Visit Website See Pricing
NextDNS

NextDNS

The essential cloud firewall for modern privacy and security.

#2 dans Ad Blocker
2 min read · Updated 10/4/2025
NextDNS homepage screenshot

At a glance

Quick overview for NextDNS: rating, pricing summary, key features, and highlights.

Ciroapp review

3.9
Exceptional Filtering, Unreliable Customer Service.

NextDNS provides an incredibly powerful and low-latency cloud DNS filtering solution that excels at blocking malware, ads, and trackers across all devices. We found the feature set comprehensive and the pricing highly accessible, especially the robust free tier. Overall, the service is top-tier operationally, but we observed chronic user reports of unresponsive customer support and unresolved billing issues.

Pros

  • Pro:Excellent filtering against malware, trackers, and in-app advertisements.
  • Pro:Extremely fast global server network with ultra-low query latency.
  • Pro:Highly configurable with deep statistics and customizable data residency (logging).
  • Pro:Very generous free plan and a low-cost Pro tier for unlimited personal use.

Cons

  • Con:Repeated user reports of non-existent or unresponsive customer support.
  • Con:Some users switching due to perceived stagnation in feature development.
  • Con:Occasional payment systems bugs leading to billing errors or wrong plan activation.
  • Con:Lacks some advanced features found in comparable competitors (e.g., sorting lists).
Range: $0/month – $199/yearFree plan, Monthly subscription, Yearly subscription, Usage-based pricing
This section is a summary. Detailed sections about features, use cases, pricing, and reviews follow below.
Visit WebsiteSee Pricing
Read full review

NextDNS review, pricing, features, pros & cons

Are you tired of feeling exposed to digital threats and endless data tracking? Your security defenses often feel fragmented and slow.

NextDNS provides a powerful, modern firewall for the entire internet. It immediately protects you from malware, phishing, and pervasive trackers, ensuring a safer and highly supervised web environment for everyone. ✨

What is NextDNS?

NextDNS functions as an advanced network layer filter, often described as a "Pi-hole in the cloud." Instead of requiring heavy software on every device, it secures your connection at the fundamental DNS level. This approach means security, parental controls, and ad-blocking start instantly, regardless of where you connect.

It features native support on major platforms and relies on modern, encrypted protocols like DNS-over-HTTPS and DNS-over-TLS. Crucially, all the processing occurs remotely, guaranteeing zero impact on your device's CPU, memory, or battery life. 💡

NextDNS Key Features

🛡️ Real-Time Security and Threat Defense

Your digital defense is always active and adapting. NextDNS goes beyond basic filtering by analyzing DNS questions and answers in real time. This mechanism detects and blocks sophisticated malicious behavior within nanoseconds.

We provide more than 10 different types of security protections. Our threat intelligence systems update immediately, offering superior protection against new threats. This proactivity allows us to block attacks faster than traditional security solutions, often within just hours of a domain registering.

Threat protection covers sophisticated attack patterns, ensuring robust security for all users. We actively block threats such as:

✨ Advanced Privacy and Tracker Blocking

Take command of your privacy by blocking third-party ads and trackers across all your apps and websites. NextDNS uses the internet’s most popular block lists, which are continuously updated in real time. This ensures you consistently avoid common surveillance methods.

The system includes specific protection against native tracking, which often records activity at the operating system level. Crucially, it detects and defeats trackers that attempt to disguise themselves as legitimate first-party entities. This unique capability bypasses standard browser protections like Apple’s Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP).

✨ Comprehensive Parental Control Tools

Easily manage and monitor your children's access to the internet. You can block entire categories of content, including sites dedicated to violence, pornography, or piracy. NextDNS ensures a safer environment by forcing SafeSearch on all search engines, filtering explicit media.

You can also force YouTube Restricted Mode to hide mature videos across the platform and related sites. The system allows you to block specific apps and platforms instantly, such as Facebook, Fortnite, or TikTok.

Use the specific “Recreational Time” feature to schedule access. This allows games or social media sites to be used only during defined time blocks each day.

✅ Ultra-Low Latency Global Network

Experience superior filtering performance thanks to our specialized network architecture. NextDNS operates 132 server locations built directly into major internet service operators across metropolitan areas. This maximizes speed by minimizing network hops.

This design guarantees ultra-low latency and unrivaled response times at the network edge. Because all complex processing happens on our remote servers, there is absolutely zero impact on your device’s CPU, memory, or battery life.

✨ Visibility, Logging, and Data Residency

Gain clear insight into how your devices use the internet with deep statistics and real-time logs. You can confidently measure the effectiveness of your security, privacy, and parental control settings. Access detailed tracker information to learn exactly who is tracking your web traffic.

We give you full control over log retention, which you can set to last from one hour up to two years. If you prefer, logs can be completely disabled. To meet data residency requirements, you can choose to store your logs in the location that best suits you: the US, the European Union, the UK, or Switzerland.

✨ Advanced Customization and Settings

Manage your protections exactly as you need them with custom controls. You may create an unlimited number of separate configurations within your account, each with unique settings and policies. You can manually adjust your block lists using custom blacklists and whitelists for unlimited domains.

For advanced domain management, the service supports DNS rewrites, allowing you to define or change the DNS response for specific domains. It also supports important underlying technologies like DNSSEC to automatically validate the authenticity of all DNS responses.

Use Cases

🏡 Securing the Family Network and Managing Screen Time

Protecting your family means ensuring content is safe and usage is balanced. NextDNS allows you to instantly block mature materials like violent or pornographic content network-wide. You can also enforce safety automatically by mandating SafeSearch and YouTube Restricted Mode across all devices.

Controlling distractions is also easy. You block specific apps like TikTok, Instagram, or Fortnite with just a single configuration change. The "Recreational Time" feature then lets you schedule access, restricting gaming and social apps to approved hours each day. This comprehensive control ensures a supervised and healthy experience.

🛡️ Blocking Advanced Threats in Real-Time

Your device requires superior security intelligence to handle today's rapidly changing threats. NextDNS acts as a modern cloud firewall protecting you from malware, phishing, and serious new online attacks. We utilize powerful real-time threat intelligence feeds containing millions of malicious domains.

This system detects dangerous sites quickly, often blocking attacks hours earlier than traditional defenses. You are protected from complex threats like cryptojacking, IDN homographs, and attacks based on Domain Generation Algorithms (DGAs). You select from over 10 different types of security protections to define your exact strategy.

🗺️ Achieving True Privacy on the Go

Problem: When using cellular data or public Wi-Fi, pervasive trackers monitor your every move, including those that are hard to detect.

Approach: NextDNS blocks intrusive ads and trackers across all your apps and websites. It is smart enough to detect third-party trackers that attempt to disguise themselves as first-party entities, successfully bypassing defenses like Apple's Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP).

Outcome: Your privacy is maintained across all networks, regardless of location. Since processing occurs in the cloud, you experience zero impact on your device's CPU, memory, or battery life while remaining fully protected.

📊 Deep Network Visibility and Data Compliance

You need transparency to understand your network's activity and security effectiveness. NextDNS provides deep statistics and real-time logs showing what happened on your devices.

You have complete control over this data. First, choose where the logs are stored—the US, EU, UK, or Switzerland—to meet your data residency needs. You then decide the retention period, from one hour up to two years, or you can opt to disable logs entirely.

Tip: Use the tracker information provided in the logs to see exactly which companies are attempting to monitor your web traffic.

🔧 Advanced Customization via Expert Control

Expert users can precisely tailor the network filtering logic to their specific needs. You can create unlimited custom blacklists and whitelists to manually manage which domains are blocked or allowed.

For unique networking situations, the DNS Rewrites feature lets you define or override the DNS response for certain domains. Additionally, you can customize the page that users see when a block occurs. This level of control ensures your security is both robust and flexible.

Pricing Overview for NextDNS

Pricing range
$0/month – $199/year
Pricing types
Free plan, Monthly subscription, Yearly subscription, Usage-based pricing

NextDNS offers four straightforward plans, starting with a powerful Free tier and moving up to paid options for individuals and organizations. The paid plans offer unlimited queries and discounts if billed annually.

Plans & Pricing

Free

Monthly$0
300,000 queries/month
  • Unlimited devices
  • Unlimited configurations
  • Access to all features
  • Community support
See Pricing

Pro

Monthly$1.99
Yearly$19.90
For personal and close family use
  • Unlimited queries
  • Unlimited devices
  • Unlimited configurations
  • Access to all features
  • Community support
See Pricing

Business

Monthly$19.90
Yearly$199
Price is per 50 employees
  • Unlimited queries
  • Unlimited devices
  • Unlimited configurations
  • Access to all features
  • Email support
See Pricing

Education

Monthly$19.90
Yearly$199
Price is per 250 students
  • Unlimited queries
  • Unlimited devices
  • Unlimited configurations
  • Access to all features
  • Email support
See Pricing

NextDNS costs between $0 and $199 per year with 4 plans: Free at $0/month, Pro at $19.90/year, Business at $199/year, and Education at $199/year.

Here is a breakdown of what each NextDNS plan offers.

Free

Price: $0 /month Websites Supported: Not explicitly stated Best For: Users with low query volume or beginners Refund Policy: Not explicitly stated Other Features:

  • 300,000 queries per month
  • Unlimited devices and configurations
  • Access to all features
  • Community support

This plan is excellent for individual users or those just testing the service. If you happen to exceed the 300,000 monthly quota, NextDNS will still answer DNS queries as a standard non-blocking service. It's a great, free way to protect your devices.

Pro

Price: $19.90 /year (or $1.99/month) Websites Supported: Not explicitly stated Best For: Personal and close family use Refund Policy: Not explicitly stated Other Features:

  • Unlimited queries
  • Unlimited devices
  • Unlimited configurations
  • Access to all features
  • Community support

If you need unrestricted usage, the Pro plan is the ideal choice for home networking. Paying annually saves you 17%, dropping the effective price to about $1.66 per month. This plan is specifically designed to cover your personal networks and immediate family members.

Business

Price: $199 /year (or $19.90/month) Websites Supported: Not explicitly stated Best For: Small and medium businesses Refund Policy: Not explicitly stated Other Features:

  • Scales per 50 employees
  • Unlimited queries and configurations
  • Access to all features
  • Email support

The Business plan offers the power of NextDNS scaling for your company team. It includes priority email support, which is often crucial for commercial needs. Remember that this price applies for every group of 50 employees.

Education

Price: $199 /year (or $19.90/month) Websites Supported: Not explicitly stated Best For: Schools and universities Refund Policy: Not explicitly stated Other Features:

  • Scales per 250 students
  • Unlimited queries and configurations
  • Access to all features
  • Email support

Educational institutions can leverage this plan to provide secure DNS services to their large student bodies. Unlike the business tier, the Education plan scales generously, covering 250 students per unit price. Dedicated email support is included to help manage organization-wide deployments.

NextDNS is upfront about its pricing and offers a robust, permanently free plan right from the start. You can save 17% on paid plans by opting for annual billing instead of monthly. All prices are in USD, and they accept major credit cards, PayPal, and even cryptocurrencies. 🛡️

User Reviews

User feedback on NextDNS is strongly polarized, resulting in a Great 3.8 average rating from Trustpilot. Customers frequently praise the excellent performance, noting that the server network is fast, resulting in ultra-low latency and a “set up and forget” experience.

Many reviewers found the service highly effective at blocking ads (even in-app on Android) and appreciated the comprehensive filtering options, which easily replace self-hosted solutions like Pi-hole. The feature set is considered superior to many rivals, focusing on threat intelligence and deep privacy defense.

The low cost ($20/year) for the Pro plan is cited repeatedly as an outstanding value. However, a significant and recurring complaint across feedback involves customer support and billing reliability.

Several users reported being ignored via email, sometimes for critical issues like fraudulent charges or payment bugs that prevented access to paid features. Some advanced users also feel the platform’s development has stalled, causing them to switch to competitors for richer features.

Despite these deep support shortcomings, the core technology delivers exceptional protection. ✅

What users say elsewhere

David S.
· Trustpilot
5.0 / 5

It's beautifully simple and works perfectly! This custom DNS service delivers privacy and ad-blocking in a professional, no-hassle way. The web interface is clean and setup instructions are very clear.

Mark C.
· Trustpilot
5.0 / 5

For only $20 a year, this has been one of the very best DNS services we have used. The filtering options are great, supporting everything from EasyList to OISD. We highly recommend this service for all home users.

No reviews yet.

Write a Review

Write a Review for NextDNS
0/100 characters
0/2000 characters

Why use NextDNS?

Take back control of your internet experience with robust, real-time protection that works everywhere you go.

Here’s why NextDNS is your essential security upgrade:

  • Superior Threat Intelligence: Activate over 10 different security protections, safeguarding against phishing, cryptojacking, and attacks based on Domain Generation Algorithms (DGAs). Its real-time intelligence feeds are designed to detect malicious domains faster than traditional security solutions, often blocking attacks within hours of registration.
  • Deep Privacy Defense: Block intrusive trackers and ads across all applications and websites, including those that are notoriously sly. The system detects third-party trackers that disguise themselves as "first-party" entities, allowing it to bypass evasive browser protections like Apple's Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP).
  • Granular Parental Control: Easily monitor and manage what content your children access. Features include mandatory SafeSearch and YouTube Restricted Mode. You can also block specific apps like TikTok or Fortnite and schedule access using the “Recreational Time” feature, restricting usage to defined daily hours.
  • Unrivaled Visibility and Control: Gain transparency with deep statistics and real-time logs. You have complete control over data residency, choosing to store logs in the US, EU, UK, or Switzerland. Log retention is highly customizable, lasting from one hour up to two years.
  • Exceptional Global Performance: NextDNS runs on a massive network of 132 server locations built directly into operators across major metropolitan areas. This architecture minimizes network hops, delivering an ultra-low latency, high-speed filtering experience. ✅

Ready to transform your workflow with NextDNS?

Try it nowView pricing

NextDNS Alternatives

Other tools in the Ad Blocker category

AdGuard vs NextDNS

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I exceed the 300,000 query limit on the Free plan?

If you exceed the 300,000 queries per month on the Free plan, the service does not stop working. NextDNS will simply continue to answer your DNS queries as a standard, non-blocking DNS resolver until the month ends.

How is the pricing structured for organizations like businesses and schools?

These plans are usage-based, scaling by user counts, not devices. The Business plan price is charged for every block of 50 employees. The Education plan is more generous, covering blocks of 250 students per unit price.

Where does NextDNS store my logs, and how long can I keep them?

You can control your data residency and choose to store logs in the US, European Union, the UK, or Switzerland. You can also customize log retention from just one hour up to a maximum of two years, or disable logging entirely.

Which encrypted DNS protocols does NextDNS support for securing connections?

NextDNS utilizes modern, encrypted protocols to secure your connection across all devices. This includes native support for both DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) and DNS-over-TLS (DoT).

What payment methods are accepted if I decide to upgrade to a paid plan?

NextDNS accepts multiple standard and modern methods for paid subscriptions. You can pay using standard credit cards, PayPal, and various cryptocurrencies.

Is there a free trial period, and do I need to sign up to test the service?

There is no formal time-limited free trial, but you don't need to sign up to test the settings. You can start using NextDNS instantly to see how it works before creating a profile to save your configuration.

What kind of technical support is included with the different subscription plans?

Free and Pro subscribers rely on Community forums and support channels. Users on the Business and Education plans receive dedicated, priority Email support.

Can I set up different profiles for different groups of devices or users?

Yes, all plans, including the Free version, allow for unlimited configurations. This means you can create multiple unique profiles, each with its own set of security, privacy, and parental control rules.

I only need the service for personal use. Which plan is the best fit?

The Pro plan is specifically intended for individuals and families needing unrestricted usage. It offers unlimited queries and is ideal for covering personal networks and immediate family members.

Does choosing annual billing provide any savings?

Yes, choosing annual billing instead of monthly payments offers a significant reduction in cost. You save 17% on all paid plans when billed yearly.

Can I manually block or allow specific domains using custom lists?

All plans include access to customizable blacklists and whitelists. You can manually block or allow an unlimited number of specific domains to fine-tune your filtering rules.

How large is the global network NextDNS uses to provide low latency?

NextDNS operates an extensive global network architecture designed for ultra-low latency performance. They report utilizing 132 server locations built directly into operators for quick response times.

Does NextDNS offer a money-back guarantee?

The official website does not explicitly state a money-back guarantee or dedicated refund policy for paid subscriptions. Review the terms of service carefully before committing to a paid plan.

What is the process for canceling a paid subscription?

The specific method for subscription cancellation is not explicitly detailed on the public pricing or product pages. You should usually refer to the Help section or account settings after registration for cancellation instructions.

Ready to try NextDNS? Check out the official site or pricing.
Visit Website See Pricing