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Technitium DNS Server vs SmartDNS: catalog facts
Technitium DNS Server	SmartDNS
Free Free and open source under the GPL.	Free Free to use, with source code published on GitHub.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted	Linux, Self-hosted
Authoritative and recursive in one server, so it hosts your zones and resolves everything else Blocks ads and malware for every device on the network without per-device setup	Picks the fastest upstream answer rather than the first reply Supports DoT, DoH, DoQ and DoH3 upstreams
Considerably more complex than Pi-hole if all you want is ad blocking Running your own DNS means DNS outages become your problem	Main readme is in Chinese, with a separate English version Needs manual configuration with no graphical interface
Self-hosted, Downloadable app	Downloadable app, Self-hosted
Open source	Closed source
License: GPL-3.0	License not stated
No account needed	No account needed
Works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 21, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 23, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.