AdGuard Home vs SmartDNS
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted reverse proxy & gateways options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
AdGuard Home
Network-wide DNS ad and tracker blocker
VS
SmartDNS
Local DNS server that picks the fastest results
| Feature | AdGuard Home | SmartDNS |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | ≈5-minute setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 99 · Excellent | 93 · Excellent |
| Category | Reverse Proxy & Gateways | Reverse Proxy & Gateways |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | C |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 37,045 | ★ 11,314 |
| First released | 2018 | 2018 |
| Replaces | Pi-hole, NextDNS | Pi-hole, dnsmasq |
What are AdGuard Home and SmartDNS?
AdGuard Home
AdGuard Home is a network-wide software for blocking ads and trackers that operates as a DNS server with a web dashboard and filtering rules. It is self-hosted to protect all devices on a network.
- Network-wide ad blocking
- Encrypted DNS support
- Web dashboard
- Parental controls
SmartDNS
SmartDNS is an open-source local DNS server that queries multiple upstream servers and returns the fastest responding result. It supports ad-blocking and encrypted DNS for self-hosted networks.
- Fastest-result resolution
- Ad-blocking support
- DoH and DoT upstreams
- Runs on routers
AdGuard Home vs SmartDNS: key differences
AdGuard Home is written in TypeScript, while SmartDNS is built with C. SmartDNS is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for AdGuard Home. AdGuard Home has the considerably larger community, at 37,045 GitHub stars versus 11,314. AdGuard Home lists first-class Docker deployment; SmartDNS does not.
Why pick each one
Choose AdGuard Home if…
- Easy setup and dashboard
- Encrypted DNS support
- Per-client controls
Watch out for
- Cannot block YouTube ads
- Needs network DNS changes
Choose SmartDNS if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Mature project with 11.3k GitHub stars
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is AdGuard Home or SmartDNS better?
AdGuard Home is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider SmartDNS if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are AdGuard Home and SmartDNS free and open-source?
Yes. AdGuard Home is licensed under GPL-3.0 and SmartDNS under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run AdGuard Home and SmartDNS with Docker?
AdGuard Home: yes. SmartDNS: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, AdGuard Home or SmartDNS?
SmartDNS has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for AdGuard Home. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.