Shrew Soft VPN Client review
A free IPsec client with Professional features for connecting to existing gateways.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Shrew Soft VPN Client is an IPsec remote-access client for Windows and Linux users connecting to existing VPN gateways, rather than a general-purpose VPN service. It supports IPsec with ISAKMP negotiation, XAuth user authentication, NAT traversal and split tunneling. The product also supports Linux and BSD source-code distributions, and is positioned for use with a range of open-source and commercial gateways. That focus makes it relevant to people who need a client for an existing network setup; it is not a fit for someone seeking a broad consumer VPN offering.
The Windows edition has a free Standard edition and paid Professional editions. Standard is free for personal and commercial use. Professional adds split DNS and secure Active Directory/domain login, and includes one year of updates. The published annual Professional pricing lists $19.99 for one license, $94.99 for five, $179.99 for ten, $424.99 for 25, and $799.99 for 50. Professional is Windows-only, so Linux users do not get those added features through the same paid edition. The listed plans also include 100- and 250-license editions, without a price stated here.
Compatibility is a central strength: listed gateways and related software include Cisco, Juniper, Check Point, Fortinet, Netgear, Linksys, Zywall, OpenSWAN, StrongSWAN and Libreswan. Features such as automatic reconnect are specifically identified for Windows. The main qualification is platform age: the latest listed stable releases date to 2013, and Windows support is limited to Windows 2000, XP, Vista, 7 and 8. Choose it when a compatible existing gateway and these platform constraints match your environment; choose another client if you need current Windows support or a VPN service rather than gateway access.
Shrew Soft VPN Client pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Standard is free for personal and commercial use.
- Supports IPsec, XAuth, NAT traversal and split tunneling.
- Works with open-source and commercial VPN gateways.
- Where it doesn't
- Professional edition is Windows-only.
- Windows support is limited to legacy versions.
- Latest listed stable releases date to 2013.
Shrew Soft VPN Client fact sheet, pricing and score →
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