VPN & ZTNA Tools Compared

Remote access has shifted from VPNs to Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) — per-application access based on user identity and device posture. Side-by-side comparison across 4 tools — descriptive only, no recommendations.

6 min read Data verified: July 2026 4 tools compared

WireGuard

VPN Protocol (OSS)

Free / OSS

Free (GPL-2.0) WireGuard is a protocol and reference implementation, not a managed service

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Cloudflare Zero Trust

ZTNA / SASE

Freemium / Paid

Free up to 50 users Pay-as-you-go $7/user/mo; Enterprise Contract custom pricing

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Zscaler Private Access

ZTNA / SSE

Paid

$140-$375+/user/yr ($12-$31/user/mo) based on capabilities and scale small businesses $7,500-$25,000/yr; enterprise $20,000-$280,000+/yr

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Tailscale

Mesh VPN / ZTNA

Freemium / Paid

Free Personal (up to 6 users, unlimited devices) Standard $8/user/mo; Premium $18/user/mo; Enterprise custom

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Comparing →

WireGuard

VPN Protocol (OSS)

Cloudflare Zero Trust

ZTNA / SASE

Zscaler Private Access

ZTNA / SSE

Tailscale

Mesh VPN / ZTNA

$ Pricing & plans

5 dimensions

Pricing model

Free under GPL-2.0

no commercial licensing tier. Commercial implementations (Tailscale, Cloudflare WARP, NetMaker, NordLayer) provide managed layers on top with their own pricing.

Free up to 50 users (permanent, no time limit)

Pay-as-you-go $7/user/mo annual (covers core ZTNA + SWG); Enterprise Contract custom pricing with extended log retention, SIEM integration, custom DLP, and dedicated support

ZPA $140-$375+/user/yr depending on capabilities

small deployments ~$7,500/yr for 50 users on basic ZPA via AWS Marketplace; enterprise platform bundle (full SSE/SASE) ~$20,000/yr for 50 users; large enterprise deployments commonly $50K-$280K+/yr

Personal free (up to 6 users, unlimited devices)

Standard $8/user/mo; Premium $18/user/mo; Enterprise custom. Vendr data shows 16% average savings on enterprise via negotiation. 50% nonprofit/education discount available.

Pricing tier

Free / OSS

Freemium / Paid

Paid

Freemium / Paid

Free tier / trial

Free tier

Software permanently free; no commercial tier

Free tier

Permanent free tier supports up to 50 users — includes full ZTNA, SWG (DNS and HTTP filtering), Digital Experience Monitoring, device client, application connector, CASB (2 read-only API integrations), DLP (limited predefined profiles)

Paid only

No free tier; demos and PoCs via Zscaler sales or partners; AWS Marketplace fixed-price editions from $15,750 to $312,000 annually

Free tier

Permanent free Personal plan (up to 6 users, unlimited devices); 14-day free trial of Business plans for custom-domain tailnets; first two weeks of Standard and Premium also free for new business signups

Volume discounts

Not applicable

software is free

Pay-as-you-go is flat $7/user/mo

Enterprise Contract tier offers negotiated pricing with volume discounts and multi-year commitments; bundling with other Cloudflare One products improves overall pricing

Per-user pricing decreases significantly with volume

multi-year commitments common (3-year terms typical); bundling ZIA + ZPA improves per-user rates for both; Enterprise Agreements available for large deployments

Per-user pricing scales with volume

50-200 user deployments often see negotiated pricing; multi-year commitments unlock additional savings; Vendr data shows ~16% average savings via negotiation on enterprise deals

Hidden costs

Operational layer (key distribution, peer management, ACL enforcement) must be…

built or sourced; monitoring and logging infrastructure; if scaling to many users, the operational labor cost often justifies a managed service built on WireGuard

DNS query overages beyond ~150,000/seat/month (may require additional seat…

purchases), Log Explorer beyond 10GB free ($1/GB/month), Remote Browser Isolation add-on, dedicated egress IPs (Contract add-on), email security (Area 1) add-on, Magic WAN for SD-WAN replacement requires Contract plan

Professional services for deployment and policy migration, App Connector…

infrastructure (VM/container hosting), separate licensing for ZIA (internet access), ZDX (digital experience monitoring), and other Zero Trust Exchange products; bandwidth/overage charges may apply in years 2-3; renewal uplift commonly negotiated

Cloud egress charges if using cloud-hosted exit nodes (AWS, GCP, Azure egress…

at ~$0.09/GB), subnet router infrastructure (must stay online 24/7), separate DNS filtering and endpoint security (Tailscale routes traffic but doesn't inspect it), SSH session recording and log streaming are Enterprise-only

↗ Deployment & integrations

3 dimensions

Deployment

Native Linux kernel module since Linux 5.6 (March 2020)

userspace implementations for macOS, Windows, iOS, Android, BSDs; deployable on routers (OPNsense, pfSense, OpenWrt) and embedded devices; commonly run on small VPS instances or self-hosted servers

SaaS via Cloudflare's global anycast network (300+ cities)

WARP device client (Windows/macOS/Linux/iOS/Android) creates WireGuard-based tunnel; Cloudflare Tunnel (cloudflared) connects private resources without exposing public IPs; agentless browser-based access for web apps via Cloudflare Access

SaaS via Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange (150+ data centers)

App Connector (lightweight VM or container) deployed in customer environment makes outbound connection to Zscaler edge — apps never expose public IPs; Zscaler Client Connector on user devices; Private Service Edge option for on-premises deployment

Coordination plane (proprietary SaaS) + WireGuard peer-to-peer data plane

clients on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, FreeBSD; subnet routers for connecting non-Tailscale subnets; exit nodes for full-tunnel routing; Headscale open-source alternative for self-hosting the coordination plane

Typical deployment time

Minutes for individual setup

hours to days for small site-to-site deployments; longer at scale where key management, ACL distribution, and monitoring need to be built or sourced from a managed wrapper

Hours to days for ZTNA setup with Cloudflare Tunnel and Access policies

days to weeks for full SASE rollout including WARP client deployment, DNS/HTTP filtering policies, and identity integration

Weeks for mid-market deployments

months for large enterprise rollouts with policy migration from legacy VPNs, App Connector deployment, identity integration, and user training; Zscaler positions ZPA as deployable in 'hours' for simple replacements

Minutes for individual or small team setup (install client, authenticate)

hours to days for team rollouts with ACL design; days to weeks for larger deployments with SSO/SCIM integration, MDM deployment, and ACL governance

Key integrations

Linux kernel-native

clients across all major OS platforms; integrates with firewalls (OPNsense, pfSense), routers (OpenWrt, MikroTik), Kubernetes (via CNI plugins like Calico WireGuard), and configuration management (Ansible, Terraform); foundation for Tailscale, Cloudflare WARP, NetBird, Headscale, Netmaker

Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, Google Workspace, GitHub, OneLogin, Ping, generic SAML/OIDC

identity providers via SCIM; Splunk, Microsoft Sentinel, Datadog for log forwarding; Terraform provider for IaC; AWS, Azure, GCP for tunnel deployment

Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, Ping, Google Workspace, SAML/OIDC IdPs

SCIM provisioning; CrowdStrike, SentinelOne, Microsoft Defender for device posture; Splunk, IBM QRadar, Microsoft Sentinel for SIEM; ServiceNow, Jira; broad SaaS integrations

Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, Google Workspace, OneLogin, GitHub, Apple ID, generic…

OIDC for SSO; SCIM provisioning at all paid tiers (broader than previously); MDM tools (Jamf, Intune, Kandji) for client deployment; Kubernetes Operator; Terraform provider; GitHub Actions integration

🌍 VPN & ZTNA-specific evaluation

7 dimensions

Architecture / approach

Open-source VPN protocol with peer-to-peer encrypted tunnels; not a centralized service

each peer holds keys and connects directly; runs as kernel module on Linux for line-rate performance

Cloud-native ZTNA + SASE platform

identity-aware, per-application access enforced at Cloudflare's edge; no central VPN concentrator; traffic routed through nearest anycast PoP; supports both clientless (browser-based) and client-based (WARP) access

Cloud-native ZTNA via Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange (150+ data centers)

App Connector establishes outbound-only connection from app to nearest Service Edge — apps are never exposed to internet; user traffic routed through nearest Service Edge with broker model creating per-app TLS tunnels

Mesh VPN built on WireGuard

peer-to-peer encrypted connections between devices; centralized coordination server handles key exchange and ACL distribution; no central data plane bottleneck; ZTNA model with identity-bound access via external IdP

Underlying protocol

WireGuard protocol itself

uses ChaCha20-Poly1305 for symmetric encryption, Curve25519 for ECDH, BLAKE2s for hashing, SipHash24 for hashtable keys, HKDF for key derivation; Noise Protocol Framework-based handshake

WireGuard tunnels for WARP client (since 2020), HTTPS for browser-based access

QUIC (HTTP/3) default for cloudflared Tunnel in 2026; mTLS for service-to-service

Micro-encrypted TLS tunnels between App Connector and Service Edge

Client Connector tunnels user traffic via TLS to Service Edge; modern TLS 1.3 with strong cipher suites

WireGuard for all data plane connections (ChaCha20-Poly1305, Curve25519, BLAKE2s)

coordination plane uses HTTPS; DERP relay servers fall back for peers that can't establish direct connections

Per-application access

Not natively

WireGuard provides network-level access between peers; per-application policies require layering ZTNA control on top (e.g., via a managed service or local firewall rules)

Yes — Cloudflare Access enforces per-application policies based on identity,…

device posture, country, IP, and custom rules; supports self-hosted web apps, SaaS apps, and non-web protocols (SSH, RDP, VNC, arbitrary TCP/UDP via WARP)

Yes — per-application access is the core architectural principle

users connect to specific named applications, not networks; granular app segmentation; AI-powered user-to-app segmentation auto-discovers apps and recommends policies

Yes — ACLs define per-user/group access to specific devices, ports, and services

tag-based ACLs enable scalable policies; Tailscale SSH (Premium) provides identity-based SSH without managing SSH keys; per-resource access control aligns with ZTNA principles

Device posture / trust

No native posture checking

devices are trusted by virtue of holding the private key; posture / trust enforcement requires an external layer (managed ZTNA service or custom integration)

WARP client provides device posture signals (OS version, disk encryption, MDM…

enrollment, running processes, OS patch level); access policies can require specific posture criteria; integrates with CrowdStrike, SentinelOne, Microsoft Intune for richer signals

Continuous device posture validation via integration with CrowdStrike,…

SentinelOne, Microsoft Defender, Carbon Black, others; policies can require minimum OS version, disk encryption, MDM enrollment, EDR running

Device posture checks supported (OS version, disk encryption, EDR running, MDM…

enrollment) at Premium and Enterprise tiers; integration with Microsoft Intune, Jamf, Kandji, and other MDMs; Tailnet Lock prevents unauthorized device additions

Identity / IdP integration

Not built-in

WireGuard uses public-key cryptography for peer identity (pubkey-as-identity); identity provider integration requires a separate layer (Tailscale, Headscale, NetBird, Cloudflare WARP, or custom scripting via wg-easy / wg-manager)

SAML 2.0, OIDC, and dozens of pre-built IdP integrations (Okta, Entra ID,…

Google Workspace, GitHub, OneLogin, Ping); SCIM provisioning supported; supports social IdPs (GitHub, Google) for developer use cases

SAML 2.0, OIDC support for Entra ID, Okta, Ping, Google Workspace, ADFS,…

generic SAML providers; SCIM provisioning; context-aware policies combining identity, device, location, time, and content

SSO via Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, Google Workspace, OneLogin, GitHub, Apple ID,…

custom OIDC; SCIM provisioning at all paid tiers (recently expanded from Enterprise-only); user roles (Owner, Admin, Member, plus advanced roles on paid plans) for delegated administration

Performance / scale

High throughput

typical deployments achieve 500 Mbps to 1+ Gbps; 10+ Gbps achievable on tuned hardware; Linux kernel implementation has very low CPU overhead; fast handshake (1 RTT for established peers)

Anycast network spans 300+ cities

users typically connect to nearest edge with single-digit ms latency; Cloudflare Tunnel has no throughput limitations and no VM infrastructure requirements; auto-scales globally

Designed for very large enterprise scale

supports hundreds of thousands of users; 150+ data centers globally for proximity-based PoP routing; performance reflects global proxy architecture — latency depends on user-to-PoP proximity

WireGuard performance

peer-to-peer connections typically achieve near line-rate; coordination overhead is minimal; DERP relays add latency only when direct connections fail; scales to thousands of devices per tailnet

Self-hosting / sovereignty

Entirely self-hosted by design

no cloud component; full data and key sovereignty; commonly deployed on customer-controlled VPS, routers, or appliances

Not available

Cloudflare Zero Trust is SaaS only; for sovereignty requirements, organizations evaluate alternatives or pair with self-hosted complements; Cloudflare for Government meets FedRAMP Moderate

Primarily SaaS

Private Service Edge option allows on-premises deployment of inspection nodes for data residency/latency requirements; supports air-gapped scenarios via Private Service Edge plus customer-managed infrastructure

Coordination plane is SaaS by default

proprietary Tailscale infrastructure handles key exchange and ACL distribution. Headscale (community-maintained, open source) provides a self-hosted alternative for the coordination plane while still using standard Tailscale clients — adds operational responsibility but enables full self-hosting

✓ Compliance & certifications

1 dimension

Compliance certifications

Software has no specific certifications

users deploy in their own compliant environments. The cryptographic primitives (ChaCha20, Poly1305, Curve25519) are well-studied and used in FIPS-validated contexts when paired with appropriate hardware

SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, ISO 27018, PCI DSS, HIPAA (BAA available), GDPR,…

FedRAMP Moderate (Cloudflare for Government)

FedRAMP High, IRAP, SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, ISO 27017, ISO 27018, ISO 27701,…

PCI DSS, HIPAA, GDPR; broad regulatory certifications appropriate for highly regulated industries

SOC 2 Type II

HIPAA-aligned configurations available; GDPR; ISO 27001 in progress per Tailscale public statements

◧ Positioning

3 dimensions

Target deployment

Technical teams building secure point-to-point or site-to-site tunnels with…

minimal overhead; foundation for many managed VPN/ZTNA services

Organizations from small teams up to enterprises wanting unified ZTNA + Secure…

Web Gateway across a single global network, with simple per-user pricing

Mid-market to enterprise wanting the most-deployed ZTNA platform with deep SSE…

integration and Zscaler ecosystem alignment

Developer-led teams, startups, distributed engineering organizations wanting…

WireGuard-based mesh networking with minimal operational overhead and identity-aware ACLs

Strengths cited

Modern cryptography (ChaCha20-Poly1305, Curve25519, BLAKE2s, Noise handshake),…

small codebase (~4,000 lines vs OpenVPN's ~100,000+), high performance with low CPU overhead, merged into Linux kernel by Linus Torvalds in 2020, kernel-level performance, well-suited for mobile due to fast handshake and low battery drain, foundation for major commercial VPN and ZTNA platforms

Generous free tier (50 users), simple per-user pricing without bandwidth…

surcharges, global anycast network spans 300+ cities for low-latency access, Cloudflare Tunnel eliminates inbound firewall rules and public IP exposure, browser-based SSH/VNC for clientless access, broad SASE bundling (ZTNA, SWG, CASB, DLP, RBI, email security) on one platform, fast deployment (often hours not weeks)

Most-deployed ZTNA solution globally per Zscaler positioning, recognized leader…

in Gartner Magic Quadrant for SSE, inside-out App Connector architecture means apps never exposed to internet, scales to very large enterprise deployments, deep integration with Zscaler Internet Access (ZIA) for full SSE/SASE coverage, broad compliance certification breadth, mature partner ecosystem

Built on WireGuard for high performance and modern cryptography, near-zero…

configuration (install client, authenticate, you're on the network), peer-to-peer architecture means low latency and no central bottleneck, MagicDNS automatically assigns human-readable names, ACLs enable identity-based zero-trust access, NAT traversal handles tricky network topologies, genuinely useful free tier, open-source Headscale provides self-hostable coordination

Where it fits less well

WireGuard is a protocol

not a turnkey managed service. Production deployments at scale require building the operational layer (key distribution, peer management, ACLs, monitoring) or using a managed service built on top (Tailscale, Cloudflare WARP, Netmaker, Headscale)

DNS query soft limit of ~150,000/seat/month may trigger additional seat purchase

Remote Browser Isolation, email security, dedicated egress IPs, and Magic WAN are Enterprise add-ons with separate pricing; Log Explorer free up to 10GB then $1/GB/month

Premium pricing positioned for enterprise

ZIA and ZPA priced separately (bundles available but commit to broader scope); App Connector hardware/VM footprint to plan and maintain; latency profile reflects global proxy architecture — well-suited for centralized inspection but requires planning for distributed users

Coordination plane is proprietary (SaaS-based) unless using Headscale for self-hosting

per-user pricing makes costs predictable but can grow with team size; Premium ($18/user/mo) is a meaningful jump from Standard ($8/user/mo) — features like full ACLs, Tailscale SSH, and audit logging gate at Premium; not an inspection/filtering product (no DLP, threat detection, or content filtering)

Head-to-head comparisons

3 pairs

◧ Bottom line

Last updated 6 July 2026

How this category breaks down This page compares 4 VPN Protocol (OSS) tools. Open-source / free-tier options: WireGuard, Cloudflare Zero Trust, Tailscale. Commercial platforms: Zscaler Private Access. Use the comparison table above to match each tool’s stated best-fit to your environment.

Frequently asked questions

3 questions

Which VPN Protocol (OSS) tools does this comparison cover?

This comparison covers 4 VPN Protocol (OSS) tools: WireGuard, Cloudflare Zero Trust, Zscaler Private Access, Tailscale.

Which VPN Protocol (OSS) tools are open-source or offer a free tier?

Open-source or free-tier options: WireGuard, Cloudflare Zero Trust, Tailscale.

Which VPN Protocol (OSS) tools are commercial (paid)?

Commercial / paid options: Zscaler Private Access.

Methodology Comparison data synthesized from publicly available vendor documentation, MITRE Engenuity ATT&CK Evaluations, AV-TEST results, Gartner Peer Insights, G2/Capterra/TrustRadius reviews, anonymized transaction data (Vendr, CostBench, CheckThat.ai), and publicly reported pricing as of May 2026. defend.network is independent and has no commercial relationship with the vendors compared.