NetBird vs Teleport (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, NetBird grades higher than Teleport: 2.6 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
NetBird grades higher on the free plan and ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
NetBird
Open-source zero trust networking built on WireGuard
Teleport
Identity-based access to servers, databases and Kubernetes
Which one is for you
Pick NetBird if
- Fits if you want a private network for a team of up to 5 for free
- Works for people who want the option of hosting it themselves
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you pass 5 users, as the free plan stops there
- Watch out: extra machines beyond the included amount cost €0.50 each a month on Team and Business
- Watch out: prices are in euros and the page doesn't say whether they assume monthly or yearly billing
- Watch out: the self-hosted pricing couldn't be read from the page text
Pick Teleport if
- Fits if you run servers and clusters and want audited, short-lived access to them
- Works for engineering teams happy to self-host the Community Edition
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to remotely control desktops, as it targets infrastructure access
- Watch out: Enterprise pricing isn't published and the pricing page asks for a form
- Watch out: FIPS support and strict-compliance features need a paid Enterprise licence
- Tight if you lack ops staff, as the Community Edition must be deployed and maintained by you
How we grade them
| 2.6GPANetBirdGood | 2.2GPATeleportFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CTeam is €6 per user a month and Business €12, in the middle of the category's range. The page doesn't say whether that is monthly or yearly billing. | CEnterprise has no published price, so value can't be judged and sits at C. Community Edition is free but you run it yourself, which needs a server. |
| Free plan and trial | BThe cloud Free plan covers up to 5 users and 100 machines with SSO, MFA, access controls and private DNS. | CCommunity Edition is free and open source, but you deploy and maintain it. Enterprise has a 14-day trial. |
| Features | BA peer-to-peer WireGuard network, identity-based policies, SSO, MFA, posture checks, activity logs and a choice of cloud or self-hosting. | BInfrastructure access, just-in-time access, machine identity, audit and governance and a desktop client cover the core of the job. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You install clients, connect a sign-in provider and write access policies. | DNo store rating on record. You deploy and operate the cluster and wire it to your identity provider. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWindows, macOS, Linux, iPhone and Android, with Okta, Entra ID, Google and Synology. No web client is listed. | BWeb, Windows, Mac and Linux with the Teleport Connect desktop client, plus GitHub, Slack and Kubernetes. No phone apps are listed. |
| Best for | a private network built on WireGuard | secure access to servers and infrastructure |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: NetBird and Teleport. How we grade
Where they differ
- NetBird also covers vPN.
At a glance
| NetBird | Teleport | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | €6 per user / month (cloud, billing period not shown) | Not published |
| Free plan | Cloud Free plan: up to 5 users and 100 machines, with SSO, MFA, access controls and private DNS. | Community Edition is free and open source; you deploy and run it yourself. |
| Free trial | None listed | 14-day trial of Teleport Enterprise |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | NetBird | Gravitational Inc. |
| Price read from | netbird.io | goteleport.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
NetBird
- Prices are in euros, and the page does not say whether they assume monthly or yearly billing.
- Machines beyond the included amount cost €0.50 each per month on Team and Business.
- Billing counts only users and machines that connected at least once in the period.
- The pricing for the Self-Hosted tab could not be read from the page text.
Teleport
- Enterprise pricing is not published; the pricing page asks for a form to get a quote.
- FIPS support and strict-compliance features need a paid Enterprise license.
- Community Edition must be deployed and maintained by you.
- It is aimed at infrastructure access, not remote control of employee desktops.
Key features
NetBird
- Peer-to-peer WireGuard network
- Devices connect directly over a WireGuard-based network, with no open ports or firewall changes needed, per the vendor.
- Identity-based access policies
- Resources are grouped and access is limited by policy; users and groups can be provisioned from an identity provider.
- SSO and MFA
- Sign-in works with Okta, Microsoft, Google and others, and the identity provider's MFA settings apply.
- Posture checks
- Business plan policies can require a firewall or antivirus, check geo and network location, and use MDM and EDR data.
- Activity logging
- Network configuration changes are logged, and the Business plan adds connection traffic events streamed to SIEM tools.
- Cloud or self-hosted
- The pricing page has Cloud and Self-Hosted tabs, and the homepage offers to run NetBird open source.
Teleport
- Access to infrastructure
- Connects to SSH and Windows servers, Kubernetes clusters, databases and internal apps through one access layer.
- Just-in-time access
- Privileges are ephemeral and expire, with access requests used to grant them, instead of standing credentials.
- Machine and workload identity
- Automated services can connect to protected resources using certificate-based identity instead of long-lived secrets.
- Agent and MCP access control
- The vendor says identity and access control extend to AI agents and MCP tooling.
- Audit and governance
- The platform lists access governance and compliance, with policies and audits managed in one place.
- Teleport Connect desktop client
- The docs describe a desktop client for macOS, Linux and Windows, alongside a web UI and the tsh command line.
Plans
NetBird
Free€0
per user / month, up to 5 users
100 machines, peer-to-peer connections, social SSO and MFA, access controls, private DNS and community support.
Team€6
per user / month (billing period not shown)
Unlimited users, 100 machines plus 10 per user, enterprise IdP SSO, SCIM provisioning and audit logs.
Business€12
per user / month (billing period not shown)
Adds device approvals, MDM and EDR controls, posture checks and traffic event logging and streaming.
EnterpriseCustom
Unlimited machines, custom invoicing, priority support, solutions engineer help and custom MSAs and SLAs.
Teleport
Community Edition$0
Free and open source, self-hosted. The docs say editions differ in features, deployment options and support.
EnterpriseCustom
Cloud or self-hosted. Price on request from sales; the site says it is based on active users and protected resources.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, NetBird or Teleport?
As of Nov 13, 2026, NetBird starts at €6 per user / month (cloud, billing period not shown), and Teleport publishes no starting price.
Which has a free plan, NetBird or Teleport?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both NetBird and Teleport have a free plan.
Which platforms do NetBird and Teleport run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only NetBird lists iOS and Android apps and only Teleport lists a web app. Both list macOS, Windows and Linux apps. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.