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It's a split decision.
Choose CleanBrowsing if you need family-oriented DNS filtering, a listed free plan, or profiles and up to 90-day log retention. Its Basic plan starts at $6.25/month when billed annually, with limits of 25 devices or 3.75M requests/month. Choose DNSFilter for per-license organizational DNS security, remote protection, and app visibility. Its annual Core rate is $1/license/month, but the annual minimum is $240, and there is no free plan. Compare license counts and feature tiers before switching.
01Side by side
| CleanBrowsing | DNSFilter | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $6.25/month annually; 25-device or 3.75M-request cap | $1/license/month annually; $240 annual minimum |
| Free plan | Free plan listed; details not supplied | No free plan; 14-day trial |
| Best for | Families, schools and public networks | Organizations needing DNS security and remote protection |
| Core strength | Content filtering, SafeSearch and profile rules | Threat blocking, app visibility and security reporting |
| Learning curve | Ease-of-use review score: 6/10 | Ease-of-use review score: 7/10 |
| Integrations/data | Custom profiles; log retention from none to 90 days | Detailed logs; Plus includes CyberSight and Roaming Clients |
| Team/seat costs | Device and request caps; Pro 100 starts at $25/month annually | Per-license pricing; minimums apply |
| Support | Support review score: 5/10; details not supplied | Support review score: 5/10; add-on prices not published |
CleanBrowsing Choose CleanBrowsing if
- Choose CleanBrowsing if you want a listed free plan.
- Choose CleanBrowsing if your filtering needs fit its device and request caps.
- Choose CleanBrowsing if you need profiles and configurable log retention.
DNSFilter Choose DNSFilter if
- Choose DNSFilter if you need remote device protection.
- Choose DNSFilter if app visibility and security reporting matter.
- Choose DNSFilter if per-license pricing fits your team and minimums.
02Pricing compared
CleanBrowsing lists a free plan, but the published pricing details do not specify its limits. Its Basic plan costs $8.99 per month, or $6.25 per month when billed annually, and covers up to 25 devices or 3.75 million requests per month. Pro 50 starts at $15 monthly or $12.50 annually; Pro 100 is $30 monthly or $25 annually.
DNSFilter has no free plan, but offers a 14-day trial. Core costs $1 per license per month with annual billing, or $1.15 monthly, and has a $240 annual or $23 monthly minimum. Plus costs $2.25 annually or $2.50 monthly per license, with higher minimums. Compare total licenses and minimum charges, not just the per-user rate. DNSFilter Enterprise pricing is by quote.
03Features and depth
Both services filter DNS requests to block threats and unwanted domains. CleanBrowsing also emphasizes family and school filtering: adult-content blocking, social-network controls, SafeSearch enforcement on Google, Bing, and DuckDuckGo, and YouTube viewing restrictions. Administrators can group devices into profiles and choose log retention from no logs to 90 days.
DNSFilter focuses on organizational security and visibility. Its features include protection for users on and off the network, AppAware for seeing and blocking app-related domains, and CyberSight for surfacing shadow IT and investigating activity. The company says its threat detection can identify newly registered and weaponized domains up to 10 days before third-party threat feeds. Plus includes CyberSight, AI usage reporting, guest Wi-Fi, and roaming clients on any platform; Core does not list those inclusions. Choose based on whether filtering profiles and content rules or remote protection and app visibility matter more.
04Ease of use and learning curve
The available details do not establish which service is easier to set up or administer, so we would not treat either as the clear usability winner. CleanBrowsing’s published plan limits make the sizing exercise concrete: check device or request volume, network count, profile count, and allowed or blocked domain caps.
DNSFilter’s pricing is per license, with minimum charges that can matter for small deployments. Plus lists additional controls and reporting, while Enterprise requires a quote. Before switching, confirm which tier includes the features you need and how many users or devices count as licenses. Neither source provided implementation or training requirements.
Questions people ask
Which service is cheaper?
It depends on deployment size and billing. CleanBrowsing Basic is $6.25 per month with annual billing for up to 25 devices or 3.75 million requests monthly. DNSFilter Core is $1 per license monthly on annual billing, but has a $240 annual minimum. Compare the total commitment and limits.
Does either service have a free plan?
CleanBrowsing lists a free plan, but the published pricing details do not give its limits. DNSFilter does not list a free plan; it offers a 14-day trial. Check the current plan terms before relying on free access or trial availability.
Which is better for a family or home network?
CleanBrowsing is explicitly positioned for families, and its Basic plan lists up to 25 devices or 3.75 million requests per month, plus filtering profiles and content controls. DNSFilter’s published plans focus on organizational use and charge per license, with minimums.
Does CleanBrowsing offer remote protection like DNSFilter?
DNSFilter explicitly lists remote protection for users on and off the network, including roaming clients on any platform with Plus. The published CleanBrowsing details list DNS filtering, profiles, and encrypted DNS, but do not specify equivalent remote-device protection.