Opting for the best dns servers for gaming won’t help you counter higher ping or improve the latency.
Why is that?
The primary purpose of the DNS or Domain Name System is to place the correct domain names against the accurate IP addresses, which is called Domain Name resolution. The best dns servers for gaming, e.g., listed in this guide, resolute the domain names swiftly, given the availability of their servers almost everywhere. It results in a rapid connection between the two and ultimately faster internet.
That said, depending on your game, whether it leverages hard-coding or server names as their Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, choosing the best dns servers for gaming will help you load your game faster, as it improves the internet speed.
Other than that, if you are curious about whether the DNS would reduce lag or improve ping, it would go against its purpose, which is only to connect you to the right website but faster. It will also help your gaming console download the game content rapidly, as there will be no malicious barriers or internet traffic jams en route.
Now that your mind is sifted off of the DNS doubts, let’s start exploring the best dns servers for gaming.
8 best dns servers for gaming
With this collection of the best DNS servers for gaming, your chances of elevating your gaming experience—not in-game though—get exponentially higher. Choosing anyone out of these ten will certainly put an impact on the time your game takes to establish a connection with the server or download the patches, updates, and other content.
Cloudflare
Primary DNS server: 1.1.1.1
Secondary DNS server: 1.0.0.1
One of many reasons for listing Cloudflare as the #01 DNS on this list is its claim to be the best DNS provider in the world. At first, like you, we also thought if they were proclaiming, but not when we saw their public report, sitting word-by-word to their claim.
Anyways, as for the DNS, not only the Cloudflare itself, many independent sites vouch for the DNS being the fastest in the world. From not selling your browsing data for displaying targeted third-party ads to deleting your logs within 24 hours, we have every reason to recommend the Domain Name System not only for gaming but for whatever reason.
They have recently launched a public DNS service named 1.1.1.1. It is primarily focused on making your internet browsing fast, private efficient, safe, and effective. 1.1.1.1 is a free application that was first available for smartphones and tablets but is now available for Windows and macOS as well.
The application uses their signature WRAP+ technology that keeps your data from being visible to your ISPs and identifies and selects seamless, internet traffic-free routes to execute your queries.
Their 1.0.0.2/1.1.1.2 and 1.0.0.3/1.1.1.3 DNS services help you filter the content of the malware and adult sites, but it’s up to you to opt for them. All in all, the Cloudflare DNS exceeds the expectations and will satisfy your browsing or internet needs in all its glory.
Google Public DNS
Primary DNS server: 8.8.8.8
Secondary DNS server: 8.8.4.4
Being a free and public DNS server, you can’t expect as great privacy as you could with Cloudflare, but it is still great. However, this DNS server caters more to experienced users, you may want to stick to Cloudflare or some other DNS server in this list if you are just starting with the Domain Name System.
Also, Google logs your full IP address information for diagnostic and troubleshooting for up to 48 hours. Out of which, the permanent logs are filtered of the personal information that could identify you, and your location details are, at least level, categorized to the city in which you live.
Per Google, they keep small samples of the data collected to enhance their operations and serve its customers better and delete the rest of it after two weeks of storage. Since the DNS is public and targets experienced users, you can’t access it as conveniently as you did with Cloudflare, which is not a drawback, but a way of saying ‘It is from Google, the tech giant.’
The Google public DNS makes one of the best dns servers for gaming that will you spare you all the effort of banging your hand on your keyboard as you wait for your game to connect to its servers or make progress with its downloadable content, provided its enormous availability of servers around the globe, enhancing and maintaining the internet speed at higher speed.
Quad9
Primary DNS server: 9.9.9.9
Secondary DNS server: 149.112.112.112
Next on the list is Quad9, which, per their website, encourages free security and high privacy. It has not been long since they started offering DNS services, it only dates back to 2016 when the company came up with the idea of blocking malicious domains when you or your enterprise execute the internet transactions.
Quad9 uses threat intelligence providers to identify and block the malicious domains, and the seven out of ten rating on DNSPerf sure vouches for that. These threat intelligence providers belong to varying public and private sources, the company preferred keeping those sources unidentified and vague though.
However, that vagueness doesn’t mess with its performance, which doesn’t put us or any of its users into much concern. Available only for Windows and macOS, you can find their set up tutorials on its website, which aren’t very inclusive, but fulfill their purpose.
Quad9’s ability to protect your computers and connection from spyware, malware, phishing, and heavily crowded internet routes hands DNS the advantage of enhancing your gaming experience by establishing and maintaining the transactions at optimal standards.
OpenDNS
Primary DNS server: 208.67.222.222
Secondary DNS server: 208.67.220.220
OpenDNS is one of the best DNS servers for gaming and being owned by CISCO, there hardly remains any doubt about why it should not be. This DNS assures you of offering high-speed internet, which is one of the most demanded features when it comes to gaming.
Actually, all the DNS listed in this guide do so, but the OpenDNS is recognized with this capability. However, apart from promising fast internet speeds, you get by default blockage of phishing sites, parental controls that allow you to filter through and block the sites of your choice, and needless to say, 100% uptime.
This is all included in the free version of OpenDNS; however, if you buy their membership at a reasonable price tag, you will be able to access and view your browsing history or internet activity dating back to the preceding year. The spotlight of the commercial plans is yet to come, the OpenDNS, if allowed access through specific sites, can also lock your system down when you want it to do so.
For gaming, these features can result in great breakthroughs, as you wouldn’t need to give yourself a facepalm every time you leave your system switched on, or for whatever reason. Now if you are thinking about how you would be practicing all this on your system, you don’t need to, as you can find all the tutorials on their site.
Comodo Secure DNS
Primary DNS server: 8.26.56.26
Secondary DNS server: 8.20.247.20
Not so enticing but still worth it, meet the Comodo Secure DNS. As you can see in its name, the DNS focuses more on providing security rather than other value-added features. The most prominent element of the DNS service is its ability to identify and warn you if you are about to navigate to parked domains, or the sites containing malware and spyware.
If you do not know about the parked domains, these are the sites that attract traffic in the name of a specific service, and you get nothing but a myriad of undying pop-ups that freeze your browser and open gateways to malicious cookies.
Pairing that with gaming can be quite useful. It is because there are many sites that redirect you to an extraterrestrial domain, which from the start means only bad and bad coming to your PC. Now what Comodo does is it directs you directly to that site, leaping over the not-in-use or phishing domains.
As we said in the beginning, Comodo doesn’t perform as well as other DNS providers in this list, but given its signature features, you may want to consider opting for the Comodo group’s very own DNS service.
Verisign Public DNS
Primary DNS server: 64.6.64.6
Secondary DNS server: 64.6.65.6
Verisign started by offering domain name registration services, and later on, they introduced their public DNS servers that turned out to be one of the best dns servers for gaming. Because they had already been in the field before venturing into DNS, they ensured all the necessary and value-added protocols within their servers.
It ultimately added to their credibility, as their services of protection against Denial of Service (DoS) and Cyber Threats satisfied the needs of their customers and had them retained with the brand. Like Cloudflare, Verisign is committed to ensuring absolute privacy, as they don’t sell your data to third-party companies, just so they could display targeted ads.
Opting for Verisign will also direct you to the site directly skipping all potential pop-ups and advertisements on the routes.
DNS.WATCH
Primary DNS server: 84.200.69.80
Secondary DNS server: 84.200.70.40
Among the best dns servers for gaming available solely for free is DNS.WATCH. It tops the respective list and brings at your disposal features like fast internet speeds and uncensored internet activity.
Now you may call it their passion or urge of bringing in more customers, but they are offering uncensored DNS, which means that there will be no blockage to certain sites that require censorship, e.g., adult content, etc.
No censorship also means full access to those gaming sites that often result in incorrect IPs or denied access. However, it does offer you protection against advertisements and pop-ups, which gives you the surety of an efficient internet experience.
There have not been great praises about the DNS itself, but hearing it from the people who have been their customers, opting for DNS.WATCH is worth the shot. Also, they are not a big or renowned corporation, even you may be hearing of them for the first time here, but it was their offerings that made us pick and list them in this list.
Like Cloudflare and many other DNS, they also don’t sell your data to third parties and are strong believers in ‘You own your data, and we own our DNS.’
Level3 DNS
Primary DNS server: 209.244.0.3
Secondary DNS server: 209.244.0.4
Level3 DNS is one of the best DNS servers for gaming. It is because they are big, and power a lot of local ISPs with the connection to the Internet backbone.
Not to neglect the fact that they are not as famous or renowned as Google DNS or Cloudflare or Quad9, but they still manage to feature on many lists comprising the best dns servers for gaming.
They promise reliability and performance with their services and promote a secure experience on the internet. Level3 maintains your privacy and is completely against handing out your data to third parties.
You may want to opt for them if you are looking for a free DNS and nothing more than that; otherwise, there is as such nothing special about the service.
Conclusion
The best DNS servers for gaming are a blend of reliability, performance, transparency, and security. All the DNS listed in this guide offers you just that, while ensuring your gaming experience keeps on elevating in terms of swift connectivity, faster downloads, and absolute protection against malware, spyware, phishing sites, parked domains, and whatnot. However, there is no such thing as DNS reducing ping and improving your in-game experience only that it helps you connect and load faster
