The shutdown of 12ft Ladder, a tool known for bypassing news paywalls, has left many users searching for alternatives.
The closure, prompted by legal and ethical concerns, highlights the ongoing tension between open access to information and the rights of content creators.
The demand for tools that balance free access with respect for intellectual property rights grows. In this context, exploring alternatives to 12ft Ladder becomes vital.
These 12ft Ladder alternatives not only offer access to content but also navigate the complex web of legalities and ethical considerations.
As we delve into the most effective and responsible options, it’s important to consider how they align with the changing dynamics of content consumption and distribution in the digital era.
Let’s find out more.
Best 12ft Ladder Alternatives That Will Save You Time and Money
1. Unpaywall
Unpaywall is an excellent replacement for 12ft Ladder if you constantly seek scholarly articles. It allows you to access full-text scholarly articles.
When you view a research article from your search results, Unpaywall automatically replaces it with a copy of a legal and full-text PDF drawn from its index of about 20 million free scientific articles.
Once Unpaywall finds a copy of the article you are looking for, a green “unlock” icon pops up on your screen. Click on the green icon to access the article.
Unpaywall is ahead of 12ft Ladder as it has a rich network of resources and makes science explicitly more accessible. As mentioned earlier, Unpaywall directs you to legal manuscripts posted by authors and hosted on government or university servers.
Interestingly, most scholarly journals permit authors to self-archive their manuscripts on government and university web servers. Technically, bypassing the paywall is a way of finding that article elsewhere on the web where it’s free.
Unpaywall is free to use.
2. Remove Paywall
As the name suggests, the purpose of Remove Paywall is to remove paywalls from articles so that you can access them without logging in or paying.
To get started with the tool, input the URL of your target article into Remove Paywall’s search bar and leave the rest to the app.
Remove Paywall claims to be constantly working on adding new sites. Unlike 12 Foot Ladder, Remove Paywall gives you access to archived versions of the places you seek.
Archived websites usually lack paywalls, meaning you’ll access the article without paying or logging in. Remove Paywall works best with most websites, including The Washington Post, The NY Times, and Harvard Business Review.
It allows you to remove soft paywalls and ads. The website is easy to use as all you need is to enter the URL of the article you wish to access and you are good to go.
Remove Paywall is free.
3. Bypass Paywalls
Bypass Paywalls is a solid replacement for 12ft Ladder that helps you eliminate annoying paywalls across the web.
Unlike 12ft Ladder, Bypass Paywalls is a simple browser extension on GitHub, which does a better job of helping you sidestep paywalls on selected web destinations.
This platform gives you a happy browsing experience by restricting you to a few monthly articles. The best part about Bypass Paywalls is that it even gives you access to confined content.
Bypass Paywall works with tricky websites. With it, you can bypass paywalls on over 160 news websites. This extension pretends to work as a Google search bot that usually unlocks articles.
It has a reader mode that can take the body of your target article and convert it into a beautiful and interruption-free organization to eliminate the overlay components that hinder you from accessing the limited article.
It is safe, easy to use, and gives you access to many sites.
Bypass Paywalls is free.
4. Bypass Paywalls Clean
Bypass Paywalls Clean is a browser extension for Mozilla, Chrome, and other Chromium-based web browsers, which, once installed, can load paywalled articles. This open-source browser extension can help you bypass paywalls on over a hundred websites.
The main objective of Bypass Paywalls Clean is to give readers access to news. The tool understands that not everyone can afford monthly subscriptions on multiple sites, especially when they only want to read a single article.
The tool is easy to use and works right after its installation. On Bypass Paywalls Clean’s settings, you’ll find a list of all supported sites. You can choose to enable or disable individual sites according to your preferences.
One thing that makes Bypass Paywalls Clean better than 12ft Ladder is that it has a daily user counter that is enabled by default, and you can disable this function too.
This extension supports custom news sites, and with it, you have options such as blocking JavaScript, changing the user agent or the referrer, and using regular expressions from blocking, among other perimeters.
The only downside to this tool is that updates don’t happen immediately so you may experience interruptions. This happens especially when your target sites make changes and new rules.
Bypass Paywalls Clean is free.
5. Readium
If you are looking for a 12ft Ladder alternative that targets bookmark users, then you should consider Readium. While Readium has the same functions as 12ft Ladder of removing paywalls, Readium takes a slightly different route.
Readium ensures bookmark users can skip paywalls and click-entry ways from driving web-based magazines such as Business Insider, Bloomberg, Medium, Towards Data Science, and The New York Times.
It is an open-source Chrome extension and works well on Windows 10, Linux, macOS, and more.
What makes Readium even better is its ability to allow its users to access print-disabled articles that currently benefit from EPUB 3 app, which supports screens such as NVDA and Jaws on Windows and VoiceOver on Mac.
Additionally, the tool provides an extraordinary method of getting a charge out of book recordings, designs, massive screen EPUB distributions, Manga/comics, and PDF reports.
Readium is free to use.
6. Reader Mode
Reader Mode removes ads, clutter, and distractions to view your favorite articles without interruptions.
Besides removing soft paywalls that disguise themselves as overlays and popups, Reader Mode makes reading articles easier by stripping website designs. You’ll love Reader Mode as it helps you focus on the actual content you wish to read.
This tool is more packed with features than 12ft Ladder, with great support from research tools and dyslexia.
You can do more with Reader Mode. With Reader Mode, you can get custom themes, delete unwanted elements, print pages, switch to full-screen mode, save edited pages, and custom CSS, among others.
Reader Mode boasts over 100,000 users and is easy to use. However, Reader Mode sometimes bugs the page, but this doesn’t make it a wrong choice to replace 12ft Ladder. It is a great tool packed with options and easy Twitter linking.
It is free to use.
7. uBlock OriginÂ
uBlock Origin is an exciting alternative to 12 Foot Ladder that stops annoying popups from most websites.
uBlock is known as one of the most efficient blockers and is easy on your computer memory and CPU.
It is more than an ad blocker as it blocks a broad spectrum of content. CPU and memory efficiency are its primary features.
When using the tool, you might not even notice that there were pop-ups in the first place.
uBlock also has valuable features, including Easy Privacy Tracking, Online Malicious URL Blocklist, and Spam 404. In addition, you can point and click to block JavaScript with uBlock origin both locally and globally.
The tool allows you to create your own global and local rules to override entries from the filter lists and other advanced features.
uBlock Origin is free to use.
8. The Free Internet Plugin
If you love the internet, you’ll agree that free is better.
The Free Internet Plugin removes paywalled content from your Google search results.
It believes that the business of the model of paywalls is to annoy internet users with ads and that the model expects users to convert and pay for stories until they die.
The Free Internet Plugin also believes the Internet should offer users a free and open experience.
You can benefit more from this tool than 12 Foot Ladder, especially if you don’t want to run into a paywall, as the tool filters all paywalled content out of your search news feeds and results.
The tool is open-sourced on Hacker Noon’s GitHub and welcomes support towards its development through donations or through suggestions to make it a better tool.
As the name suggests, The Free Internet Plugin is free.
9. AdBlock with Link Intelligence
AdBlock with Link Intelligence is another alternative to the 12-foot ladder built with the uBlock origin project.
The tool does a better job than 12 Foot Ladder, as it can block ads on practically all sites, including YouTube.
It has added functionality, including link intelligence and complete audio ad blocking. The tool blocks all types of ads by underlining links containing paywalls, clickbait, or any other malicious patterns in red, so you can hover over the underlined links to learn more.
AdBlock with Link Intelligence will do more than block ads for you. It is also proactive in protecting your privacy. The tool can stop trackers from accessing your online profile and protect you from malware, spyware, and cryptocurrency miners.
It also improves your page’s loading time to enjoy faster browsing. AdBlock with Link Intelligence does not use any servers as all the ad blocking happens locally on your computer device.
This tool is free to use.
11. StopAd
If you are a smart surfer looking for an ad-blocking solution like 12 Foot Ladder that removes popups from various websites, you must try StopAd.
StopAd removes sponsored ads on social media sites like Facebook and promises a smoother and more satisfying surfing experience.
It is easy to start with the tool as you only need to download StopAd from Softonic for Windows. It is a helpful tool, especially when looking for an easy way to remove pesky ads that plague social media and other web pages.
What will make you prefer this tool over 12 Foot Ladder is its enhanced security as you continue browsing. You can be sure that your private information is well safeguarded and not shared with unknown advertisers or malicious companies.
Additionally, the fact that ads will be removed from your way ensures that your web pages load faster and that the software is also easy to use.
While it all seems good while using the tool, it cannot banish ads from platforms like Twitch and requires you to use Windows 7 or higher versions.
StopAd is free to use.
11. Magic Lasso AdBlock
Magic Lasso AdBlock is a magnificent tool like 12 Foot Ladder that promises a faster and ad-free browsing experience.
Unlike 12 Foot Ladder, this tool is made for iPhone, Mac, and iPad and offers efficient and high-performance blocking using native Safari integration.
When browsing, Magic Lasso AdBlock will help your pages load 20% faster using 10% less bandwidth while improving your battery life too.
Your security is of utmost importance to Magic Lasso AdBlock. For this reason, the tool is designed from the ground up to block ad trackers from following your web activities. The tool works well with Safari on all your Apple devices.
Magic Lasso AdBlock has created a community of over 200,000 users, and the tool is determined to improve your experience with a more privacy-focused internet. It is easy to use and has built-in ad-blocking rules that are regularly updated.
This tool is free to download, but it has in-app purchases.
12. Resurrect Pages
Resurrect Pages is a Mozilla extension with the same functionality as 12 Foot Ladder. It uses a slightly different mechanism to help you access your preferred content on the web.
As the name suggests, Resurrect Pages brings dead pages (the scourge of the internet) and broken links to life.
You’ll agree that powerhouse websites such as Digg and Slashdot can bring your server to its knees, and here is where Resurrect Pages come in.
Resurrect Pages is a lifesaver because it helps you retrieve a cached or archived version of an unavailable page. This open-source tool works best with Mozilla 57+ and also operates with Windows 10 and 11 versions.
The program is safe and easy to use, as all you need to do is download and install it on your laptop, and you are good to go.
It is a free Windows tool under the Utility and Tools category.
Final Words
I hope the above review will help you settle on a paywall and ad remover that suits your reading needs.
The best part is that you can use them for free and access almost any material from scholarly manuscripts, news articles, books, and YouTube videos on multiple devices.
Pick one and get started. Blocked articles are a thing of the past.
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