CleanBrowsing offer a free content filtering service. This service can be leveraged by used by any individual and small government and non-profit organization at no cost. We encourage larger organizations and product developers to engage with our team if they would like to use this within their networks.
This free content-filter provides three distinct filters that can be quickly configured in your respective environment. This service does not include an account with CleanBrowsing, does not provide us visibility into what you’re searching and is provided on an as-is basis.
Step 1 – Choose your device(s)
Choose the device(s) you want to be protected. Locate the Network Settings page where the DNS servers are configured (also known as Nameservers). It is generally under Network, Connection, WAN or Wifi settings.
In case you need more details, we have step-by-step guides for the following devices (we include Apps for some of them to simplify your life): Mac, Linux, iPhone, Windows, Android.
Step 2 – Change Your DNS Settings
We offer 3 free filters (Security, Adult and Family), each one with a different level of control.
| Filter | Description |
|---|---|
| Family Filter | Blocks access to all adult, pornographic and explicit sites. It also blocks proxy and VPN domains that are used to bypass the filters. Mixed content sites (like Reddit) are also blocked. Google, Bing and Youtube are set to the Safe Mode. Malicious and Phishing domains are blocked. (e.g., family-filter-dns.cleanbrowsing.org, 185.228.168.168) |
| Adult Filter | Blocks access to all adult, pornographic and explicit sites. It does not block proxy or VPNs, nor mixed-content sites. Sites like Reddit are allowed. Google and Bing are set to the Safe Mode. Malicious and Phishing domains are blocked. (e.g., adult-filter-dns.cleanbrowsing.org, 185.228.168.10) |
| Security Filter | Blocks access to phishing, spam, malware and malicious domains. Our database of malicious domains is updated hourly and considered to be one of the best in the industry. Note that it does not block adult content. (e.g., security-filter-dns.cleanbrowsing.org, 185.228.168.9) |
Read More on our Free Filters.
The Family Filter is our strictest free service, and is ideal for kids (under 13) devices.
If you are an adult, the Adult filter only blocks explicit sites, so might be ideal for you. More details of our filters is available on our DNS Filters page. Users on our paid service have a dedicated DNS IP address assigned, so look into your account for them.
Once you decide the type of filter you want to use, look for the DNS (or Network) settings, and change the DNS server to the IP address that matches your filter. For our Family Filter, for example, you need to use 185.228.168.168 (or 185.228.169.168).
Step 3 – Finished
That’s actually it. If you want to get your whole house protected, you can configure your home router to use the same DNS server provided on step #2.
If you have any questions, please engage with our Free community forum. You can also send us an email at support@cleanbrowsing.org.