DNS Leak Test
A DNS leak occurs when your DNS queries bypass your VPN tunnel, exposing your real ISP or location. This test checks which resolvers are actually handling your requests.
Every time you visit a website, your computer first asks a "DNS resolver" to translate the
domain name into an IP address. If you're using a VPN, you'd expect those DNS questions to
go through the VPN too. A DNS leak is when they sneak around the VPN and
go through your real internet provider instead — meaning the VPN hides where you go but not
what you look up. This test finds out which resolver actually answered for you.
Running DNS leak test...
Your Connection (Server-Side View)
IP Address
Hostname
DNS Resolver Results
Each resolver queries dns.google — if results differ from your VPN's DNS, you may have a leak.
How to read the result
- If the resolver IP / hostname clearly belongs to your VPN provider or to a public resolver like Cloudflare (
1.1.1.1) or Google (8.8.8.8), you're not leaking — your queries are being handled by the resolver you'd expect. - If the resolver belongs to your real internet provider (the one you'd see at home without the VPN on), you are leaking. The VPN is hiding your IP from websites but not from your ISP.
- "Server-side view" shows the IP a website would record for you. If that's your VPN's IP but the resolver is your ISP, that's a textbook leak.
What to do if you're leaking
- Check your VPN client's settings — most paid VPNs have a "DNS leak protection" or "use VPN's DNS" toggle. Make sure it's on.
- Disconnect and reconnect — sometimes the VPN didn't fully take effect on this session.
- Switch to a VPN with built-in DNS — reputable ones (NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Mullvad, ProtonVPN) route DNS through the tunnel automatically.
- Read the full guide: How to check if your VPN is leaking covers the three common leak types and how to fix each.
"No VPN" — that's not a leak
If you're not running a VPN, the resolver being your ISP is normal — there's no tunnel for queries to leak out of. The point of this test is to validate VPN behavior. If you want to hide your DNS from your ISP without a VPN, configure DNS-over-HTTPS in your browser (Firefox, Chrome, and Edge all support it) pointing at Cloudflare or Quad9.