Cloudflare DNS vs IBM NS1 Connect

Cloudflare DNS9.4Visit IBM NS1 Connect8.8Visit

Higher score Cloudflare DNS #1 in Anycast DNS Services 9.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 5 features Visit Cloudflare

vs

IBM NS1 Connect #5 in Anycast DNS Services 8.8/10 30-day trial Free trial✓ 4 of 5 features Try IBM NS1 Connect

• Cloudflare DNS fits best

  Teams seeking managed anycast DNS and API automation

• IBM NS1 Connect fits best

  Enterprises needing deep DNS traffic control

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Side by side

Feature	Cloudflare DNS 9.4/10 Visit ↗	IBM NS1 Connect 8.8/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.4	8.8
Ranking	#1 in Anycast DNS Services	#5 in Anycast DNS Services
Best for	Teams seeking managed anycast DNS and API automation	Enterprises needing deep DNS traffic control
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Paid
Starting price	$20/mo (best)	$99/mo
Free plan	✓ (best)	—
Free trial	—	30 days
Deployment	Cloud	Cloud
Platforms	Web	Web
Integrations	2 integrations	16 integrations
Features Cloudflare DNS 4/5 · IBM NS1 Connect 4/5
DNSSEC signing	✓	✓
Geo-based steering	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
DNS health checks	✓	✓
Secondary DNS	✓	✓
API access	✓	✓
Specs
Anycast locations	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Free plan includes DNS and authoritative record management Supports DNSSEC, CNAME flattening, and DNS analytics API automation plus Terraform and Ansible integrations	Advanced steering by performance, availability, geography, and policy Health checks, automated failover, DNSSEC, and primary/secondary DNS API access with Terraform, Ansible, Kubernetes, and monitoring integrations
Cons	Health checks and traffic steering require the Load Balancing add-on Secondary DNS is available to Enterprise customers Pro and Business are billed annually at their listed prices	Essentials starts at $99 per month Essentials includes only 2 health check monitors Advanced enterprise capabilities are concentrated in higher tiers
Our verdict	Cloudflare DNS provides authoritative DNS hosting and record management, serving responses through Cloudflare’s global network. It is suited to teams that want managed anycast DNS, DNSSEC, analytics, and API automation, with a free plan… Read the review →	IBM NS1 Connect is a fully managed authoritative DNS service for organizations that need traffic control, resilient DNS operations, and API-driven automation. Its global anycast network supports routing decisions based on performance,… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Cloudflare DNS — where it wins

  • Free plan includes DNS and authoritative record management
  • Supports DNSSEC, CNAME flattening, and DNS analytics
  • API automation plus Terraform and Ansible integrations

  Where it doesn't

  • Health checks and traffic steering require the Load Balancing add-on
  • Secondary DNS is available to Enterprise customers
  • Pro and Business are billed annually at their listed prices

• IBM NS1 Connect — where it wins

  • Advanced steering by performance, availability, geography, and policy
  • Health checks, automated failover, DNSSEC, and primary/secondary DNS
  • API access with Terraform, Ansible, Kubernetes, and monitoring integrations

  Where it doesn't

  • Essentials starts at $99 per month
  • Essentials includes only 2 health check monitors
  • Advanced enterprise capabilities are concentrated in higher tiers

• Cloudflare DNS9.4/10 · Free plan

  Free authoritative DNS with advanced steering and failover through a separate add-on.

  Visit CloudflareFull verdict →
• IBM NS1 Connect8.8/10 · 30-day trial

  A traffic-control-focused authoritative DNS service for enterprise operations.

  Try IBM NS1 ConnectFull verdict →