Edition comparison

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A subscription-based Public Zone instance provides a guaranteed availability SLA, lower TTL values, and enhanced security protection. This service is ideal for individual and enterprise users with demanding DNS resolution requirements.

Edition comparison

Important
  • We recommend purchasing a DNS security service to increase the DNS resolution peak limit and prevent resolution failures when the request volume reaches the limit.

  • For frequent batch changes to DNS records, use the DNS record backup feature to quickly revert incorrect changes.

  • The number of bound domains is calculated based on the number of primary domain names. If a subdomain is hosted independently, it is counted as one primary domain name.

  • Enterprise Standard Edition is no longer available for new purchases. Only existing customers can renew their subscriptions.

Note

Alibaba Cloud DNS supports seamless instance upgrades. For more information, see Upgrade, detach, replace, or downgrade an instance.

Feature

Free Edition

Paid Editions

Personal

Enterprise Ultimate

Exclusive

Applicable scenarios

Business testing

For individual developers only.

Note

Enterprise-verified users cannot purchase new Personal Edition instances. Existing Personal Edition instances can still be used and renewed.

Ideal for enterprise customers across all industries. This edition provides more granular O&M capabilities and expert consulting services.

Availability SLA

No availability guarantee

100% monthly availability

100% monthly availability

100% monthly availability

Daily query limit

100,000 queries per domain (Dynamic rate limiting may apply when exceeded)

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Dedicated support

None

DingTalk user support group

DingTalk user support group

1-on-1 expert service

6 resolution change support requests per year

1 DNS architecture consultation per year

DNS nodes

4 in the Chinese mainland

12 in the Chinese mainland,

15 outside China

12 in the Chinese mainland,

15 outside China

12 in the Chinese mainland,

15 outside China

Subdomain hosting level

16

16

16

16

DNS records per primary domain name

100,000

100,000

100,000

Unlimited*

Subdomain levels

10

20

20

Unlimited*

Minimum TTL

600 seconds

600 seconds

1 second

1 second

Intelligent Resolution

  • Region

    • Chinese mainland

    • Outside China

  • Carriers

    • Supported: China Unicom, China Telecom, China Mobile, CERNET

  • Search engines

    • Supported: Google, Baidu, Bing, Sogou, Qihoo, Youdao

  • Region

    • Chinese mainland

    • Outside China

  • Carriers

    • Supported: China Unicom, China Telecom, China Mobile, CERNET, China Broadcasting Network, Dr. Peng

  • Search engines

    • Supported: Google, Baidu, Bing, Sogou, Qihoo, Youdao, Yahoo

  • Region

    • Chinese mainland (by province)

    • Outside China (by country)

  • Cloud provider

    • Alibaba Cloud (Chinese mainland)

    • Alibaba Cloud (outside China)

  • Carriers

    • Supported: China Unicom, China Telecom, China Mobile, Dr. Peng, CERNET, China Broadcasting Network, CSTNET, Chilian Network, Founder Broadband, Topway, Wasu, Oriental Cable Network, Haokuan Network, Gehua

  • Search engines (in and outside the Chinese mainland)

    • Supported: Google, Baidu, Bing, Sogou, Qihoo, Youdao, Yahoo

  • Custom lines

  • Region

    • Chinese mainland (by province)

    • Outside China (by country)

  • Cloud provider

    • Alibaba Cloud (Chinese mainland)

    • Alibaba Cloud (outside China)

  • Carriers

    • Supported: China Unicom, China Telecom, China Mobile, Dr. Peng, CERNET, China Broadcasting Network, CSTNET, Chilian Network, Founder Broadband, Topway, Wasu, Oriental Cable Network, Haokuan Network, Gehua

  • Search engines (in and outside the Chinese mainland)

    • Supported: Google, Baidu, Bing, Sogou, Qihoo, Youdao, Yahoo

  • Custom lines

URL forwarding rules (per domain name)

2

5

10

Unlimited*

Weight configuration (A, CNAME, and AAAA records)

Supported

Supported

Supported

Supported

Alias records (per domain name)

×

×

10

Unlimited*

Load balancing (IP address capacity per line per domain name)

10

100

100

Unlimited*

Request statistics (subdomain level)

×

Supported

Supported

Supported

IPv6 DNS

Supported

Supported

Supported

Supported

Secondary DNS

×

×

Supported

Supported

DNS record backup

×

×

Supported

Supported

DNSSEC

×

Supported

Supported

Supported

Domain names per instance

Not applicable

1 by default, up to 100,000

1 by default, up to 100,000

1 by default, up to 100,000

DNS resolution peak (QPS)

Up to 20,000

Up to 200,000

Up to 200,000

Up to 200,000

DNS attack protection

×

Optional Basic Protection or Full Protection

Optional Basic Protection or Full Protection

Full Protection included by default

Note

Unlimited*: If the default system limit is exceeded, you can apply to increase it provided that stable and secure product operation is ensured.

DNS attack protection

The Free Edition of Public Zone does not support DNS attack protection. Paid editions offer optional protection capabilities that you can purchase based on the required security level.

Security level

Specification

Description

DNS Security

Basic Protection

Provides basic DNS attack protection for domains bound to a Public Zone instance. The protection limit for each domain name is 10 million QPS.

Full Protection

Provides comprehensive DNS attack protection for domains bound to a Public Zone instance. The protection capacity for each domain name exceeds 100 million QPS, ensuring normal DNS resolution during DNS flood attacks.

Important

Starting October 30, 2025, new purchases or upgrades of paid Public Zone instances no longer offer the No Defense (with DNS Attack Risk) option. All paid instances include basic protection or full protection by default. Existing instances are not affected.

FAQ

Q: What is Intelligent Resolution?

Intelligent Resolution returns DNS results based on the requester's geographic location and ISP. This feature reduces resolution latency and improves website access speed. It supports various resolution lines, such as lines based on ISP, province, country, continent, or custom definitions. For more information, see Intelligent Resolution.

Q: Does Alibaba Cloud DNS support instance downgrades?

Alibaba Cloud DNS does not support direct instance downgrades. However, you can achieve the same result by binding your domain name to a different instance. For more information, see Upgrade, detach, replace, or downgrade an instance.

  • If your domain is bound to a high-tier DNS instance and you want to move to a lower tier, you can bind the domain to a lower-tier paid instance instead.

  • You can also use this method to downgrade the security protection level or reduce the number of supported domains for your current plan.

Note

After you bind the domain name to the new instance, you can unsubscribe from the old instance. For more information, see Unsubscribe from an instance.

Q: What are the global cluster nodes for Public Zone?

The Public Zone global cluster nodes are distributed across the following locations:

  • Global nodes: US (Virginia), US (Silicon Valley), Mexico, Indonesia (Jakarta), Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur), Singapore, Japan (Tokyo), SAU (Riyadh - Partner Region), UAE (Dubai), Germany (Frankfurt), UK (London), France (Paris), Thailand (Bangkok), South Korea (Seoul), Philippines (Manila), China (Hong Kong), China (Beijing), China (Shanghai), China (Shenzhen), China (Hangzhou), China (Chengdu), China (Qingdao), China (Dalian - Local Region), China (Xi'an - Local Region), China (Tianjin - Local Region), China (Taiyuan - Local Region), China (Zhengzhou - Local Region), China (Nanjing - Local Region - Decommissioning).

  • Cluster deployment is subject to change based on Alibaba Cloud's infrastructure development and is not covered by the SLA.

Q: What does "Domain names per instance" refer to?

Each Public Zone instance supports one primary domain name by default, such as example.com. To support additional primary domain names, such as example.cn and example.net, you can increase the domain quota for your instance, up to a maximum of 100,000.

Q: What are the differences between DNS query limit and DNS record limit?

The DNS query limit and the number of DNS records under a single primary domain are two different concepts:

  • DNS query limit: The maximum number of DNS queries that a single primary domain can receive per day. Free Edition has a limit of 100,000 queries per day per domain. Exceeding this limit may trigger dynamic rate limiting. All paid editions have no daily query limit.

  • DNS records per primary domain name: The total number of DNS records (such as A, CNAME, and AAAA records) that can be configured under a single domain name. Free Edition, Personal Edition, and Enterprise Ultimate Edition support up to 100,000 records. Premium Edition has no limit.

Q: Do Alibaba Cloud DNS editions include health checks?

No. None of the Alibaba Cloud DNS editions include DNS health check capabilities. To use health checks, you must separately activate the Global Traffic Manager 3.0 service. The service uses a pay-as-you-go billing model. For details, refer to Billing of Global Traffic Manager 3.0

Q: How do I choose the right edition?

Consider the following when selecting an edition:

  • Enterprise account restrictions: Enterprise-verified accounts cannot purchase new Personal Edition instances. Existing Personal Edition instances can still be used and renewed.

  • Global DNS coverage: Free Edition has only 4 DNS nodes in the Chinese mainland and 0 overseas. It does not support overseas acceleration or intelligent resolution. For global DNS coverage, upgrade to a paid edition (12 nodes in the Chinese mainland, 15 overseas).

  • URL forwarding quota: Free Edition supports 2 URL forwarding records per domain name, Personal Edition supports 5, and Enterprise Ultimate Edition supports 10. Purchasing an SSL certificate does not increase the URL forwarding quota.

  • Intelligent Resolution lines: Free Edition supports only basic region and carrier lines (China Unicom, China Telecom, China Mobile, CERNET). Province-level carrier lines and region subdivision lines are not available. Custom lines are only available for Enterprise Ultimate Edition and Premium Edition.

Recommendations:

Scenario

Recommended

Testing or development with no SLA requirement

Free Edition

Individual developer with a personal site

Personal Edition

Corporate website requiring high availability

Enterprise Ultimate Edition

Enterprise requiring 1-second TTL, Secondary DNS, or expert support

Enterprise Ultimate Edition or Premium Edition