IBM NS1 Connect vs ClouDNS

IBM NS1 Connect9.1Visit ClouDNS8.7Visit

Higher score IBM NS1 Connect #3 in Managed DNS Services 9.1/10 30-day trial Free trial✓ 4 of 4 features Try IBM NS1 Connect

vs

ClouDNS #7 in Managed DNS Services 8.7/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 4 features Visit ClouDNS

• IBM NS1 Connect fits best

  Enterprise traffic steering and DNS automation

• ClouDNS fits best

  Teams managing domains and routing DNS traffic

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Side by side

Feature	IBM NS1 Connect 9.1/10 Visit ↗	ClouDNS 8.7/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.1	8.7
Ranking	#3 in Managed DNS Services	#7 in Managed DNS Services
Best for	Enterprise traffic steering and DNS automation	Teams managing domains and routing DNS traffic
Pricing model	Paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	$99/mo	$2.95/mo (best)
Free plan	—	✓ (best)
Free trial	30 days	—
Deployment	Cloud	Cloud
Platforms	Web	Web
Integrations	16 integrations	4 integrations
Features IBM NS1 Connect 4/4 · ClouDNS 4/4
DNSSEC support	✓	✓
DNS health checks	✓	✓
API access	✓	✓
Secondary DNS	✓	✓
Specs
Included zones	Not checked yet	5
Traffic steering	Advanced	Advanced
Our review
Pros	Steers traffic by performance, availability, geography and policy Health checks can trigger automated failover Supports DNSSEC, zone versioning and primary-secondary DNS	Free DNS includes 1 zone, 50 records, and 500K monthly queries GeoDNS, Anycast, DNSSEC, secondary DNS, and failover are supported HTTP API and integrations include Terraform, OctoDNS, and WHMCS
Cons	No free plan; paid Essentials starts at $99 per month Essentials includes only 2 health check monitors Essentials includes just 1 traffic filter chain	Free DNS is limited to 1 zone and 50 records Premium S includes only 1 DNS failover check Paid-tier zone, record, query, and check limits vary by plan
Our verdict	IBM NS1 Connect is a managed authoritative DNS service for organizations that need traffic control, DNS resilience and API-driven operations. Its global anycast network provides the foundation for routing based on performance,… Read the review →	ClouDNS provides managed DNS for businesses and organizations that host domains and route domain traffic. Its web interface handles DNS zones and records, while an HTTP API offers another way to manage zones and related resources. The… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• IBM NS1 Connect — where it wins

  • Steers traffic by performance, availability, geography and policy
  • Health checks can trigger automated failover
  • Supports DNSSEC, zone versioning and primary-secondary DNS

  Where it doesn't

  • No free plan; paid Essentials starts at $99 per month
  • Essentials includes only 2 health check monitors
  • Essentials includes just 1 traffic filter chain

• ClouDNS — where it wins

  • Free DNS includes 1 zone, 50 records, and 500K monthly queries
  • GeoDNS, Anycast, DNSSEC, secondary DNS, and failover are supported
  • HTTP API and integrations include Terraform, OctoDNS, and WHMCS

  Where it doesn't

  • Free DNS is limited to 1 zone and 50 records
  • Premium S includes only 1 DNS failover check
  • Paid-tier zone, record, query, and check limits vary by plan

• IBM NS1 Connect9.1/10 · 30-day trial

  Managed authoritative DNS with traffic steering, failover and API-driven automation.

  Try IBM NS1 ConnectFull verdict →
• ClouDNS8.7/10 · Free plan

  Managed DNS with routing, failover, and DNSSEC, from a free plan to paid tiers.

  Visit ClouDNSFull verdict →