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Unbound vs Hickory DNS: catalog facts
Unbound	Hickory DNS
Free Free and open source under the BSD licence.	Free Free to use from its GitHub repository.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted	Linux, Self-hosted, Command line
DNSSEC validation and encrypted transports in a small, audited resolver Runs recursively, so no upstream resolver sees your queries	Written in memory-safe Rust Server and resolver in one project
Configuration is a text file with many options No filtering or blocklists of its own; that needs another layer	Configured by file with no graphical interface Renamed from Trust-DNS, so older guides use the previous name
Self-hosted	Self-hosted
Open source	Closed source
License: BSD-3-Clause	License not stated
Not stated if an account is needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 22, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026

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