WireGuard vs OpenVPN: which is better?
Also asked as: Is WireGuard faster than OpenVPN? · Is WireGuard more secure than OpenVPN?
Direct answer
WireGuard, for almost everyone. It is faster, its codebase is a tiny fraction of OpenVPN's size, it uses fixed modern ciphers instead of negotiating, and it reconnects seamlessly when you switch networks. OpenVPN's one practical advantage is that it can run over TCP on port 443, which passes networks that block UDP. VPNmine's apps use WireGuard.
Where WireGuard wins
Throughput and latency, because it lives in the kernel and uses ChaCha20-Poly1305, which is fast even without hardware acceleration. Auditability, because a few thousand lines can be read by one person. Mobile behaviour, because it is built around keys rather than sessions and resumes across network changes without a new handshake. Simplicity of configuration, because there is no cipher menu to get wrong.
Where OpenVPN still earns its place
Restrictive networks. OpenVPN over TCP port 443 looks like ordinary HTTPS to a firewall that blocks UDP or unknown ports, so it gets through where WireGuard's UDP does not. Legacy routers and appliances that ship OpenVPN and nothing newer. Neither case is about security; both protocols are considered sound when configured properly.
On VPNmine
Every VPNmine desktop, mobile and TV app opens a WireGuard tunnel. The browser extension is the exception by necessity — an extension cannot open a tunnel — and proxies over HTTPS or SOCKS5 instead.
Sources
Related questions
- What is WireGuard?WireGuard is a modern VPN protocol: small codebase, fixed modern ciphers, one-round-trip handshake, fast reconnects. Why it replaced OpenVPN in most apps.
- Which VPN protocol does VPNmine use?VPNmine uses WireGuard with ChaCha20-Poly1305 on every desktop, mobile and TV app. The browser extension proxies over HTTPS or SOCKS5 instead. No OpenVPN.
- Does a VPN slow down internet speed?A VPN adds latency from the detour and costs some throughput to encryption. Typical numbers, what makes it worse, and how to get most of your speed back.
- How does a VPN work?What happens when you press connect: key exchange, encrypted tunnel, a server that forwards your traffic, and why sites see its address, not yours.