Apps

Pi-hole review — network-wide DNS adblocker

Who is this for? Anyone who wants DNS-level blocking for the entire network on a Raspberry Pi or server. AdGuard Home is the more modern alternative with a cleaner interface — compare both before choosing.

Price: Free
Updated: March 2026

Pi-hole review

Who is this for? Anyone who wants DNS-level blocking for the entire network on a Raspberry Pi or server. AdGuard Home is the more modern alternative with a cleaner interface — compare both before choosing.

Pi-hole is a network-wide adblocker that works at the DNS level. Instead of installing an extension per browser, Pi-hole blocks ads and trackers for every device on your network — including your smart TV, your phone, and IoT devices that don’t support browser extensions.

How Pi-hole works

When a device on your network looks up a domain name (e.g., ads.doubleclick.net), that request normally goes to a DNS server from your ISP or Google. Pi-hole intercepts that request and checks blocklists: if the domain is blocked, Pi-hole returns an empty response. The connection never gets established.

This is the same principle as uBlock Origin in a browser, but for the entire network in one place.

Pi-hole vs AdGuard Home

Both do the same thing at their core: DNS-based ad-blocking for the network. AdGuard Home is newer, has a more modern interface, and is easier to set up. Pi-hole has been around longer, has a larger community and more documentation.

	Pi-hole	AdGuard Home
Interface	Functional	Modern
Installation	Script / Docker	Docker / binary
Blocklist management	Extensive	Extensive
DoH/DoT upstream	Via configuration	Built-in
Community	Large, long active	Growing
Open-source	Yes	Yes

If choosing now: AdGuard Home is the recommended choice for new installations — easier to configure with DNS-over-HTTPS built in. Pi-hole is a solid choice if you’re already familiar with the ecosystem.

Installation

Pi-hole runs on any Linux machine. The name refers to the Raspberry Pi — the original target device — but it works on any x86 or ARM computer.

Installation options:

Raspberry Pi — the classic choice: quiet and energy-efficient
Docker — ideal on an existing NAS or homelab server
VM — on a Proxmox or VirtualBox installation
VPS — for access outside the home network (but then you see your own DNS traffic)

Installation via the official script (see pi-hole.net):

curl -sSL https://install.pi-hole.net | bash

Then set Pi-hole as the DNS server on your router. All devices on the network use it automatically.

Blocklists

Pi-hole ships with a default blocklist. Via the dashboard you add additional lists. Popular additions:

Steven Black hosts — combined list from multiple sources
Firebog — curated collection of categorized lists
oisd.nl — well-maintained list, also good for regional ad networks

A typical installation with supplementary lists blocks 100,000–500,000 domains.

What Pi-hole doesn’t do

Pi-hole works at the DNS level. Ads served via the same domain as the content (e.g., YouTube ads on youtube.com) are not blocked — for that you need a browser extension like uBlock Origin.

Pi-hole also only protects devices on your home network. On mobile data or an external Wi-Fi network, it doesn’t work.

Caveats

Always-on hardware required: Pi-hole must be running while your network depends on it. If the host goes down or restarts, devices may temporarily lose DNS until you have recovery or failover in place.

DNS encryption: By default, Pi-hole sends DNS queries unencrypted to upstream servers. Configure DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) or DNS-over-TLS (DoT) to Quad9 or another privacy-friendly resolver for full protection. See the privacy DNS guide.

Pros and cons

Pros

Blocks ads and trackers at DNS level for every device on the network — including smart TVs and IoT devices that cannot run their own adblocker
A typical installation with supplementary blocklists blocks 100,000–500,000 domains
Runs on any Linux machine — Raspberry Pi, Docker on a NAS, VM, or VPS
Large, long-active community with extensive documentation
Free and open-source
Works well if you already have a Raspberry Pi or always-on server

Cons

Requires always-on hardware — if the host goes down, DNS can stop working until you recover or fail over
DNS queries are sent unencrypted to upstream servers by default — DoH/DoT requires additional configuration
YouTube ads (served via youtube.com) cannot be blocked without breaking the service
Only protects devices on your home network — not mobile data or external Wi-Fi by itself

Conclusion

Pi-hole is a proven tool for network-wide ad-blocking. If you already have a Raspberry Pi or always-on server, the installation barrier is low and the result is immediately noticeable.

For new installations, AdGuard Home is the more modern choice with fewer configuration steps. Both are free and open-source.