# DNS Filtering for Small Offices and MSPs (2026): AdGuard DNS, NextDNS, Cloudflare and More

Source: https://srvscripts.com/guides/dns-filtering-small-office/
Updated: 2026-10-09
Publisher: srvScripts (https://srvscripts.com/)

**Short answer:** DNS filtering blocks malware, phishing, ads and unwanted categories for every device that uses your resolver, with nothing to install on most of them. For a small office, [AdGuard DNS](/adguard-dns/) Team ($239.99 a year for 200 devices, or about $30 billed monthly) and [NextDNS](/nextdns/) Business ($19.90 a month per 50 employees) are the best value. Cloudflare Zero Trust is free for up to 50 users if you can live with 24-hour logs. MSPs that need multi-tenant consoles and RMM integrations should look at DNSFilter or Control D.

This page contains partner links. See our [affiliate disclosure](/affiliate-disclosure/).

Prices and limits come from the vendors’ own pages, checked on 7 October 2026 (AdGuard DNS in US dollars). We have not run every service in production; this is a buyer’s comparison.

## Comparison

| Service | Free tier | Paid price | Logs kept | Encrypted DNS | MSP / SSO |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| AdGuard DNS | Starter: 5 devices | Personal $19.99/yr (20 devices); Team $239.99/yr or about $30/mo (200 devices); Enterprise from $0.29/user/mo | Configurable; logging can be turned off | DoH, DoT, DoQ, DNSCrypt | Dedicated IPs on Team and up; partner white-label |
| NextDNS | 300,000 queries/month | Pro $1.99/mo; Business $19.90/mo per 50 employees | 1 hour to 2 years, or off; US/EU/UK/CH storage | DoH, DoT | Not stated |
| Control D | 14-day trial | Business $2 per endpoint/month; personal from $3/mo | Raw logs 1 month, stats 1 year | DoH, DoT, DoQ, DoH3 | Sub-organisations for MSPs; SSO via Google, Okta, Entra |
| Cloudflare Zero Trust | Free up to 50 users | $7 per user/month pay-as-you-go | 24 h free, 30 days paid | DoH, DoT, WARP client | Identity-provider integration |
| DNSFilter | 14-day trial | Core from $1/licence ($23/mo minimum); MSP from $150/mo | Queries 9 days, reports 90 days | Roaming clients | Multi-tenant MSP console, PSA/RMM integrations, SSO |
| Cisco Umbrella | Trial | Quote only | Not stated | Roaming clients | Not stated |

Prices last checked: 7 October 2026. AdGuard DNS shows prices in your local currency; the figures above are its US-dollar prices.

## AdGuard DNS: best value for small offices

- **Plans:** Starter is free for 5 devices; Personal covers 20 devices for $19.99 a year; Team covers 200 devices for $239.99 a year (about $30 if billed monthly); Enterprise is from $0.29 per user per month with a 30-day trial.

- **Protocols:** DNS-over-HTTPS, DNS-over-TLS, DNS-over-QUIC and DNSCrypt, so laptops stay filtered off the office network.

- **Office setup:** point your router or firewall at AdGuard’s linked IP or dedicated IPs (Team and up include dedicated IPv4 addresses), and apply blocklists, categories and per-device rules from one dashboard.

- **Privacy:** query logging can be switched off entirely (statistics go with it); Enterprise can stream query logs to S3.

- **Free with AdGuard VPN:** AdGuard VPN customers get the Personal plan at no extra cost.

[Try AdGuard DNS](/adguard-dns/) Partner link

## How to deploy DNS filtering in an office

- Set the resolver on the router or firewall DHCP scope, so every device gets it automatically. On pfSense, see [pfBlockerNG DNS and IP blocking](/guides/pfblockerng-dns-ip-blocking/) for a self-hosted alternative.

- If you run Active Directory, keep your domain controllers as the clients’ DNS and set the filter as their forwarder, so internal names still resolve.

- Block outbound port 53 to anything except your resolver, so devices cannot bypass the filter.

- Install the agent or an encrypted-DNS profile on laptops that leave the office.

- Start in log-only mode for a week, then turn on blocking categories.

## Which one to choose

- **Office of up to 200 devices, simple setup:** AdGuard DNS Team.

- **Per-employee pricing and long log retention:** [NextDNS](/nextdns/) Business.

- **Already using Cloudflare, under 50 users:** Cloudflare Zero Trust free plan.

- **MSP with many clients:** DNSFilter or Control D for the multi-tenant console and RMM integrations.

**Related:** [pfBlockerNG DNS blocking](/guides/pfblockerng-dns-ip-blocking/) · [Cloudflare Tunnel](/guides/cloudflare-tunnel-cloudflared/) · [DNS lookup tool](/tools/dns-lookup/) · [Lookalike domain checker](/tools/lookalike-domains/)

## DNS Filtering at a glance

In short: AdGuard DNS, NextDNS, Control D, Cloudflare Zero Trust, DNSFilter and Cisco Umbrella compared for small offices and MSPs: prices, free tiers, log retention, encrypted DNS and deployment.

DNS Filtering: what this guide covers.

DNS Filtering: the questions this guide answers.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is DNS filtering?

A filtering resolver answers DNS queries for your devices and refuses to resolve domains on block lists (malware, phishing, ads or chosen categories). Because almost every connection starts with a DNS lookup, it protects every device without installing software on each one.

### Can users bypass DNS filtering?

They can if they change their DNS server or use their own encrypted DNS. Block outbound port 53 except to your resolver and block well-known DNS-over-HTTPS endpoints on the firewall, or use an agent on managed laptops.

### Is AdGuard DNS free?

The Starter plan is free for up to 5 devices. Personal is $19.99 a year for 20 devices and Team is $239.99 a year for 200 devices.

### Does DNS filtering replace antivirus?

No. It blocks known-bad domains before a connection starts, which stops a lot of phishing and malware delivery, but it does not inspect files or traffic. Use it alongside endpoint protection.

### Will it break Active Directory?

Not if you configure it as a forwarder on your domain controllers and leave clients pointing at the DCs. Pointing clients straight at a public resolver breaks AD name resolution.