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How to Change the DNS Server on a PlayStation 5

Set a faster DNS server on your PS5 through Network settings so store and page lookups resolve quicker — with an honest note on what it will not change.

Updated 4 min

PlayStation 5 Beginner ~4 min

  1. Open Settings then Network

    From the PS5 home screen, select the gear (Settings) icon in the top-right corner. In Settings, scroll down and choose Network.

  2. Go to Settings and Set Up Internet Connection

    Under Network, open Settings (not the Connection Status section), then select "Set Up Internet Connection". Your PS5 lists nearby Wi-Fi networks, plus a wired option if a LAN cable is plugged in.

  3. Highlight your network and open its options

    Highlight the Wi-Fi network you use (or the wired LAN connection) — do not press X to connect. Press the Options button (the button with three horizontal lines, to the right of the touchpad) and choose "Advanced Settings".

  4. Open DNS Settings and switch to Manual

    In Advanced Settings, select "DNS Settings". Change it from "Automatic" to "Manual" so you can type in the addresses yourself.

  5. Enter your primary and secondary DNS

    Set Primary DNS to 1.1.1.1 and Secondary DNS to 1.0.0.1 (Cloudflare) — or the resolver that won your speed test. These are plain IPv4 addresses; the PS5 does not accept DoH/DoT URLs here. Confirm to save the DNS entries.

  6. Save the advanced settings

    Back out of Advanced Settings and confirm/OK to save. Leave the other fields (IP Address, DHCP Host Name, MTU, Proxy) on Automatic unless you have a specific reason to change them.

  7. Test the internet connection

    When prompted, run "Test Internet Connection" (or find it under Settings → Network → Connection Status → Test Internet Connection). It should report a successful connection; a passed test with an active internet result confirms the new DNS is in use.

Why change DNS on PlayStation 5

Every time your PS5 loads a store page, checks for a game update, streams a trailer, or connects to an online service, it first has to look up the server’s address through DNS. By default the console uses whatever DNS server your ISP hands out, which is often not the fastest one available. Pointing the PS5 at a quicker public resolver shortens that lookup delay, so pages in the PlayStation Store and app menus can start loading a little sooner.

It’s worth being clear about what this does not do. A faster DNS resolver does not increase your bandwidth, your download speed, or the size of your connection — it only trims the time spent resolving names to addresses. Just as importantly, changing DNS will not lower your in-game ping or reduce lag. Once you’re actually in a match, latency is determined by the network route between your console and the game server, not by DNS — the address was already resolved before the match started. If your goal is smoother online play, DNS is not the lever; it mainly helps the browsing, store, and download-lookup parts of the experience.

Before you start, pick a resolver: run the DNS speed test on a phone or laptop connected to the same network to see which server responds fastest from your location, then use those addresses in the steps above. You can also compare options on the public DNS servers page if you care about privacy or filtering as well as speed. The examples here use Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 and 1.0.0.1, but use whichever won your test.

PS5, Digital, Slim, and Pro

The steps are the same across every current PlayStation 5 model — the standard disc console, the Digital Edition, the newer Slim, and the PS5 Pro all share the same system software and the same Network menu. Menu wording can shift slightly between system-software versions, but the path (Settings → Network → Settings → Set Up Internet Connection → Options → Advanced Settings → DNS Settings) has been stable for a long time. If a label reads a little differently on your firmware, look for the closest match rather than a menu that isn’t there.

One nuance worth knowing: DNS is stored per connection profile. If you set it for Wi-Fi and later plug in a LAN cable (or vice-versa), you’ll need to repeat the steps for that connection type, because the wired and wireless profiles keep their own settings.

Encrypted DNS (DoH/DoT)

Honest answer: the PlayStation 5 does not support encrypted DNS. The DNS Settings screen only accepts plain IPv4 addresses like 1.1.1.1, and there is no option anywhere in the console’s menus for DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) or DNS-over-TLS (DoT). That means the lookups you configure here travel unencrypted, and your ISP or network can still see the domain names your console requests. Don’t let any guide talk you into pasting a https://…/dns-query URL into that box — it won’t work and isn’t a hidden feature.

If you want your PS5’s lookups encrypted, the practical route is to do it one level up, at your router, so every device on the network — the console included — is covered. A growing number of routers (and third-party firmware like OpenWrt) can run DoH or DoT for the whole network. See the router DNS guide for how to change it network-wide, and use our encrypted DNS setup helper to generate the correct DoH/DoT endpoint for your chosen resolver. When the router handles encryption, you can leave the PS5 on either Automatic or the plain addresses above — it will still benefit.

Verify it worked

Right after saving, the console’s own Test Internet Connection is the quickest confirmation: it should complete with internet access available, which means the manual DNS you entered resolved successfully. If it fails, the addresses are usually the culprit — see Troubleshooting below.

For a second check, go to Settings → Network → Connection Status → View Connection Status and confirm the console is online. You can also reload the DNS speed test on another device on the same network to sanity-check that your chosen resolver is responding well from this connection. Note that the PS5 doesn’t expose a per-console “which DNS am I using” readout beyond the settings screen you just filled in, so the connection test plus your saved values are the reliable signal.

Troubleshooting

  • Connection test fails after entering DNS. Double-check the digits — a mistyped address is the most common cause. Re-open DNS Settings, confirm Primary is 1.1.1.1 and Secondary is 1.0.0.1 (or your chosen pair), and test again.
  • “Set Up Internet Connection” reconnects instead of showing Advanced Settings. Make sure you highlight the network and press the Options button rather than pressing X (which connects). Advanced Settings only appears through the Options menu.
  • Store or app pages still feel slow. DNS only affects the lookup step. If pages are slow to download once they start, that’s bandwidth or PSN load, not DNS — try a wired connection or test your line speed separately.
  • Some online features won’t connect. Revert to Automatic (below) and test again with a different resolver from the public DNS servers page. Occasional service issues are rarely caused by DNS specifically.
  • You changed cable/Wi-Fi and DNS reverted. Remember DNS is saved per connection profile — reapply the steps for the connection type you’re now using.

Revert to your old settings

To go back, return to Settings → Network → Settings → Set Up Internet Connection, highlight your network, press Options → Advanced Settings → DNS Settings, and set it back to Automatic. Save and run Test Internet Connection. That restores your ISP’s default DNS for the console. If you also set DNS at the router for whole-network encryption, that stays in place until you change it there separately.