Best Internet Filtering Software in 2026
Updated
In short: AdGuard DNS is ranked #1 of 65 as of 5 October 2026, ahead of Control D and NextDNS. The best-ranked option with a free plan is NextDNS. The lowest first paid tier on this page is Senso.cloud at £0.08/mo.
Managing what people can access online calls for controls that fit the devices and oversight you need. Compared on custom blocklists, safe search controls and filtering schedules, these tools also cover activity reports, device limits and platform support. Free plans and paid-from pricing help you weigh access and cost. AdGuard DNS, Control D and NextDNS are among the entries, with UnveilDNS and Cisco Secure Access also listed. Consider whether you need visibility into activity, the ability to set schedules or custom blocks, and coverage across the platforms and number of devices you manage.
65 internet filtering software ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
65ranked
6free plans on this page
£0.08/molowest paid tier
5 Oct 2026last checked
Input list Internet Filtering Software 25 channels on this page · 122 of 200 spec lines stated by the makers
Ch Tool Free planPaid fromDevice limitCustom blocklistsSafe search controlsFiltering schedulesActivity reportsPlatform support Spec sheet Score
01 AdGuard DNS Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice limit20 devicesCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWindows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, routers, and game consoles 7/8spec lines stated 8.0
02 Control D Free planYesPaid from$2/moDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWindows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, browsers, routers 7/8spec lines stated 7.6
03 NextDNS Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWindows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, routers, and major operating systems 6/8spec lines stated 7.5
04 NxFilter Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWindows, Linux, Docker, pfSense, iOS, Android, macOS via DNS-over-HTTPS 6/8spec lines stated 7.5
05 SafeDNS Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWindows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, routers, DNS, API, and SDK 6/8spec lines stated 7.4
06 UnveilDNS Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportAndroid, iOS, Windows, macOS, browsers, routers, and on-premise networks 6/8spec lines stated 7.4
07 Cisco Secure Access Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWindows, macOS, Chrome OS, iOS, Android, DNS networks, Cisco network devices 6/8spec lines stated 7.3
08 Cloudflare Gateway Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportmacOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android, PAC files, DNS locations, Cloudflare WAN, Cloudflare Mesh, HTML5 browsers 6/8spec lines stated 7.3
09 Safe Surfer Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice limit5 devicesCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportAndroid, iOS/iPadOS, Windows, macOS, Wi-Fi/network routers 7/8spec lines stated 7.3
10 SkyDNS Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice limit5 devicesCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWeb, Windows, Linux, Android, iOS, routers and gateways 7/8spec lines stated 7.3
11 WatchGuard FireCloud Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesnot statedActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportProtected networks and Firebox appliances; Windows 8/8.1, Windows 10, Windows 11; Chrome extension 5/8spec lines stated 7.3
12 AdGuard Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsnot statedSafe search controlsnot statedFiltering schedulesnot statedActivity reportsnot statedPlatform supportnot stated 1/8spec lines stated 7.2
13 CleanBrowsing Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice limit25 devicesCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWindows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, ChromeOS, browsers, routers, API 7/8spec lines stated 7.2
14 DNSFilter Free planNoPaid from$1/moDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWindows, macOS, iOS, Android, Chrome, and network/router/DHCP/firewall deployments 7/8spec lines stated 7.2
15 Senso.cloud Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsnot statedSafe search controlsnot statedFiltering schedulesnot statedActivity reportsnot statedPlatform supportnot stated 1/8spec lines stated 7.1
16 CIRA Anycast DNS Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesnot statedActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportAndroid, iOS, Windows, macOS, ChromeOS and network DNS environments 5/8spec lines stated 7.0
17 Classwize Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWindows, macOS, iOS, ChromeOS, Chrome, Microsoft Edge, and on-premise appliance 5/8spec lines stated 7.0
18 Jamf Safe Internet Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportmacOS, iOS, iPadOS, visionOS, Windows, ChromeOS, Safari, Chrome, Firefox and Microsoft Edge 6/8spec lines stated 7.0
19 Lightspeed Classroom Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportChromebooks/Chrome, Windows, macOS, iOS, BYOD, and IoT 5/8spec lines stated 7.0
20 Technitium DNS Server Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesnot statedActivity reportsbasicPlatform supportWindows, Linux, macOS, Raspberry Pi, Docker, local networks 5/8spec lines stated 7.0
21 GoGuardian DNS Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsnot statedSafe search controlsnot statedFiltering schedulesnot statedActivity reportsnot statedPlatform supportnot stated 0/8spec lines stated 6.9
22 Webroot DNS Protection Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsnot statedSafe search controlsnot statedFiltering schedulesnot statedActivity reportsnot statedPlatform supportnot stated 1/8spec lines stated 6.9
23 Blocksi Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsYesFiltering schedulesYesActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportChromeOS, macOS, iOS, Windows OS, Android 6/8spec lines stated 6.8
24 ScoutDNS Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsnot statedSafe search controlsnot statedFiltering schedulesnot statedActivity reportsnot statedPlatform supportnot stated 1/8spec lines stated 6.8
25 ThreatDown Endpoint Protection Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDevice limitnot statedCustom blocklistsYesSafe search controlsnot statedFiltering schedulesnot statedActivity reportsadvancedPlatform supportWindows, Windows Server, macOS 3/8spec lines stated 6.8
Compare all 25 in a table
| # | Tool | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Device limit | Custom blocklists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AdGuard DNS | 8.0 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | 20 devices | Yes |
| 2 | Control D | 7.6 | No | $2/mo | Yes | 2 /mo | — | Yes |
| 3 | NextDNS | 7.5 | Free plan | £1.79/mo | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 4 | NxFilter | 7.5 | Free plan | $5/mo | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 5 | SafeDNS | 7.4 | No | $1.20/mo | No | — | — | Yes |
| 6 | UnveilDNS | 7.4 | Free plan | $16.58/mo | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 7 | Cisco Secure Access | 7.3 | No | — | No | — | — | Yes |
| 8 | Cloudflare Gateway | 7.3 | Free plan | $7/mo | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 9 | Safe Surfer | 7.3 | No | — | Yes | — | 5 devices | Yes |
| 10 | SkyDNS | 7.3 | No | RUB 150/mo | No | — | 5 devices | Yes |
| 11 | WatchGuard FireCloud | 7.3 | No | $8.15/mo | No | — | — | Yes |
| 12 | AdGuard | 7.2 | No | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| 13 | CleanBrowsing | 7.2 | No | $6.25/mo | Yes | — | 25 devices | Yes |
| 14 | DNSFilter | 7.2 | No | — | No | 1 /mo | — | Yes |
| 15 | Senso.cloud | 7.1 | No | £0.08/mo | No | — | — | — |
| 16 | CIRA Anycast DNS | 7.0 | No | — | No | — | — | Yes |
| 17 | Classwize | 7.0 | No | — | — | — | — | Yes |
| 18 | Jamf Safe Internet | 7.0 | No | — | No | — | — | Yes |
| 19 | Lightspeed Classroom | 7.0 | No | — | — | — | — | Yes |
| 20 | Technitium DNS Server | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 21 | GoGuardian DNS | 6.9 | No | — | — | — | — | — |
| 22 | Webroot DNS Protection | 6.9 | No | — | No | — | — | — |
| 23 | Blocksi | 6.8 | No | — | No | — | — | Yes |
| 24 | ScoutDNS | 6.8 | No | $0.21/mo | No | — | — | — |
| 25 | ThreatDown Endpoint Protection | 6.8 | No | — | — | — | — | Yes |
Is your tool on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored, and a sponsored row is labelled as paid.
Questions about this list
Which internet filtering software is ranked first on Specifiction?
AdGuard DNS is ranked #1 of 65 with a score of 8.0. Control D is second and NextDNS third.
How many of these have a free plan?
6 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, Senso.cloud has the lowest first paid tier we found: £0.08/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked on what each maker publishes, the fullest spec sheet first: how deeply the product is documented, the platforms it runs on, a free tier or trial to test it, and its standing.
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