Pi-hole
Blackhole for Internet advertisements with a GUI for management and monitoring.
Best self-hosted DNS software in 2026
DNS servers and management tools with advertisement blocking functionality, primarily aimed at home or small networks.
We track 6 open-source, self-hosted DNS apps. 5 of them had commits in the last 90 days, 5 can run with Docker, and the most common licenses are GPL-3.0 (2), Apache-2.0 (2), EUPL-1.2 (1). The most-used languages are Shell, PHP, C#. Below are the top picks by GitHub stars, followed by every app ranked by stars weighted by maintenance health.
Top 5 by GitHub stars
| # | App | Stars | Health | Last activity | License | Language | Docker |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pi-hole | 62k | Active | 2026-11-06 | EUPL-1.2 | Shell, PHP | ✓ |
| 2 | AdGuard Home | 38.5k | Active | 2026-11-09 | GPL-3.0 | Docker | ✓ |
| 3 | Technitium DNS Server | 10.3k | Active | 2026-11-04 | GPL-3.0 | Docker, C# | ✓ |
| 4 | blocky | 7.1k | Active | 2026-11-09 | Apache-2.0 | Go, Docker | ✓ |
| 5 | Numa | 2k | Active | 2026-11-09 | MIT | Rust, Docker | ✓ |
- Pi-hole — Blackhole for Internet advertisements with a GUI for management and monitoring.
- AdGuard Home — User-friendly ads & trackers blocking DNS server.
- Technitium DNS Server — Authoritative/recursive DNS server with ad blocking functionality.
- blocky — Fast and lightweight DNS proxy as ad-blocker for local network with many features (alternative to Pi-hole).
- Numa — Ad-blocking DNS resolver with DNSSEC-validating recursive resolution, DoH/DoT/Oblivious DoH, ephemeral overrides, and local service domains, in a single Rust binary (alternative to Pi-hole, AdGuard Home, NextDNS).
Head-to-head comparisons
AdGuard Home vs Pi-holePi-hole vs Technitium DNS Serverblocky vs Pi-holeAdGuard Home vs Technitium DNS ServerAdGuard Home vs blockyblocky vs Technitium DNS Server
All 6 self-hosted DNS apps
Ranked by GitHub stars weighted by maintenance health.
AdGuard Home
User-friendly ads & trackers blocking DNS server.
Technitium DNS Server
Authoritative/recursive DNS server with ad blocking functionality.
blocky
Fast and lightweight DNS proxy as ad-blocker for local network with many features (alternative to Pi-hole).
Numa
Ad-blocking DNS resolver with DNSSEC-validating recursive resolution, DoH/DoT/Oblivious DoH, ephemeral overrides, and local service domains, in a single Rust binary (alternative to Pi-hole, AdGuard Home, NextDNS).
Maza ad blocking
Local ad blocker. Like Pi-hole but local and using your operating system.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best self-hosted DNS software in 2026?
By GitHub stars, the most popular self-hosted DNS apps are Pi-hole (61,968 stars), AdGuard Home (38,476 stars), Technitium DNS Server (10,326 stars). Popularity is only one signal: also check maintenance health, license and whether it fits your setup.
How many self-hosted DNS apps are actively maintained?
5 of the 6 apps listed had commits in the last 90 days and 1 more in the last 12 months.
Which self-hosted DNS apps can I run with Docker?
5 of the 6 apps can run with Docker.
Which licenses do self-hosted DNS apps use?
The most common licenses in this category are GPL-3.0 (2 apps), Apache-2.0 (2 apps), EUPL-1.2 (1 apps).
How much does it cost to self-host DNS software?
The software itself is free to download. Based on our rough hardware estimates, the cheapest suitable VPS plan starts at about $3.5/month (median $5/month across apps in this category). Several light apps can share one server.
Figures from GitHub and Docker Hub as of 2026-11-15; hosting costs are rough estimates.