WireGuard VPN protocol is fast. But is it good for your privacy?

Ali Qamar Last updated: December 31, 2022 Read time: 21 minutes Disclosure

Wireguard is the newest VPN protocol, providing faster speeds and improved security. See what makes it special, the cons of it, and the best providers offering this protocol today.

VPN vendors always seek something new to boost their quality. Hence, the industry-leading VPNs employ several protocols to enhance their service’s privacy and security features. The latest of these VPN protocols is WireGuard – a game-changer that offers numerous advantages, is easy to use, and is faster than the previously available connection protocols. Its primary subjects are security and connection speeds, and it has employed several technologies to achieve these goals. However, it is still not an ideal protocol due to some intrinsic limitations undermining the protocol’s ability to protect users’ privacy. Thankfully, the top-notch VPNs have incorporated WireGuard VPN protocol with some adopted features to minimize the privacy issues in the protocol.

The WireGuard VPN protocol is relatively new in the VPN industry. It sought to give VPN users the best service by simultaneously improving speeds and encryption over the previously available VPN protocols. WireGuard was supposed to disrupt the VPN universe, turn it upside down, and do away with the “obsolete” technologies it would replace. Has it delivered on its promises so far?

As WireGuard appeared, the reviews were all about the significant improvements it was supposed to bring. But unfortunately, that’s almost always the case when a new technology arises to challenge the prevailing standard. 

However, WireGuard has been around for a while, and we’ve had the time to see it in action. Undoubtedly, it has its strengths, but it’s far from perfect. Also, some weaknesses are more visible now than before when the protocol was new and untested practically.

So now, it’s possible to review WireGuard more objectively, taking into account every pro and con, and see if it is the privacy, anonymity, and security silver bullet it was supposed to become.

This article provides you with such a comprehensive review as we take a closer look at the updated information about WireGuard and assess if it’s a good option for VPN users at present. You’ll know WireGuard’s benefits, the privacy problems it poses (and its potential solutions), the best VPNs using it, the protocol’s future, and a comparison with other VPN protocols.

Top 3 VPNs offering WireGuard protocol – Quick list

Want to test the WireGuard protocol yourself right now? Feel free to pick any of the three best VPNs listed here and start experimenting with WireGuard.

  1. NordVPN: The best WireGuard VPN offering fast speeds, tremendous anonymity with server obfuscation, huge server network spanning over 59+ countries, and 30-day money-back guarantee.
  2. Surfshark: An industry disruptor that quickly adopted WireGuard to offer fast speeds for the customers. It also has a widespread network offering servers from 65+ countries, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
  3. VyprVPN: A privacy-oriented Swiss VPN service that has recently introduced WireGuard support to serve its customers with swift performance.

WireGuard vs OpenVPN – How the two protocols serve users

The privacy problems in WireGuard are not deal-breakers. Competent implementation of the protocol can prevent its problems from becoming a threat. NordVPN is a good example. Its VPN apps use WireGuard out-of-the-box in tandem with a Double NAT system. Both technologies combine to ensure no identifiable user data gets stored on any network server.

OpenVPN is an open-source project providing the best VPN protocol to the industry for years. Because of its open-source nature, the code is there for everybody to examine and test. As a result, OpenVPN is tested and audited all the time thoroughly as the developing community keeps updating it. So far, OpenVPN has passed every test successfully, thus becoming the industry’s highest standard in VPN protocols, warranting a near 100% guarantee regarding data security.

So, WireGuard has to beat OpenVPN substantially to make a difference in the VPN market.

Is it, though? Our tests found WireGuard 58% faster than OpenVPN on an average server and even quicker with nearby servers. So, the new protocol gets an extra point here.

Caution:

The current WireGuard protocol suffers from some intrinsic limitations. These problems do not enhance the protocol’s ability to protect user privacy. In fact, they can undermine it. So before choosing WireGuard as your default VPN protocol, please find out your VPN provider’s implementation of the protocol and the privacy policies it holds. Remember that privacy (unlike anonymity or security) is not a simple matter of technology but also of good practices and company policies — in other words, the human component matters too.

The WireGuard protocol’s pros and cons at a glance

WireGuard is a modern VPN protocol bearing numerous impressive features. But is it a better option than the time-tested alternatives such as OpenVPN? Let’s look at the best and the worse it has to offer.

Pros

  • Agility. WireGuard is quick to connect and reconnect even when you’re roaming around. It keeps connections online that other protocols would lose. So it’s light yet robust.
  • Security. WireGuard comprises modern, secure, efficient, and carefully-picked components. Its minimal code size makes it easy to audit while enabling the protocol to perform the tough job of ensuring security with a relatively small effort.
  • Speed. The mathematical code in WireGuard is very fast and efficient. Besides, some of its lowest-level technology is already within the Linux kernel. This combination of advantages will always keep it faster than any competitor. 
  • Deployment. Installing the client or the server software for WireGuard is easy. The difficulty level is like installing and configuring SSH, which any admin in the world can do.

Cons