Cloudflare’s DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) JSON API deliberately follows Google’s schema, so the services share many request patterns and response fields. The practical differences are in their documented parameters, diagnostics, and—most urgently for parser authors—Cloudflare’s 2026 rollout of new record-data formatting. Here are five distinctions to account for when inspecting responses or building a client.
1. The endpoint and browser request are not quite the same thing
Cloudflare documents its JSON endpoint at cloudflare-dns.com/dns-query. Its JSON mode uses a GET request with the query in the URL and the Accept: application/dns-json header. The required parameter is name; if type is omitted, the default is A. Google also documents a GET-based JSON API: name is required and type defaults to 1 (A).
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Entering a query URL in a browser address bar is convenient for inspecting a response, but it does not let you explicitly set the Accept header. For a request that follows Cloudflare’s documented JSON mode, use an HTTP client that can set it, for example:
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2. Google documents more optional query parameters
Both APIs document the core DNS query options name, type, do, and cd. Google additionally documents options for choosing the response content type, passing EDNS Client Subnet information, and adding URL padding:
| Option | Google documentation | Cloudflare JSON documentation |
|---|---|---|
ct |
Documented; can request JSON or a binary DNS message using application/dns-message. |
Not listed among the documented JSON parameters. |
edns_client_subnet |
Documented; passes an EDNS Client Subnet value. | Not listed among the documented JSON parameters. |
random_padding |
Documented for URL padding. | Not listed among the documented JSON parameters. |
These are differences in documented API options; the documentation comparison does not establish that every unlisted option is rejected in every deployment. Google says EDNS Client Subnet can provide network-prefix information to authoritative nameservers for more geographically accurate answers. Its documentation suggests 0.0.0.0/0 for users who want to avoid sending part of their IP address to those nameservers. This is an explicitly supplied Google option, not an automatic property of a browser DoH request.
3. The shared schema does not mean every diagnostic detail is identical
Cloudflare says it chose to follow Google’s DoH JSON schema because the IETF has no agreed JSON schema for DoH. Both providers document familiar fields such as Status, TC, RD, RA, AD, CD, Question, and Answer. Answer records commonly include name, type, TTL, and data.
Statusis the DNS response code;Questiondescribes the requested record andAnswercontains returned records.TTLis the record’s cache lifetime in seconds.ADandCDrelate to DNSSEC validation and checking behavior; interpret them in the context of the request and resolver documentation.
There are provider-specific details in the documented examples. Cloudflare describes Comment as a list of Extended DNS Error (EDE) messages. Google’s examples include diagnostic comments, including validation information and attribution to an uncached authoritative nameserver; its response can also include a top-level edns_client_subnet field when that option is used. These examples and fields are not a promise that the same query will return identical answers: resolver behavior, cache state, geography, and time can all affect DNS results.
4. Cloudflare’s 2026 formatting rollout is a real parser-compatibility concern
Cloudflare’s July 28, 2026 changelog describes a rollout that changes the textual presentation in the JSON data field for additional record types. During rollout, responses may use either the old or new format. The listed types include CAA, NAPTR, RP, IPSECKEY, SVCB, HTTPS, TLSA, SSHFP, and OPENPGPKEY. For affected records, DNSSEC algorithm and digest identifiers change from mnemonics to numeric identifiers; HINFO strings are individually quoted.
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This matters because data is a presentation string, not a stable structured representation of every record’s fields. A parser that assumes one sample’s punctuation, quoting, or identifiers will be fragile. Cloudflare calls these breaking changes and says the JSON format has no formal RFC and its schema is not guaranteed to remain stable.
- Keep handling of
datatolerant of format variations, especially for less common record types. - Do not treat an empty
Answerarray by itself as a transport failure. Check the HTTP status, the DNSStatus, and any diagnostic fields such asCommentorerror. - If a client requires a stable protocol representation, consider DNS wireformat instead of depending on provider-specific JSON text.
5. Privacy claims and implementation choices need separate treatment
Both services are public recursive resolvers accessed over HTTPS. The available provider documentation does not support a balanced, current head-to-head comparison of their privacy policies, so schema similarity should not be read as evidence of equivalent data practices—or as proof that one provider is more private.
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For implementation, the more relevant shared limitation is format stability. Cloudflare recommends DoH wireformat when a stable format is needed; Google documents binary DNS message output through ct=application/dns-message. The JSON APIs are useful for browser inspection and straightforward clients, but a shared schema does not freeze every provider’s formatting or resolve differences in DNS answers.
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