Google Cloud DNS vs IBM NS1 Connect comparison

Why PeerSpot?

Google and IBM are both solutions in the Managed DNS category. Google is ranked #10, while IBM is ranked #7 with an average rating of 8.5. Google holds a 6.4% mindshare in MDP, compared to IBM’s 3.0% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Google users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of IBM users who would recommend it.

Google Cloud DNS

Read 7 Google Cloud DNS reviews

5,373 Views
5,158 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

IBM NS1 Connect

Read 17 IBM NS1 Connect reviews

3,085 Views
2,962 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Google Cloud DNS

IBM NS1 Connect

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 4, 2024

Google Cloud DNS and IBM NS1 Connect are competing products in the domain name system space. Google Cloud DNS appears to have the advantage in terms of ease of deployment, while IBM NS1 Connect offers more advanced features.

Features: Google Cloud DNS provides high availability, low-latency DNS serving, and seamless integration with Google Cloud services. It is focused on reliability and integrates well with existing solutions. IBM NS1 Connect stands out with advanced traffic management capabilities, including the use of Filter Chains for geo-load balancing and comprehensive automation integration with tools like Terraform.

Room for Improvement: Google Cloud DNS can enhance its advanced traffic management functionalities and increase flexibility with multi-cloud environments. Additionally, expanding automation capabilities would benefit users seeking infrastructure-as-code solutions. IBM NS1 Connect might improve user interface smoothness and access to beginner guides for new users. Enhancements in speed and efficiency of deployment processes could address some concerns.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Google Cloud DNS offers straightforward deployment with easy integration within the Google Cloud ecosystem. Its support is efficient and consistent with Google Cloud’s overall service. In contrast, IBM NS1 Connect provides customizable deployment options and robust customer support, focusing on user-specific needs and flexible deployment scenarios.

Pricing and ROI: Google Cloud DNS is recognized for competitive pricing and strong return on investment, catering to budget-conscious users. IBM NS1 Connect justifies its potentially higher cost through specialized features that leverage sophisticated traffic management, resulting in significant ROI due to increased efficiencies and robust performance capabilities.

To learn more, read our detailed Google Cloud DNS vs. IBM NS1 Connect Report (Updated: September 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Google Cloud DNS vs. IBM NS1 Connect

September 2026

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Google Cloud DNS

Ranking in Managed DNS

10th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

IBM NS1 Connect

Ranking in Managed DNS

7th

Average Rating

9.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Domain Name System (DNS) Security (8th)

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2026, in the Managed DNS category, the mindshare of Google Cloud DNS is 6.4%, up from 6.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM NS1 Connect is 3.0%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Managed DNS Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
IBM NS1 Connect	3.0%
Google Cloud DNS	6.4%
Other	90.6%

Managed DNS

Featured Reviews

Shikar Singh

Solutions Architect / IT Program Manager at Optum

Constantly improving and adapting to customer needs

The effectiveness of Google Cloud DNS largely depends on where an organization stands in its cloud journey and its overall technology landscape. For those heavily invested in Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and already embracing cloud solutions, Google Cloud DNS can be rated quite high, ranging from seven to nine out of ten.Deployment times for Google Cloud DNS can vary depending on the complexity of the infrastructure and configuration requirements. For straightforward setups and cloud-ready cases, deployment can typically be completed within a few minutes to an hour. However, in more complex infrastructure scenarios involving extensive configuration, deployment may take longer, possibly spanning days or weeks.

Read full review

Sanchit Makkar

Dns architect at a outsourcing company with 5,001-10,000 employees

Intelligent global traffic steering has improved reliability and reduced latency for users

IBM NS1 Connect has a very steep learning curve in terms of learning the custom filter chains and the complex multi-region setup, which requires a specialized DNS expert and can be difficult for beginners. One has to get trained on IBM NS1 before starting to use it. The documentation and the interface could be improved, as a step-by-step video configuration guide would be helpful in new implementations. Daily change audit features and easier rollback options should also be provided in the GUI itself. The dashboard and the GUI have gray areas for advanced tasks, which require API interaction and can be overwhelming for beginners.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The most significant features are the internal and external endpoints using Google Cloud DNS, which are very beneficial for dependent apps."

"The initial setup process is easy."

"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

"The scalability is good."

"Google Cloud DNS continues to evolve based on customer feedback and technological advancements."

"It is a scalable solution."

"The tool is well integrated. We don’t need the interface of another provider. The product helps me manage my domain and write in Google Cloud."

"The best benefits of using IBM NS1 Connect are the performance and availability of the product towards the cloud, and when comparing the performance with other products, I believe it is above par, as it is really helpful and gives me at least a 20 to 30% improvement in functionality."

"One of the features that is non-standard and that is very useful is the filtered DNS. We have set up our external VPN, which is what all our employees connect through, to use this feature. It's geolocation-aware. In that way, for India we set it up so that these are the servers that should be supporting things, and in the UK these servers, in the U.S. these servers, and in Sweden these ones."

"Their Pulsar filters allow us to collect RUM metrics from our users so that we can determine the best paths for our users to take. That has been very useful in providing the best user experience, and for responding to and recovering from downtime of our multiple CDNs."

"I couldn't recommend a better product than NS1 for managed DNS and CDN load balancing right now."

"It massively speeds things up. Today, we allow developers to deploy services and have externally facing DNS scrapers that are created automatically without the addition of human intervention."

"Monitoring is really important for us. We really care about reliability, and we want to make sure that we can remove some points of presence in our sector and in our edge network really fast when we experience any problems. So, monitoring that NS1 provides for DNS is really important for us."

"Going with NS1 has also improved the user experience for our users."

"The fact that it's an API-first platform for DNS and application traffic management is one of the reasons we looked into NS1. We use it for a lot of automation and metrics gathering and it's been great."

More IBM NS1 Connect pros

Cons

"More features around rules-based configurations would be beneficial."

"The solution's price could be better."

"The UX of the product is an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required."

"It needs to provide better integration."

"Migrating away from Google Cloud DNS can be difficult."

"The UI is tricky to understand for people who have not worked with DNS records. People with little to no experience with DNS records can find it hard to understand. For example, you need to know the hallmarks to input records since they need to be matched in a specific format."

"The cost of using Google Cloud DNS can be relatively high compared to other options, especially considering the cloud environment."

"Pricing can be more transparent, especially when dealing with tight budgets."

"I would like to see the UI updated to allow me to do finer searches. I would also like to have the ability to get reports that can sort based on various metrics. For example, I would like to be able to say, "Show me the top 10 records by total queries" in an easy-to-digest format."

"When we first deployed, we flipped the switch, and it didn't work as well as we expected."

"I am not overall satisfied with the license and cost for IBM NS1 Connect because my pre-sales team interacts on that part regarding pricing."

"We care about monitoring and telemetry work, and NS1 provides a pretty good system for monitoring. We can monitor our endpoints and points of presence around the world. If there are any issues, we can easily remove them from our network, but this area needs some improvement because it is not always reliable in NS1. In the past, we had a number of false-positive cases when the monitoring system told us about some problems in our infrastructure that were not true. NS1 is improving the system, and we are constantly talking about this with them. I know that they are releasing a new version of their monitoring system, which is really important for us, but this is a different area where we would expect them to improve."

"We use the geo load balancing functionality and there are a couple of things that are helpful there. But the language itself is something we had to get used to a little bit. Some of my folks made a few mistakes in rolling out the Filter Chain...The Filter Chain setup is a bit hard to grasp at first. It would also be nice to have a way to simulate changes in addition to staging."

"The Filter Chain simulation is really good in the UI, but it would be nice to have something similar in the API so that we could simulate and test things before we deploy them."

"The technical support is slow. You raise a PR, and then it takes several weeks for them to respond."

More IBM NS1 Connect cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The cost of using Google Cloud DNS can be relatively high compared to other options, especially considering the cloud environment. I would rate it 6 out of 10. Cheaper alternatives might be desirable, but the decision depends on various factors such as vendor lock-in, organizational adaptability, and alignment with other technologies in use."

"I am not sure about the pricing. However, I can give you a rough estimate which is like ten cents per month per zone."

"The product is expensive."

"It is expensive but cost-effective."

"NS1's pricing is much more aggressive than its competitors in the market and you get more value out of what you pay for it."

"The cost of this product is one of the reasons that we chose it."

"Everything can always be cheaper, but as it is today the pricing is fair."

"From a cost standpoint, it's certainly not the most expensive out there, and it's also not the cheapest, but it does well to balance the cost and the functionality/reliability."

"We pay about $30,000 a month. We used to pay about $20,000 with Dyn every month, for lower volume than we're doing right now, but it had none of the features that we have available with NS1, so it was worth it for us. It seems competitive for us, given that we're doing 4.5 billion requests."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Comms Service Provider

16%

Computer Software Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

12%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	2
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	4

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	2
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	14

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google Cloud DNS?

Pricing and support are really good. There are no complaints about the pricing.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Google Cloud DNS?

I am not heavily involved with Cloud DNS, but from an end-user perspective, the customization part could be improved. More features around rules-based configurations would be beneficial.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Google Cloud DNS?

I have my app, which is running on either GKE or GCE. We have a load balancer. We use both internal and external load balancers. If we want to change the underlying infrastructure, like in differen...

See all answers

What needs improvement with NS1 Managed DNS?

I believe IBM NS1 Connect can be improved in several ways. The main concern I identified is the cost, which is higher than other solutions despite its uses. Additionally, they could improve their h...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for NS1 Managed DNS?

My main use case for IBM NS1 Connect is handling DNS traffic and routing traffic. A specific example of how I use IBM NS1 Connect to route traffic is routing the API, the websites' API, and the app...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering NS1 Managed DNS?

Regarding IBM NS1 Connect's AI capabilities, the accuracy and reliability of output involve least privileged API keys, API key rotation, secret management, and monitoring and alerting, with alerts ...

See all answers

Comparisons

Quad9 vs Google Cloud DNS

Compared 59% of the time

Cloudflare vs Google Cloud DNS

Compared 7% of the time

Amazon Route 53 vs Google Cloud DNS

Compared 5% of the time

Azure DNS vs Google Cloud DNS

Compared 4% of the time

Cisco Umbrella vs Google Cloud DNS

Compared 4% of the time

More Google Cloud DNS Competitors

Cloudflare vs IBM NS1 Connect

Compared 24% of the time

Amazon Route 53 vs IBM NS1 Connect

Compared 17% of the time

Akamai Edge DNS vs IBM NS1 Connect

Compared 10% of the time

Managed DNS Services vs IBM NS1 Connect

Compared 9% of the time

Infoblox BloxOne DDI vs IBM NS1 Connect

Compared 1% of the time

More IBM NS1 Connect Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Google Cloud DNS

September 2026

Download Google Cloud DNS product report

Buyer's Guide

IBM NS1 Connect

September 2026

Download IBM NS1 Connect product report

Also Known As

No data available

NS1 Managed DNS, NS1

Overview

Google Cloud DNS offers seamless integration, performance, and stability, making it easy to manage domains with both internal and external endpoints, essential for various applications.

Google Cloud DNS provides robust performance in managing domains. With user-friendly features for DNS zones and application-specific DNS assignments, it supports both internal and external endpoints, enhancing application performance. Known for quick reflection and technical support, it operates reliably across different cloud platforms, crucial for load balancing and web applications. Users note that improvements in UX and documentation could facilitate more effective use, especially for those less familiar with DNS records. Integration challenges, particularly with Cloudflare, and migration issues are areas for enhancement. While cost concerns exist compared to cheaper providers, users desire improved customization and rules-based configurations.

What are the key features of Google Cloud DNS?

Integration and Stability: Offers seamless operation across cloud platforms.
DNS Zone Management: Features for creating and managing DNS zones efficiently.
User-friendly Setup: Simple setup process for managing domains.
Quick Reflection: Rapid DNS updates for efficient domain management.
Technical Support: Available support to assist with any DNS-related issues.

What benefits should users look for when evaluating Google Cloud DNS?

Enhanced Performance: Supports both internal and external endpoints, boosting application performance.
Reliability Across Platforms: Ensures consistent service across different cloud services.
Traffic Management: Facilitates both inbound and outbound traffic control.
Seamless Integration: Integrates with Google services like Kubernetes Engine and Compute Engine.

Industries primarily use Google Cloud DNS for server management and domain publication. It serves as both public and private domain solutions in network architectures like hub-and-spoke setups. Organizations leverage it for applications reliant on Google Kubernetes Engine or Google Compute Engine with load balancers. It manages traffic effectively across network setups, allowing infrastructure changes without affecting application availability. For many, it is the default choice for DNS services.

Google

IBM NS1 Connect delivers comprehensive DNS management with features like DNSSEC, low latency, and intelligent traffic routing. It integrates seamlessly with automation tools, making it ideal for improving infrastructure management.

IBM NS1 Connect offers a robust DNS management platform combining security, speed, and reliability. Its API-driven functionality allows for seamless integration with Terraform and other tools, enhancing geolocation-aware capabilities and real-time performance monitoring. Smart Domains ensure optimal routing, while Pulsar boosts user experience. Real-time telemetry and intelligent traffic routing minimize load times, contributing to efficient service delivery and application uptime. Recommendations for improvement include enhancing DNS timeout resolutions and providing educational resources for networking novices.

What are IBM NS1 Connect's key features?

DNSSEC: Enhances security by protecting DNS information.
Low Latency: Ensures faster DNS query responses.
API-driven Functionality: Facilitates easy integration with tools like Terraform.
Real-time Telemetry: Provides up-to-date performance insights.
Intelligent Traffic Routing: Directs traffic for optimized user experience.
Pulsar: Enhances performance with smart routing algorithms.
Filter Chains: Offers customizable rules for traffic handling.
Secondary DNS: Ensures redundancy and disaster recovery.

What benefits should users look for?

Cost-effectiveness: Reduces infrastructure costs by leveraging cloud hosting.
Improved Application Uptime: Minimizes downtime with reliable DNS management.
Faster Provisioning: Speeds up infrastructure setup and updates.
Reliable Metrics: Provides accurate performance data for informed decision-making.
Enhanced User Interface: Offers a straightforward navigation experience.

In healthcare, IBM NS1 Connect enhances CDN routing and facilitates efficient DNS management. Financial institutions leverage its geo-load balancing capabilities for secure transaction processing. E-commerce brands use its low latency and automation features to improve website responsiveness and reduce error rates. Telecom companies benefit from its API integration, allowing for seamless upgrades and network optimizations.

IBM

Sample Customers

MeilleursAgents

Avast Software, Bloomberg L.P., BBC, Carfax, CNBC LLC, Deloitte Consulting LLP, Disney Streaming, Dropbox, EBAY Inc, Gannett Media Corp, Salesforce, Wayfair, Workday

Buyer's Guide

Google Cloud DNS vs. IBM NS1 Connect

September 2026

Free Report: Google Cloud DNS vs. IBM NS1 Connect

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