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OpenVPN Access Server vs Tailscale comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 15, 2026

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
4.3
OpenVPN Access Server enhances security, connectivity, and reduces costs, improving efficiency through integrations like SAML and Active Directory.
Sentiment score
4.9
Users save time and costs, with simpler setup and fewer security issues, when using Tailscale instead of traditional VPNs.
Now, with the SAML and Active Directory integration, the process is down to under two minutes, which frees up our senior staff to focus on critical infrastructure tasks instead of managing access tickets.
Network operation center engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
The platform automatically reads the user role and maps them to the correct network subnets instantly, saving us countless hours of administration overhead every month.
Manager at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
The relevant metrics show that it saves time in terms of implementation and adoption.
Manager, Ibms Projects Operations & Corporate Information Technology at Yotta Infrastructure Solutions LLP
Previously, networks with FortiGate were used, and that forced us to spend on hardware. With Tailscale, that type of investment is not necessary.
Devops Engineer at Allenta
We have seen clear return on investment since implementing Tailscale by eliminating VPN server infrastructure costs.
System Engineer at a healthcare company with 11-50 employees
With Tailscale, I set it up and forget it because it just works, allowing me to avoid worrying about the whole VPN aspect of my home network architecture.
Application Security Engineer at a tech vendor with 501-1,000 employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.3
OpenVPN Access Server offers reliable support with responsive email service, extensive resources, and an effective ticketing system.
Sentiment score
6.2
Tailscale's reliable service and comprehensive resources minimize support needs, but responsive support is praised when contacted.
I would definitely rate customer support 10 out of 10.
Network operation center engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
The ticketing system is responsive, and the technical team knows the product inside and out.
Associate Manager, Technology Services Information Technology Operations at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
My advice is to map out your user access groups and routing subnets before configuring the server; this makes it easier to enforce least privilege.
Manager at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
Tailscale is that reliable, and their documentation answers any questions I have.
Application Security Engineer at a tech vendor with 501-1,000 employees
The user interface, documentation, and support for Tailscale are fabulous.
IT Support / Sysadmin
I would give it a ten out of ten.
DevOps Engineer at CloudKite.io
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
5.9
OpenVPN Access Server scales well but faces challenges with certain operating systems, regions, and licensing costs.
Sentiment score
6.9
Tailscale is efficient, scalable, and reliable across platforms, supporting numerous devices with no downtime, easy expansion, and cost-effective pricing.
When we deploy and install OpenVPN Access Server, the principle is to install and forget.
System Network Administrator at a consultancy with 201-500 employees
You can easily upgrade the underlying hardware resources or spin up additional nodes in a cluster configuration if you need to handle a massive surge in concurrent users.
Network operation center engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
It's not very easy to expand, and it would be beneficial if the process were simpler.
Chief Cloud Architect at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I would say it is really scalable, and I do not think I have ever experienced any downtime with Tailscale.
Software Engineer at Psycontech
As a free-tier user, I have tested my limits, connecting the maximum amount of devices, and everything performed great.
Application Security Engineer at a tech vendor with 501-1,000 employees
We have over 300 to 400 devices that use Tailscale that we connect with and utilize on a daily basis.
IT Support Engineer at a security firm with 11-50 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
OpenVPN Access Server is stable and reliable, but minor improvements during updates are suggested by some users.
Sentiment score
8.4
Users praise Tailscale's stability and ease of use, noting rare disruptions and easy post-setup connectivity with scalability benefits.
OpenVPN Access Server is 100% stable in my experience.
Network operation center engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
Regarding stability, I have not had any crashes, performance issues, or stability issues with OpenVPN Access Server.
DevSecOps Engineer at a tech company with 51-200 employees
OpenVPN Access Server is very stable, and we have a hassle-free work experience using it.
Manager at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
Tailscale is a SaaS platform, so Tailscale scales it themselves.
DevOps Engineer at CloudKite.io
Tailscale is stable; it has never given me downtime on their side.
Infrastructure Lead & Student Developer (also Head of Ops - FOSSCET) at College of Engineering Trivandrum
For what we use it for—interconnection and networks—it is very stable.
Devops Engineer at Allenta
 

Room For Improvement

OpenVPN Access Server needs improvements in authentication, integration, user-friendliness, stability, security, management, scalability, UI, and pricing flexibility.
Users propose Tailscale enhancements in UI, performance, anti-censorship, integration, and pricing while addressing multi-account and tailnet issues.
Lastly, it would be awesome to see native support for newer, lighter protocols through WireGuard built straight into the platform alongside standard OpenVPN for better performance efficiency.
Network operation center engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
Additionally, native support for newer, lighter protocols like WireGuard built straight into the platform alongside standard OpenVPN for better performance efficiency would be beneficial.
Manager at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
With WireGuard, which is locked down over UDP, it is harder for attackers to probe ports.
代表社員 at サザビー
Tailscale could be improved with more advanced network visibility and monitoring tools, cleaner pricing tiers for scaling teams, and enhanced built-in reporting for device posture and controls for enterprise environments.
System Engineer at a healthcare company with 11-50 employees
At my apartment, I can do 2-gig networking, but when I connect via the exit node, and I'm wired in somewhere else, and that place also has 2-gig networking, I'm at max getting half of my speed.
Software engineer
I would like Tailscale to provide more censorship-resistant options, such as Shadowsocks or VLESS, as fallback protocols.
IT Support / Sysadmin
 

Setup Cost

OpenVPN Access Server is cost-effective with flexible pricing, suitable for businesses, offering both free and reasonably priced paid versions.
Tailscale offers affordable pricing with a generous free tier, ideal for small teams and cost-effective initial setup.
The sticker price may look clear, but the real cost includes the time spent untangling subscription limitations, account conflicts, sales handoffs, and unclear guidance.
Webmaster & Software Engineer at a university with 501-1,000 employees
My experience with pricing is excellent as the pricing is free.
Service Delivery Manager at CasCom
The experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for OpenVPN Access Server is really good, not that expensive.
Devops Engineer at Emergent
Tailscale has definitely made it so I don't have to incur additional costs.
Senior Technical Support Specialist at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
The setup has been straightforward and predictable with the per-user subscription model and no infrastructure or hardware setup cost, making the initial deployment inexpensive.
System Engineer at a healthcare company with 11-50 employees
I never used a license. I never purchased or bought anything more than the basic free license.
Field Service Engineer at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
 

Valuable Features

OpenVPN Access Server provides secure, scalable connectivity with multifactor authentication, easy deployment, and integration for seamless, cross-platform access.
Tailscale offers seamless cross-platform integration and security, simplifying remote access and connectivity with Zero Trust architecture for all users.
The most valuable features of OpenVPN are its ease of use, client familiarity, end-user familiarity, operating system integration, and price points.
Service Delivery Manager at CasCom
The main benefits I have seen from using OpenVPN Access Server include secure access to private resources over the public internet.
DevSecOps Engineer at a tech company with 51-200 employees
OpenVPN Access Server has positively impacted my organization by allowing access to our private services, enhancing security, and enabling remote work from anywhere.
DevOps and Site Reliability Engineer at Honey Insurance
The security is valuable, as there are many providers available, but Tailscale fulfills the requirements that we had, allowing us to access and expose internal apps without exposing them to the general internet.
Software Engineer
The most valuable features are the Zero Trust architecture, peer-to-peer connectivity using WireGuard, easy deployment and setup, access control for granular permissions, single sign-on, subnet and routing, exit nodes, and cross-platform support.
System Engineer at a healthcare company with 11-50 employees
Tailscale's security is fabulous, especially the access control features and the ability to use existing OAuth accounts for access.
IT Support / Sysadmin
 

Categories and Ranking

OpenVPN Access Server
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
1st
Ranking in ZTNA
9th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
68
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Tailscale
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
2nd
Ranking in ZTNA
2nd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of OpenVPN Access Server is 11.7%, down from 13.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Tailscale is 4.9%, down from 6.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
OpenVPN Access Server11.7%
Tailscale4.9%
Other83.4%
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
 

Featured Reviews

AS
Network operation center engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
Secure remote access has protected critical data and now simplifies role-based user management
An area for improvement is the pricing model. The concurrent user licenses get expensive pretty quickly as your organization grows, so more flexible pricing options would be a huge plus. Another area is configurational disconnect. While the admin web UI handles about 90% of what you need, the moment you have to do deep, advanced routing customization, you still have to drop back to the command line interface to make those changes. It would be great to see those deeper configurations completely integrated into the web portal. Lastly, it would be awesome to see native support for newer, lighter protocols through WireGuard built straight into the platform alongside standard OpenVPN for better performance efficiency.
Adeniyi Stephen - PeerSpot reviewer
DevOps Engineer at CloudKite.io
Secure access has simplified hybrid connectivity and has unified multi-cluster workflows
I would say that in terms of Tailscale, if I have so many tailnets I need to connect to, there are some issues in the login process that need a little bit of attention from the Tailscale team. Sometimes, you would probably need to restart your entire system for it to connect. As a DevOps as a Service engineer, I have so many clients that are using Tailscale, and I would need to connect to maybe five different tailnets because they are different clients. Client A might have a Tailscale, Client B, Client C, and so on. When changing between tailnets, sometimes it hangs. Sometimes you might need to restart your entire system. This is a bit of a headache in that aspect. However, I believe if you are just using a particular tailnet, just one, then it is quite easy and there won't be any headache. For me, I think it can be improved in the aspect of having multiple tailnets to connect to. A good refresh on the Tailscale side and the backend side to refresh the connection anytime there is a new connection to be made would be helpful. Instead of needing to restart the system, it should be able to refresh itself. The connection side and connecting to multiple Tailscale instances can be problematic, and sometimes you have to restart your system when switching between them. The ACL sometimes is like another language on its own entirely. It is fine, but they need to make it in a YAML format instead of the current format because it is quite new and something you have to go and study. If they can make it like a YAML format, that would be better. Aside from the switching which I mentioned and the fact that you have to relearn their ACL, if the ACL could be in a YAML format instead of JSON format, that would be beneficial. I don't think there is much they can do about the switching of tailnets, but if they can have a YAML format of the ACL, that would be good. Every other thing is a ten out of ten. The connection-wise is easy to set up and easy to install. It is good to have things connected all together from on-premises, from so many environments, and even exit nodes as well. It is good overall. The pricing, I think Tailscale can be a little bit on the higher side. It is not for teams with just small users. If you want to set it up for small users and a small startup, I don't think you can afford it and might need to go to other open-source alternatives. It is good for teams that have maybe fifty plus users or one hundred users. In terms of pricing, I would say it is on the higher side, but it is worth it. The price is worth the functionality. As a user, I would say it is more on the higher side, but based on its functionality, it is worth the price.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Comms Service Provider
12%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Construction Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
16%
University
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business43
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise24
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise4
 

Questions from the Community

How does Fortinet FortiClient compare with Open VPN Access Server?
Fortinet FortiClient is a feature-rich solution that is easy to use and deploy without sacrificing safety and security. It has a very fast connection rate and has a built-in VPN. With this solution...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for OpenVPN Access Server?
I use it for a client, so I do not have much information regarding the pricing, setup cost, and licensing. But from what I have gathered, the pricing and setup costs are a little more expensive com...
What needs improvement with OpenVPN Access Server?
An area for improvement is the pricing model. The concurrent user licenses get expensive pretty quickly as your organization grows, so more flexible pricing options would be a huge plus. Another ar...
What needs improvement with Tailscale?
I have a pretty basic use of Tailscale. I do not deploy it for a big organization, so I am generally happy with the product itself and have no special requests for a different feature that I would ...
What is your primary use case for Tailscale?
My main use case for Tailscale is to access my home network remotely. In my home network, I have deployed a wide range of microservices. For example, I use Tailscale to back up my pictures, and I n...
What advice do you have for others considering Tailscale?
I rate Tailscale overall a ten out of ten. I chose ten out of ten because the ease of installation, access to documentation, friendly UI, ease of tracking and debugging, and the facility I have to ...
 

Also Known As

OpenVPN
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Verizon, Amazon, Disney, HP, Microsoft, IBM, Samsung
Bamboo Health, Duolingo, Shiguredo, Instacart, Corelight, Machinify, Bolt, Mercari, Cobalt, Yugabyte, Jasper, VersaBank, Zego, Gini and Finter
Find out what your peers are saying about OpenVPN Access Server vs. Tailscale and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
908,800 professionals have used our research since 2012.