Comparing NextDNS?
A DNS toolkit,
or a finished promise.
NextDNS is a powerful DNS filter you configure and run yourself, with a dashboard of what your devices resolve. Sworn is the finished accountability app. No log of your browsing, curated categories, and a partner who's told if you switch it off.
Free malware and ad/tracker blocking, always. Other categories and partner alerts: 7-day free trial, then $7/month.
The real difference
A toolkit you run, or a promise you keep.
-
01
NextDNS is a toolkit.
It's a configurable, cloud-based DNS service with a web dashboard. You choose blocklists, set parental-control toggles, write allow and deny rules, and point your devices at it. It's powerful and flexible — a genuine favorite of technical and privacy-minded users. By default it keeps a log of the queries your devices make; you can turn that off or tune it. You run it, and you can change or disable it from any device, anytime.
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02
Sworn is a promise.
There's no console to manage. You pick a category instead of curating blocklists, and the sites you've sworn off simply don't load. Sworn keeps no log of your browsing — blocked attempts are kept only as short-lived tallies for your own dashboard, gone in 7 days. And an optional partner is emailed if you turn the filter off or it goes quiet, so the commitment holds even on a hard day.
Neither is “better” for everyone. If you want to build and monitor your own DNS filtering, NextDNS is superb at exactly that. If you want the accountability outcome without running a console, and without your queries logged, that’s what Sworn is for.
Side by side
Sworn vs NextDNS.
| Sworn | NextDNS | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A finished accountability app | A DNS service you configure yourself |
| Accountability partner | Yes, optional. Emailed if you turn it off | No |
| Query logging | None for browsing. Blocked attempts kept 7 days as tallies for your own dashboard | Logs queries by default (configurable) |
| If you turn the filter off | Your partner is told | Silent; change it from any device |
| Choosing what to block | Pick from categories curated for you | Add and tune blocklists yourself |
| What a partner sees | A count and the category — never a URL | — |
| No VPN | Yes, one DNS setting | Yes, also DNS-based |
| Price | $7/mo · $84/yr | Free tier + low yearly fee |
| Best for | People who want the outcome, set up in minutes | Power users who want full control |
Comparison compiled June 2026 from NextDNS’s own published materials; plans and features can change. Check their site for the latest. We’re not affiliated with NextDNS; all names belong to their owners.
Switching over
Switch in about three minutes.
- Pick one DNS resolver. NextDNS and Sworn are both DNS-based, and a device points at one DNS resolver at a time, so switching just means turning off NextDNS’s DNS setting and turning on Sworn’s. It’s a settings change, nothing to export.
- Install Sworn and pick your categories. Malware blocking is on by default; ad/tracker blocking is free too, one toggle away. Add pornography, gambling, social media, online shopping, gaming, or VPN/proxy blocking with a 7-day free trial, then $7/month.
- Turn on the one setting. On iPhone, Sworn asks iOS to add its DNS setting (one Allow tap), then walks you to the one Settings screen where you pick it. On Android, Sworn gives you an address to paste into Android’s Private DNS setting and opens that screen for you. No console to configure; blocked sites just stop loading, system-wide.
- (Optional) Add a partner. They get an invite to confirm, and at most one reminder, then only ever a count of blocked attempts and the category, never a URL or your history. They’re emailed if you switch the filter off or it goes quiet.
The accountability —
not the admin panel.
Free to start. Three minutes to set up.
On a computer too? Set up the phone first, then add Windows, Mac, Linux or Chromebook to the same account.