OpenVPN vs Fortinet: Which Business VPN is Better?
Secure employee access across devices and locations with a scalable VPN solution designed for flexible pricing models.
The #1 Business VPN
Trusted by 20,000+ organizations for over two decades.
The #1 Business VPNWhat is the difference between OpenVPN and Fortinet?
OpenVPN provides essential secure access, Zero Trust, and identity integration, paired with quick setup, easy management, and SMB-friendly pricing.
 | Fortinet | |
|---|---|---|
| High performance & reliability |  Yes | Yes |
| Flexible deployment | Yes | Yes |
| Enterprise security integration | Yes | Yes |
| Granular control & visibility | Yes | Yes |
| Real-time audit logs | Yes | Yes |
| Compliance support | Yes | Yes |
| Deep packet inspection, IPS, filtering, etc. | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-tenancy & user group segmentation | Yes | Yes |
| Resilient to exploits | Yes |  No |
| Intuitive user experience | Yes | No |
| User friendly UI | Yes | No |
| Simple licensing model (no bundles, SD-WAN vs. VPN, etc.) | Yes | No |
| Allows third-party integrations | Yes | Yes |
Why companies choose OpenVPN?
Fortinet VPNs are a strong fit for large enterprises already invested in the Fortinet ecosystem. But for SMBs and MSPs, the hardware requirements, complexity, and costs can be a roadblock.
OpenVPN delivers the same secure remote access benefits — with simpler setup, lower cost, and built-in Zero Trust — without the hardware headaches.
Cloud-native: no Hardware, easy deployment
CloudConnexa is 100% cloud-delivered with no FortiGate appliances or SPUs required — customers are typically live in under one hour.Fortinet's best performance comes from hardware acceleration, which means upfront costs, maintenance, and ongoing appliance management. Deployments often require integration with firewalls, endpoint agents, and centralized management tools (FortiManager/FortiAnalyzer).
Flexible authentication options
OpenVPN supports SAML, LDAP, and local authentication, ensuring compatibility with modern and legacy systems.Fortinet supports MFA and integrations but is more tightly bound to its ecosystem.
Built-in Zero Trust security
OpenVPN adds Cyber Shield (IDS/IPS + content filtering) for enhanced security at no extra cost.Fortinet emphasizes integration into its Security Fabric — powerful, but complex and best suited for large enterprises.
Cost-effective scalability
OpenVPN offers predictable, volume-based pricing with no bandwidth limits and multi-tenant management for MSPs.Fortinet's pricing scales with appliances, licenses, and add-ons — making it more expensive and less flexible for SMBs.
Backed by enterprise-grade security
SOC 2 Type 2
ISO/IEC 27001:2022
HIPAA Compliant
GDPR CompliantTwo solutions — one goal
Self-hosted or cloud-delivered: We've got your network security covered.
Self-hosted
Access Server
Access Server gives you complete control over your security architecture with customizable access policies and private tunneling.
Deploy on IaaS providers, Docker, Linux, Hyper-V, and VMware ESXi- Get started fast with a ready-to-use templates
- Protect your data by routing internet traffic through the Access Server
- Enforce access policies with identity, device, and IP verification
Cloud-delivered
CloudConnexa®
Connect your applications, private networks, workforce, and IoT devices — without complex, hard-to-scale hardware or self-managed server software.
- Enforce security with a full suite of Zero Trust controls
- Connect networks seamlessly using OpenVPN or IPsec
- Enhance protection with content filtering and IDS/IPS
- Simplify routing with domain-based traffic rules
Try the world's most-used VPN for secure access
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#1
Business VPN on G2
What our customers say about us
Jason K.REPAYEasy to configure options, add users, and that it has two factor authentication built in. You can configure the system to allow connections on common ports so that you're able to connect from pretty much anywhere in the world.
Johnathan B.Surry TelephoneConfiguring and updating my own server is super simple. In my experience, I've always had some difficulty setting up hardware VPN appliances, but OpenVPN was no-nonsense.
Alex H.DGDeanThe OpenVPN Access Server AMI is a great out of the box VPN solution for your AWS VPC...
John G.Anovys, LLCOpenVPN offers users a very simple and secure VPN option that is both economical and quick to install. Users are able to easily install it on their client devices.
Jeremy F.Intelligent PathwaysThe availability of client software for all operating systems and mobile devices means my customers can connect regardless of their setup.
Josh Wc.nexgen|packaging, LLCExcellent, flexible solution for our Azure environment.