At face value, WebTitan and CleanBrowsing are similar in the markets we serve and how we function.
By design, we both fall into the Content Filtering, DNS filtering, Internet filtering domain. We both service this market by leveraging the Domain Name System (DNS) to categorize and empower network administrators to apply filters to their respective networks. Both services are used by schools, businesses, and Managed Service Providers (MSPs) looking for reliable DNS-based filtering.
Our networks, however, are different. At CleanBrowsing we leverage an Anycast network topology, while WebTitan leverages a Unicast network topology. This translates to poor global coverage and performance.
Our categorization technology leverages a supervised machine learning engine, but it differs in that we leverage a crowd-sourcing platform that integrates community feedback to keep our categories accurate and effective. We keep ourselves honest by making it publicly available at: categorify.org.
Yes, it includes real-time scanning and network propagation as well. We won't boast about "modern User Interfaces" because all solutions, WebTitan included, offer modern UI's and its appeal will be dependent on you.
For those unable to purchase a subscription, CleanBrowsing does offer a free forever filtering service that can be deployed on any device that uses DNS. It is a fast, privacy-first, network that is designed to help parents and institutions create safe browsing experiences for kids and families.
No signup required. No credit card required. No tracking on our end.
The biggest difference you will find when comparing our services is how we approach our pricing.
At WebTitan, the pricing is based on users. Here at CleanBrowsing it is based on devices. This manifests itself in different ways.
For example, a user that subscribes to the WebTitan Annual plan has a $1.58 / month cost per user. For 25 users, this translates to $532.13 / year.
At CleanBrowsing, a user can purchase the Basic plan for 25 devices at $59.99 / year.
That is nearly 9x in savings when comparing similar deployments between the two services.
** We were not able to compare features as WebTitan hides the features you get with each plan.
Perhaps the biggest differentiation, second only to our pricing, is how we package our service.
Unlike WebTitan, we don't hide our features. We are open, transparent, about what you get with each plan. This means we don't bait and switch, upselling unnecessarily or hiding key features.
CleanBrowsing includes roaming clients and DNS encryption in all plans at no additional charge. We believe encrypted DNS is a fundamental requirement on the modern internet, not a premium add-on. WebTitan hides features behind plan tiers, making it difficult to evaluate what you actually get before engaging their sales team.
CleanBrowsing uses an Anycast network topology with over 70 data centers distributed globally. Anycast automatically routes DNS queries to the nearest available data center, providing low latency and high availability regardless of where your users are located.
WebTitan uses a Unicast network topology. This means their infrastructure has a limited global presence, which can result in higher latency for users outside their primary service regions. For organizations with international offices or a distributed workforce, this can translate to noticeable performance differences.
CleanBrowsing leverages a supervised machine learning engine for domain categorization. What sets us apart is the integration of crowd-sourced community feedback through categorify.org. This platform is transparent and publicly available, allowing anyone to verify, challenge, or contribute to the accuracy of our categorization data.
WebTitan uses proprietary categorization technology. While effective, the lack of public transparency means users have no way to independently verify how domains are classified or contribute corrections when categories are inaccurate.
Both CleanBrowsing and WebTitan can be deployed via simple DNS changes on any device or network. This makes initial setup straightforward for both services.
Where CleanBrowsing differs is in accessibility. CleanBrowsing offers a free tier that requires zero signup -- you can start filtering immediately by pointing your DNS to our free resolvers. No account creation, no credit card, no sales call required.
WebTitan requires account creation and a sales process to obtain pricing. There is no free tier available for evaluation without engaging their sales team first.
Responsible for managing networks for your customers? The CleanBrowsing partner program might be what you're looking for. Offers the same benefits as the plans above, but includes a centralized management console.
*Starts at $750 / year for 10 customer accounts
partners@cleanbrowsing.org