Blocky

At a glance

• Editor score
  3.9 / 10
• Pricing
  Free plan
• Best for
  Technical Linux and container DNS deployments
• Free plan
  Yes
• Paid from
  Free
• Custom blocklists
  Yes
• Facts checked
  22 Sep 2026

• Where it wins

  • Flexible denylist, allowlist, regex, wildcard, and client-group rules
  • Encrypted DNS, custom records, conditional forwarding, and caching
  • Prometheus, Grafana, REST API, CLI, and multiple logging backends

• Where it doesn't

  • Requires self-hosted deployment and technical DNS administration
  • Activity reporting centers on rolling 24-hour DNS statistics
  • Does not provide SafeSearch enforcement for general-purpose filtering

Our verdict on Blocky

Blocky is an open-source DNS proxy and network-wide ad blocker for local networks, homelabs, businesses, Raspberry Pi systems, OpenWrt routers, Docker, and Kubernetes environments. Written in Go and licensed under Apache-2.0, it filters DNS queries through external, local, or inline denylists, with allowlists and client-specific filtering groups. Its strongest fit is a technical operator who wants network-level control rather than a consumer-facing filtering application.

The published plan structure is straightforward: Free and open source includes self-hosted deployment under the Apache-2.0 license. There are no paid tiers to compare, so the main tradeoff is operational rather than subscription-based. Administrators manage deployment, configuration, DNS behavior, and storage choices themselves. Blocky supports wildcard and regular-expression rules, time-based schedules, custom DNS records, conditional forwarding, configurable caching, and prefetching. Encrypted DNS options include DNS over HTTPS, DNS over TLS, DNS over QUIC, and DNS over HTTPS/3.

Blocky fits environments that already use Linux, OpenWrt, Docker, or Kubernetes and need observability or automation around DNS filtering. Query logs can flow to CSV, SQLite, MySQL/MariaDB, PostgreSQL, TimescaleDB, or dnstap, while Prometheus metrics, Grafana dashboards, REST APIs, and CLI interfaces support monitoring and integration. Rolling 24-hour statistics cover top domains, blocked domains, and clients. Choose Blocky for programmable, self-hosted filtering with detailed infrastructure integration. Choose an alternative when family-oriented controls or SafeSearch enforcement matter more than DNS customization and deployment flexibility.

Your product? Our editors can test Blocky in depth and publish a review, labelled as paid · from $149/mo →

Blocky pricing

Blocky fact sheet

Blocky integrations

Blocky lists 8 integrations on its own site.

• Prometheus
• Grafana
• MySQL
• MariaDB
• PostgreSQL
• Timescale
• Docker
• Kubernetes

Alternatives to Blocky

• Cloudflare GatewayA broad filtering gateway with strong policy controls and basic reporting.9.2
• Cisco UmbrellaA mature enterprise filter with broad controls, integrations, and contact-sales pricing.9.1
• Pi-holeFree, open-source network blocking for self-hosted administrators.9.0

See all Blocky alternatives →

Featured on iTechGuides

Blocky is listed in our Internet Filtering Software directory. Add the badge to your site — it links back to this page.

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Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

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Last updated 7 Oct 2026 · How we research and update