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Voltarum OpenWRT buyers guide

VPN

WireGuard vs OpenVPN on OpenWrt

Which VPN protocol to use on an OpenWrt router, and why it matters more on routers than on computers.

By Editorial team · Published · Updated

Editorial independence: some VPN providers run affiliate programmes. We never rank or recommend a provider because of one; our guides cover providers by how well they work on OpenWrt.

On a computer, the VPN protocol barely matters for speed. On a router it matters a lot: routers have small CPUs, and encryption runs on them for every packet of every device.

The short answer

Use WireGuard whenever your provider or server supports it. Use OpenVPN only when you have to: an older provider, a corporate VPN, or a network that only lets TCP port 443 through.

Comparison

WireGuard OpenVPN
Speed on router CPUs High: lean code, runs in the kernel Lower: runs in user space, heavier processing
Configuration on OpenWrt Built into the network configuration (luci-proto-wireguard) Separate service (luci-app-openvpn)
Transport UDP only UDP or TCP
Getting through restrictive firewalls Harder (UDP only) Easier (TCP port 443)
Provider support Most current providers Nearly universal
Code size Very small, easier to audit Large and mature

What this means when choosing a router

Because OpenVPN is so much heavier, a router that is comfortable with WireGuard may struggle with OpenVPN at the same connection speed. That is why router pages on Voltarum OpenWRT buyers guide rate WireGuard suitability and OpenVPN suitability separately.

As a rough guide:

We do not publish speed numbers unless they were measured; where measurements exist, you will find them on each router page with their source.

Routers mentioned in this guide

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