The Best DDoS Protection Software in 2026
We researched DDoS protection software through official websites, including pricing pages, plan tables and product documentation. Rankings reflect each product’s core mitigation job, value for money and verified features, helping security and infrastructure teams compare protection for networks, applications and online services.
Our top picks
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Top ranked
Cloudflare DDoS Protection#1 of 369.4/10Broad Layer 3/4 and 7 protection with a free plan and low paid entry price.
Free plan
-
Runner-up
Akamai Prolexic#2 of 369.2/10A managed, hybrid DDoS defense service for enterprises with complex network protection needs.
Pricing on request
-
Top-ranked free plan
Fastly DDoS Protection#3 of 369.1/10Usage-priced protection for network and application-layer DDoS attacks.
Free plan
Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.
The full ranking 36 tools, best first
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Best forBroad protection at a low published price
Broad Layer 3/4 and 7 protection with a free plan and low paid entry price.
- WAF included
- Managed mitigation
9.4/10★★★★★Visit Cloudflare -
Best forLarge enterprises needing global managed mitigation
A managed, hybrid DDoS defense service for enterprises with complex network protection needs.
- Managed mitigation
9.2/10★★★★★Try Akamai Prolexic -
Best forUsage-based web and API protection
Usage-priced protection for network and application-layer DDoS attacks.
9.1/10★★★★★Visit Fastly -
Best forAWS-native teams needing layered protection
A layered AWS-native option with free baseline coverage and a $3,000 Advanced tier.
- WAF included
- Managed mitigation
9.0/10★★★★☆Visit AWS Shield -
Best forOrganizations needing cloud DDoS and WAF alignment
Managed Layer 3/4 and Layer 7 protection with always-on or on-demand mitigation.
- Managed mitigation
8.9/10★★★★☆Visit Imperva -
Best forEnterprises wanting managed hybrid protection
A managed hybrid DDoS service for enterprises protecting networks and applications.
- Managed mitigation
8.8/10★★★★☆Visit Radware -
Best forNetwork operators needing hybrid appliance protection
Hybrid, multi-vector DDoS protection for network operators managing complex traffic flows.
- Managed mitigation
8.7/10★★★★☆Visit A10 Networks -
Best forSelf-hosted teams needing deep attack coverage
Deep Layer 3–7 protection for self-hosted teams, with contact-sales pricing.
- Managed mitigation
8.6/10★★★★☆Visit Check Point -
Best forService providers using programmable network mitigation
Programmable, always-on DDoS protection for service-provider and large network environments.
- Managed mitigation
8.5/10★★★★☆Visit Nokia -
Best forOrganizations needing managed L3/L4 hybrid defense
Managed Layer 3/4 defense for organizations operating hybrid Internet-facing networks.
- Managed mitigation
8.4/10★★★★☆Visit Cloudflare -
Best forOn-premises operators needing inline defense
A focused inline defense for organizations protecting stateful network and application infrastructure.
- Managed mitigation
8.3/10★★★★☆Visit NETSCOUT -
Best forAzure teams needing network protection
A focused Azure service for continuous Layer 3/4 DDoS mitigation, not application-layer defense.
- Managed mitigation
8.2/10★★★★☆Visit Microsoft -
Best forNGINX-based applications needing Layer 7 defense
A focused NGINX-based defense for Layer 7 attacks across modern application traffic.
8.1/10★★★★☆Visit F5 -
Best forTencent Cloud customers needing elastic protection
A paid Tencent Cloud service combining network and application attack protection.
8.0/10★★★★☆Visit Tencent Cloud -
Best forDigitalOcean customers wanting included protection
A no-cost Layer 3/4 safeguard for DigitalOcean resources, not a full application-layer defense.
7.9/10★★★★☆Visit DigitalOcean -
Best forAlibaba Cloud customers wanting broad coverage
Broad network and application-layer DDoS protection for Alibaba Cloud workloads.
7.8/10★★★★☆Visit Alibaba Cloud -
Best forManaged multi-layer protection with WAF
A managed, multi-layer DDoS service with WAF, cloud scrubbing, analytics, and SOC support.
- WAF included
- Managed mitigation
7.7/10★★★★☆Visit Nexusguard -
Best forFully managed network-layer protection
A fully managed choice for always-on network-layer DDoS mitigation.
- Managed mitigation
7.6/10★★★★☆Visit Link11 -
Best forManaged cloud protection with flexible mitigation modes
Managed cloud protection covering L3-L7 attacks with flexible mitigation modes.
7.5/10★★★★☆Visit Gcore -
Best forOn-premises network monitoring and filtering
A component-based Linux deployment for monitoring and filtering volumetric DDoS traffic.
- Managed mitigation
7.4/10★★★★☆Visit Andrisoft -
Best forEligible public-interest organizations
A free Google reverse proxy for eligible sites needing Layer 3/4 and Layer 7 DDoS protection.
7.3/10★★★★☆Visit Project Shield -
Best forOrganizations wanting always-on cloud protection
Always-on L3–L7 mitigation with DNS, BGP, and HTTPS filtering.
- Managed mitigation
7.2/10★★★★☆Visit Qrator -
Best forCost-conscious teams needing cloud L3-L7 coverage
A cloud DDoS service combining L3–L7 filtering, WAF checks, analytics, and hybrid mitigation.
- WAF included
- Managed mitigation
7.1/10★★★★☆Visit StormWall -
Best forManaged cloud protection for TCP and UDP services
Managed TCP and UDP protection with packet filtering, WAF, DNS, and routing support.
- WAF included
- Managed mitigation
7.0/10★★★★☆Visit Path Network -
Best forNetwork operators wanting open-source telemetry control
Open-source network telemetry and automated Layer 3/4 mitigation for operators.
6.9/10★★★☆☆Visit FastNetMon -
Best forSmall teams automating detection across network layers
Sub-second attack detection with automated response; mitigation is not managed by Flowtriq.
6.8/10★★★☆☆Visit Flowtriq -
Best forNetworks needing appliance and hybrid-cloud options
A hybrid DDoS platform combining appliances, cloud scrubbing, and managed mitigation.
- Managed mitigation
6.7/10★★★☆☆Visit Corero -
Best forIsolated networks and gaming environments
A focused appliance for always-on network protection in isolated and gaming environments.
- Managed mitigation
6.6/10★★★☆☆Visit StormWall -
Best forHigh-capacity enterprise appliance deployments
A high-capacity enterprise option with behavioral detection and hybrid deployment flexibility.
- Managed mitigation
6.5/10★★★☆☆Visit Radware -
Best forAPI security teams needing traffic controls
A broad API security platform with limited fit for dedicated DDoS protection.
5.8/10★★★☆☆Visit Haltdos -
Best forAPI teams needing runtime threat mitigation
API discovery, risk assessment, and runtime mitigation for enterprise security teams.
5.7/10★★★☆☆Visit Imperva -
Best forJuniper teams managing security policies
A strong Juniper firewall policy platform, but a weak fit for dedicated DDoS protection.
5.6/10★★★☆☆Visit Juniper -
Best forHuawei campus-network management teams
A strong campus-network operations platform, but not a DDoS protection product.
5.5/10★★★☆☆Visit Huawei -
Best forOCI teams managing secrets instead of DDoS
A free OCI secret-management service, not a DDoS mitigation tool.
5.4/10★★★☆☆Visit Oracle OCI -
Best forTeams managing TLS certificates on Cloudflare
A Cloudflare add-on for certificate management, not DDoS mitigation.
5.3/10★★★☆☆Visit Cloudflare -
Best forCisco teams needing broader network management
A broad Cisco network-management system, not a dedicated DDoS protection product.
5.0/10★★☆☆☆Visit Cisco
No tools match those filters.
Compare at a glance
| # | Tool | Free plan | Paid from | Attack layers | Mitigation mode | Deployment model | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cloudflare DDoS Protection | Yes | $20/mo | Both | Always-on | Cloud | 9.4 |
| 2 | Akamai Prolexic | Network | Hybrid | Hybrid | 9.2 | ||
| 3 | Fastly DDoS Protection | Yes | $0.01/unit/mo | Both | Always-on | Cloud | 9.1 |
| 4 | AWS Shield | Yes | Both | Always-on | Cloud | 9.0 | |
| 5 | Imperva DDoS Protection | No | Both | Hybrid | Cloud | 8.9 | |
| 6 | Radware Cloud DDoS Protection | No | Both | Hybrid | Hybrid | 8.8 | |
| 7 | A10 Thunder TPS | No | Both | Hybrid | Hybrid | 8.7 | |
| 8 | Check Point DDoS Protector | Both | Hybrid | Hybrid | 8.6 | ||
| 9 | Nokia Deepfield Defender | Both | Always-on | Hybrid | 8.5 | ||
| 10 | Cloudflare Magic Transit | No | Network | Hybrid | Hybrid | 8.4 | |
| 11 | NETSCOUT Arbor Edge Defense | Both | Always-on | On-premises | 8.3 | ||
| 12 | Azure DDoS Protection | Yes | $199/device/mo | Network | Always-on | Cloud | 8.2 |
| 13 | F5 NGINX App Protect DoS | No | Both | Always-on | Hybrid | 8.1 | |
| 14 | Tencent Cloud Anti-DDoS Pro | No | Both | Hybrid | Cloud | 8.0 | |
| 15 | DigitalOcean DDoS Protection | Yes | Free | Network | Always-on | Cloud | 7.9 |
| 16 | Alibaba Cloud Anti-DDoS | Yes | $1,580/mo | Both | Hybrid | Cloud | 7.8 |
| 17 | Nexusguard DDoS Protection | Both | Hybrid | Hybrid | 7.7 | ||
| 18 | Link11 Network DDoS Protection | No | Network | Always-on | Cloud | 7.6 | |
| 19 | Gcore DDoS Protection | Yes | €250/mo | Both | Hybrid | Cloud | 7.5 |
| 20 | Andrisoft Wanguard | No | $595/device/yr | Both | Hybrid | On-premises | 7.4 |
| 21 | Project Shield | Yes | Free | Both | Hybrid | Cloud | 7.3 |
| 22 | Qrator DDoS Protection | No | Both | Always-on | Cloud | 7.2 | |
| 23 | StormWall DDoS Protection | No | Both | Hybrid | Cloud | 7.1 | |
| 24 | Path Network DDoS Protection | Both | Always-on | Cloud | 7.0 | ||
| 25 | FastNetMon | Yes | $115/mo | Network | On-demand | Hybrid | 6.9 |
| 26 | Flowtriq | No | $7.99/device/mo | Both | Hybrid | Cloud | 6.8 |
| 27 | Corero SmartWall ONE | Both | Hybrid | Hybrid | 6.7 | ||
| 28 | StormWall Appliance | No | Network | Always-on | On-premises | 6.6 | |
| 29 | Radware DefensePro | Both | Hybrid | Hybrid | 6.5 | ||
| 30 | Haltdos | Hybrid | 5.8 | ||||
| 31 | Imperva API Security | No | Hybrid | 5.7 | |||
| 32 | Juniper Security Director | Hybrid | 5.6 | ||||
| 33 | Huawei iMaster NCE-Campus | Hybrid | 5.5 | ||||
| 34 | Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Secret Management | Yes | Free | Cloud | 5.4 | ||
| 35 | Cloudflare Advanced Certificate Manager | No | $10/mo | Cloud | 5.3 | ||
| 36 | Cisco Catalyst Center | Hybrid | 5.0 |
Head-to-head All 28 comparisons →
- Cloudflare DDoS Protection vs Akamai Prolexic
- Cloudflare DDoS Protection vs Fastly DDoS Protection
- Cloudflare DDoS Protection vs AWS Shield
- Cloudflare DDoS Protection vs Imperva DDoS Protection
- Cloudflare DDoS Protection vs Radware Cloud DDoS Protection
- Cloudflare DDoS Protection vs A10 Thunder TPS
- Cloudflare DDoS Protection vs Check Point DDoS Protector
- Akamai Prolexic vs Fastly DDoS Protection
- Akamai Prolexic vs AWS Shield
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How we rank DDoS protection software
Every tool on this page was researched by iTechGuides Editors from its official website — pricing pages, plan tables and product documentation. We rank on how well each one does this category's core job, what the free or entry plan includes, and where it falls short. Where we have enough verified facts, the score out of 10 is a rubric — job fit, value and how much we could verify — shown with its breakdown on every tool's page; a tool we have not verified enough to score yet shows its rank without a number. Scores are re-checked when a product changes its plans. Read the full editorial policy, or submit a tool we missed.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Last updated · How we research and update