Compare software

Libreswan vs strongSwan: catalog facts
Libreswan	strongSwan
Free Free software under GPLv2.	Free Free under GPLv2, with commercial licensing available as an option.
macOS, Linux, Command line	Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, Self-hosted, Command line
Standards-based IPsec with IKEv1 and IKEv2 Packaged in Fedora, RHEL/EPEL and Arch Linux	Thorough IKEv2 implementation with many IETF extensions Runs on Linux, Android, FreeBSD, macOS and Windows
IPsec configuration has a steep learning curve No graphical interface	Configuration requires solid IPsec knowledge Mainly configured through files and the command line
Downloadable app	Downloadable app, Self-hosted
Open source	Open source
License: GPL-2.0	License: GPL-2.0
No account needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 23, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 23, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.