UncensoredDNS Anycast vs Unicast: Which Server Should You Use?

Use anycast.uncensoreddns.org if you want the best chance of a fast, resilient connection, since it is served from multiple locations. Use unicast.uncensoreddns.org if you specifically want a single node in Copenhagen, Denmark (hosted at AS9167). Both are free to use, both support DNS-over-TLS and DNS-over-HTTPS, and they differ mainly in how they are distributed and where they are located.

The core difference

Anycast means the same address is announced from several locations, so your queries are routed to a nearby node. Unicast means one specific server in one specific place.

Which one to pick

Choose anycast when:

• You want lower latency without knowing where the servers are.
• You want resilience: if one location has a problem, traffic can be served elsewhere.
• You are configuring a device or router and just want a reliable default.

Choose unicast when:

• You want a predictable, single geographic location (Copenhagen, Denmark).
• You are testing or comparing behavior against a known fixed node.
• You have a reason to prefer that specific network (AS9167).

For most people, anycast is the sensible default. The unicast node is useful when you care about where your DNS queries physically land.

A note on protocol support

Both server sets support the same encrypted protocols, so the anycast-vs-unicast choice does not limit which protocol you can use:

• DNS-over-TLS (DoT): port 853 on either hostname.
• DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH): the /dns-query endpoint on either hostname.

UncensoredDNS has also added QUIC-based lookups over UDP/853 (DoQ, RFC 9250) and DoH3, announced in an October 2025 blog post. Cleartext port 53 lookups (TCP and UDP) were turned off in September 2022, so plan to use an encrypted protocol regardless of which server you choose.

Practical setup

1. Pick a hostname: anycast.uncensoreddns.org (recommended) or unicast.uncensoreddns.org.
2. In your client, choose DoT or DoH.
3. Enter the matching address:
   • DoT: <hostname>:853
   • DoH: https://<hostname>/dns-query
4. If your client asks for raw IPs instead of a hostname, use the IPv4/IPv6 pair from the table above.
5. Verify it works by resolving a domain and confirming the answer comes back; if it fails, check that you are not still trying cleartext port 53, which is no longer served.

Common pitfalls

• Using port 53 in cleartext: it was disabled in 2022. Switch to DoT or DoH.
• Mixing hostnames and IPs: the anycast and unicast IPs are not interchangeable; match the IP to the hostname you chose.
• Assuming anycast is always faster: it usually is, but routing depends on your network. If latency matters, test both and compare.