I have a premium NextDNS that I use with Brave and LibreWolf but I have always used the default Mullvad DNS for Mullvad Browser, as I had read somewhere that it helps with fingerprinting and Mullvad Browser + NextDNS stands out more vs the default Mullvad DNS. Now that they are closing it, would it be better to just use Quad9 like they recommend or are there any downsides to using NextDNS? I am mostly concerned about fingerprinting but it seems like Quad9 doesn’t offer the same level of blocking as NextDNS.
I recommend you stick with NextDNS.
Quad9 doesn’t block ads, trackers, and other categories.
What does the community say? I’m considering switching to Control D Free or paying for NextDNS.
If between non adblocking vs adblocking dns server I’d go for adblocking too. Even if browser already got local adblock, remote dns adblock will act as the 1st firewall since its network based and the local browser adblock will deal with anything that still slips through. Even better because the adblocking dns can be set to the system itself making it work systemwide vs browser adblock that only works only on the browser.
In the future, I may look into other private DNS providers that block ads and trackers, but for now, I’m happy with NextDNS.
What ever the default is. Browser based/uBO are better tracking/ad blockers with less breakage, since they can replace needed code and differentiate on a request bases not just a domain bases
DNS blocking via AdGuard, NextDNS, Control D, etc. should not conflict with extensions like uBO/uBOL.
The extension basically tackles the “first round” of blocking, while the DNS will block anything uBO/uBOL did not block or is outside the browser itself.
Depending on the type of DNS blocklist enabled you might see no additional domains blocked after uBO/uBOL does its work or a few minimal domains on more aggressive blocklists.
I see no reason to recommend not using DNS blocking alongside uBO/uBOL since depending on the DNS blocklist enabled there will be no conflict or it could even slightly enhance blocking effectiveness.
I would use NextDNS. Choose one of Hagezi’s lists and you should be fine.
Quad9 is good if all you want to block are malicious domains, but it doesn’t offer much beyond that. NextDNS will also block malicious domains and with a Hagezi list enabled you might also block some additional ad/tracking domains.
If you care about fingerprinting, you should continue to use the default DNS option, which will then automatically switch over to Quad9 in a future release
I can not find “use a custom DNS server” in the MullvadVPN settings. It shows up in the Mullvad FAQ’s, but I am just missing where it is located.
I see the “VPN Settings” that are called “DNS content blockers”, but not how to select a custom DNS.
Has this option been removed or am I just not seeing it?
Mullvad VPN v. 2026.4
I’m not sure I don’t use Mullvad, but the original question was about Mullvad Browser rather than the VPN client. Though the same principle applies, you should just use the default and optional select Mullvad’s native filter lists for content blocking in most cases.
Thank you!