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Tailscale vs Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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
4.9
Users save time and costs, with simpler setup and fewer security issues, when using Tailscale instead of traditional VPNs.
Sentiment score
7.3
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange enhances ROI through cost savings, improved security, productivity, and reduced operational expenses and support issues.
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
When I see that I am trying to cut costs, for example, even when replacing Prisma, we have managed to save about over half a million dollars a year.
Cybersecurity Senior Program Manager at Dayforce
In terms of time savings, since users no longer manually connect to the VPN, access became seamless, improving user productivity, especially for remote users.
Technical Team Lead - Content Security at Valuepoint Systems
We don't have to purchase many components such as load balancers and proxy servers that were necessary in traditional setups.
Lead Engineer at FIS Global
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.2
Tailscale's reliable service and comprehensive resources minimize support needs, but responsive support is praised when contacted.
Sentiment score
4.9
Zscaler's support is praised for knowledge and responsiveness but varies in resolution time and regional quality.
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
The support engineers are technically knowledgeable, particularly for Zscaler Private Access related issues, providing clear guidance and documentation for troubleshooting.
Technical Team Lead - Content Security at Valuepoint Systems
Sometimes, support takes time since the solution has some bugs that need fixing.
architect at Tata Consultancy
They have provided the numbers and contact supports, and it is almost immediate.
Cybersecurity Senior Program Manager at Dayforce
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.9
Tailscale is efficient, scalable, and reliable across platforms, supporting numerous devices with no downtime, easy expansion, and cost-effective pricing.
Sentiment score
7.6
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange is scalable and cloud-native, facilitating easy, hardware-free user expansion with high performance and adaptability.
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
The only limitation I was mentioning is that it was unable to identify the sources of vulnerability, which they are going to embed by the mid of this year.
Cybersecurity Senior Program Manager at Dayforce
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform is highly scalable, primarily because it is built on a cloud-native, globally distributed architecture.
Technical Team Lead - Content Security at Valuepoint Systems
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.4
Users praise Tailscale's stability and ease of use, noting rare disruptions and easy post-setup connectivity with scalability benefits.
Sentiment score
7.8
Zscaler’s platform is highly reliable and stable, with minor connectivity issues and occasional slight latency during data transfers.
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
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform is very stable, especially in enterprise environments.
Technical Team Lead - Content Security at Valuepoint Systems
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform is very stable.
Cybersecurity Senior Program Manager at Dayforce
 

Room For Improvement

Users propose Tailscale enhancements in UI, performance, anti-censorship, integration, and pricing while addressing multi-account and tailnet issues.
Zscaler's platform needs latency and usability improvements, better multi-tenancy and support, clearer pricing, and enhanced SIEM integration.
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
It would be beneficial to have more granular centralized visibility, allowing for quick end-to-end tracing of a user request from authentication to application access without switching between multiple views.
Technical Team Lead - Content Security at Valuepoint Systems
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform probably needs to be more efficient because scanning takes a lot of time.
Cybersecurity Senior Program Manager at Dayforce
They might be able to identify if something is missing with Zscaler.
architect at Tata Consultancy
 

Setup Cost

Tailscale offers affordable pricing with a generous free tier, ideal for small teams and cost-effective initial setup.
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform has high subscription costs but offers ROI by reducing infrastructure needs and enhancing security.
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
There is minimal setup cost since it is a cloud-delivered platform, eliminating the need to invest in additional hardware such as VPN gateways or maintain infrastructure.
Technical Team Lead - Content Security at Valuepoint Systems
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform is much, much cheaper when comparing price.
Cybersecurity Senior Program Manager at Dayforce
 

Valuable Features

Tailscale offers seamless cross-platform integration and security, simplifying remote access and connectivity with Zero Trust architecture for all users.
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange offers scalable security with zero trust access, app segmentation, and flexible identity-based control for organizations.
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
The solution is cloud-based with the latest inspection engines, which I find to be amazing.
architect at Tata Consultancy
We have excellent account management, smooth marketplace engagement, and processing in how my team or organization uses Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform.
Manager, Software Development at a outsourcing company with 201-500 employees
Since we started using Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform, it has auto-configuration, and wherever we have deployed the auto-configuration, we have not encountered any problem.
Cybersecurity Senior Program Manager at Dayforce
 

Categories and Ranking

Tailscale
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (2nd), ZTNA (2nd)
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange...
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
67
Ranking in other categories
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) (6th), Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) (8th), Application Control (5th), ZTNA as a Service (1st), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (2nd), Remote Browser Isolation (RBI) (1st)
 

Featured Reviews

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.
Vibin Thomas - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Team Lead - Content Security at Valuepoint Systems
Zero trust access has transformed remote connectivity and now simplifies secure app usage
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform, especially Zscaler Private Access, is very strong, though there are a few areas where improvements can be made. One challenge observed is around initial troubleshooting and visibility. While Zscaler Private Access provides logs, it can sometimes take time to pinpoint the exact cause of access issues, especially in complex environments with multiple policies and identity integration. Another area is the dependency on identity and connector health. Since Zscaler Private Access is heavily reliant on app connectors and identity providers, any issues with these components can impact user access, making proper monitoring critical. During the initial setup, policy configuration and application onboarding require careful planning, especially for larger environments with many applications. These challenges are manageable with proper design and monitoring. Overall, the platform delivers strong security and user experience. I would recommend a few improvements, especially around user interface, reporting, and troubleshooting experience. From a user interface perspective, while the platform is powerful, the policy configuration and navigation can feel complex, especially for new users. A more simplified and intuitive layout for policy mapping and application access would help reduce the learning curve. In terms of reporting, Zscaler Private Access provides logs, but having more built-in customizable dashboards and analytics would be very helpful. Better visibility into user access patterns, application performance, and real-time troubleshooting insights would improve operational efficiency. From a support and troubleshooting standpoint, it would be beneficial to have more granular centralized visibility, allowing for quick end-to-end tracing of a user request from authentication to application access without switching between multiple views. These improvements would make the platform even more efficient, especially for large-scale enterprise environments.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
15%
Financial Services Firm
9%
University
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
8%
Outsourcing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise4
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise46
 

Questions from the Community

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 ...
What is the better solution - Prisma Access or Zscaler Private Access?
We looked into Prisma Access before choosing Zscaler Private Access (ZPA). Palo Alto’s Prisma Access is a secure access service edge (SASE) designed to deliver network security in a cloud-deliver...
How to minimize false positives for PII and PCI around different data systems across the globe?
Personal information always should be under high protection from manipulations which is why it is the responsibility of those collecting the data to keep the integrity of these data and check and u...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zscaler Cloud Protection?
This is an area where I have candid feedback from our organization regarding pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform. Overall, I would assess the pricing as a si...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Zscaler SASE, Zscaler DLP, Zscaler CASB, Zscaler CSPM, Zscaler Browser Isolation, Zscaler Posture Control
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bamboo Health, Duolingo, Shiguredo, Instacart, Corelight, Machinify, Bolt, Mercari, Cobalt, Yugabyte, Jasper, VersaBank, Zego, Gini and Finter
Siemens, AutoNation, GE, NOV
Find out what your peers are saying about Tailscale vs. Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
909,725 professionals have used our research since 2012.