# ZeroTier review (2026): is the free plan enough? > Peer-to-peer virtual networks for devices, servers and sites Checked Nov 12, 2026 ยท graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA. ZeroTier builds private virtual networks on top of existing infrastructure. Devices join a network with a cryptographic identity and connect to each other peer-to-peer where possible, which suits reaching home machines, linking servers across clouds and running small VPN or SD-WAN setups. A free Personal plan covers 10 devices, and paid plans add a commercial license. - **Category:** Remote Desktop - **Made by:** ZeroTier, Inc. - **Website:** https://www.zerotier.com - **Runs on:** Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android - **Who should skip it:** Skip it if you want to see and control a remote screen, since it only connects devices. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 12, 2026 ## Pricing As of Nov 12, 2026, ZeroTier has a free plan, and paid plans start at $18 per month for 10 devices. - **Pricing model:** Free plan - **Free plan:** Personal plan: free for non-commercial use, with 10 devices, one network and one network admin. - **Free trial:** None listed. | Plan | Price | What you get | | --- | --- | --- | | Personal | $0 | Non-commercial use only. 10 devices, one network, one network admin, CLI, UI and webhooks, community support. | | Essential | $18 per month for 10 included devices, then $2.00 per extra device | Commercial license, 10 networks, five admins, API access, OIDC single sign-on and 30-day audit logs. Community support only. | | Scale | $179 per month for 100 included devices, then $1.80 per extra device | Everything in Essential plus unlimited networks, 10 network admins, custom flow rules and ticketed support with an SLA. | | Enterprise | Custom | Sized for 500 or more devices, with self-hosted and air-gapped options, 90-day audit logs and priority support. Sold through sales. | Read from https://www.zerotier.com/pricing/ on Nov 12, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with ZeroTier before buying. ## Key features - **Virtual networks across sites and clouds:** Private networks that span public clouds, data centers, on-premises machines and remote devices, without proprietary hardware. - **Peer-to-peer connections:** Devices connect directly to each other whenever possible, with traffic encrypted end to end and policy enforced at every endpoint. - **Identity-based access control:** Network behavior is set by policy tied to each node's cryptographic identity, with custom flow rules on the Scale plan. - **Management through UI, CLI and API:** Personal includes a CLI, a UI and webhooks. API access and OIDC single sign-on start on Essential. - **Broad client coverage:** The download page lists Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Docker, FreeBSD and NAS packages. - **Post-quantum option:** ZeroTier Quantum is a separate platform for regulated and air-gapped environments, scoped per deployment through sales. ## Good for - Hobbyists linking a few home devices at no cost - Small companies that need a simple VPN-style network between offices and servers - Service providers and developers running many networks ## Worth knowing - ZeroTier connects devices into a network; it does not share a remote screen, so desktop access needs a separate remote desktop or VNC tool on top. - The Personal plan is limited to 10 devices, one network and non-commercial use. - Essential includes community support only; ticketed support with an SLA starts at Scale, $179 per month. - Devices beyond the included count are billed monthly, $2.00 each on Essential and $1.80 each on Scale. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 2.4 out of 4**, graded Nov 12, 2026. ZeroTier joins devices into a virtual network, with a free Personal plan for non-commercial use. It shows no remote screen, Personal stops at 10 devices and one network, and business use starts at $18 a month for 10 devices with only community support. - **Value for money: C.** Essential is $18 a month for 10 devices, then $2.00 a device, which is in the upper half of what remote access tools charge ($4.17 to $28). Scale is $179 a month. - **Free plan and trial: B.** Personal is free for non-commercial use with 10 devices, one network and one admin. One person could live on it, until the device count or work use gets in the way. - **Features: C.** Virtual networks, peer-to-peer links, access control, UI, CLI and API. The listing says it does not share a remote screen, so desktop access needs another tool on top. - **Ease of use: C.** No store rating on record. You create a network, join each device and manage rules, which takes some setting up. - **Platforms and integrations: B.** Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and Android, with an API on Essential and above. No web client is listed. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from ZeroTier's own pages on 12 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among remote desktop apps - ZeroTier's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 11 of the 35 other remote desktop apps we grade, and level with 8. - It stands best on free plan and trial (B, above 19 of 35) and worst on features (C, above 0). - Its paid plans start at $18 a month, against a middle price of $8.33 for the category: 14 of the 20 others that charge start lower. - On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.3 out of 4. 10 tools score higher and cost less. The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/remote-access ## Keep it, or make your own? **Keep it.** To replace ZeroTier you would be making servers in dozens of countries, kept fast and private. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one. That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 16 of the 35 other remote desktop apps grade higher. It costs $216 a year. - You could not: Servers in dozens of countries, kept fast and private. - You could not: Apps for macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android that stay in step with each other. - You could not: An API that other software can build on. - You could not: End-to-end encryption done properly. - You could not: What a company asks for before it lets staff use something: single sign-on. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. **Tags:** VPN, End-to-end encrypted, Public API ## Alternatives - [Tailscale](https://toolgpa.com/tools/tailscale): Private network that links your devices, servers and teams. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/tailscale-vs-zerotier) - [NoMachine](https://toolgpa.com/tools/nomachine): Self-hosted remote desktop sold as yearly server subscriptions. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/nomachine-vs-zerotier) - [MeshCentral](https://toolgpa.com/tools/meshcentral): Self-hosted open-source remote device management site. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/meshcentral-vs-zerotier) - [RustDesk](https://toolgpa.com/tools/rustdesk): Open-source remote desktop you can run on your own server. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/rustdesk-vs-zerotier) - [TeamViewer](https://toolgpa.com/tools/teamviewer): Remote access and IT support, free for personal use only. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/teamviewer-vs-zerotier) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 12, 2026: - https://www.zerotier.com/pricing/ - https://www.zerotier.com/ - https://www.zerotier.com/features/ - https://www.zerotier.com/download/ - https://www.zerotier.com/about/ Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/zerotier Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).