# Cisco Umbrella vs NextDNS: which do AI models recommend for DNS filtering, October 2026

IT AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition, DNS filtering. Zero of fourteen models named Cisco Umbrella first on the direct prompt; zero named NextDNS. Page: https://it-ai-index.com/network/dns-filtering/cisco-umbrella-vs-nextdns/

| | First-choice share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels | Models naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cisco Umbrella | 6% | #3 of 9 | 25% | 40 | 12 of 14 |
| NextDNS | 2% | #5 of 9 | 15% | 27 | 13 of 14 |

## The direct prompt, model by model

- GPT-5.4 mini: neither first, one named (first choices: DNSFilter) (alternatives: Cisco Secure Access – DNS Defense, Cisco Umbrella, Cloudflare Gateway, Zscaler DNS Security)
- Grok 4.1 Fast: neither first, one named (first choices: DNSFilter) (alternatives: Cisco Umbrella, Cloudflare Gateway)
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: neither first, one named (first choices: DNSFilter) (alternatives: Cisco Umbrella, Cloudflare Gateway, Webroot DNS Protection)
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: neither first, one named (first choices: Cloudflare Gateway) (alternatives: Cisco Umbrella, DNSFilter)
- Kimi K2: neither first, one named (first choices: DNSFilter) (alternatives: Cisco Umbrella, Cloudflare Gateway)
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: neither first, one named (first choices: DNSFilter) (alternatives: Cisco Umbrella, Cloudflare Gateway, Infoblox BloxOne DDI)
- MiniMax M2.5: neither first, one named (first choices: Cloudflare Gateway, DNSFilter) (alternatives: Cisco Umbrella)
- Muse Glimmer 30B: neither first, one named (first choices: DNSFilter) (alternatives: Cisco Umbrella, Cloudflare Gateway)
- Claude Haiku 4.5: neither named (first choices: DNSFilter) (alternatives: Akamai Enterprise Threat Protector, Cloudflare Gateway, Prisma Access DNS Security)
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: neither named (first choices: DNSFilter) (alternatives: Cloudflare Gateway, Control D)
- Perplexity Sonar: neither named (first choices: Cloudflare Gateway, DNSFilter) (alternatives: Control D, SafeDNS)
- Mistral Small: neither named (first choices: DNSFilter)
- Llama 4 Maverick: neither named (first choices: DNSFilter, WebTitan)
- GPT-6 Luna: neither named (first choices: DNSFilter) (alternatives: Cisco Secure Access, Cloudflare Gateway)

## What the models said about Cisco Umbrella

- "its pricing and complexity can be prohibitive for small businesses, and setup can be steep... can be overkill or frustrating for smaller deployments" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "But watch out for: Quote-based pricing that can escalate quickly ... Often feels like overkill for mid-market needs" (DeepSeek V4 Flash, paraphrase prompt, soft negative)
- "Services like Cisco Umbrella, Cloudflare Gateway, and DNSFilter are powerful but come with cautionary notes" (Kimi K2, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "Best for: Large enterprises, organizations with complex security needs ... Industry-leading threat intelligence, extensive integration ecosystem, mature platform" (GLM 4.7 FlashX, comparative prompt, first choice)
- "Popular options for 500 users include DNSFilter (AI-focused, easy deploy) and Cisco Umbrella (enterprise-grade integrations)." (Grok 4.1 Fast, scale prompt, first choice)
- "I'd recommend Cisco Umbrella as the top DNS security solution." (Grok 4.1 Fast, paraphrase prompt, first choice)

## What the models said about NextDNS

- "NextDNS/AdGuard: Highly customizable (ads/trackers/parental), but free tiers have query limits" (Grok 4.1 Fast, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "NextDNS's free plan should not be relied upon for critical filtering applications" (Claude Haiku 4.5, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "Browser Secure DNS Can Bypass NextDNS and Pi-hole: How to Check and Fix It" (Mistral Small, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "NextDNS is usually the best value if you mainly want DNS filtering and easy policy control" (GPT-5.4 mini, budget prompt, first choice)
- "NextDNS is often considered the most flexible option for tech-savvy users." (Qwen 3.7 Flash, comparative prompt, first choice)
- "NextDNS – best for privacy-focused users needing advanced DNS controls" (Muse Glimmer 30B, comparative prompt, first choice)

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category. Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category. Published under CC BY 4.0; the output is the models' output, and nothing here is a recommendation by the index.