Comparison
PacketMole vs KeepYourHomeIP
Both products solve the same problem: keep your home IP address when you travel. They do it with very different hardware, very different pricing models, and very different assumptions about who you trust with your tunnel.
The short version
- Total 3-year cost: PacketMole is $349 one-time. KeepYourHomeIP's spec-equivalent “Premium” hardware tier is €428 (~$463) + €96/yr (~$104/yr) subscription = roughly $767 over 3 years.
- Hardware:PacketMole ships a GL.iNet Brume 2 (home) + Beryl AX (travel) — WiFi 6, 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet, modern silicon. KeepYourHomeIP's base “Economy” tier ships a single Capri CP-EL128 with a QCA9531 @ 650MHz, 128MB RAM, 2.4GHz-only WiFi, and 10/100 Ethernet. You have to upgrade to their Premium tier to match PacketMole's baseline specs.
- CGNAT support: Both vendors use VPN tunneling, but PacketMole is built on Tailscale (DERP relays make CGNAT a non-issue). KeepYourHomeIP uses raw WireGuard, which silently fails behind CGNAT — that includes T-Mobile Home Internet, Starlink, most cellular hotspots, and a lot of apartment WiFi.
- Account with vendor: KeepYourHomeIP requires creating an account with them (your tunnel runs through their infrastructure and subscription). PacketMole requires zero account with us — your tunnel runs through your own free Tailscale account, and we never see your traffic.
Detailed comparison
| PacketMole | KeepYourHomeIP Economy | KeepYourHomeIP Premium | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardware (one-time) | $349 | €298 (~$322) | €428 (~$463) |
| Monthly subscription | $0 forever | €8/mo or €96/yr | €8/mo or €96/yr |
| Account required with vendor | No | Yes | Yes |
| 3-year total | $349 | ~$634 | ~$767 |
| Hardware: home unit | GL.iNet Brume 2 (GL-MT2500A) | Capri CP-EL128 (or similar) | Higher-tier router |
| Hardware: travel unit | GL.iNet Beryl AX (GL-MT3000) | Same single device | Same single device |
| WiFi standard | WiFi 6 (2.4 + 5 GHz) | 2.4 GHz only | WiFi 6 |
| Ethernet | 2.5 Gigabit | 10/100 Mbps | Gigabit |
| VPN protocol | Tailscale (WireGuard + DERP) | WireGuard | WireGuard |
| Works on CGNAT | Yes | Limited | Limited |
| Captive-portal handling | Yes (Travel unit handles login) | Manual | Manual |
| Pre-configured kit | Yes — tested before shipping | Yes | Yes |
| Shipping | Free US (Florida) | From Italy | From Italy |
| Returns | 30 days, $50 restocking fee | Per their policy | Per their policy |
| Customer support | Email hello@packetmole.com (real human) | European support hours | European support hours |
When KeepYourHomeIP might be the better choice
We'll be honest about it. KeepYourHomeIP makes more sense if:
- You're based in the EU — they ship from Italy and PacketMole only ships within the US right now.
- You want a managed service relationship.Their €8/mo subscription buys you their support staff actively monitoring and maintaining your tunnel. PacketMole is the “set it and forget it” model — you own everything and email us if something breaks.
- You only need one device. KYH ships a single router that does both ends. PacketMole is a two-piece kit. Different setup philosophy.
When PacketMole is the better choice
- You're in the US and care about getting it fast (free US shipping from Florida vs international shipping from Italy).
- Your home internet is T-Mobile Home, Starlink, cellular, or an apartment LAN— i.e. anything behind CGNAT. PacketMole's Tailscale-based approach works on these without port forwarding. WireGuard-only kits don't.
- You want one-time pricing with no ongoing billing relationship. Lower total 3-year cost. Lower 5-year cost. Lower forever-year cost.
- You don't want a vendor seeing your tunnel.PacketMole's tunnel terminates on your home router and uses your own Tailscale account. We can't see your traffic even if we wanted to.
- You want modern hardware specs— WiFi 6 + 2.5G Ethernet at the $349 price point vs only at KYH's €428+ tier.
Ready to bring home with you?
$349 one-time. Free US shipping. Ships within 2 weeks. 30-day returns.
Note on accuracy: KeepYourHomeIP pricing reflects their public pricing page at time of writing (May 2026). EUR→USD conversion uses a rough ~1.08 rate. Subscriptions and pricing change; we'll update this page as we notice.
Have a correction or want to flag something we got wrong? Email hello@packetmole.com.