VPN Routers Compared: 14 Hardware Makers With Built-in VPN
Fourteen hardware makers ship routers carrying a VPN inside their firmware. This is hardware, not a service: the box serves as a client for a provider plan of your choice, a server for reaching your own network, or a site-to-site gateway. Homes and travel suit GL.iNet, Flashrouters, Firewalla or Anonabox; small offices fit TP-Link Omada, Ubiquiti UniFi or MikroTik; Peplink, Teltonika, Zyxel and DrayTek cover multi-WAN and industrial links. Read more
Ready-made lists
- Works under heavy blocking
- Anonymous
- Honest free
- Trial without a card
- No price rise at renewal
- Netflix and streaming
- Gaming
- For business
All filters by topic: Price and payment · Anonymity and privacy · VPN security · VPN protocols · VPNs by platform · VPNs by use case · Travel and restrictions · VPN jurisdictions · VPN servers by country · VPN customer support · VPN segments
| # | Service | Score | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anonabox | not scored | — |
| 2 | DrayTek | not scored | — |
| 3 | Firewalla | not scored | — |
| 4 | Flashrouters | not scored | — |
| 5 | GL.iNet | not scored | — |
| 6 | MikroTik | not scored | — |
| 7 | Netduma | not scored | — |
| 8 | Peplink (SpeedFusion) | not scored | €2.86per month |
| 9 | Sabai Technology | not scored | — |
| 10 | TP-Link Omada | not scored | — |
| 11 | Teltonika Networks (RMS VPN) | not scored | — |
| 12 | Turris (CZ.NIC) | not scored | — |
| 13 | Ubiquiti (UniFi Teleport / WiFiman) | not scored | — |
| 14 | Zyxel | not scored | — |
Client, server or site-to-site: three different jobs
A router-level client pushes every connected device into one tunnel, covering consoles, smart TVs and streaming sticks that cannot run VPN apps. As a server, the box does the reverse: Ubiquiti's one-click Teleport (via the WiFiman app) and MikroTik's Back To Home (RouterOS 7.12+) give your phone a path back home, using relays when there is no public IP. Server mode does not hide your IP from websites. Zyxel's Nebula Auto VPN and Peplink's SpeedFusion bonding wire offices together; DrayTek Vigor routers scale from 2 to 500 tunnels.
The 14 makers by job
| Job | Makers | VPN in the firmware | What you pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home, travel, privacy | GL.iNet, Flashrouters, Anonabox, Netduma, Sabai Technology, Turris, Firewalla | WireGuard/OpenVPN client, config import | One-time hardware |
| Small office, prosumer | TP-Link Omada, Ubiquiti UniFi, MikroTik | Client, server, site-to-site | One-time hardware |
| Multi-WAN, business, industrial | Peplink, Teltonika, Zyxel, DrayTek | Bonding, cloud VPN, site-to-site | Hardware plus data packs or licences |
The VPNRadarLab catalogue lists these 14 brands outside its main consumer VPN ranking, and none has an independent no-logs audit.
Hardware price and the bills that come after
Consumer boxes are a one-time buy: Flashrouters charges 74.99 to 789.99 USD (Privacy Hero 2 at 149.99), Sabai starts at 179.99 USD, Netduma's R3 runs 249 EUR, Firewalla spans 399 USD (Orange) to 949 USD (Gold Pro), and GL.iNet asks 169.99 USD for the Flint 2. The provider's plan remains a separate charge unless a bundle absorbs it: the Fortify ships with a year of ExpressVPN Advanced, and Flashrouters sells NordVPN bundles plus pre-configured routers for 50+ providers.
Business gear keeps charging. Peplink's SpeedFusion Connect data packs start at 20 USD for 500 GB across six months (about €2.86 monthly, the cheapest paid plan here), capped at 200 Mbps or 400 on unlimited. Teltonika RMS includes 5 GB per company at no charge, then bills per data: 150 GB per device for 10 years, or 2 GB credits, while Zyxel adds licences on top of the USG FLEX H.
What to check before you pay
WireGuard support and real throughput
The router CPU caps VPN speed; OpenVPN on a weak chip slows the whole household, while WireGuard needs far less. GL.iNet claims up to 1100 Mbps through VPN on its Beryl 7 and Brume 3.
Kill switch and per-device routing
When the tunnel drops, the kill switch blocks leaks, which matters on hotel Wi-Fi. Firewalla enforces one per profile, GL.iNet does per-tunnel plus a global Enhanced Kill Switch from firmware 4.8, and Anonabox fails closed by design. Netduma's Hybrid VPN routes chosen devices through your own third-party VPN but has no kill switch, so a dropped tunnel leaks. Policy-based routing keeps the console or smart TV in the tunnel and the rest of the network local.
Firmware record and vendor privacy
DrayTek has a public CVE history, including unauthenticated remote code execution (CVE-2022-32548) with further incidents in 2024 and 2025, so patching decides whether the box stays safe. Turris (run by CZ.NIC, operator of the .cz registry) commits to automatic updates for life on its open-source OpenWrt firmware.
| Firewalla | Anonabox | GL.iNet | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | USA | USA | Hong Kong (US entity) |
| Kill switch | Per profile | Fail-closed | Per tunnel + global (4.8+) |
| Returns | 30 days, 1-year warranty | Pre-launch, no prices yet | 30 days official store, buyer pays shipping, 24-month warranty |
| Privacy note | Shares data with affiliates and advertising partners | No account needed | AstroWarp collects router IP/MAC and connection logs |
Ubiquiti's privacy policy covers IP address collection. Returns vary sharply: Firewalla, GL.iNet, Flashrouters (25 USD restocking fee as store credit) and Sabai (up to 30 USD fee) give 30 days, while Peplink's online store treats all sales as final.
Which box fits which setup
For a flat full of appless devices, a GL.iNet or Flashrouters box running your existing plan is the shortest path. To reach your home network remotely with no VPN service to subscribe to, a UniFi or MikroTik gateway handles it. An office with a second internet line for failover justifies Peplink's data packs. For picking the tunnel's provider, see VPN services that work on routers; to run your own endpoint instead, check the self-hosted VPN options. A plain definition of what a VPN router is lives in the glossary.
FAQ
Do any routers have a built-in VPN?
Yes, all 14 brands listed do, as a client, server or both. Hiding your IP from websites still requires a provider plan unless a bundle covers it.
Is it worth putting the VPN on the router?
With consoles, TVs or several people at home, yes: one setup covers everything. A single laptop is simpler with an app.
How do I tell if a router supports a VPN?
Open the admin panel and check for a VPN client section that accepts WireGuard or OpenVPN profile imports. If only a server option is listed, the box cannot connect out to a provider.