blocky
Fast and lightweight DNS proxy as ad-blocker for local network with many features (alternative to Pi-hole).
Actively maintained with regular releases.
Commit activity more than 53% of tracked projects; popularity more than 73%. How this is calculated.
Commits, last 11 months
| Stars | 7k |
|---|---|
| Latest release | v0.35.0 · 5 Sept 2026 |
| Repo updated | 21 Sept 2026 |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 |
| Built with | Go, Docker |
Is blocky actively maintained?
blocky is under active development: 303 commits landed over the last 11 months, averaging roughly 42 commits a month in the most recent quarter.
Activity is accelerating: the last quarter carried 92% more commits than the one before it.
The most recent tagged release, v0.35.0, shipped within the last month — a current, installable version exists today.
blocky ranks #3 of 6 in DNS, placing it mid-table for maintenance activity.
What blocky actually does
Blocky is a fast and lightweight DNS proxy designed to act as a local network ad-blocker. It provides an alternative to solutions like Pi-hole by routing and filtering DNS queries for your devices.
Best fit: It is a good fit for self-hosters looking for a resource-efficient alternative to Pi-hole to manage network-wide ad blocking.
Worth knowing: As it relies on community-maintained DNS lists and blocking rules, you may occasionally need to troubleshoot false positives or broken websites.
Deployment notes
Being a Go application packaged in a Docker container, it typically does not require a separate database and can store its configuration and cache in a mounted volume.
Links
Alternatives to blocky
Projects in the same categories, ordered by health score.
User-friendly ads & trackers blocking DNS server.
Authoritative/recursive DNS server with ad blocking functionality.
Blackhole for Internet advertisements with a GUI for management and monitoring.
Ad-blocking DNS resolver with DNSSEC-validating recursive resolution, DoH/DoT/Oblivious DoH, ephemeral overrides, and local service domains, in a single Rust binary (alternative to Pi-hole, AdGuard Home, NextDNS).
Local ad blocker. Like Pi-hole but local and using your operating system.