How to Find Fastest DNS Server

The best DNS servers give you another way how to Find Fastest DNS Server, which is faster and safer than using your ISP. If you’re not familiar with DNS servers, the Domain Name System (DNS) is a protocol or system that turns the domain names you type into a browser into the IP addresses you need to access those websites.

If you don’t have your own server, every time you go online you will be given one. But since it’s given to you by your Internet service provider, it’s not always the best option. Slow servers can make websites take longer to load, and if the server you’re assigned goes down, you might not be able to connect to the internet at all.

How to Find Fastest DNS Server

Windows

1. Click on the Start menu.
2. Click on the Settings icon.
3. Click on Network & Internet.
4. Click on Change adapter options.
5. Double–click on the active network adapter.
6. Write down any existing DNS server entries for future reference.
7. Click Use The Following DNS Server Addresses.
8. Replace those addresses with the 1.1.1.1 DNS addresses:

• For IPv4: 1.1.1.1 and 1.0.0.1
• For IPv6: 2606:4700:4700::1111 and 2606:4700:4700::1001

MacOS

1. Search for DNS Servers and select it from the drop-down.
2. Click the + button to add a DNS Server and enter 1.1.1.1.
3. Click + again and enter 1.0.0.1.
4. Click OK, then click Apply.

Linux

1. Set the Automatic toggle on the DNS entry to Off.
2. Provide the 1.1.1.1 DNS addresses in the DNS entries field:

• For IPv4: 1.0.0.1
• For IPv6: 2606:4700:4700::1111 and 2606:4700:4700::1001
• Click Apply, then restart your browser.

Android

On Android, it’s far harder to set up DNS than with other operating systems. While Cloud flare has an app for its DNS service, generally speaking, the easiest way, which works across most Android devices, is to install DNS Changer. This app works by creating a local virtual private network on your device. This VPN exists only within your device and your mobile or Wi-Fi connection. To use it with Cloud flare, you’d place 1.1.1.1 and 1.0.0.1 in as your DNS entries.

iPhone

1. Tap Wi-Fi, then tap your preferred network in the list.
2. Tap Configure DNS, then tap Manual.
3. If there are any existing entries, tap the – button and Delete next to each one.
4. Tap the + Add Server button, then type 1.1.1.1.
5. Tap the + Add Server button again, then type 1.0.0.1. This is for redundancy.
6. Tap the Save button on the top right.

What Are DNS Servers?

DNS servers turn the friendly domain name (like lifewire.com) you type into a browser into the public IP address your device needs to talk to that site. When your phone or router connects to the internet, your ISP gives you DNS servers, but you don’t have to use them. You might want to try different ones for a number of reasons (we go over many of them in Why Use Different DNS Servers? a little further down the page), but privacy and speed are two big reasons you might want to switch.

What Is a DNS Speed Test?

NameBench

NameBench is an open-source portable app that works on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It doesn’t need to be installed, and you can run it from a USB flash drive. It uses your internet browser history or a standard test data set to run a DNS benchmark test on your computer. The NameBench DNS test then tells you which DNS settings are the fastest for your current location and connection.

GRC Domain Name Speed Benchmark

The Domain Name Speed Benchmark tool from Gibson Research Corporation gives you a detailed look at the best DNS settings for your connection. Like NameBench, DNS Benchmark can be run from a USB flash drive without having to be set up. There is a Windows app, but neither macOS nor Linux can use it.

DNS Benchmark is great because its list of DNS servers is always up to date. As the DNS speed test goes on, the servers that answer the most quickly move to the top of the list. After you’ve downloaded and opened DNS Benchmark, go to the Nameservers tab. Let DNS Benchmark update the list, then click Run Benchmark. The first time through doesn’t take long.

DNS Jumper

At first glance, DNS Jumper looks like a simple tool for testing DNS speed. But once you start using DNS Jumper, you’ll see that it has many features that are the same as NameBench and DNS Benchmark. For example, DNS Jumper does a DNS speed test and is also a portable app.

When it comes to DNS speed, DNS Jumper can scan for and choose the “Fastest DNS.” After the DNS speed test is done, you can choose a setting and then use the “Apply DNS” button to use it. The DNS Jumper test list has some restrictions, and it tends to favor DNS providers in the United States.