Mullvad retires OpenVPN support on desktop, pushing all users to WireGuard

• Mullvad removes OpenVPN support from its desktop apps
• Fully OpenVPN shutdown is expected for January 15, 2026
• Mullvad says the shift will improve performance and security

Mullvad has officially removed OpenVPN support from its desktop apps with the release of version 2025.14 – a big step in its long-planned shift toward a WireGuard-only future.

With this change, users can no longer select OpenVPN inside the Mullvad VPN app, and anyone who still relies on the older protocol will need to stay on version 2025.13 for now.

OpenVPN servers aren’t disappearing just yet. However, Mullvad says they’ll be fully shut down in January 2026. This gives desktop users, routers, and external VPN clients a short time before the protocol stops working altogether.

The update finalizes a transition Mullvad first announced last year, closing the door on OpenVPN after more than a decade.

What’s changing in the Mullvad desktop app

With the new 2025.14 update, the OpenVPN protocol option has been entirely removed from Mullvad’s desktop settings. Anyone who previously selected the OpenVPN option will now be migrated automatically to WireGuard, with no action required in the majority of cases.

However, some users may run into issues during the transition. If you were connected to an OpenVPN-only server, or if you built a custom location list that contained only OpenVPN endpoints, your connection may suddenly fail until you manually choose a new location. OpenVPN servers also no longer appear in custom lists.

The change goes beyond the desktop app. External VPN clients, scripts, and routers configured with Mullvad’s OpenVPN profiles will stop working once the remaining OpenVPN servers are shut down on January 15. Mullvad has also warned that the option to generate new OpenVPN configuration files may be removed even sooner.

For those who relied on OpenVPN-specific tweaks like Mssfix to control packet sizes, Mullvad recommends adjusting WireGuard’s MTU settings instead, which can be found at the bottom of the VPN settings menu.

What's next for Mullvad VPN?

For most Mullvad users, the move from OpenVPN to WireGuard should be smooth. The app will migrate everyone automatically, and anyone on a typical home network is unlikely to even notice, except for improved speeds and fewer protocol options.

However, users in more restrictive environments may need to adjust Mullvad’s anti-censorship settings manually. Options like UDP-over-TCP or Shadowsocks are designed to mimic OpenVPN’s behavior, and may help restore connectivity where WireGuard’s default settings fail. The biggest impact will be felt by power users who may need to make manual adjustments.

Mullvad frames the change as a necessary step toward a cleaner, faster, and more censorship-resistant service – one that’s been in the works for a while.

With WireGuard now offering comparable obfuscation features, as well as significantly better security and performance, retiring OpenVPN now allows the company to simplify its infrastructure and focus on a single modern protocol.

By early 2026, Mullvad will be fully Wireguard-only, completing the transition the company has been preparing for since 2017.

Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!