Self-hosted alternatives to NordVPN
You swap trusting your ISP for trusting a VPN company — running your own removes the third party.
Below are 10 open-source projects that cover the same ground, each scored 0–100 on how actively it is actually maintained — commit volume, release cadence and recent trend. 3 of the 10 are currently rated healthy or better. Ordering reflects that score, not sponsorship.
| Project | Health | Activity (11 mo) | Stars | Licence | Last release |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MyIP All in one IP Toolbox. Easy to check what's your IPs, IP geolocation, check for DNS leaks, examine WebRTC conn | Thriving · 88 | 12k | MIT | 21 Sept 2026 | |
| NetAlertX Network intruder and presence detector. Scans for devices connected to your network and alerts you if new and | Healthy · 81 | 7.2k | GPL-3.0 | 2 Sept 2026 | |
| Speedtest Tracker Monitor the performance and uptime of your internet connection. | Healthy · 68 | 6k | MIT | 21 Aug 2026 | |
| Upsnap A simple Wake on LAN (WOL) dashboard app. Wake up devices on your network and see current status. | Steady · 66 | 6.3k | MIT | 26 Sept 2026 | |
| beelzebub Honeypot framework designed to provide a highly secure environment for detecting and analyzing cyber attacks. | Steady · 59 | 2.2k | MIT | 23 Sept 2026 | |
| whois WHOIS/RDAP query API for domains, IP addresses, CIDR prefixes and ASNs, with unified JSON output, caching, API | Slowing · 51 | 64 | MIT | 26 Sept 2026 | |
| Canary Tokens Generates lightweight, embedded honeypot triggers called canary tokens for detecting unauthorized access. | Slowing · 47 | 3k | BSD-3-Clause | 21 Sept 2026 | |
| MySpeed Speed test analysis software that shows your internet speed for up to 30 days. | Slowing · 47 | 3k | MIT | 21 May 2024 | |
| PlugNPiN Automatically scrapes containers with specific labels and creates local DNS/CNAME entries in Pi-Hole/AdGuard H | Slowing · 38 | 70 | GPL-3.0 | 7 Jul 2026 | |
| Wakupator Wake On LAN Machine Manager based on network traffic. | At risk · 27 | 181 | MIT | 6 Feb 2026 |
How these were picked
Every project listed here is open source and can run entirely on hardware you control. We start from the categories that match NordVPN's job — Network Utilities — then rank by health score so that a popular-but-abandoned project never appears above a smaller one that is actively shipping. The scoring method is documented in full.
The scores are recomputed from repository data on every rebuild, so this page reflects the state of these projects as of 1 Oct 2026 — not the day it was written.
MyIP
All in one IP Toolbox. Easy to check what's your IPs, IP geolocation, check for DNS leaks, examine WebRTC connections, speed test, ping test, MTR test, check website availability and more.
Best fit: Ideal for network administrators or homelab operators who want a self-hosted utility page to quickly diagnose connection issues and verify routing metrics.
Worth knowing: Because it aggregates numerous active network tests like speed and MTR tests, running it publicly exposed on a resource-constrained VPS may lead to unexpected bandwidth usage or CPU spikes.
NetAlertX
Network intruder and presence detector. Scans for devices connected to your network and alerts you if new and unknown devices are found.
Best fit: Home lab operators and system administrators who want an automated way to monitor local network attachments and spot unauthorised clients.
Worth knowing: You will need to ensure your scanning configuration aligns with your local subnet layout to avoid false positives or missed devices, which can require ongoing tuning.
Speedtest Tracker
Monitor the performance and uptime of your internet connection.
Best fit: It is a good fit if you want to keep a persistent local record of your internet service provider's actual speeds versus what you pay for.
Worth knowing: Frequent automated speed tests consume significant outbound bandwidth throughout the day, which might occasionally impact other network traffic or draw scrutiny from strict ISPs.
Upsnap
A simple Wake on LAN (WOL) dashboard app. Wake up devices on your network and see current status.
Best fit: It suits home lab administrators and network managers who need a straightforward visual interface to power on machines remotely without relying on command-line utilities.
Worth knowing: Wake on LAN functionality relies heavily on your local network configuration, and misconfigured broadcast packets or router settings can cause devices to fail to wake despite the application running correctly.
beelzebub
Honeypot framework designed to provide a highly secure environment for detecting and analyzing cyber attacks.
Best fit: Security engineers and system administrators who want to deploy a customisable honeypot to monitor unauthorised network access attempts.
Worth knowing: Operating a honeypot carries inherent security risks if the container isolation is compromised, and the framework's moderate maintenance level means you should audit updates carefully.