AdGuard DNS is the third major commercial encrypted DNS service in the privacy-tools landscape, behind NextDNS and ControlD. The product comes from AdGuard, the Cyprus-based company that has been making content-blocking software since 2009. AdGuard DNS is the hosted DNS service alongside their broader product line of browser extensions, mobile apps, and the open-source AdGuard Home.
This is the practical assessment after several months of testing.
What AdGuard DNS is
AdGuard DNS is operated by AdGuard Software Limited, a Cyprus-based company with engineering presence in Russia. The company has been operating since 2009, expanded to DNS services more recently, and runs the public AdGuard DNS at standard IP addresses (94.140.14.14 and 94.140.15.15 for general use).
The product has both a free tier (anonymous, anyone can point at the public DNS) and a paid AdGuard DNS Premium tier with personal accounts, custom configurations, and analytics.
The infrastructure is a globally-distributed Anycast network. Latency is competitive with NextDNS and Cloudflare in most regions.
What AdGuard DNS does well
The free tier is genuinely useful. You can point any device at the public AdGuard DNS servers and get ad and tracker blocking for free, without an account. This is rare in the encrypted DNS space; NextDNS and ControlD both require accounts even for their free tiers.
The Family Protection variant of the free DNS adds adult content blocking by default. Useful for households where this is wanted.
The block lists are well-curated. AdGuard maintains its own filter lists with reasonable defaults that block most ads and trackers without breaking many legitimate sites.
The Premium tier adds custom configurations, query logs, and per-device profiles. Pricing is competitive (around $30 per year for Personal, comparable to NextDNS Pro and ControlD Pro).
The integration with the broader AdGuard ecosystem is real. If you also use AdGuard’s browser extensions or mobile apps, the configurations and exclusions can sync across products.
The AdGuard Home open-source self-hosted alternative gives users a path to migrate to self-hosting if they outgrow the hosted service.
What AdGuard DNS does less well
The corporate situation is complicated. AdGuard’s leadership and significant engineering team are based in Russia. The company itself is registered in Cyprus, but the geopolitical situation around Russian-affiliated companies creates concerns for some users. AdGuard has been transparent about its corporate structure and origins, but for users with specific concerns about Russian-government-adjacent risk, this is worth knowing.
The brand recognition is below NextDNS in the privacy-tools community. The AdGuard browser extensions are widely respected; the DNS service is less prominent.
The dashboard for the Premium tier is functional but not particularly polished. NextDNS and ControlD both have more visually current interfaces.
The custom rule capability is more limited than NextDNS or ControlD. You can configure blocklists and exclusions, but the granular per-rule editing is less developed.
The community resources are smaller. NextDNS has a more active user community sharing configurations.
How AdGuard DNS compares to alternatives
| Feature | AdGuard DNS | NextDNS | ControlD | Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Yes (anonymous) | Yes (account, query limit) | Yes (1 device limit) | Yes |
| Paid tier | $30/year | $20/year | $20/year | N/A |
| Custom rules | Limited | Extensive | Extensive | None |
| Per-device profiles | Yes (Premium) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Query log | Yes (Premium) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Block lists curated | AdGuard’s | OISD-integrated | Custom | None (no blocking) |
| Self-hosted option | AdGuard Home | None | None | None |
| Corporate jurisdiction | Cyprus (Russia engineering) | France | Canada (Windscribe) | US |
NextDNS and ControlD are functionally similar to AdGuard DNS Premium with comparable pricing. AdGuard DNS distinguishes itself by the free public DNS option (anyone can use without account), the AdGuard ecosystem integration, and the AdGuard Home self-hosted path.
Use cases where AdGuard DNS wins
You want a free anonymous public DNS with ad blocking. AdGuard DNS is the best option for this.
You already use AdGuard browser extensions or mobile apps and want ecosystem coordination.
You want a path to self-hosting via AdGuard Home if you outgrow the hosted service.
You are not specifically concerned about the Russian engineering presence.
Use cases where NextDNS or ControlD wins
You want extensive custom rule configuration. NextDNS or ControlD are more capable.
You specifically want a non-Russian-affiliated provider. NextDNS (French) or ControlD (Canadian/Windscribe) are alternatives.
You want the most polished dashboard. ControlD edges out.
You want the largest community for configuration sharing. NextDNS.
A specific recommendation
For free public encrypted DNS without account: AdGuard DNS at 94.140.14.14 (general) or 94.140.14.15 (family protection). Easy to point devices at, no setup needed.
For paid configurable encrypted DNS: NextDNS Pro ($20/year) or ControlD Personal ($20/year) for most users; AdGuard DNS Premium ($30/year) for users specifically in the AdGuard ecosystem.
For users who want maximum control: self-host AdGuard Home or Pi-hole.
For users who only want a fast DNS without filtering: Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 is sufficient and free with no account.
AdGuard DNS | AdGuard Home | NextDNS | ControlD
Related: NextDNS deep review after a year, ControlD review, Self-hosting AdGuard Home