Choosing the right DNS (Domain Name System) provider in the UK is essential for fast website performance, reliable uptime, strong cyber-defence, and excellent user experience. Whether you’re a business owner, IT specialist, developer, or digital entrepreneur, having the right DNS partner can significantly improve your site’s speed, performance, and resilience against attacks.
This comprehensive guide breaks down the top 50 DNS providers serving the UK, highlighting their strengths, key features, security capabilities, pricing approach, and who they suit best.
Top Best 50 DNS Providers in the UK
1. Cloudflare DNS
Cloudflare DNS is one of the fastest DNS services globally and widely used across the UK. It offers powerful DDoS mitigation, DNSSEC, global redundant servers, and industry-leading security tools. UK businesses appreciate its low-latency London and Manchester PoPs (Points of Presence) that deliver ultra-fast response times.
2. Google Public DNS
Google Public DNS is known for speed, reliability, and security. With robust infrastructure across Europe—including UK nodes—Google DNS provides stable performance and excellent uptime. It is free and ideal for general users and businesses.
3. OpenDNS (Cisco Umbrella)
OpenDNS, owned by Cisco, is heavily used by UK enterprises and schools for its advanced filtering and cybersecurity features. It offers malware protection, parental controls, custom filtering, and strong threat analytics.
4. Quad9 DNS
Quad9 is a free, secure DNS provider that blocks malicious domains using global threat intelligence. It has strong European infrastructure and UK-friendly performance. Ideal for users prioritising cybersecurity.
5. Amazon Route 53
Amazon Route 53 is a premium, enterprise-grade DNS service with exceptional speed and reliability. It offers DNS failover, traffic routing policies, load balancing, and integration with AWS—popular among UK tech firms.
6. Microsoft Azure DNS
Azure DNS integrates tightly with Microsoft cloud services used by many UK organisations. It offers scalable, fast DNS resolution with enterprise-level protection and seamless DevOps integration.
7. DNS Made Easy
DNS Made Easy is known for unparalleled uptime and speed. With strong DDoS protection and failover features, it’s a popular choice for UK and EU businesses needing guaranteed reliability.
8. Dyn DNS (Oracle Cloud Infrastructure)
Dyn DNS offers advanced routing and enterprise-grade performance, especially for large companies in finance, e-commerce, and media. Backed by Oracle, it provides powerful DNS analytics and traffic management.
9. UltraDNS
UltraDNS delivers premium DNS services with high-end security, DDoS resistance, and advanced traffic routing. Ideal for UK enterprises with mission-critical digital operations.
10. Neustar DNS
Neustar DNS focuses on performance, traffic shaping, and enterprise resilience. Its global PoPs ensure fast loading times for UK-based websites serving international users.
11. Verisign DNS
Verisign operates some of the internet’s core infrastructure. Its DNS services are extremely secure, stable, and trusted globally, with excellent performance across the UK.
12. FreeDNS (Afraid.org)
FreeDNS is a free, community-based DNS platform. It’s beginner-friendly and widely used by hobbyists and small UK projects looking for zero-cost DNS hosting.
13. Namecheap DNS
Namecheap offers free DNS with every domain and boasts reliable performance, two-factor authentication, and an intuitive dashboard. Great for UK small businesses.
14. GoDaddy Premium DNS
GoDaddy’s Premium DNS provides global performance, better uptime, and DNSSEC. It is popular among UK domain owners who want to upgrade from basic DNS.
15. CloudNS
CloudNS provides DNSSEC, Anycast DNS, and DDoS protection at an affordable cost. It has strong European infrastructure that benefits UK users.
16. ClouDNS (Premium)
The premium tier offers advanced routing, monitoring, and extra failover features that appeal to businesses with high traffic.
17. Google Cloud DNS
Google Cloud DNS integrates with Google Cloud platforms used by many UK agencies and tech firms. It is highly scalable with fast propagation.
18. IBM Cloud DNS Services
IBM’s enterprise DNS solution gives unmatched security and performance. Ideal for large UK corporations and governmental institutions.
19. ns1 (IBM NS1 Connect)
NS1 specialises in intelligent DNS traffic management, routing based on real-time performance, and automation. It’s popular among UK SaaS and fintech companies.
20. A2 Hosting DNS
A2 offers fast, free DNS with reliable uptime and strong server performance. Good for UK website owners hosted on A2 servers.
21. DigitalOcean DNS
DigitalOcean DNS is developer-friendly, simple, and widely used by UK startups and small developers hosting on DigitalOcean droplets.
22. Linode DNS (Akamai)
Linode DNS, now part of Akamai, offers global Anycast, strong performance and reliability—especially beneficial for developers.
23. Fastly DNS
Fastly, known for its CDN, also offers enterprise-grade DNS with powerful routing and security. Ideal for UK sites with heavy global traffic.
24. Akamai DNS
Akamai is one of the world’s largest CDN & security companies; its DNS infrastructure is built for speed and global resilience. Many UK media companies rely on it.
25. HE.net (Hurricane Electric DNS)
Hurricane Electric offers free and premium DNS services, including IPv6 support. It’s reliable and popular among network engineers.
26. Bluehost DNS
Bluehost includes DNS with domain and hosting packages. It’s simple, reliable, and widely used by beginners and small UK websites.
27. HostGator DNS
HostGator DNS is similar to Bluehost, with decent performance and basic DNS management for small websites and blogs.
28. 123 Reg DNS
As one of the biggest UK domain providers, 123 Reg offers easy DNS management and localised support—ideal for UK business owners.
29. UK2.net DNS
UK2.net provides local UK hosting and DNS solutions, making it an attractive choice for businesses wanting UK-based infrastructure.
30. Fasthosts DNS
Fasthosts is another UK-based hosting giant offering robust DNS, good support, and fast performance for local audiences.
31. IONOS by 1&1 DNS
IONOS is popular with UK small businesses for its affordability and strong DNS uptime. Includes DNSSEC and easy DNS editing.
32. Alibaba Cloud DNS
Great for UK businesses targeting Asian markets. Offers advanced security, global Anycast, and intelligent routing.
33. Gandi DNS
Gandi offers full DNSSEC support, fast propagation, and transparent pricing. A strong choice for UK technical users.
34. Name.com DNS
Name.com offers reliable DNS hosting with easy-to-use management tools and fast European performance.
35. Porkbun DNS
Known for simplicity and security, Porkbun includes free DNS, DNSSEC, and an intuitive control panel.
36. Digital-VM DNS
Digital-VM offers UK-based DNS hosting services with strong uptime and customer service tailored to UK businesses.
37. Mythic Beasts DNS
A UK-based hosting company offering highly secure DNS with DNSSEC, Anycast, and fast local network speeds.
38. Claranet DNS
Claranet is a UK cloud and networking provider offering enterprise DNS solutions with strong cybersecurity integration.
39. ANS Group DNS
ANS Group provides managed cloud and DNS hosting for UK enterprises, including robust redundancy and security layers.
40. Rackspace DNS
Rackspace is known globally for its managed hosting, offering premium DNS solutions ideal for UK corporations.
41. Aruba Cloud DNS
Popular in Europe, Aruba Cloud offers DNS hosting with reliable performance and competitive pricing.
42. Zonomi DNS
Zonomi provides fast and cost-effective DNS hosting, designed for small to medium sites seeking reliability.
43. BuddyNS
BuddyNS is a secondary DNS provider offering extremely fast synchronisation, useful for backup or redundancy.
44. DNSimple
DNSimple is widely used by developers for its automation tools, API integration, and reliable DNS management.
45. No-IP DNS
No-IP is popular for dynamic DNS services, especially among remote workers and UK IoT device operators.
46. Dynu DNS
Dynu offers free and paid dynamic DNS services with good performance and easy configuration.
47. Hurricane Electric Free DNS
The free service offers IPv6 support, strong reliability, and simple management—ideal for budget-conscious users.
48. TierPoint DNS
TierPoint offers enterprise DNS hosting with strong redundancy and high security, used by multinational businesses.
49. PointDNS
PointDNS is popular with developers for its simplicity, API functionality, and affordable pricing.
50. DNSPod (Tencent Cloud)
Excellent for UK businesses serving Asian markets. Offers high-performance DNS, DDoS protection, and robust traffic routing.
What Makes a DNS Provider Great in the UK?
When ranking the top DNS providers, we considered:
- Speed & latency performance across the UK and Europe
- Security features (DDoS protection, DNSSEC, redundancy)
- Reliability & uptime guarantees
- Ease of management & DNS tools
- Support quality
- Value for money
Conclusion
The best DNS provider in the UK will depend on your needs—whether it’s enterprise-grade security, developer-focused tools, affordable DNS hosting, or ultra-low-latency performance. This list covers the most reliable and trusted providers currently serving the UK market.