GPG vs Age Encryption

The cluster centers on debates comparing GPG/PGP's complexity and usability issues to simpler modern alternatives like age for encryption tasks, with users questioning the need for new tools or defending GPG's reliability.

📉 Falling 0.5x Security
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#6884
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Keywords

filippo.io UX GNUPG KDF GPGME PGP ARE encryption.org GPG github.com gpg pgp key keybase private key keys age password commands file

Sample Comments

NieDzejkob Feb 29, 2020 View on HN

There's a lot of complexity in gpg that's unnecessary for this usecase, I'd use age instead.https://age-encryption.org/

someguydave Dec 28, 2021 View on HN

age is hardly a complete replacement for GPG

k3vinw Feb 19, 2023 View on HN

Thanks for creating this. I was just thinking why not use gpg for this?

hghar Apr 27, 2016 View on HN

Seems interesting but why not to use GPG?

zx2c4 Sep 8, 2012 View on HN

GPG is well-vetted. The encryption here is GPG.

vbezhenar May 7, 2020 View on HN

GPG works, I don't know why anyone thought that anything else is needed.

seized Feb 26, 2023 View on HN

Such a profoundly helpful contribution.... How about detail on why it's not better than gpg?

nickpsecurity Oct 8, 2015 View on HN

GPG comes through again. Not ideally but acceptably for the paranoids. :)

ekianjo Aug 17, 2025 View on HN

pgp or gpg relies on you dealing with the keys.

cgag Dec 17, 2019 View on HN

Ensuring a gpg key isn't lost seems pretty obnoxious.