OpenVPN is a reliable, widely supported protocol available in every VPN app. It’s attractive because it has many options that, when configured correctly, enhance your privacy and security. WireGuard is a newer, faster VPN protocol created with simplicity in mind, but it still sports strong encryption. Which one should you use? We’re here to explain what makes them different and why you may want to use one protocol over the other.
Platform Compatibility
Initially released in 2001, the open-source OpenVPN protocol has been around for a long time. It has been well-researched and thoroughly tested, and if you’re the type to tinker on your own, you can download it yourself and set up your own personal VPN with it. This is why you can use OpenVPN on almost every VPN app available, including mobile devices and operating systems.
WireGuard was released in 2015, so it’s a lot newer. It was created to be a faster, lighter protocol that is perfect for mobile devices. While not as widely supported as OpenVPN, WireGuard is deployable across various platforms, including Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, and Windows.
Winner: OpenVPN
Ease of Setup
OpenVPN has been described as the Swiss Army knife of secure networking protocols because it can be configured and used in many different ways. For example, in a secure business environment, you may want to protect a VPN profile with an additional passphrase, which is possible with OpenVPN. WireGuard doesn’t provide that specific kind of customization unless you combine it with mesh networking software like Tailscale.
That said, as VPNs gain popularity, OpenVPN’s customization and flexibility become liabilities. A misconfigured OpenVPN protocol can hinder your network performance, resulting in slow, possibly insecure connections, which is why we don’t recommend it for people new to VPNs. Instead, WireGuard is the best choice for newbies because it’s incredibly easy to set up, doesn’t require much customization, and will work for most people’s needs at home or on mobile devices.
Winner: WireGuard
How a VPN Works
Encryption
OpenVPN uses TLS/SSL for exchanging keys, and various encryption algorithms authenticate and encrypt your data. The protocol mixes well-tested encryption with newer algorithms such as ChaCha20-Poly1305, so it’s helpful in a wide range of circumstances or configurations.
WireGuard uses state-of-the-art cryptography, like Curve23319, to encrypt and authenticate your traffic data, and most of the newer VPN apps use it by default. However, newer doesn’t always mean more secure. The algorithms WireGuard uses haven’t been around as long as the ones used by OpenVPN, so they aren’t as well-tested. That said, encryption doesn’t equal overall security, as you’ll see in the next section.
Winner: OpenVPN
Security
OpenVPN and WireGuard are both open-source projects, meaning that each protocol’s codebase is frequently evaluated by researchers, which is good. Both use secure encryption, though, as mentioned above, OpenVPN’s security can be threatened when misconfigured.
WireGuard has a much smaller codebase than OpenVPN, with about 4000 lines of code compared with OpenVPN’s 70,000. This makes WireGuard’s code easier to audit and maintain than OpenVPN. WireGuard’s attack surface is also much smaller, making it inherently more secure.
Winner: WireGuard
Privacy
By default, WireGuard stores your IP address on a VPN server until it reboots. That’s because WireGuard was built for simplicity and speed, not anonymity.
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It’s up to the VPN companies deploying WireGuard to fix the privacy issues using their own solutions. For example, Mullvad VPN erases IP address logs after each session ends. Other companies take more drastic measures, as seen when the company behind NordVPN created NordLynx, a protocol built on WireGuard that assigns dynamic IP addresses to every customer.
OpenVPN does not store any of your private data, including IP addresses, on VPN servers, which is ideal.
Winner: OpenVPN
The Best VPNs We’ve Tested
Bypassing Censorship
OpenVPN supports TCP and UDP, while WireGuard only supports UDP. That means OpenVPN allows configurations on TCP port 443, which is rarely blocked by state-enforced firewalls. People tend to use this configuration to navigate restrictive VPN policies in countries like China or Russia.
Recommended by Our Editors
Winner: OpenVPN
Speed
You probably aren’t using a VPN because you’re being tracked or threatened by nation-state actors or malicious cybercriminals. Instead, you’re probably looking for information about a VPN protocol that will allow your connection to remain fast and steady while gaming, watching region-locked movies and shows on Netflix, or using public Wi-Fi at an airport, coffee shop, or hotel.
If you want a speedy VPN connection, WireGuard is far and away the best choice since it’s usually faster than OpenVPN in most common use cases. As mentioned above, WireGuard was built for simplicity and speed. The protocol is easy to set up and uses less data, making It an excellent choice at home or on mobile devices.
Winner: WireGuard
Verdict
So, which protocol should you use? The answer depends on your reasons for using a VPN and your familiarity with the technology.
In a corporate environment, for example, where privacy and security are the top concerns, using the tried-and-tested OpenVPN protocol is the right move. If you’re new to using VPNs or just want simple, one-click security, WireGuard is the better bet because it’s easy to set up and consumes less data (making it an especially good option on mobile devices). Ultimately, both protocols are very secure and well-tested, so we feel confident recommending them.
For more, check out our article on why you need a VPN and how to choose the right one.
Do You Need a VPN?
