The Complete Guide to Porn Blocklists for AdGuard Home and PiHole

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Setting up AdGuard Home or PiHole is an excellent way to gain granular control over your network's DNS filtering, but the real power comes from choosing the right blocklists. Unlike the preconfigured DNS servers we covered in our ranking of parental control DNS servers, AdGuard Home and PiHole allow you to mix and match multiple blocklists to create a custom filtering solution that perfectly matches your family's needs.

Understanding how to properly configure blocklists is crucial because a poorly configured setup might block legitimate websites your family needs, while an insufficient setup could leave dangerous content accessible. Let's explore how to build a comprehensive filtering system that strikes the right balance between protection and usability.

Understanding Blocklist Categories

When building your filtering system, it's helpful to think about blocklists in different categories. Each category serves a specific purpose, and understanding these purposes will help you make informed decisions about which lists to enable.

Adult Content Blocklists form the foundation of any parental control setup. These lists contain millions of domains known to host pornographic or sexually explicit content. The quality and comprehensiveness of these lists vary significantly, with some containing outdated entries while others are actively maintained with fresh additions daily.

Mixed Content Blocklists target websites that aren't primarily adult sites but contain sections or user-generated content that could expose children to inappropriate material. Think of platforms like Reddit, Twitter, or Tumblr where adult content exists alongside legitimate content. These blocklists require more careful consideration because they might block websites that older family members need for work or legitimate purposes.

Safe Search Enforcement Lists work differently from traditional blocklists. Instead of blocking domains entirely, they redirect search engines to their safe search versions. This means Google searches will automatically filter out explicit results, and YouTube will operate in restricted mode.

Advertising and Tracking Blocklists aren't directly related to adult content, but they serve an important complementary role. Many adult websites rely heavily on aggressive advertising networks, and blocking these networks provides an additional layer of protection while also improving overall browsing performance.

Top-Tier Adult Content Blocklists

Let's examine the most effective blocklists for blocking pornographic content, starting with the most comprehensive options.

Steven Black's Adult Filter stands as one of the most respected adult content blocklists in the community. This list consolidates multiple sources and maintains high accuracy through community contributions and automated verification. The maintainer updates the list regularly, ensuring new adult domains are caught quickly. You can add this list using this link

oisd Big List takes a different approach by combining adult content blocking with comprehensive malware and advertising protection. This makes it an excellent choice if you want fewer individual lists to manage. The "Big" version includes adult content filtering, while the standard version focuses on malware and ads. Access it here

MVPS Hosts Adult provides another solid foundation for adult content blocking. This list has been maintained for years and includes both obvious adult domains and many lesser-known sites that might not appear in other lists. It's available here

HaGeZi NSFW Blocklist deserves special attention as one of the most comprehensive and well-maintained adult content filters available. Created by the developer behind the popular HaGeZi DNS blocklist collection, this specialized NSFW (Not Safe For Work) list contains over 100,000 carefully curated adult domains. What makes HaGeZi's approach particularly valuable is the systematic methodology behind list creation. Rather than simply aggregating domains from various sources, the maintainer actively analyzes threat intelligence feeds, community reports, and automated discovery methods to ensure comprehensive coverage while minimizing false positives. The list receives regular updates and benefits from rigorous testing against popular websites to prevent legitimate sites from being incorrectly blocked. You can access the HaGeZi NSFW list here. The project also offers multiple formats for different platforms, making integration with both AdGuard Home and PiHole straightforward.

Understanding how these lists complement each other is important. Steven Black's list might catch mainstream adult sites that everyone knows about, while smaller, specialized lists might catch newer domains or niche sites that haven't made it into the larger compilations yet. This is why many administrators choose to combine multiple adult content lists rather than relying on just one.

Specialized Blocklists for Enhanced Protection

Beyond basic adult content blocking, several specialized lists target specific types of problematic content that standard adult filters might miss.

Dating and Social Media Adult Content represents a particularly challenging category. Websites like Tinder, OnlyFans, and various cam sites operate in a gray area where they're not traditional porn sites but still contain adult content. The "Dating and Social Adult" blocklist addresses these platforms specifically. However, be careful with social media blocking because legitimate platforms like Instagram or Snapchat might be important for your family's communication needs.

Adult Advertising Networks deserve special attention because adult content often reaches users through advertising rather than direct site visits. Adult advertising networks are particularly aggressive and often bypass standard ad blockers through sophisticated techniques. Lists like "Adult Advertising Hosts" specifically target these networks and can prevent adult ads from appearing on otherwise legitimate websites.

Gambling and Adult Gaming Sites often overlap with adult content, particularly poker sites and online casinos that feature adult advertising or cam chat integration. If gambling is a concern in your household alongside adult content, consider lists that target both categories simultaneously.

The key insight here is that modern adult content doesn't just exist on obvious pornographic websites. It's woven throughout the internet ecosystem via advertising networks, social media platforms, and gaming sites. Comprehensive protection requires blocking these interconnected pathways, not just the destination sites.

Implementing DNS Resolver Strategy

While blocklists handle the filtering, your choice of upstream DNS resolvers significantly impacts both security and performance. This connects directly to our analysis of the best DNS servers for parental controls, but with an important difference: when using AdGuard Home or PiHole, you're adding your own filtering on top of whatever the upstream DNS provider offers.

Cloudflare for Families (1.1.1.3) makes an excellent upstream resolver because it provides baseline adult content filtering while maintaining fast response times. When you combine this with your own blocklists, you get layered protection where content that slips through one filter gets caught by the other. The 85% blocking rate we measured for Cloudflare means your blocklists need to catch the remaining 15%, rather than starting from zero.

DNSforFamily as an upstream resolver creates an interesting situation. Since our testing showed it blocks 100% of porn sites, using it as your upstream resolver might make additional blocklists seem redundant. However, DNS servers can change their policies or experience downtime, so having local blocklists provides backup protection and gives you control over exactly what gets blocked.

Quad9 (9.9.9.9) focuses on malware protection rather than adult content, making it a good choice if you want your upstream resolver to handle security threats while your local blocklists handle content filtering. This division of responsibility can actually improve performance because each system optimizes for its specific task.

The strategic decision here involves understanding that upstream DNS resolvers and local blocklists work together, not in competition. A fast upstream resolver with basic filtering allows your detailed local blocklists to focus on edge cases and custom requirements specific to your family's needs.

Advanced Configuration Techniques

Once you understand the basics, several advanced techniques can significantly improve your filtering effectiveness while reducing false positives.

Custom Whitelist Creation is essential for any household because no blocklist perfectly matches every family's needs. You'll discover that certain educational websites, news sources, or work-related platforms get incorrectly blocked by overly aggressive lists. Creating a custom whitelist allows you to unblock these false positives without disabling entire blocklists. The key is documenting why you whitelisted each domain so you can review these decisions periodically.

Regular Expression Filtering provides powerful capabilities for advanced users. Instead of blocking specific domains, regex filters can block patterns. For example, you could block any subdomain that contains certain adult-related keywords, even if the specific subdomain hasn't been discovered yet. This proactive approach catches new adult sites faster than waiting for them to appear in static blocklists.

Time-Based Filtering offers another layer of control. Some families want looser filtering during adult supervision hours and stricter filtering when children might be unsupervised. While not all platforms support this natively, you can achieve similar results by maintaining separate filter profiles and switching between them.

These advanced techniques require more maintenance and technical understanding, but they transform your filtering system from a blunt instrument into a precise tool that adapts to your family's specific needs and browsing patterns.

The Nuclear Option: Default-Deny with Whitelisting

When standard blocklist approaches feel insufficient, the "Nuclear Option" flips the entire paradigm. Instead of allowing everything except blocked domains, you block everything except explicitly whitelisted domains. This approach provides the highest possible level of protection but requires significant setup and ongoing maintenance.

Understanding Default-Deny Philosophy means recognizing that this approach treats the entire internet as potentially dangerous until proven safe. Every website your family needs must be explicitly approved and added to the whitelist. This might sound extreme, but for families with very young children or specific security concerns, it provides unmatched protection.

Implementation Strategy requires careful planning before you begin. Start by monitoring your family's browsing habits for a week or two while using standard blocklists. Export the logs of allowed domains to create your initial whitelist. This gives you a foundation of known-good domains rather than starting from zero and dealing with constant complaints about blocked sites.

Essential Whitelisting Categories help you think systematically about what to allow. Educational domains like Khan Academy, Coursera, and school district websites obviously need whitelisting. News and reference sites like Wikipedia, major news outlets, and government information sites provide valuable content. Communication platforms your family uses for work or staying in touch with relatives need inclusion. Entertainment services like Netflix, Disney+, or age-appropriate gaming platforms might be appropriate depending on your family's values.

Technical Implementation varies between AdGuard Home and PiHole, but the concept remains the same. You'll configure the system to block all domains by default, then maintain lists of allowed domains. You can read our guide on how to set up AdGuard Home and how to apply this strict method of blocking.

Maintenance Considerations represent the biggest challenge with this approach. Every new website, software update, or change in online services might require whitelist updates. Mobile apps are particularly challenging because they often connect to multiple domains for functionality, analytics, and content delivery. You'll need to develop a process for family members to request new sites and a system for reviewing and approving these requests.

Gradual Relaxation Strategy provides a path forward as children mature. You might start with pure whitelisting for very young children, then gradually transition to category-based blocking as they reach their teens. This allows you to maintain appropriate protection while acknowledging that older children need more internet access for educational and social development.

The Nuclear Option isn't right for every family, but it serves an important role for those who need maximum protection and have the technical skills to maintain it. The key is understanding that this approach trades convenience for security, and that trade-off might be exactly what some families need.

Monitoring and Fine-Tuning Your Setup

Creating an effective filtering system isn't a set-it-and-forget-it process. Regular monitoring and adjustment ensure your protection remains effective while minimizing disruption to legitimate activities.

Log Analysis provides crucial insights into your filtering effectiveness. Both AdGuard Home and PiHole generate detailed logs showing which domains are being blocked and which are being allowed. Review these logs weekly to identify patterns. Are certain types of sites consistently getting through? Are family members frequently requesting unblocking of legitimate sites? These patterns guide your filtering adjustments.

False Positive Management requires a systematic approach. When family members report that a needed website isn't working, resist the urge to immediately disable entire blocklists. Instead, identify the specific domain being blocked and evaluate whether it should be whitelisted permanently or if the blocking was appropriate. Sometimes the issue isn't the primary domain but a content delivery network or advertising domain that the site requires.

Performance Monitoring ensures your filtering isn't slowing down internet access. Too many blocklists can impact DNS resolution speed, and some lists are more efficiently formatted than others. Monitor query response times and consider consolidating multiple smaller lists into fewer, larger ones if performance becomes an issue.

Family Communication about filtering changes helps build understanding and cooperation. When you make adjustments based on log analysis or family feedback, explain the reasoning to age-appropriate family members. This education helps them understand why certain restrictions exist and reduces attempts to circumvent the filtering.

Regular List Updates keep your protection current. Most quality blocklists update frequently, with some updating daily. Configure your system to automatically update lists, but review the update logs periodically to ensure updates are happening successfully. Occasionally, a list maintainer might change formats or URLs, breaking automatic updates.

Backup and Recovery Planning protects your investment in configuration time. Export your custom settings, whitelists, and configuration files regularly. Store these backups securely so you can quickly restore your setup if hardware fails or you need to migrate to a new system.

The goal of monitoring isn't to achieve perfect filtering but to maintain an appropriate balance between protection and usability for your specific family situation. This balance will shift over time as children mature, family needs change, and new internet threats emerge.

Conclusion

Building an effective porn blocking system with AdGuard Home or PiHole requires understanding that filtering is a layered process. No single blocklist provides perfect protection, just as no single approach works for every family. The most effective systems combine comprehensive adult content blocklists with specialized lists targeting mixed content and advertising networks, all built on top of carefully chosen upstream DNS resolvers.

The key insight is that effective filtering requires ongoing attention and adjustment. Start with proven blocklists like Steven Black's Adult Filter and oisd Big List, implement them systematically, and then refine your approach based on your family's specific needs and browsing patterns. Whether you choose standard blocklist filtering or implement the Nuclear Option with whitelisting, success comes from understanding your tools and maintaining your system over time.

Remember that technical filtering is just one component of a comprehensive approach to internet safety. Combine your technical setup with age-appropriate education, open communication, and regular monitoring to create a protective environment that adapts as your family grows and changes. The goal isn't to create an impenetrable barrier but to provide appropriate protection that supports your family's values while allowing beneficial internet use to continue.