How Awacino compares
TeamViewer, AnyDesk, Tailscale, a VPN service or the VPN in your router: what each does well, how it works and where Awacino is different.
Looking for a TeamViewer or Tailscale alternative without port forwarding? Awacino gives your device a real address inside your home or office network - direct, end-to-end encrypted, also behind CGNAT - so your own tools (RDP, VNC, SSH) and every device there work as if you were on site.
Awacino vs ...
One page per product: a short verdict, a table, when the other product is the better choice, and the questions people ask.
Remote desktop tools
VPNs
A real address inside the network you need
Awacino gives your phone or laptop a SituIP: a real address inside the network you want to reach, at home, in the office or at a customer's site. Your device connects directly and end-to-end encrypted to a device in that network; our servers only introduce the two.
Nothing on the router
No port forwarding, no DynDNS, no router settings. It also works behind CGNAT and DS-Lite.
Your own tools
Remote Desktop (RDP), VNC, SSH, the browser and file shares, for every device in that network.
Slots, not seats
The licence counts devices and active Beam-in codes, never people. Free for 2 devices for private use.
TeamViewer, AnyDesk and similar
What they do well
They are made for screen sharing and remote support: you see and control another computer's screen within seconds, which works well for helping someone sitting in front of their PC. Many add file transfer, chat and session recording.
How they work
An agent app runs on every computer you want to control. The remote screen is shown in the vendor's own app; the vendor's servers set up the connection and often relay it when no direct path is found. Commercial licences are usually counted per user or seat, or per number of simultaneous sessions (channels).
Where Awacino is different
Awacino gives you a network address instead of a screen-sharing app. You use any tool you like, including the Remote Desktop, VNC and SSH built into Windows, macOS and Linux, and you reach the whole network, not only one PC: the NAS, the printer, the router's own page. The licence counts slots, not people.
| TeamViewer, AnyDesk (typical) | Awacino | |
|---|---|---|
| Runs on the remote side | Their agent app on every computer you want to control | Awacino on one device in the network; the others need nothing extra |
| What you get | The remote screen in the vendor's app | A SituIP: a real address in that network |
| What you can reach | The computers that run the agent | Every device in the network, including NAS, printers and routers |
| Tools | The vendor's viewer | Your own: RDP, VNC, SSH, browser, file shares |
| Path of your data | Direct or, often, through the vendor's relay servers | Direct device to device, end-to-end encrypted |
| The licence counts | Usually users or seats, or simultaneous sessions | Slots: devices and active Beam-in codes, never people |
Typical setups of the leading products in each group; details vary by product and plan.
Tailscale, ZeroTier, NetBird
What they do well
Mesh VPNs build an overlay network between your own devices: each one gets an address in a private network that travels with it. They are flexible, popular with developers and admins, and have open-source parts. Access rules (ACLs) let teams decide precisely who may reach what.
How they work
A client runs on every device that should be reachable, and devices and rules are managed in an admin console. When no direct path is found, traffic falls back to relay servers. Devices that cannot run the client are typically reached through an extra subnet router. Pricing is usually tiered by users and/or devices, with a free tier.
Where Awacino is different
Awacino beams you into an existing network instead of building a new one. With your SituIP you reach the devices that are already there, including those that can never run a client: printers, NAS boxes, routers, cameras. A guest joins with a single Beam-in code, and for private use there is no admin console to learn.
| Tailscale, ZeroTier, NetBird (typical) | Awacino | |
|---|---|---|
| Where a client is needed | On every device that should be reachable | On your device and on one device in the target network |
| Printers, NAS, routers | Through an extra subnet router you set up | Reachable directly by their usual address |
| Your address | An address in a separate overlay network | A SituIP inside the real network |
| Inviting a guest | Add them as a user or share a device in the admin console | One Beam-in code, revocable at any time |
| Management | Admin console with access rules (ACLs) | In the app; no console needed for private use |
| Pricing model | Usually tiers by users and/or devices, with a free tier | Slots; free for 2 devices for private use |
Typical setups of the leading products in each group; details vary by product and plan.
Classic VPNs and geo-unblocking
"VPN" stands for three quite different things. Here is what each is for and how Awacino compares.
VPN services: NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark
They route your internet traffic through their servers in data centres around the world. That is good for privacy on public Wi-Fi and for hiding your address from the sites you visit, and the apps are easy to use. Streaming services often recognise data-centre addresses, though. Sold as a subscription.
Awacino: with Beam out you go online through a real home connection: your own, or a friend's who sends you a Beam-in code.
Router VPN, e.g. AVM FRITZ!Box
Many routers have a VPN built in; the FRITZ!Box offers WireGuard and IPsec. It comes free with the router and is solid. It needs a public IPv4 address, though (behind CGNAT or DS-Lite it does not work without workarounds), a DynDNS name, a port on the router that accepts connections from the internet, and a setup on every device.
Awacino: nothing to configure on the router, and it works behind CGNAT and DS-Lite.
Company VPN gateways: Fortinet, Cisco, Ivanti and others
Companies often run a VPN gateway or firewall that staff dial into: mature and centrally managed. The gateway has to be reachable from the internet, and internet-facing VPN gateways are a frequent target for attackers, so they must be patched promptly. Hardware, licences and maintenance add up.
Awacino: the device in your network dials out, so there is no gateway on the internet to expose or to patch.
| What it is for | Effort to set up | Running cost type | |
|---|---|---|---|
| VPN service (NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark) | Privacy on public Wi-Fi, an address in another country | Low: install the app | Subscription |
| Router VPN (FRITZ!Box) | Reaching your home network from outside | Medium to high: public IPv4, DynDNS, a port reachable from the internet, a profile per device | Free with the router |
| Company VPN gateway (Fortinet, Cisco, Ivanti) | Staff access to the company network | High: gateway, certificates, rules and ongoing patching | Hardware or licences plus maintenance, often per user |
| Awacino | Reaching your home or office network; going online through a real home connection | Low: install the app on two devices, tap Beam out | Free for 2 devices (private); one-time per extra slot; team plans a subscription by number of slots |
Typical setups of the leading products in each group; details vary by product and plan.
Effort and cost at a glance
| What you install | Router changes needed | Works without a public IPv4 (CGNAT) | Reach devices without an app | Cost model | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awacino | The app on your device and on one device in the network | None | Yes | Yes, by their usual address | Free for 2 devices (private); one-time per extra slot; team plans by number of slots |
| TeamViewer, AnyDesk | An agent on every computer you want to control | None | Yes, often through relay servers | No, only computers with the agent | Free for personal use; commercial subscription, usually per user or seat |
| Tailscale, ZeroTier, NetBird | A client on every device that should be reachable | None | Yes, if needed through relay servers | With an extra subnet router | Free tier; tiers by users and/or devices |
| VPN service (NordVPN, ExpressVPN) | The provider's app | None | Yes | No, not what it is for | Subscription |
| Router VPN (FRITZ!Box) | A VPN profile on every device that connects | Yes: VPN, DynDNS, a port reachable from the internet | Not without workarounds | Yes, the whole home network | Free with the router |
| Company VPN gateway | A gateway in the company, a VPN client on every staff device | Yes: a gateway reachable from the internet | No, the gateway needs a public address | Yes, as far as the rules allow | Hardware or licences plus maintenance, often per user |
good fit with extra setup no or extra effort · Typical setups; details vary by product and plan.
Try two slots for free
See for yourself on your own devices and in your own network. Two slots are free for private use, with no time limit.
Awacino in action
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