ClouDNS

Domains 6.8/10

Free Forever managed DNS hosting with 1 zone, 50 records, and dynamic DNS on a 4-server unicast network.

Card required: No

ClouDNS scores 6.8/10 for free value in Domains. The main constraint: Free Forever: 1 DNS zone, 50 DNS records, 500,000 DNS queries/month on 4 unicast nameservers, plus 1 mail forward and 1 dynamic DNS hostname.

Category Domains Kind Managed DNS Caveats Free tier is unicast only (no Anycast) and excludes DNSSEC, DNS Failover, and GeoDNS; it is capped at 1 zone, 50 records, and 500K queries/month, and ClouDNS does not register a domain for you (you bring your own). Renewal monthly Card required No Eligibility anyone

Free value score

6.8 / 10

Show the math

Overall 6.8/10

value = 6.8/100

weighted_components_v1

Name/DNS value 7.2/10

value = 13 $/yr

fixed_log_v1

API/DDNS fit 6.4/10

value = 6.4/100

policy_score_v1

Trust and friction 6.5/10

value = 6.5/100

policy_score_v1

Key metrics

1 Free domains

50 DNS records

On-demand DDNS refresh

Yes Ad-free

What you get

1 DNS zone with up to 50 records, free forever

500,000 DNS queries per month on a 4-server unicast network

Includes 1 dynamic DNS hostname and 1 mail forward

24/7 live-chat support even on the free plan

Gotchas

1 DNS zone

Free Forever plan hosts exactly 1 DNS zone (domain); additional zones require a paid plan.
50 DNS records

Each zone is limited to 50 DNS records on the free plan.
500K queries/month

DNS resolution is capped at 500,000 queries per month, resetting monthly; higher volume requires a paid Premium/Protected plan.
1 dynamic DNS hostname

Only 1 dynamic DNS (DDNS) hostname is included on the free plan.
1 mail forward

Only 1 mail forward is included on the free plan.
Unicast only (no Anycast)

Free tier runs on 4 unicast DNS servers; Anycast network access requires a paid Premium, DDoS Protected, or GeoDNS plan.
No DNSSEC

DNSSEC signing is only available on paid plans.
No DNS Failover

DNS Failover / health-check based failover is a paid-plan feature.
No GeoDNS

Geolocation-based DNS routing requires the paid GeoDNS plan.
Account signup required

A free ClouDNS account must be created to use the free tier; no credit card is required.

Sources

"Free DNS Free Forever 4 Unicast DNS servers 1 DNS zone 50 DNS Records 500K DNS queries per month 1 Mail forward 1 Dynamic DNS hostname 24/7 Live chat support"
https://www.cloudns.net/
"Even in the free basic version, ClouDNS allows 50 DNS entries and 500,000 monthly DNS queries for a DNS zone. Those who need more can extend the..."
https://www.ionos.com/digitalguide/server/tools/free-dynamic-dns-providers-an-overview/
"Founded in 2010, ClouDNS has established itself as a reliable and innovative leader in the DNS industry, serving thousands of customers worldwide"
https://tech.einnews.com/pr_news/721441934/cloudns-ranked-1-fastest-dns-provider-by-dnsperf-com
"ClouDNS holds the #1 spot for raw DNS performance according to DNSPerf. ... *As of May 2025, ranked #1 for raw performance by DNSPerf."
https://www.cloudns.net/

dns managed-dns dynamic-dns ddns mail-forward free-forever

Open service Source ← All Domains

Alternatives

Same category · similar quota

EU.orgEU.org · free_forever · Free third-level domain (*.eu.org) with full DNS delegation

6.8

Long-running nonprofit service providing free *.eu.org subdomains (e.g. yourname.eu.org) to individuals and non-profits, with full DNS control.

Checked 28d ago

Hetzner DNSHetzner DNS · free_forever · Managed DNS

6.8

Completely free authoritative DNS hosting and zone management via Hetzner Console, REST API, and the hcloud CLI.

25500

Checked 27d ago

DigitalPlat FreeDomainDigitalPlat FreeDomain · free_forever · Free nonprofit domain registration (dpdns.org, qzz.io, us.kg)

6.7

Nonprofit service offering free open registration of domains under namespaces like *.dpdns.org, *.qzz.io, *.us.kg and *.xx.kg, with bring-your-own DNS.

Checked 28d ago