# Designate vs Pi-hole

> Two self-hosted [DNS projects](https://selfhost.directory/dns), compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | Designate | Pi-hole |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 53/100 | 87/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #19 of 41 in DNS | #1 of 41 in DNS |
| GitHub stars | 180 | 61 541 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | — | +497 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 1 | 6 ✓ |
| Latest release | 2024.1-eom · 31 Oct 2025 | v6.5 · 17 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes ✓ |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Other |
| Main language | Python | Shell |

## Which one should you pick?

Pi-hole scores 87/100 against 53/100 for Designate, so it is the safer default.

Pi-hole ships more often: 6 stable releases in the past year, against 1 for Designate.

If you want the quickest setup, Pi-hole is easier to run; Designate needs more configuration.

Pi-hole is growing faster right now (+497 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Designate](https://selfhost.directory/project/designate) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/designate.md)
- [Pi-hole](https://selfhost.directory/project/pi-hole) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/pi-hole.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/designate-vs-pi-hole