Скачать или смотреть WireGuard or OpenVPN: Which protocol should you use in 2025?

WireGuard or OpenVPN protocol? 🤓
Secure up to 10 devices with NordVPN today 👉 https://content.nordvpn.com/45YXa6x
Easy online protection at home and on the go 🧘​

***

There are plenty of virtual private network protocols on the market. But today, we will discuss two: WireGuard and OpenVPN. Find out the key differences between them and which one works best for you.

***

🔔 Subscribe to get the latest content: @nordvpn

► RECOMMENDED VIDEOS ►


What is a zero-day? The internet’s shadow threat explained:    • What is a zero-day? The internet’s shadow ...  

What is artificial intelligence? A guide for beginners:    • What is artificial intelligence? A guide f...  

Proxies, DNS, Domains | Guide to remote access to self-hosted services:    • Proxies, DNS, Domains | Guide to remote ac...  

***

Contents:

00:00 Intro
00:26 What is a VPN protocol
00:47 OpenVPN protocol explained
01:46 WireGuard protocol explained
02:32 OpenVPN vs WireGuard
03:39 The best VPN protocol for you

***

There are plenty of virtual private network protocols on the market to choose from. But today, we will talk about two: WireGuard and OpenVPN. One of the main differences between these two is speed. But what about other good stuff, like performance and security? Let’s dig in and find out what are the key differences between WireGuard and OpenVPN.

But what is a VPN protocol?

If a VPN is like a secure highway that your online traffic travels through, then a VPN protocol is like the design and engineering of that highway. In other words, it’s a set of technical rules that determine how your data is encrypted and transmitted securely between your device and the VPN server.

First on the menu is OpenVPN. It’s one of the most trusted and widely used open-source VPN protocols. This long-established protocol has a robust security foundation, is flexible, and easily adaptable to various network environments. It also supports numerous cryptographic algorithms, which made it wildly popular, especially for commercial VPN services.

OpenVPN uses both TCP — Transmission Control Protocol,, and UDP — User Datagram Protocol to send encrypted data packets. But what are the differences between those? In short, it’s reliability versus speed. TCP ensures that all your data packets arrive without errors, meaning it’s a bit slower but reliable. UDP is faster because it doesn’t guarantee delivery or order of all packets; it focuses on speed. So it’s suitable for streaming or online gaming. OpenVPN has strong encryption capabilities and works on almost all operating systems. However, it’s slower than WireGuard and has a complex architecture.

Let’s talk about WireGuard and what all the hype is about. We even heard phrases like “lean and mean.” And it’s absolutely true! WireGuard is arguably the fastest VPN protocol today. For example, this is Wireguard and OpenVPN. The difference is clear. WireGuard relies on just 4,000 lines, compared to 70k lines in OpenVPN. But what does that mean to me, the user? Well, it’s faster, easier to audit and maintain. Less code — easier handling! WireGuard was initially built for Linux but soon expanded to all major platforms. My three key takeaways would be: Wireguard is fast, efficient, and secure.

Okay, let’s take a look at both of these protocols and compare them side-by-side.

Speed. Wireguard is faster, connects instantly, and performs better when uploading and downloading.
Then we have the battery life. WireGuard here also gets the medal since it’s lighter in code and requires less processing.
The encryption part is tricky. Both of these protocols are robust. WireGuard offers modern cryptography like Chacha20, but it’s fixed, while OpenVPN supports many. When it comes to encryption, kudos to both!

“Bugwise,” WireGuard pulls ahead, since its lean code is just easier to manage and audit. Need customization, though? OpenVPN offers way more flexibility, a real playground for tech pros! Both protocols are secure, but OpenVPN's flexibility can backfire if configured improperly. WireGuard's fixed setup avoids that potential headache. No wonder many companies took WireGuard as a base and built around it. NordVPN’s NordLynx is no exception, and it offers some next-level privacy and security features.

So which VPN protocol is best for you?

Use WireGuard if you want more speed, to save some battery juice, and to avoid overthinking.
Use OpenVPN if you need compatibility across platforms, more customization of security settings, and both UDP and TCP modes.

These open-source protocols are trusted by many. But if you haven’t decided yet, try them both in your NordVPN app and see what works better for you. In the comments, let us know which one you prefer and why. Stay safe online.

***

📌OUR SOCIAL MEDIA 📱

🔵FACEBOOK:   / nordvpn  
🔵INSTAGRAM:   / nordvpn  
🔵TIKTOK:   / nordvpn  
🔵X: https://x.com/NordVPN