Azure VPN Gateway vs Cloudflare Access
Azure VPN Gateway
azure.microsoft.comCloudflare Access
cloudflare.comSide by side
| Figure | Azure VPN Gateway | Cloudflare Access |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | $7/mo |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 12 | 4 |
| Spec score · Business VPN Software | 9.3 (#6) | 8.9 (#12) |
| Free plan | No | Cloudflare's Zero Trust and SASE pricing page invites customers to start a proof of concept with its free plan. |
Plans
Azure VPN Gateway
- BasicPrice not published
- BasicPriced on request
- VpnGw1–VpnGw5Price not published
- VpnGw1–VpnGw5Priced on request
- VpnGw1AZ–VpnGw5AZPrice not published
- VpnGw1AZ–VpnGw5AZPriced on request
- Basic$26.28 a month
- VpnGw1$138.70 a month
- VpnGw2$357.70 a month
- VpnGw3$912.50 a month
Cloudflare Access
- Free PlanFree
- Pay-as-you-go$7 a month
- Contract PlanPrice not published
- Cloudflare One free planFree
In their own words
Azure VPN Gateway
Azure VPN Gateway provides VPN access and site-to-site networking with advanced administrative controls. Listed capabilities include SSO and SCIM, device posture checks, and audit logs. Supported platforms and access routes include Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, a web portal, Azure CLI, and REST API. The service has no free plan, and the listed plan groups specify different bandwidth and tunnel limits. Basic lists 100 Mbps, 10 site-to-site tunnels, and 128 point-to-site tunnels. VpnGw1–VpnGw5 lists bandwidth from 650 Mbps to 10 Gbps, up to 100 site-to-site tunnels, and up to 10,000 point-to-site tunnels. VpnGw1AZ–VpnGw5AZ lists the same bandwidth range and tunnel ceilings. No plan prices are listed here.
Cloudflare Access
Cloudflare Access controls access to self-hosted apps, SaaS applications, and infrastructure by checking identity, device posture, and other context on each request. Policies can grant access at the individual resource level, and applications deny access unless a user matches an Allow policy. It supports SAML- and OIDC-compliant identity providers, including enterprise and social providers, as well as Cloudflare as an identity provider. Contractors, partners, and people using unmanaged devices can connect through a browser with social sign-in or a one-time PIN. Access can replace or supplement a legacy VPN by limiting access to specific applications, and its controls also cover infrastructure such as SSH and RDP. Administrators can manage policies centrally and scale them through APIs and Terraform. Publishing a self-hosted public application requires an active Cloudflare domain with full or partial CNAME setup. The free plan is for fewer than 50 users; paid service starts at $7/user/mo (annual).