Tip: DNS Speed Performance Test

Have you checked your DNS speeds lately? When it comes to online performance, speed is king! The faster your service resolves queries, the quicker end users get to their destination and the happier your customers will be.

Here’s the thing:

When it comes to DNS speed, every millisecond over your competitors’ speeds could mean a lost customer. The good news is, there’s a way to test your speeds and to see just how your DNS speeds stack up against the competition.

How to Use DNS Speed Data to Improve Your Network Performance

With PerfOps, you can measure your DNS speeds against multiple providers using a variety of variables, such as location, timeframe, ASNs, and more.

To get an idea of where your speeds stand globally, just select the providers you want to compare without selecting a location. For the example below, we chose 12 notable providers to compare speeds within the last 30 days.

What you see here is each provider’s speeds averaged for the world, which is a great starting point.

DNS Providers: Average Speeds Worldwide

To see an average world speed, choose the provider(s) you want to view, leave location as default (all continents), and group by Data Sources.

1. Cloudflare 10.28 ms

2. DNS Made Easy 20.08 ms

3. Constellix 20.09 ms

4. NS1 23.67 ms

5. UltraDNS 24.09 ms

6. Route53 30.39 ms

7. DNSimple 31.99 ms

8. GoDaddy  36.2 ms

9. Azure 37.18 ms

10. Dyn 38.69 ms

11. Google Cloud 48.59 ms

12. Akamai 74.15 ms

Compare Your DNS Speeds Based On Where Your Customers Are Located

The above example provides valuable insight into how you stack up against other providers, but is far from the bigger picture. Even if your speeds are higher when compared globally, don’t panic. Regional comparisons can tell you much more.

Let’s compare the same group of providers for North America.

DNS Providers: Average Speeds North America

1. Cloudflare 6.45 ms

2. DNS Made Easy 9.06 ms

3. Constellix 9.06 ms

4. NS1 9.63 ms

5. GoDaddy 12.51 ms

6. DNSimple 13.09 ms

7. UltraDNS 13.7 ms

8. Dyn 14.57 ms

9. Route53 17.85 ms

10. Azure 24.02 ms

11. Google Cloud 38.5 ms

12. Akamai 54.17 ms

Now let’s look at another example, this time, using Oceania.

DNS Providers: Average Speeds Oceania

1. DNS Made Easy 14.73 ms

2. Constellix 14.73 ms

3. Cloudflare 18.71 ms

4. DNSimple 29.14 ms

5. NS1 31.35 ms

6. UltraDNS 35.33 ms

7. Route53 48.89 ms

8. Azure 60.81 ms

9. Dyn 67.42 ms

10. GoDaddy 126.49 ms

11. Akamai 130.95 ms

12. Google Cloud 132.07 ms

As you can see, speeds change when specifying location and rankings fluctuate too. But this tool isn’t just good for seeing how your speeds compare to other providers.

Identify Weak Spots in Your Network

PerfOps also helps you identify regions where your network could use improvement or help pinpoint areas that need troubleshooting. For example, if your speeds in a region have been at a consistent speed, but then suddenly increase, this can be an indication that something is amiss.

To analyze only your speed and performance, you would only select your Provider name and then choose the region(s) you want to see.

Let’s say you want to see your speeds for all regions for comparison. Select the option in PerfOps to group by continent and you will see a result similar to the one below. In this example, we used Route 53.

Test DNS Speeds by Nameserver

By the graph above, you can immediately tell that the slowest performing speeds are in Africa (shown in green). And while speeds in other continents are relatively consistent, Africa demonstrates inconsistencies. To identify which nameserver is experiencing slower speeds, just turn the option for name servers to ON.

This graph shows a clear difference between one nameserver that is affecting the overall speed average in Africa. PerfOps even tells you which nameserver, which makes troubleshooting and/or improving speeds easier.

Regularly Test and Compare Your DNS Speeds for Optimal Performance

Regularly testing and comparing your speeds in PerfOps can ensure you catch issues quickly and eliminate unnecessary latency. It also reveals areas where your network can use improvements and shows where you stand when compared to other providers.