Outline VPN vs SoftEther VPN (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, SoftEther VPN grades higher than Outline VPN: 2.8 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
SoftEther VPN grades higher on the free plan, features and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
SoftEther VPN
Free multi-protocol VPN server and client from a Japanese university
Free
Which one is for you
Pick Outline VPN if
- Fits if you want to run your own VPN rather than trust a provider
- Works for sharing one server with friends or family
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you don't want a hosting bill, as you pay your own server host
- Skip it if you want to switch between countries, since traffic exits from one location
- Tight if you only have a phone, because creating a server needs a desktop computer
- Watch out: getoutline.me and a Telegram channel are not affiliated with the Outline team
Pick SoftEther VPN if
- Fits if you want one server that accepts several VPN protocols
- Works for people who need to bridge networks at the Ethernet layer
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a hosted VPN with provider servers
- Not for you if you want a vendor to call: support is a forum and the community
- Watch out: the news items on the project page are dated 2019
- Watch out: the page lists a 2019 security advisory for the Windows local bridge driver
- Watch out: the project's own client list also includes Windows Mobile, an old platform
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAOutline VPNFair | 2.8GPASoftEther VPNGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CThe software is free, but only if you host it yourself, which needs a server; the site cites $5 a month or less at many providers. | CFree under Apache 2.0, but you run the server yourself. Software that is only free if you host it yourself is a C. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe apps and server software cost nothing, but you also need a server of your own, so it is not free to use. | AFree outright, with no paid plans or caps. |
| Features | CYour own server, access keys, per-key data limits and an SDK. There is one exit location, with no pool to switch between. | BMany protocols on one server, an OpenVPN clone function, Layer-2 Ethernet bridging and an admin tool and API. It covers the whole job of a self-hosted VPN. |
| Ease of use | DNo store rating on record, and you create a server through the Manager on a desktop and manage it yourself. | DNo rating on record. You install and configure a server and manage it with admin tools, which is self-hosting. |
| Platforms and integrations | BManager on Windows, Mac and Linux, and clients for iOS and Android. | AClients for Windows, Linux, Mac, Android, iPhone and iPad, plus an admin API and Amazon EC2 and Azure support. |
| Best for | running your own VPN server for a few people | a self-hosted VPN that speaks many protocols |
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: Outline VPN and SoftEther VPN. How we grade
Price against what you get
Outline VPN has no paid plan and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SoftEther VPN has no paid plan and scores 2.7.
SoftEther VPN scores higher for the same starting price. Of the other VPNs on the chart, none scores higher than Outline VPN for less, and none scores higher than SoftEther VPN for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
In commonFree planWindowsmacOSLinuxiOSAndroidOpen sourceSelf-hostableVPN
At a glance
| Outline VPN | SoftEther VPN | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free plan | The software is free and open source. You pay your own server host; the Get Started page says many providers offer plans for $5 a month or less. | Freeware and open source under Apache License 2.0; no paid plans. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Outline Foundation | SoftEther VPN Project (University of Tsukuba) |
| Price read from | getoutline.org | softether.org |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Outline VPN
- You need your own server, so there is a hosting bill, and the site cites $5 a month or less at many providers.
- Your traffic leaves from the one server location you picked, with no pool of locations to switch between.
- The site says getoutline.me and a Telegram channel are not affiliated with the Outline team and cannot help with access keys from those services.
- Outline Manager runs on Windows, macOS and Linux desktops, so creating a server needs a desktop computer.
SoftEther VPN
- It is software to host yourself, not a VPN service with provider servers.
- Clients are listed for Windows, Linux, Mac, Android, iPhone and iPad; the project's own native client list also includes Windows Mobile.
- The project page's news items shown are dated 2019, and the page lists a 2019 security advisory for the Windows local bridge driver.
- Support runs through a project forum and community, not a vendor with paid support.
Key features
Outline VPN
- Your own server
- Outline Manager walks you through creating a server at a cloud provider such as DigitalOcean, AWS or Google Cloud, or on your own Linux machine, and lets you pick its location.
- Access keys
- Each person you share the server with gets a unique access key from the Manager, and a key can be managed or deleted from the server.
- Per-key data limits
- The Manager can set a data limit for each key so one user cannot use all of the server's bandwidth.
- Shadowsocks-based
- The server runs a Shadowsocks service with a REST API for key management, which the project says benefits from ongoing work on resisting detection and blocking.
- Outline SDK
- A cross-platform library and tools for building the same blocking-resistant networking strategies into other apps and VPN tools.
SoftEther VPN
- VPN over HTTPS
- SSL-VPN tunneling on HTTPS passes through NATs and firewalls.
- Many protocols on one server
- The server also supports OpenVPN, IPsec, L2TP, MS-SSTP, L2TPv3 and EtherIP, so built-in clients on phones and computers can connect.
- OpenVPN clone function
- A clone of the OpenVPN server lets existing OpenVPN clients connect, which the project pitches as a way to migrate.
- Layer-2 Ethernet bridging
- Supports LAN-to-LAN and cloud-to-LAN bridge VPNs built on an Ethernet-based design.
- Admin tools and API
- Server, client and bridge manuals, a command-line utility, and a JSON-RPC API with an HTML5 admin console.
Plans
Outline VPN
Outline$0
Free Manager and Client apps and server software. You host the server yourself at a cloud provider you choose or on your own Linux infrastructure.
SoftEther VPN
SoftEther VPN$0
Free to download and run yourself; the server runs on Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, Solaris and Mac OS X.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Outline VPN or SoftEther VPN?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Outline VPN and SoftEther VPN are free to use.
Which has a free plan, Outline VPN or SoftEther VPN?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Outline VPN and SoftEther VPN have a free plan.
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.