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I'm looking for a simple, user friendly firewall for Windows 10 that enables the user to explicitly allow or block outgoing traffic per application. Or in some cases, only allow an application to connect to specific domains or addresses.

In the past I have used "Tiny Firewall" in the Windows 2000 and XP for many years, and it worked just great (too bad it's discontinued and doesn't work on Windows 7 and later). On Mac I have used "Little Snitch", that works perfectly.

Is there something similar that works on Windows 10?

I've tried a few, but they are either horribly user-unfriendly, or have extremely complex interfaces (it is supposed to be used by a regular Windows user, not an IT expert), or you have to go through all sorts of tedious processes and define tons of custom rules in advance.

Basically, whenever an application wants to connect, I want to get a popup giving me the option to always allow it, always block it, or just allow or block it to the specific domain or IP it's connecting to (and for other destinations, ask again).

The way Little Snitch on OS X does it is exactly what I'm looking for:

Little Snitch screenshot

Does anyone have a recommendation for a Windows 10 compatible firewall that works like that?

(P.S. I found a few similar questions, but they were either outdated and the recommended solutions don't work in Windows 10, or there was no particular answer meeting the above criteria - I really need it to be simple)

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  • ZoneAlarm does not fit your needs?
    – Luis Masuelli
    Apr 14, 2016 at 20:48

3 Answers 3

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I would like to recommend Comodo Firewall. It's a free application that has a very user-friendly interface with advanced options available. This also meets your requirements by allowing you to:

  • Allow/Block Outgoing/Incoming traffic per application
  • Allow/Block certain domains/IP's per application
  • Traffic Monitoring

I've been using their Internet Security Application which includes both their firewall and antivirus software. I'm very impressed with this product and what's nice is it's an application where I can set it to automatic hands off filtering/protection or hands-on custom rule set protection. It should not be too hard to setup for what you're looking for.

Comodo Free Firewall

Comodo Firewall - Secure your system against internal attacks such as Trojan viruses / malicious software and external attacks by hackers. Safeguard your personal data through a simple user friendly single click interface offering full immunity to attack. Comodo Firewall helps you connect in a secure way to the internet and global networks.

Comodo Free Firewall UI

Comodo Free Firewall - Firewall Options Panel

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  • Thanks for the suggestion, but unfortunately Comodo was amongst the firewalls I tried before, and found it rather user unfriendly (and not fitting my needs). I'm getting popups like this and that, making arbitrary distinctions between web browsers or FTP clients or other (what, why?) but not enabling me to just allow or disallow traffic to the specific domain.
    – RocketNuts
    Apr 21, 2016 at 9:24
  • (2/2) To elaborate, it comes packed with all sorts of other monitoring functionality and filters and protection (warnings when writing to registry, etc) and loads of stuff that in all honesty I didn't choose when installing it, and appears to me as unnecessary bloat. I can live with that (or disable it) if the firewall works OK, but for my use case (easy and suitable for non-ICT expert) it doesn't.
    – RocketNuts
    Apr 21, 2016 at 9:24
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Maybe NetLimiter:

https://www.netlimiter.com/products/nl4

You can block selected applications from connecting to internet.

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I would recommend GlassWire, a free network monitor & security tool with a built in firewall. One of the most simple firewall with beautiful UI.

Network Monitor : Graphs to find current traffic and usage. Monitor

Simple Alerts : App specific monitoring Alert

Usage Monitor : Type of usage per application Usage

Alerts : Block apps Alerts

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    Glasswire does not meet the OP's requirements as it just allows/denies traffic anywhere. It is not able to allow an application to connect to specific domains or addresses
    – Tom
    Apr 16, 2016 at 18:23

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