it off.
LG (webOS)Home Promotion, Content Recommendation (Home Settings)Promoted tiles and recommendations on the home screen.
LG (webOS)Do Not Track, user agreements for viewing information and interest-based adsAd personalisation. Declining some agreements can switch off LG content services too.
LG (webOS)Limit AD Tracking On, Reset AD ID2021 to 2024: All Settings → Support → Privacy & Terms → Advertisement. 2020 and older: All Settings → General → System → Additional Settings → Advertisement.

Where Live Plus is: 2026 models: hold the Settings button → System → Additional settings. 2025: All Settings → Support → Privacy & Terms → User Agreements (Viewing Information). 2021 to 2024: All Settings → General → System → Additional Settings. 2020: Settings → General → Additional Settings (some 2020 sets have no Live Plus). On 2026 TVs also turn off Screen Saver Promotion and the AI Recommendations under General → AI Service → LG AI Settings.

Exact LG menu paths by webOS version

SettingwebOS 6.0 (2021), webOS 22 (2022) and newerwebOS 5.0 (2020)
Home screen ad bannerSettings → All Settings → General → System → Additional Settings → Home Settings → Home Promotion → Off–
Trending and recommended rows… → Home Settings → Content Recommendation → OffSettings → All Settings → General → System → Additional Settings → Home Settings → untick Content Recommendation
Skip the home screen at power-on… → Home Settings → Power On Screen → Recent Input–
Store demo messages and adsSettings → All Settings → General → Devices → TV Management → Home/Store Mode → Home ModeSettings → All Settings → General → Additional Settings → Home Mode

Paths from LG's own support pages for webOS 6.0/22 and webOS 5.0; a BGR guide from August 2026 lists the same Home Settings path on current models. LG says menus can differ slightly by model and region; LG's guide notes you can check your webOS version by pressing the Mute button on the remote three times.

Option 2: Block ad servers with DNS

Point the TV, or better your router, at an ad-blocking DNS service or a home DNS filter such as Pi-hole or AdGuard Home. That blocks many banner and tracking requests from the TV's own software. It does not remove ads inside YouTube, and it can break a TV app or two that share servers with ads, so keep a way to switch back.

Option 3: Add an ad-free home app with Developer Mode

The open source project Free My TV offers its ad-free home screen as an LG app, installed through LG's official Developer Mode, with nothing rooted:

webOS debloat step by step: Developer Mode and Dev Manager (LG)

This is the route people mean by "webOS debloat". It does not delete LG's apps: the developer shell on a retail TV cannot disable system apps. What it gives you is a way to install your own ad-free home screen and apps (Option 3) and to manage the TV from a computer.

  1. Create a free developer account on LG's webOS TV Developer site and verify your email.
  2. Install the Developer Mode app from the LG Content Store on the TV, open it and sign in with that account.
  3. Turn on Dev Mode Status. The TV restarts. Open the app again and turn on Key Server; you only need it while adding the TV to a computer, and it switches itself off after every restart.
  4. Install webOS Dev Manager on your computer (Windows, macOS or Linux, free and open source from the webOS Homebrew project), add the TV by its IP address with the passphrase shown in the Developer Mode app, and use it to install apps (.ipk files). Give the TV a fixed IP in your router: the address can change after you add it.
  5. Keep the session alive. Developer Mode lasts 1,000 hours (about 41 days). Reset the timer in the Developer Mode app before it runs out: when it expires, every app you installed this way is removed.

Two limits: one developer account can be signed in on one TV at a time, and Developer Mode does not give root. Rooting works only on some firmware versions that LG has not patched yet, and LG updates close those holes; it is outside what this site covers.

Option 4: Use a Google TV streamer instead

If you want the full, reversible debloat, plug a streamer into HDMI and use that as your TV's brain: the Google TV Streamer, Chromecast with Google TV, onn 4K Plus or NVIDIA SHIELD all have tested lists here. Then set the LG TV to start on that HDMI input (Home Settings → Power On Screen → Recent Input).

Settings paths by year from CleanYourTV's non-Android guide (checked 2026-11-02) and LG support. Samsung TV? See Samsung TV debloat.

Have a Google TV or Android TV instead? Start with the step-by-step guide or the command generator.