Mosh vs OpenVPN
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted remote access & vpn options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Mosh
Mobile shell with roaming and intermittent connectivity
VS
OpenVPN
Robust and flexible open-source VPN solution
| Feature | Mosh | OpenVPN |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Remote Access & VPN | Remote Access & VPN |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | C++ | C |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, binary | bare-metal, docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 14,307 | ★ 14,345 |
| First released | 2012 | 2001 |
| Replaces | SSH | Cisco AnyConnect |
Why pick each one
Choose Mosh if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Mature project with 14.3k GitHub stars
- Written in C++
Choose OpenVPN if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 14.3k GitHub stars
- Written in C
Frequently asked questions
Is Mosh or OpenVPN better?
Neither is universally better. OpenVPN has the larger community, while Mosh is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Mosh and OpenVPN free and open-source?
Yes. Mosh is licensed under GPL-3.0 and OpenVPN under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Mosh and OpenVPN with Docker?
Mosh: check the project docs for container support. OpenVPN: yes.