LibreSSL
Hacker ApprovedRanked 4 of 5 TLS libraries by recommenders
Widely used OpenSSL-compatible TLS library, well maintained and easy to migrate to; some report returning to OpenSSL.
Widely used OpenSSL-compatible TLS library, well maintained and easy to migrate to; some report returning to OpenSSL.
13 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 11
- criticize it
- 2
- approval share
- 85%
Recommended in 7 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 11 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 5.5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 7 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Drop-in replacement for OpenSSL
“LibreSSL has put serious effort into making itself interchangeable with openssl.”
Comment from 29 Jan 2026 in “OpenSSL: Stack buffer overflow in CMS AuthEnvelopedData parsing” “they put in a lot of work on making it a drop-in replacement for openssl”
Comment from 14 Feb 2026 in “WolfSSL Sucks Too, So Now What?” Well maintained and easier to migrate
“LibreSSL is well-maintained and easier to migrate to than it ever was.”
Comment from 28 Jan 2026 in “The State of OpenSSL for pyca/cryptography” “LibreSSL is well-maintained and easier to migrate to than it ever was”
Comment from 28 Jan 2026 in “OpenSSL: Stack buffer overflow in CMS AuthEnvelopedData parsing”
Other TLS libraries people recommend
The four most recommended other TLS libraries, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
See all 5 TLS libraries, rankedWhat people said
15 of the 21 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“LibreSSL : better than OpenSSL”
“Also LibreSSL and sndio which always pop up on Linux in the least expected places”
“there's RustTLS, GnuTLS, BoringSSL, LibreSSL, WolfSSL, NSS, and AWS-LC that come to mind immediately”
“LibreSSL has the best compilation process”
“they put in a lot of work on making it a drop-in replacement for openssl”
“many have returned to OpenSSL”
“As tons of distros adopted LibreSSL”
“LibreSSL has put serious effort into making itself interchangeable with openssl.”
“LibreSSL is well-maintained and easier to migrate to than it ever was”
“LibreSSL is well-maintained and easier to migrate to than it ever was.”
“I thought most everyone migrated to libressl or boringssl after the heartbleed fiasco”
“Another great example from tedunangst's excellent presentation”
“isn't true in LibreSSL, BoringSSL, or AWS-LC”
“LibreSSL did the same over OpenSSL”
“compared to WolfSSL, LibreSSL, BoringSSL, etc.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.