The best dns resolvers, according to hackers
9 dns resolvers recommended in Hacker News comments over the past year, ranked by how many separate people recommend each one.
- Most recommendedQuad9 DNS58 people recommend it
- Least regretNuma DNS resolver10 recommend, 0 criticize
All dns resolvers
- Quad9 DNSFree privacy-focused DNS resolver that blocks malware domains and is run by a not-for-profit; critics note it blocks piracy sites and sometimes blocks non-malicious domains.58recommend
- Cloudflare DNSPeople recommend it as a fast, free, simple resolver that works reliably and is easy to set up. Critics distrust the company over US legal exposure and past blocking.52recommend
- Unbound DNS resolverFree, open-source DNS resolver people run locally or on routers to cache lookups, block domains and avoid ISP tampering. Common caveat: setup and debugging can be clunky.45recommend
- Mullvad DNSFree encrypted DNS with no account needed that blocks ads system-wide. Critics find it slower than Quad9 or Cloudflare.21recommend
- Google Public DNSRecommended as a fast DNS resolver that never blocks domains and rarely goes down. Critics' main caveat is privacy, as Google can build profiles of activity.18recommend
- systemd-resolvedRecommended for being integrated with systemd, well documented and useful; critics say it invents DNS records and breaks standard behavior.10recommend
- Numa DNS resolverFree local DNS resolver that people run as their system DNS for privacy, ad filtering and split DNS with Tailscale, with encrypted ODoH upstream support.10recommend
- DNS4EUFree DNS resolver with an adblocking and malware-protection profile for quick setup. Critics question whether it follows only the law, and one says it has no visible configuration options.5recommend
- OpenNICPeople recommend OpenNIC as a free alternative DNS root for domains that ICANN's system does not offer, such as .geek and .name-style alternatives. The most common caveat is that its TLDs remain exposed to ICANN registering the same names.5recommend