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Prices and features checked against official pages: October 2026.
Quick Answer
Choose NordLayer if you want one vendor, a central Control Panel and a per-user price with a five-user minimum. Choose Twingate if you want a free Starter plan for up to 5 users or a lower listed per-user price on its Teams plan. Both pages leave some details unclear, so confirm the plan limits on the official pages, and ask whether a trial is available, before you move a team over.
See NordLayer plans
NordLayer plans have a five-user minimum.
Who Is This Comparison For?
It is for a team of roughly 5 to 20 people with no IT person that wants to replace a traditional VPN with something it can manage from a web dashboard. It uses only what each vendor’s own pages show.
How Do NordLayer and Twingate Compare?
| Row | NordLayer | Twingate |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | Lite $8 per user per month, 5 users minimum | Starter free, up to 5 users; Teams $5 per user per month, up to 100 users |
| Mid plan | Core $11 plus a +$40 per month dedicated IP server | Business $10 per user per month, up to 500 users |
| Access control | Core: basic network access control; Premium: more granular segmentation | Starter lists conditional access controls; Teams lists automated least privilege policies |
| Identity sign-in | Control Panel with SSO and 2FA options | Teams lists SSO via Google Workspace; Business lists Okta, Entra ID and more (which plan supports which identity provider should be confirmed) |
| Admin limits | Not confirmed on the pricing page | Teams: 3 admin users; Business: 10 admin users |
| Log retention | Not confirmed on the pricing page | Teams: 7 days; Business: 30 days |
| Money-back terms | 14-day money-back guarantee on every plan | Not confirmed on the pricing page |
Twingate’s comparison table also shows $12 per user figures next to its $5 and $10 plan cards, and the stated 15% yearly discount does not match them, so verify its monthly and annual rates on the live page before budgeting.
Choose NordLayer If…
- You want a business VPN with access controls managed from one dashboard, from a vendor in the Nord family.
- You have at least five people, so the seat minimum does not waste money.
- You are comfortable with a +$40 per month dedicated IP server if you need Core or Premium.
Choose Twingate If…
- You have five people or fewer and want to try a free plan first.
- You want a lower listed per-user price at the Teams level and can live with 3 admin users and 7-day log retention.
- You are building around Google Workspace, Okta or Entra ID sign-in.
Where Does Each One Fall Short?
- NordLayer: the five-user minimum, the dedicated IP server on Core and Premium, and no full feature matrix on the pricing page. It is not a full security suite either; see our NordLayer review.
- Twingate: the unclear pricing columns, and a Home plan that is described as restricted to non-commercial use (not confirmed here), so check the terms before considering it for a company.
How Much Would a Team of Five Pay?
Calculated from the displayed prices, before tax: NordLayer Lite is 5 × $8 = $40 per month, and Core is 5 × $11 + $40 = $95. Twingate Teams is 5 × $5 = $25 per month, and Business is 5 × $10 = $50. The plans do not include the same features, so the totals are not a like-for-like ranking.
FAQ
Short answers to the questions teams ask before switching.
Is Twingate free?
Its Starter plan is listed as free for up to 5 users. The Teams and Business plans are paid.
Does NordLayer have a free plan?
The pricing page does not list one. It lists a 14-day money-back guarantee instead.
Which one is easier to run without an IT person?
Neither page measures this. NordLayer’s help pages describe a Control Panel with gateways and teams, and Twingate lists policy and sign-in features; test both setups on one person first.
Can I switch later?
Neither page says. Plan to run the new tool next to the old VPN for a short overlap.
Summary
NordLayer fits teams of five or more that want a single vendor and a central dashboard, and Twingate fits smaller teams that want a free start. Compare them on the points above and confirm the unclear details on the live pages.
Next step: See NordLayer plans and test it with one person before moving the team.
Product features, plan limits, and prices change. Check NordLayer’s official pages before you buy.
