# Cloudflare DNS: how AI models rank it, October 2026

IT AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition. Named in 71 judge labels across 2 categories by 14 of 14 models. Page: https://it-ai-index.com/vendors/cloudflare-dns/

## Standing by category

| Category | Share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Managed DNS | 84% | 1 | 7% | 70 |
| DNS filtering | 0% | 28 | 0% | 1 |

## What the models said for it

- "If you want a unified security, CDN, and DNS solution: Cloudflare is the industry standard for performance and easy-to-use security controls." (Gemini 3.5 Flash, Managed DNS)
- "Choose Cloudflare if you want the best speed/performance and strong security (DDoS/WAF) out of the box. It is the best value for money." (Qwen 3.7 Flash, Managed DNS)
- "Best for: Overall performance, fast propagation, and all-in-one security... Consistently ranked #1 or #2 globally for raw resolution speed" (Gemini 3.5 Flash, Managed DNS)
- "For most mid-market B2B companies, Cloudflare is the top choice due to its balance of performance, security, and ease of use." (Mistral Small, Managed DNS)

## And against it

- "Cloudflare, Fastly, Google Cloud, and AWS have all had significant DNS-related outages in recent years. This isn't to say avoid them" (MiniMax M2.5, Managed DNS)
- "Trustpilot and G2 note steep learning curve, complex UI/setup, spotty support ... though enterprise DNS is generally reliable" (Grok 4.1 Fast, Managed DNS)
- "users often struggle with a complex user interface, steep learning curve, and high pricing for advanced features" (Mistral Small, Managed DNS)
- "While generally considered a top-tier provider, Cloudflare has recently suffered high-impact outages." (GLM 4.7 FlashX, Managed DNS)

## In its own words

What Cloudflare DNS's own pages state, read 2026-10-05. Stated by the vendor, not checked by the index.

- Positioning: authoritative and recursive DNS for private networks to the same global network and control plane that runs Cloudflare's Zero Trust, networking, and public DNS (https://blog.cloudflare.com/internal-dns)
- For: Enterprise customers (https://blog.cloudflare.com/internal-dns)
- Price stated: included with Cloudflare Gateway without any additional charge (https://blog.cloudflare.com/internal-dns)
- Free plan or trial: Free (https://blog.cloudflare.com/foundation-dns)
- Customers named: aws.com

## Record

- Method: https://it-ai-index.com/methodology/
- Raw judge labels and full responses: https://it-ai-index.com/data/
- License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as IT AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition, it-ai-index.com.