The Best Free pfSense AlternativesTop Firewalls & VPN Services like pfSense

Alternatives list

1. 

   

   OPNsense

    65 likes

   OPNsense includes most of the features available in expensive commercial firewalls, and more in many cases. It brings the rich feature set of commercial offerings with the benefits of open and verifiable sources.

   19 OPNsense alternatives

   Cost / License

   • Free
   • Open Source

   Application type

   • Firewall

   Origin

   • Netherlands
   • EU

   Platforms

   • Self-Hosted

   

   

   

   +5

   

   More about OPNsense  

   

   Is OPNsense a good alternative to pfSense?

    

   |

   3comments

   73users say it's a good alternative

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   Comments about OPNsense as an Alternative to pfSense

    

   Zazucki

   Positive comment•Mar 18, 2022

   4

   Read this: https://teklager.se/en/pfsense-vs-opnsense/ Especially the part under "Politics, drama & bad blood between the two projects"

   Guest

   Positive comment•May 19, 2017

   1

   Stability is the in the center of OPNsense distribution. To achieve this goal, only a limited number of plugins are available, but they are well tested and upgraded together with the core.

   Review by a new / low-activity user.

   Guest

   Positive comment•Oct 30, 2016

   -3

   OPNSense has the lost features in pfSense.

   Review by a new / low-activity user.

   

   

   • Almost everyone thinks OPNsense is a great pfSense alternative.

   • OPNsense is the most popular Self-Hosted alternative to pfSense.

   • OPNsense is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to pfSense.

   • OPNsense is Free and Open SourcepfSense is Freemium and Open Source
   • OPNsense is Privacy focused and LightweightpfSense is not according to our users
2. 

   

   IPFire

    19 likes

   IPFire is a server distribution with intended to use as a firewall. It focuses on flexibility, and scales from small to middle sized business networks and home networks.

   14 IPFire alternatives

   Cost / License

   • Free
   • Open Source

   Application types

   • Firewall
   • VPN Service

   Platforms

   • Linux

   

   More about IPFire  

   

   Is IPFire a good alternative to pfSense?

    

   |

   15users say it's a good alternative

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   • Almost everyone thinks IPFire is a great pfSense alternative.

   • IPFire is the most popular Linux alternative to pfSense.

   • IPFire is Free and Open SourcepfSense is Freemium and Open Source
4. 

   

   ClearOS

    71 likes

   ClearOS is a family of operating systems for the enterprise, small business, and home. There are three editions to choose from depending on your needs and suitable to your abilities. They are: ClearOS Enterprise, ClearOS Home, and ClearOS Core.

   28 ClearOS alternatives

   Cost / License

   • Free
   • Open Source

   Application types

   • Firewall
   • Operating System

   Origin

   • United States

   Platforms

   • Linux

   

   

   

   More about ClearOS  

   

   Is ClearOS a good alternative to pfSense?

    

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   10users say it's a good alternative
5. 

   

   NethServer

    34 likes

   NethServer is an application manager for Linux servers. The product's main feature is the ability to easily and quickly install and manage instances of applications over multiple nodes. It allows users to deploy services, like [Nextcloud](https://alternativeto.

   Cost / License

   • Freemium (Subscription)
   • Open Source (GPL-3.0)

   Application types

   • VPN Service
   • Web Server

   Origin

   • Italy
   • EU

   Platforms

   • Linux
   • Self-Hosted

   

   

   

   +2

   

   More about NethServer  

   

   Is NethServer a good alternative to pfSense?

    

   |

   5comments

   11users say it's a good alternative

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   Comments about NethServer as an Alternative to pfSense

    

   Top Positive Comment

   Aas

   Oct 15, 2018

   3

   Multi purpose server. Not just firewall.

   Top Negative Comment

   Guest

   Jun 20, 2019

   6

   It's main function (server) does not match pfSense (firewall)

   Review by a new / low-activity user.

   Guest

   Negative comment•May 3, 2021

   0

   pfSense is a firewall and router, NethServer is a Linux server platform for running other types of services

   Review by a new / low-activity user.

   Show more comments

   3 of 5 comments

   

   

   • Some users think NethServer is a great pfSense alternative, some don't.

   • NethServer is Freemium and Open SourcepfSense is also Freemium and Open Source
   • NethServer is Privacy focusedpfSense is not according to our users
6. 

   

   Endian Firewall Community

    20 likes

   Endian Firewall Community (EFW) is a "turn-key" linux security distribution that turns every system into a full featured security appliance with Unified Threat Management (UTM) functionality. The software has been designed with "usability in mind" and is very...

   18 Endian Firewall Community alternatives

   Cost / License

   • Free Personal
   • Open Source

   Application types

   • Firewall
   • VPN Service

   Origin

   • Italy
   • EU

   Platforms

   • Linux

   

   

   

   More about Endian Firewall Community  

   

   Is this a good alternative to pfSense?

    

   |

   9users say it's a good alternative
7. 

   

   Smoothwall

    13 likes

   The SmoothWall Open Source Project was set up to develop and maintain SmoothWall Express - a Free firewall that includes its own security-hardened GNU/Linux operating system and an easy-to-use web interface.

   14 Smoothwall alternatives

   Cost / License

   • Free
   • Open Source

   Application type

   • Firewall

   Origin

   • United Kingdom

   Alerts

   • Discontinued

   Platforms

   • Linux

   

   

   

   More about Smoothwall  

   

   Is Smoothwall a good alternative to pfSense?

    
9. 

   

   DynFi Firewall

    2 likes

   DynFi® Firewall is the first French Open Source firewall. The system integrates many filtering features and allows for the first time to manage a large number of your appliances. Available for free, DynFi Firewall has two images (with VGA or Serial return) compatible with...

   Cost / License

   • Free
   • Open Source

   Application type

   • Firewall

   Origin

   • France
   • EU

   Platforms

   • Self-Hosted

   

   

   

   +5

   

   More about DynFi Firewall  

   

   Is DynFi Firewall a good alternative to pfSense?

    
10. 

    

    IPCop

     14 likes

    IPCop Firewall is a Linux firewall distribution geared towards home and SOHO (Small Office/Home Office) users. The IPCop interface is very user-friendly and task-based. IPCop offers the critical functionality of an expensive network appliance using stock, or even obsolete...

    11 IPCop alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    • Firewall

    Origin

    • Germany
    • EU

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Linux

    

    

    

    More about IPCop  

    

    Is IPCop a good alternative to pfSense?

     

    |

    1comment

    9users say it's a good alternative

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    Comments about IPCop as an Alternative to pfSense

     

    Guest

    Positive comment•Nov 7, 2019

    0

    Low HW needs, easy to use.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.

    

    

    • Almost everyone thinks IPCop is a great pfSense alternative.

    • IPCop is Free and Open SourcepfSense is Freemium and Open Source
11. 

    

    Sophos XG Firewall

     5 likes

    A modern replacement for Sophos UTM based on Sophos, Cyberoam and Astaro technology combined.

    Cost / License

    • Free Personal
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    • Firewall

    Origin

    • United Kingdom

    Platforms

    • Self-Hosted

    

    

    More about Sophos XG Firewall  

    

    Is Sophos XG Firewall a good alternative to pfSense?

     
12. 

    

    ZeroShell

     8 likes

    Zeroshell is a Linux distribution for servers and embedded devices aimed at providing the main network services a LAN requires. It is available in the form of Live CD or Compact Flash image and you can configure and administer it using your web browser.

    10 ZeroShell alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    • Firewall
    • VPN Service

    Origin

    • Italy
    • EU

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Self-Hosted

    

    

    

    More about ZeroShell  

    

    Is ZeroShell a good alternative to pfSense?

     

    |

    10users say it's a good alternative
13. 

    

    OpenWISP

     10 likes

    OpenWISP is a free and open-source platform for efficient IT network deployment, monitoring & management. It allows automation of many aspects of networks: from configuration to monitoring, RADIUS, hotspots, mesh and firmware upgrades, all backed by the reliability of the...

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    • Wi-Fi Hotspot

    Origin

    • Italy
    • EU

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Self-Hosted

    

    

    

    +2

    

    More about OpenWISP  

    

    Is OpenWISP a good alternative to pfSense?

     
14. 

    

    CacheGuard Gateway

     6 likes

    CacheGuard Gateway is a free and open-source Unified Threat Management (UTM) solution, a Web Application Firewall (WAF), and a Quality of Service (QoS) platform designed to optimize WAN traffic. To obtain a CacheGuard Gateway appliance, download CacheGuard-OS and install it on...

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (AGPL-3.0)

    Application type

    • Firewall

    Platforms

    • VirtualBox
    • Self-Hosted
    • VMware vSphere Hypervisor
    • Microsoft Hyper-V Server
    • Proxmox Virtual Environment

    

    More about CacheGuard Gateway  

    

    Is CacheGuard Gateway a good alternative to pfSense?