Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups
Register | Login

OpenSSL VS Let's Encrypt

Compare OpenSSL VS Let's Encrypt and see what are their differences

ComplyCube
Verify your customers in under 15 seconds anywhere in the world with a cutting-edge SaaS & API platform for Identity Verification and AML/KYC compliance. featured
Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.
Contents:
  1. » Base Details
  2. » Videos
  3. » Reviews
  4. » Alternatives

OpenSSL logo OpenSSL

OpenSSL is a free and open source software cryptography library that implements both the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and the Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocols, which are primarily used to provide secure communications between web browsers and …

Let's Encrypt logo Let's Encrypt

Let’s Encrypt is a free, automated, and open certificate authority brought to you by the Internet Security Research Group (ISRG).
  • OpenSSL Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-14
  • Let's Encrypt Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-12

OpenSSL features and specs

  • Open Source
    OpenSSL is open-source software, which means it is freely available and can be reviewed, modified, and improved by anyone.
  • Widely Used
    OpenSSL is one of the most widely used libraries for SSL and TLS protocols, ensuring high compatibility and support across different platforms and applications.
  • Comprehensive Documentation
    OpenSSL provides extensive documentation and resources that can help users understand and implement its features effectively.
  • Regular Updates
    The OpenSSL project is actively maintained, receiving regular updates and patches to address security vulnerabilities and improve functionality.
  • Community Support
    A large community of developers and users contribute to forums, mailing lists, and other discussion platforms, providing support and sharing knowledge.
  • Flexible and Powerful
    OpenSSL offers a wide range of cryptographic functions and protocols, making it a versatile tool for various security requirements.

Possible disadvantages of OpenSSL

  • Complexity
    OpenSSL can be complex to configure and use, particularly for beginners or those without a deep understanding of cryptographic principles.
  • Security Vulnerabilities
    Despite regular updates, OpenSSL has had several high-profile security vulnerabilities in the past, such as Heartbleed, which can have broad implications.
  • Performance Overhead
    Depending on the implementation and configuration, using OpenSSL can introduce performance overhead, impacting the speed and efficiency of applications.
  • Limited User-Friendly Tools
    While OpenSSL is powerful, it lacks user-friendly tools and interfaces, making it harder for less technical users to operate.
  • Documentation Quality
    Though comprehensive, some users find the OpenSSL documentation to be dense and difficult to navigate, which can make troubleshooting and implementation challenging.

Let's Encrypt features and specs

  • Free of Charge
    Let's Encrypt provides SSL/TLS certificates at no cost, making it an economical choice for individuals and businesses.
  • Automated Certificate Issuance and Renewal
    The process of obtaining and renewing certificates can be automated using the ACME protocol, reducing manual intervention and administrative overhead.
  • Ease of Use
    Let's Encrypt simplifies the process of enabling HTTPS for websites, even for users with limited technical expertise.
  • Security
    Let's Encrypt certificates provide strong encryption, improving the security of data transmitted between clients and servers.
  • Widely Recognized
    Certificates issued by Let's Encrypt are trusted by all major web browsers and operating systems.
  • Promotes Secure Web Practices
    By making SSL/TLS certificates freely available, Let's Encrypt encourages more websites to adopt HTTPS, contributing to a more secure internet.

Possible disadvantages of Let's Encrypt

  • Short Duration of Certificates
    Let's Encrypt certificates are valid for only 90 days, requiring more frequent renewals compared to traditional certificate authorities.
  • Limited Support Options
    Let's Encrypt relies on community support and documentation, and does not offer dedicated customer support for troubleshooting and assistance.
  • No Extended Validation (EV) Certificates
    Let's Encrypt does not issue Extended Validation (EV) certificates, which provide additional verification and a higher level of trust for business websites.
  • Potential for Misuse
    Since certificates are issued for free and with minimal validation, there is a risk that cybercriminals might use them for phishing or other malicious activities.
  • No Wildcard Certificates for Multi-Level Subdomains
    While Let's Encrypt supports wildcard certificates for single-level subdomains, it doesn't support them for nested subdomains (e.g., *.sub.example.com).
  • Reliance on Third-Party Tools for Automation
    Users may need to rely on third-party tools or scripts for automation, which could introduce additional complexity or security risks.

Analysis of OpenSSL

Overall verdict

  • Yes, OpenSSL is generally considered a reliable and secure option for secure communications. However, like any software, it requires proper configuration and regular updates to maintain its security posture.

Why this product is good

  • OpenSSL is an open-source cryptographic library widely used for implementing secure communications over networks using the SSL and TLS protocols. It is considered good because of its extensive feature set, constant updates, and widespread adoption across different platforms. The project benefits from a large community of contributors who regularly update and patch the software, ensuring it stays secure and robust.

Recommended for

  • Web servers requiring SSL/TLS support for secure HTTP (HTTPS) connections
  • Developers needing cryptographic functions for applications
  • Embedded systems requiring small footprint security solutions
  • Network applications that require secure data transmission

Analysis of Let's Encrypt

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Let's Encrypt is a good choice for many website owners looking to implement HTTPS. It is trusted by major web browsers and has gained a strong reputation for reliability and ease of use.

Why this product is good

  • Let's Encrypt is widely considered a good option for SSL/TLS certificates because it provides free, automated, and open certificate issuance, which makes it accessible and convenient for website owners to secure their domains. It's designed to eliminate the complexity and costs typically associated with obtaining and renewing SSL certificates. Its easy integration with various web server software and support for automated renewals via the Certbot tool further enhances its appeal.

Recommended for

    Let's Encrypt is recommended for small to medium-sized websites, blogs, personal projects, non-commercial sites, and anyone looking to quickly and easily obtain SSL/TLS certificates without incurring costs. Larger enterprises or businesses with specific security and compliance requirements might need additional features provided by commercial certificate authorities.

OpenSSL videos

+ Add

Das Kommando "enc" in OpenSSL

More videos:

  • Review - OpenSSL and FIPS... They Are Back Together!
  • Review - OpenSSL After Heartbleed by Rich Salz & Tim Hudson, OpenSSL

Let's Encrypt videos

No Let's Encrypt videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to OpenSSL and Let's Encrypt)

OpenSSL

Let's Encrypt

Development Tools
100 100%
Development Tools
0% 0
Security & Privacy
0 0%
Security & Privacy
100% 100
Javascript UI Libraries
100 100%
Javascript UI Libraries
0% 0
Identity And Access Management
0 0%
Identity And Access Management
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using OpenSSL and Let's Encrypt. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Let's Encrypt seems to be a lot more popular than OpenSSL. While we know about 341 links to Let's Encrypt, we've tracked only 2 mentions of OpenSSL. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

OpenSSL mentions (2)

  • Why does Baserow need my personal data so I can run open source?
    Baserow uses open source like https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenSSL and can use it without handing over data to openssl.org. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Creating private key help
    Noob here; I'm looking at openssl.org Two commands are listed; "openssl-genrsa" and "openssl genrsa" (No hyphen). Source: over 3 years ago

Let's Encrypt mentions (341)

  • Don't Get Rate-Limited: Use Let's Encrypt Staging
    Autocert is a Pomerium feature that automatically provisions and renews TLS certificates for your routes using Let’s Encrypt. No manual cert management, no copying files around — just tell Pomerium to handle it and it will issue valid certificates on the fly. - Source: dev.to / 3 days ago
  • EU OS for the Public Sector
    > speaking about it in webinars and various conferences That's unfortunately the feeling I got from the landing page, lots of talking, bureaucracy and buzzword bingo and not much "doing". I might be wrong. For comparison https://letsencrypt.org, not a single mention of "webinars" or "stakeholders". - Source: Hacker News / 7 days ago
  • Cloudflare Tunnel for Home Assistant
    The good news is that the times when SSL certificates were a luxury feature are gone. Let's Encrypt makes them available to everybody for free. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • How to Chat with Gemini 2.5 Pro from VSCode via AI Studio (Free and Unlimited)
    Create a local domain and generate SSL certificates for it using Let's Encrypt, and use it for my server. - Source: dev.to / 2 months ago
  • Understanding Secure Communication: Encryption, Hashing, and Certificates
    Leverage existing trusted Certificate Authorities (Let’s Encrypt, DigiCert) or internal CAs for internal setups. - Source: dev.to / 2 months ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing OpenSSL and Let's Encrypt, you can also consider the following products

jQuery - The Write Less, Do More, JavaScript Library.

Ensighten - Ensighten provides enterprise tag management solutions that enable businesses manage their websites more effectively.

React Native - A framework for building native apps with React

AWS Certificate Manager - AWS Certificate Manager from Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Babel - Babel is a compiler for writing next generation JavaScript.

Certbot - Automatically enable HTTPS on your website with EFF's Certbot, deploying Let's Encrypt certificates.

Loading...