OpenVPN Community Edition vs ZeroTier
OpenVPN Community Edition
openvpn.netZeroTier
zerotier.comSide by side
| Figure | OpenVPN Community Edition | ZeroTier |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $18/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | — | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | Yes |
| API | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 5 |
| Spec score · Business VPN Software | 8.1 (#41) | 9.2 (#8) |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Security | The tls-auth directive adds an HMAC signature to TLS handshake packets to help protect against denial-of-service attacks, port scanning, and unauthorized handshake attempts. | The platform uses cryptographic device identity, end-to-end traffic encryption, peer-to-peer connections when possible, and centrally defined policy enforced globally. |
| Support | Community support resources include IRC, a user mailing list, forums, a wiki, and GitHub issues. | Personal and Essential include community support, Scale includes ticketed support with SLA, and Enterprise includes priority support with enhanced SLA. |
Plans
ZeroTier
- Essential$18 a month
- Scale$179 a month
- QuantumPriced on request
- PersonalFree
- EnterprisePriced on request
In their own words
OpenVPN Community Edition
OpenVPN Community Edition has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.
ZeroTier
ZeroTier is a software-defined networking platform for connecting people, devices and cloud environments through secure virtual networks. Its overlays can span public clouds, private data centers, on-premises environments, remote devices and edge systems. Security measures include cryptographic device identity, end-to-end traffic encryption, peer-to-peer connections when possible, and centrally defined policies enforced globally. Capabilities include cloud-to-cloud networking, global device fleets, identity-based access control, Layer 2 and Layer 3 networking, and programmable management. The platform supports hybrid deployment and lists coverage for DigitalOcean, Amazon Web Services, Google Compute Engine, Microsoft Azure, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, Alibaba Cloud, IBM Cloud, Vultr and Equinix Metal. Documentation includes API guides and tutorials for Docker, code-server, Terraform, webhooks, and Prometheus/Grafana monitoring. The free Personal plan is limited to non-commercial use and includes 10 devices, one network and one admin. Essential costs $18 a month; Scale costs $179 a month. Platforms include Android, API, iOS, Linux, macOS, self-hosted, web and Windows.