NetBird Cloud
NetBird Cloud is a fully managed service hosted by the NetBird team at app.netbird.io.Key Features
- Zero infrastructure management - No servers to maintain or update
- Instant setup - Sign up and connect devices in minutes
- Automatic updates - Always running the latest version
- High availability - 99.9% uptime SLA on paid plans
- Global presence - STUN/TURN servers in multiple regions
- Built-in identity provider - No need to configure OAuth
- Managed scaling - Automatically handles growth
- Professional support - Direct support from NetBird team
How It Works
- Sign up at app.netbird.io
- Authenticate using Google, Microsoft, GitHub, or email
- Install clients on your devices
- Connect - Devices automatically join your network
Pricing Tiers
NetBird Cloud offers multiple pricing tiers:- Free - Up to 5 users, unlimited peers
- Personal - For individuals and small teams
- Team - Advanced features and higher limits
- Enterprise - Custom pricing with SLA and dedicated support
Data Privacy
With NetBird Cloud:- Peer metadata is stored on NetBird’s infrastructure (peer names, IP addresses, access policies)
- User data flows through your chosen identity provider (Google, Microsoft, etc.)
- Network traffic is end-to-end encrypted and never passes through NetBird servers
- Peer-to-peer connections are direct between your devices using WireGuard
NetBird uses a zero-trust architecture where the control plane (management) is separate from the data plane (peer connections). Your actual network traffic never touches NetBird’s cloud infrastructure.
When to Choose Cloud
NetBird Cloud is ideal for:- Quick deployment - Need to get started immediately
- Small to medium teams - Up to 100 users
- No DevOps resources - No one to manage infrastructure
- Multi-region teams - Benefit from global STUN/TURN servers
- Testing and evaluation - Try before committing to self-hosting
- Managed services preference - Focus on using NetBird, not running it
Self-Hosted NetBird
Self-hosted NetBird runs on your own infrastructure, giving you complete control over the deployment.Key Features
- Full control - Own all data and infrastructure
- On-premises deployment - Keep everything within your network
- Custom identity providers - Integrate with existing SSO (Keycloak, Auth0, Azure AD, etc.)
- Air-gapped environments - No internet dependency after setup
- Custom compliance - Meet specific regulatory requirements
- No subscription costs - Only infrastructure costs
- Open source - BSD-3-Clause license (management, signal, relay are AGPL-3.0)
Deployment Requirements
Infrastructure
- VM Specs: 1 CPU, 2GB RAM minimum
- Storage: 5GB+ for database and logs
- Network: Public IP with ports 80, 443 (TCP) and 3478 (UDP) accessible
- Domain: Public domain name for TLS certificates
Software
- Docker with docker-compose plugin
- Linux - Ubuntu, Debian, RHEL, or similar
- Utilities - jq, curl for setup script
Operational
- System administration - Ability to manage Linux servers
- TLS management - Understanding of certificates (automated with Let’s Encrypt)
- Backup strategy - Regular backups of configuration and database
- Update management - Monitoring and applying updates
- Monitoring - Optional but recommended for production
Deployment Methods
Docker Compose
Recommended: Automated setup with getting-started.sh script
Kubernetes
For container orchestration environments
Architecture Components
A self-hosted deployment includes:| Component | Purpose | Resource Usage |
|---|---|---|
| NetBird Server | Combined management, signal, relay, STUN | 512MB-2GB RAM |
| Dashboard | Web UI for administration | 128MB-512MB RAM |
| Database | SQLite (default) or PostgreSQL/MySQL | Minimal-Moderate |
| Reverse Proxy | Traefik, Nginx, Caddy, or similar | 128MB-256MB RAM |
| Identity Provider | Embedded (Dex) or external | Varies |
What's the 'combined server'?
What's the 'combined server'?
Starting with recent versions, NetBird consolidated multiple services (management, signal, relay) into a single container called
netbird-server. This simplifies deployment and reduces resource usage compared to running separate containers.Data Sovereignty
With self-hosted NetBird:- All data stays on your infrastructure
- No external calls to NetBird’s servers (except optional anonymous metrics)
- Custom data retention policies
- GDPR/HIPAA compliance - Meet specific regulatory requirements
- Audit trails - Full control over logging and monitoring
When to Choose Self-Hosted
Self-hosted is ideal for:- Regulatory compliance - HIPAA, GDPR, industry-specific requirements
- Data sovereignty - Government, finance, healthcare sectors
- Large deployments - 100+ users or 1000+ peers
- Air-gapped networks - No internet connectivity required
- Custom integrations - Need to integrate with existing systems
- Enterprise SSO - Already using Okta, Azure AD, Keycloak, etc.
- Cost optimization - High peer count makes self-hosting cheaper
- Full control - Want complete ownership of infrastructure
Feature Comparison
| Feature | NetBird Cloud | Self-Hosted |
|---|---|---|
| Setup time | 5 minutes | 30-60 minutes |
| Infrastructure | None required | VM + domain required |
| Updates | Automatic | Manual (docker pull) |
| Scaling | Automatic | Manual configuration |
| Identity provider | Built-in | Embedded or custom |
| Data location | NetBird servers | Your infrastructure |
| Uptime SLA | 99.9% (paid plans) | Your responsibility |
| Support | Included (paid plans) | Community or commercial |
| Cost model | Per-user subscription | Infrastructure costs |
| Air-gap support | No | Yes |
| Custom branding | Enterprise only | Yes (modify dashboard) |
| API access | Yes | Yes |
| Peer-to-peer encryption | Yes | Yes |
| STUN/TURN servers | Global network | Your infrastructure |
Cost Comparison
NetBird Cloud Costs
- Free tier: $0 for up to 5 users
- Personal: ~$4/user/month
- Team: ~$12/user/month
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
Self-Hosted Costs
Small Deployment (10-50 users)
- VM: $10-30/month (cloud provider dependent)
- Domain: $10-15/year
- Storage: Included in VM
- TLS certs: Free (Let’s Encrypt)
- Total: ~$15-35/month
Medium Deployment (50-200 users)
- VM: $40-100/month (higher specs)
- External database: $20-50/month (optional PostgreSQL)
- Monitoring: $10-20/month (optional)
- Backups: $5-10/month
- Total: ~$75-180/month
Large Deployment (200+ users)
- Multiple VMs: $200-500/month (HA setup)
- Managed database: $100-300/month
- Load balancer: $20-50/month
- Monitoring/logging: $50-100/month
- Total: ~$370-950/month
Break-even point is typically around 20-30 users, depending on your cloud provider and required availability. Above this, self-hosting can be more cost-effective.
Operational Responsibilities
NetBird Cloud
You manage:- Client installation on devices
- Access policies and network configuration
- User onboarding
- Infrastructure maintenance
- Security updates
- Scaling and performance
- Backups and disaster recovery
- Monitoring and alerting
Self-Hosted
You manage:- Infrastructure provisioning
- OS and Docker updates
- NetBird version updates
- TLS certificate renewal (automated with Let’s Encrypt)
- Database backups
- Monitoring and alerting
- Security hardening
- Disaster recovery
- Scaling and performance tuning
- Client installation on devices
- Access policies and network configuration
- User onboarding
Migration Between Options
Cloud to Self-Hosted
You can migrate from NetBird Cloud to self-hosted:- Export access policies and network configuration (manual)
- Set up self-hosted infrastructure
- Re-register peers with new management server
- Reconfigure access policies
Self-Hosted to Cloud
Similarly, you can migrate to NetBird Cloud:- Sign up for NetBird Cloud account
- Uninstall old clients or reset connection
- Install clients with Cloud setup key
- Recreate access policies in Cloud dashboard
Decision Matrix
Answer these questions
- Do you have compliance requirements for data sovereignty? (Yes → Self-hosted)
- Do you have DevOps/SysAdmin resources? (No → Cloud)
- Do you need more than 100 users? (Yes → Consider self-hosted for cost)
- Do you need air-gapped deployment? (Yes → Self-hosted)
- Do you want zero infrastructure management? (Yes → Cloud)
Evaluate costs
- Calculate per-user cost for Cloud
- Estimate infrastructure + time cost for self-hosted
- Compare break-even point
Consider operations
- Do you have capacity for system administration?
- Can you handle security updates and patches?
- Do you need 24/7 availability?
Hybrid Approach
Some organizations use a hybrid model:- Development/testing: NetBird Cloud for quick iteration
- Production: Self-hosted for compliance and control
- Multi-tenant: Cloud for external partners, self-hosted for internal
Getting Started
Start with Cloud
- Go to app.netbird.io
- Sign up with Google, Microsoft, GitHub, or email
- Download and install clients
- Connect devices
Start with Self-Hosted
Support Options
NetBird Cloud
- Community forum (all tiers)
- Email support (paid tiers)
- Priority support (Enterprise tier)
- Slack channel (all tiers)
Self-Hosted
- Community forum - Free community support
- GitHub Issues - Bug reports and feature requests
- Slack channel - Community chat
- Commercial support - Available from NetBird team
- Documentation - Comprehensive self-service docs
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I switch from Cloud to self-hosted later?
Can I switch from Cloud to self-hosted later?
Yes, but there’s no automated migration. You’ll need to re-register peers and manually recreate access policies.
Is my traffic encrypted with NetBird Cloud?
Is my traffic encrypted with NetBird Cloud?
Yes. NetBird uses end-to-end WireGuard encryption. Your network traffic never passes through NetBird’s servers - connections are peer-to-peer.
Do I need a public IP for self-hosted?
Do I need a public IP for self-hosted?
Yes, your server needs to be publicly accessible on ports 80, 443 (TCP) and 3478 (UDP) for clients to connect.
Can self-hosted use external identity providers?
Can self-hosted use external identity providers?
Yes. NetBird supports Auth0, Keycloak, Azure AD, Google Workspace, Okta, Zitadel, and any OIDC-compliant provider.
What's the performance difference?
What's the performance difference?
Peer-to-peer connections have identical performance. Only the signaling phase (connection establishment) goes through the management server, which is typically less than 1 second regardless of deployment model.
Can I run self-hosted without internet access?
Can I run self-hosted without internet access?
Yes, for air-gapped networks. All components can run offline, though you’ll need to handle TLS certificates manually and peers must be able to reach your server.
Next Steps
Try NetBird Cloud
Sign up for free and connect your first devices
Self-Hosted Setup
Deploy NetBird on your infrastructure
Feature Comparison
Compare all features and pricing tiers
Architecture Deep Dive
Learn how NetBird works under the hood