Control D
Worth it
Confidence: Medium
Buy if you want network-wide ad, tracker, and malware blocking . and test the free resolvers first.
New check
Comparison
Control D vs CleanBrowsing
Control D lands on Worth it, and CleanBrowsing lands on Depends.
CleanBrowsing
Depends
Confidence: Medium
Families, small schools, and MSPs buy this for simple network-wide DNS filtering, and a free tier covers basics.
| Compare | ||
|---|---|---|
| Verdict | Worth it | Depends |
| Best for | Households wanting network-wide ad/malware blocking | Families blocking adult content network-wide |
| Who it's not for | Anyone expecting VPN privacy . this is DNS filtering, not a VPN | Enterprises needing identity-aware, per-user web policies |
| Privacy | No known public vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.11 | No known public vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed. |
| Support quality | Reddit reports poor service attitude | No support evidence found |
| Public sentiment | Enthusiasts switching from NextDNS are mostly satisfied, but latency, smart-TV buffering, billing, and support complaints recur.¹ | Public reviews are scarce, and the few sysadmin threads show limited awareness of the product. |
| Biggest gotcha | Per-device pricing multiplies fast across many gadgets; HN commenters flag cost vs rivals⁸ | Entry paid plan costs about $50 monthly; check scaling before committing |
Pick Control D when
- Households wanting network-wide ad/malware blocking
- Router and homelab tinkerers (OPNsense, pfSense)
- Small IT teams needing managed DNS filtering
- NextDNS users wanting custom endpoints
When Control D is not a fit
- Anyone expecting VPN privacy . this is DNS filtering, not a VPN
- Price-sensitive homes with many devices; per-device fees stack up
- Enterprises wanting a full security platform, not one DNS layer
- Zero-config users . good free resolvers need no account at all
Pick CleanBrowsing when
- Families blocking adult content network-wide
- Schools needing CIPA-compliant filtering
- MSPs managing many client networks
- Libraries and camps on loaner devices
When CleanBrowsing is not a fit
- Enterprises needing identity-aware, per-user web policies
- Orgs needing deep HTTPS inspection or app control
- Buyers wanting a proven vendor with a large review base
Sources
review
review
- ControlD pricing is per device . Hacker Newsnews.ycombinator.comreview
- Control D Pricing for Business Userscontrold.comofficial
- Control D Free DNS Serverscontrold.comofficial
- Product security pagecontrold.comsecurity
- ctrld open-source client . GitHubgithub.comofficial
- Tailscale DNS filtering by Control Dtailscale.comnews
news
- GitHub case studycontrold.comofficial
- CleanBrowsing DNS service reviewtechradar.comreview