Simon Migliano is a recognized world expert in VPNs. He's tested hundreds of VPN services and his research has featured on the BBC, The New York Times and more. Read full bio
The best VPN for most people is ExpressVPN, scoring 9.3/10 in our testing process. It consistently beats alternatives like NordVPN and PIA in crucial areas, especially in bypassing streaming geo-blocks, delivering faster connection speeds, and offering more user-friendly apps. See our detailed analysis later in this guide.
With hundreds of VPNs available, it’s essential to choose wisely as the wrong one can seriously compromise your privacy, limit streaming options, or lead to issues with speed and ease of use.
Our research found that 88% of the most popular VPN apps leaked our data, even though many of them had high ratings.
Additionally, though almost every VPN promises unrestricted access to video content, our tests revealed that only 13% could unblock more than half of the streaming services we tested.
The problem is that many VPNs inflate app store ratings with fake reviews, and many review websites either inadequately test them or are owned by VPN companies promoting their own products.
To help you make an informed choice, we’ve personally bought and tested 61 of the most popular VPNs, and put our results through our objective rating system.
🔄 Recent Updates
Proton VPN’s rating has risen slightly, after it expanded its server network from 91 countries to 112. ExpressVPN has also consolidated its lead at the top, after proven itself as the only VPN to unblock every single popular streaming service in our latest round of tests.
Why Trust Us?
We’re fully independent and have been reviewing VPNs since 2016. Our ratings are based on our own testing results and are unaffected by financial incentives. Learn who we are and how we test VPNs.
VPNs Tested
61
Total Hours of Testing
30,000+
Combined Years of Experience
50+
What Even Is a VPN?
Simple Explanation
Using the internet without a VPN is like sending postcards: anyone who handles them, like postal workers, can read your message and can see both your home address and who you’re sending it to.
On the internet, these postal workers are your internet service provider (ISP), potential hackers, or people on the same public WiFi network.
Using a VPN, your internet usage is more like sending a sealed envelope containing coded messages.
Here’s how a VPN works when you connect to a website:
Encryption: Before sending, you put your letter into an envelope and seal it. This letter is also written in a secret code that only the recipient can decipher. If someone other than them opens the letter and reads it, they won’t be able to understand it.
Secure Tunnel: Instead of using the regular mail delivery system, your letter is sent through a secure courier service that uses its own private routes. The courier avoids paths where mail is known to be intercepted.
IP Address Masking: Rather than including your return address on the letter, the courier places its own address on it. This means that the recipient sees the courier’s address, not yours, hiding your location and identity.
Technical Explanation
A VPN works by creating an encrypted tunnel between your device and a VPN server using standardized protocols (like OpenVPN or WireGuard).
Your data is encrypted at your device before being sent through this tunnel. The VPN server acts as a proxy, making requests to websites and services on your behalf using its own IP address.
The encryption process uses strong algorithms like AES-256 or ChaCha20 for data encryption and RSA-2048 or higher for key exchange.
This means that even if a malicious third party performs a man-in-the-middle attack, they would only see encrypted packets, not your actual data.
Here’s how a VPN works when you connect to a website:
Your traffic is first encrypted by the VPN client
It’s routed through the encrypted tunnel to the VPN server
The VPN server decrypts your traffic and forwards it to the destination website
Return traffic follows the reverse path
This process masks both your IP address and your DNS queries, making it appear to websites and services that the traffic is originating from the VPN server’s location rather than your actual location.
The Best VPNs Compared & Analyzed
Every VPN we recommend on this page will leave you satisfied, but it’s worth taking the time to think exactly why you want a VPN and choosing one that’s designed for that.
You can quickly compare our 10 favorite VPNs in the table below:
Excellent usability & compatibility across platforms
Consistently fast speeds across any distance
Has never suffered any data leaks or breaches
Informed & highly responsive 24/7 live support
Full browser extensions linked to the main application
More expensive than its rivals
No multi-hop, dedicated IP or other advanced features
Search engine CAPTCHAs triggered using many servers
No split tunneling on macOS
No Linux graphical user interface (GUI)
Pricing Plans
$12.95/mo
$6.25/mo over 16 months
$4.99/mo over 30 months
Servers
3,000
Compatible with
Windows
Mac
iOS
Android
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Android TV
Apple TV
Router
Chrome
ExpressVPN is our top VPN choice because it has excelled in almost every single test we’ve carried out in the past 8 years.
Despite its higher subscription price, ExpressVPN’s user-friendliness and versatility truly set it apart: it’s easy and effective to use for just about anything.
We were especially impressed with the VPN’s excellent speeds, usability, and ability to unblock most websites and apps on our test devices.
Video Review
Excellent for Streaming Geo-Blocked Content
Thousands of streaming tests confirm ExpressVPN is still the best VPN for streaming, unblocking 95% of the platforms we tested it with.
Its ability to reliably unblock geo-restricted content in 106 countries, paired with exceptional streaming speeds, is unmatched.
ExpressVPN’s US servers are great at unblocking the likes of HBO Max, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video. They bypass NFL out-of-market restrictions and other US sports blackouts, too.
These are the ExpressVPN servers we recently tested for unblocking popular content around the world:
For American content: New Jersey - 1
For Australian content: Australia – Melbourne
For British content: UK – Docklands
For Canadian content: Canada – Toronto
For Japanese content: Japan – Tokyo
ExpressVPN is also the best VPN for bypassing the Netflix VPN ban, with an astonishing 100% reliability score. Plus, it also unblocks 17 other Netflix regions.
ExpressVPN worked reliably with Netflix in all of our tests.
On TVs specifically, we enjoyed using the VPN’s simple yet effective Fire TV app, as well as its MediaStreamer (Smart DNS) solution to unblock apps on Smart TV and games consoles.
Be warned though, every once in a while a server will stop working with a streaming service.
When this happened to us, we tried a different server in the same country, which often worked.
Sometimes, we asked the 24/7 live chat support agents for an alternative server. They are formidably quick, and the servers they recommend almost always work.
A VPN That Puts Safety First
ExpressVPN performed very well in our security and privacy tests, too.
The VPN routed our data transfers through secure VPN protocols (OpenVPN and Lightway) using AES-256 encryption and diskless (RAM-only) servers, which means the service physically can’t log any activity data.
In fact, real-world tests – including server seizures and independent audits – have confirmed this fact several times.
While ExpressVPN doesn’t offer many extra features, like multi-hop servers or GPS spoofing, it offers all the vital settings, especially a working VPN kill switch to prevent sudden IP leaks.
An Incredibly User-friendly & Versatile VPN
ExpressVPN is by far the easiest and most widely-compatible VPN we’ve used. It’s as close as you can get to a plug-and-play VPN.
All key preferences are preset for you on first load, including Automatic Protocol Selection (for best performance) and the VPN kill switch activation.
Every single app, even the router one, is incredibly well-designed, uncluttered, and homogeneous across platforms.
The red, green, and white color palette sits well against any device display and makes it very easy to read the app’s labels.
Using it on your computer is almost the same as on your smartphone, which is ideal for VPN beginners.
Plus, out of all the VPNs we tested, ExpressVPN was the quickest (within 3 seconds) to connect to server locations, whether nearby or far away.
Expensive but Worth the High Price
ExpressVPN isn’t perfect, and its main drawback is its above-average subscription price.
At its cheapest, the VPN service costs $4.99 per month on a 15-month contract.
Despite the service being more expensive than many premium rivals, you get your money’s worth given its superior capabilities.
We’ve ranked it second-best because of its excellent security attributes, speeds, and range of extra features. NordVPN is worth paying attention to, but its usability and unblocking capabilities are marginally inferior to ExpressVPN’s. In fact, ExpressVPN performed better in 70% of our testing categories.
Despite falling ever so slightly short of top spot, NordVPN is significantly cheaper than ExpressVPN on an initial two-year subscription. This can be the deciding factor for more price-sensitive consumers.
Video Review
Exceptional Security Standards & Features
What we love about NordVPN is how much it has improved its security standards since a very small server breach in 2018.
All apps now use NordLynx, a variation of the WireGuard protocol, and traffic is encrypted through the ChaCha20 cipher.
We analyzed the packets passing through our network using Wireshark, and NordVPN made all our traffic data completely illegible:
We used Wireshark to verify that NordVPN encrypted our internet traffic.
Alongside the mandatory kill switch (which successfully passed our penetration testing), NordVPN also offers a rare multi-hop (double VPN) feature, which routed our web traffic through two separate VPN servers and encrypting it twice.
And just like ExpressVPN, NordVPN uses RAM-only (diskless) servers, making it almost impossible for a third-party to extract user data from the server.
However, it does keep a log of your username and the last connection date for 15 minutes after each session.
While we trust NordVPN, its logging policy hasn’t been categorically proven through a public court case or law enforcement request.
Barely Any Speed Loss Around the World
NordVPN continues to deliver very fast VPN speeds. Across same-country connections, speeds only dropped by 5%, which was almost as good as ExpressVPN’s 3% slowdown.
On international connections, NordVPN roughly matched ExpressVPN, with an average download speed of 86Mbps (on a fixed 100Mbps base connection).
Connecting to specific locations, NordVPN did beat ExpressVPN for speed. For instance, speeds into its UK VPN servers and Canada VPN locations were superb and easily unblocked local TV services.
Not as User-friendly as ExpressVPN
While we rate NordVPN very highly, we felt rather let down by the VPN’s less user-friendly and intuitive apps.
The VPN apps for Mac and Windows need particular design improvements. The apps are by no means hard to use, but the interfaces feel cluttered due to the many extra features available.
NordVPN’s Mac app (bottom) is more user-friendly than its Windows app (top).
We enjoyed using NordVPN’s mobile apps a lot more, although on Android we found that the kill switch requires irritating configuration.
Largest network of servers: 18,651 in 91 countries
Verified no-logs VPN with torrenting allowed on all servers
The cheapest top-rated VPN available
The only VPN with servers in 50 US states to easily bypass US blackouts
Built-in ad blocker (MACE) blocked 90% of ads & trackers
Unlimited device policy
Could be confusing for VPN beginners
macOS app has usability issues
Smart DNS doesn't work with streaming apps
Firestick app is less reliable than regular apps
Headquartered in the USA (FVEY jurisdiction)
Pricing Plans
$11.99/mo
$7.50/mo over 6 months
$2.03/mo over 28 months
Servers
18,651
Compatible with
Windows
Mac
iOS
Android
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Android TV
Apple TV
Router
Chrome
Private Internet Access (PIA) performed extremely well in many of our tests, and came close to out-ranking NordVPN. If you need an affordable no-logs VPN, then PIA is probably for you.
You can use any of its 18,651 servers with complete confidence your IP address and browsing activity aren’t monitored or linked back to you — all for just $2.03 per month.
While PIA’s apps aren’t quite as well-designed as ExpressVPN’s, and it’s less suited for streaming on Smart TVs, it remains an excellent budget VPN that’s worth considering.
Video Review
No-logs VPN Excellent for Torrenting
There are very few verified no-logs VPNs on the market, but PIA is one of them.
Thanks to its strict no-logs policy and powerful security, Private Internet Access easily outperformed its rivals for anonymous torrenting.
We tested PIA with multiple torrenting clients, including qBittorrent.
We were even able to torrent on all of PIA’s servers, including US ones. This is refreshing, considering many VPNs often exclude servers from P2P activity for dubious reasons.
And unlike most VPNs, PIA also comes with port forwarding. This feature is useful to increase the number of peers you ‘talk with,’ which speeds up torrent speeds.
Using qBittorrent, we downloaded a file at a rate of 9.6MiB/s — a formidable download speed even faster than ExpressVPN and NordVPN.
Offering the largest pool of American IP addresses allows PIA’s American users to easily bypass sports blackouts or access local TV news within the US.
Usability Needs Improvements
While PIA’s privacy and torrenting test results are unrivalled, and its subscription price very appealing, its usability needs work.
Simply put, PIA is not as nicely designed as ExpressVPN, and it’s not the easiest VPN to use. There are too many settings to tinker with for the typical VPN beginner.
The macOS software in particular was frustrating to use, taking over three seconds to load as a windowed app.
More usability woes included 75% of US server locations not working with streaming apps on Firestick, and the Smart DNS solution unblocking none.
On the plus side, PIA’s mobile apps are probably the nicest-looking and easiest to use in its arsenal.
Affordable price of $1.99 on a two-year subscription plan
Unlimited device connections
Kill switch not enabled by default & leaks on macOS
No IPv6 leak protection
NoBorders mode is disappointing
Slower than ExpressVPN & NordVPN
Pricing Plans
$15.45/mo
$2.99/mo over 16 months
$1.99/mo over 28 months
Servers
3,200
Compatible with
Windows
Mac
iOS
Android
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Android TV
Apple TV
Router
Chrome
Surfshark challenges the best VPNs, and for a low monthly price of $1.99 on a two-year plan.
Despite its affordability, the VPN has outstanding security credentials, an audited no-logs policy, and numerous features such as GPS spoofing, multi-hop servers, and rotating IP addresses.
We found Surfshark’s apps intuitive to use, too. Choosing from its 100 server locations, changing protocols, and customizing security settings was all straightforward to do.
But, using Surfshark has its drawbacks. It’s slower on long-distance connections, it sometimes suffers IPv6 leaks, and its kill switch isn’t activated by default, which is an oversight.
Video Review
Many Settings for Added Security & Privacy
Surshark is very secure, offering many of the essential security features we expect from high-quality VPN providers.
All its applications use ChaCha20 encryption, WireGuard as the default protocol, and include a VPN kill switch.
Of slight concern is the fact that the kill switch isn’t enabled by default. At least, you can easily turn it on from the settings menu. On macOS, the kill switch leaked our IP address when changing servers.
On the plus side, the VPN logs almost nothing about its users. Similarly to ExpressVPN, Surfshark’s servers are RAM-only, meaning no data can be extracted from them in the event of a breach or server seizure.
Additionally, Surfshark has introduced a ‘Rotating IP’ feature. When enabled, the VPN changes your IP address every five to 10 minutes without changing the server location you’re connected to.
The Rotating IP function, which worked smoothly for us, further increases your anonymity and security online without ever revealing your true location.
Rare Ability to Spoof GPS Data
What is rare about Surfshark is its ability to spoof your GPS location on Android phones. Windscribe is the only other VPN able to do this.
The ‘GPS Override’ function prevents Android mobile applications using GPS to detect your real location. It’s very simple to use, and works as intended.
You can override your GPS location with Surfshark VPN.
When activated, the integrated function spoofed our GPS coordinates on our Android mobile device to match our VPN server location.
This helps Surfshark bypass geo-restrictions on apps using GPS to detect your location, like ESPN+. Not even ExpressVPN or NordVPN offer this technology.
Slow Server Connections and Moderate Speeds
The issues we faced testing Surfshark revolve around its disappointing server connection times and speeds.
We often found ourselves waiting several seconds trying to connect to popular servers. Once connected, the speeds weren’t as fast as ExpressVPN’s or NordVPN’s.
On short-distance connections, our internet speed dropped by 5%. This isn’t bad by any means, but it’s worse than ExpressVPN’s 3%.
Kill switch not enabled by default & leaks on macOS
Kill switch on Fire TV is hosted on separate app
No browser extensions, Smart DNS or router app
Pricing Plans
$12.99/mo
$2.79/mo over 12 months
$2.19/mo over 24 months
Servers
2,200
Compatible with
Windows
Mac
iOS
Android
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Android TV
Apple TV
Router
Chrome
IPVanish’s unique selling point is its VPN app for Fire TV Stick. It’s fast and doesn’t keep streaming logs.
By virtue of its robust security and no-logs privacy policy, IPVanish is also particularly suitable for anonymous streaming using Kodi and IPTV apps.
IPVanish would rank higher on our list if it wasn’t for two key shortcomings: its unblocking deficiencies and underwhelming ease-of-use.
Video Review
A Great Fire TV Application
IPVanish remains our highest-rated VPN for the very popular Amazon Fire TV Stick, and other Fire TV devices.
The app is very simple to use, and it records fast speeds connecting to nearby VPN servers. In recent tests, we only registered a 5% loss in our download speeds.
The main downside of using IPVanish is that it can only unblock 4 Netflix regions, and it doesn’t work with Amazon Prime Video.
Zero-Logs Servers & 40,000 IP Addresses
While IPVanish struggles to unblock streaming apps, we trust it a lot more for keeping internet data transfers private.
All 2,200 physical servers, entirely owned by IPVanish, are completely no-logs. They don’t monitor or store any of your internet activity.
What’s more, you’ll get access to over 40,000 anonymous IP addresses – a staggering number very rare among VPN companies.
In our security tests, we’ve never suffered an IP or DNS address leak using IPVanish, unless we were switching servers on the Mac app. The company needs to fix this small yet important issue.
Additionally, IPVanish needs to rectify the fact that the VPN kill switch isn’t enabled by default.
Device Compatibility Is an Issue
IPVanish’s Fire TV software works great but in general the service’s apps, especially those for desktop computers, suffer from an out-dated design.
Despite a redesign in 2023, the Windows and macOS apps still don’t look as pleasant and user-friendly as ExpressVPN’s.
There’s a lot of clutter on the homescreens such as a very prominent data waveform, which isn’t particularly useful and takes up a lot of space.
IPVanish’s macOS app (bottom) now uses the same design as Windows.
More frustrating is the fact there are no web browser extensions, Smart DNS, or a router app. The latter two omissions complicate unblocking content on Roku and games consoles considerably.
Not all is bad, though. We love that IPVanish was one of the first VPNs to release a rare app for Apple TV.
There’s also an apk file you can use to side load IPVanish on Android devices with no access to Google Play Store (e.g. Android boxes).
Free version doesn't unblock any streaming services
Free plan doesn't let you choose server location
Torrenting traffic blocked on free servers
Pricing Plans
$9.99/mo
$5.99/mo over 12 months
$4.99/mo over 24 months
Servers
6,587
Compatible with
Windows
Mac
iOS
Android
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Android TV
Apple TV
Router
Chrome
Proton VPN is a well-rounded service, with both a free and paid version. The free software is the best free VPN we’ve reviewed, while the paid version is particularly good for security.
While the paid product is expensive, the free version offers outstanding value: it’s 100% safe to use, extremely fast, and with no data restrictions. It doesn’t work with Netflix or torrenting, though.
Video Review
Our Most Highly-Rated Free VPN
The free version of Proton VPN is the best free VPN we’ve tested. Thanks to its unlimited bandwidth policy, you can leave it running all the time.
In our latest tests, we recorded impressive speeds connecting to all 5 free server locations. With just 8% average speed loss, it even beats some paid VPNs.
Proton VPN Free doesn’t let you choose a server location, instead you’re connected to your nearest free server.
However, we found 5 free server locations extremely limiting, compared to 112 using the paid plan.
Proton VPN Free also doesn’t let you choose a server location. We were disappointed to find you’re automatically connected to your nearest free server from the US, the Netherlands, Japan, Romania, or Poland.
The free servers also block you from torrenting and unblocking streaming websites, as confirmed by our tests. For these activities, Windscribe Free is a much better choice.
Exemplary Encryption & Security Settings
Proton VPN is synonymous with highly-secure and encrypted VPN connections.
You have the choice of using either OpenVPN or WireGuard protocols (hence AES-256 or ChaCha20 encryption), and it enforces Forward Secrecy (FS).
The VPN’s paid plan also includes Secure Core technology. Used on 40 of its servers, it further enhances security by tunneling traffic through servers in its own data center.
None of these security credentials impact Proton VPN’s usability, either. We found that the VPN’s apps look great on every platform, and even its most advanced features feel easy to use.
Proton VPN’s Secure Core servers in the iOS app.
Speeds Have Slowed Down
Though it’s still fast, the paid version of Proton VPN has fallen behind its main rivals in our latest speed tests.
Even using WireGuard, its local download speeds are consistently slower than ExpressVPN, NordVPN, PIA, IPVanish, and several other providers.
We’ve noticed speed deceleration connecting to both nearby and distant VPN servers. It’s unclear what’s caused this downtrend, but it’s affecting the VPN’s performance.
While Proton VPN is a very good VPN in general, it sadly doesn’t represent as good value for your money as the other paid VPNs ranked higher.
Trials don't require payment or credit card details
Has the most effective Smart DNS tool
Neatly-designed apps for popular devices
Dedicated IPs available in various countries
Rare 45-day money-back guarantee
Not as fast as its rivals over long distances
Browser extensions only cover four countries
Mobile & macOS apps lack important settings
BBC iPlayer & HBO Max servers are unreliable
Pricing Plans
$12.99/mo
$6.99/mo over 6 months
$2.03/mo over 28 months
Servers
12,000
Compatible with
Windows
Mac
iOS
Android
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Android TV
Apple TV
Router
Chrome
CyberGhost offers an excellent VPN free trial, allowing you to try a quality paid VPN without submitting any payment details.
In general, CyberGhost is a very good all-round VPN that does the basics very well. It’s very easy to use and has been designed with user experience in mind.
The VPN has improved significantly in terms of access to geo-blocked services, and its Smart DNS tool is particularly good since it’s the only one to unblock apps in countries like the Netherlands and Japan.
Areas for improvement remain, though. In particular, we’ve found CyberGhost’s speeds to be inconsistent and on the slower side connecting internationally, compared to other top VPNs.
Video Review
Genuine Free Trials with No Payment Details Needed
CyberGhost is the only top VPN to offer VPN free trials that don’t require upfront submission of payment details.
There are two free trials available: a 24-hour free trial on desktops and laptops, a seven-day free trial on iPhone/iPad, and a three-day trial on Android devices.
You can even combine these free trial periods with the VPN’s 45-day refund guarantee to use CyberGhost for free for over 50 days.
Much Improved for Streaming
CyberGhost’s dedicated streaming servers are a lot more successful at unblocking streaming platforms than in the past.
CyberGhost’s past inconsistencies are now gone and it now unblocks all streaming services we tested it with, including 10 Netflix regions, Disney+, Prime Video, and Hulu.
The service’s Smart DNS tool is what really stood out in our tests, though.
In our experience, it’s the most effective DNS tool offered by a VPN, unblocking content in Germany, Japan, Netherlands, UK and US.
The tool even has specific configurations for Hulu as well as the American and British Netflix libraries.
Dedicated IPs that Don't Compromise Your Privacy
CyberGhost’s features aren’t quite as plentiful as PIA’s or NordVPN’s, but they are sufficient for the average VPN user.
CyberGhost’s apps for Windows (top) and macOS (bottom) are virtually identical.
The most notable feature is the VPN’s dedicated IP offering. These single-user static IPs are available in Canada, France, Germany, the UK, and the US, but the cost extra.
These IPs allow you to use the same anonymous IP address every time. Thanks to a token-based system, the IP isn’t linked to your account to preserve your internet privacy.
Underwhelming International Speeds
One of CyberGhost’s main drawbacks is its speed inconsistencies, especially connecting to far-away servers.
We tested CyberGhost’s VPN speeds on our own dedicated server.
CyberGhost’s international download speed of 81Mbps trails ExpressVPN’s 85Mbps and NordVPN’s 86Mbps by some margin.
International slowdowns have been happening for a few years now, but we haven’t seen much improvement on this front, sadly.
Still works in China & other highly-censored countries
Small network of 200 servers
Slower speeds on long-distance connections
No WireGuard protocol or Smart DNS tool
Logging policy lacks important details
No RAM-only servers, multi-hop & other advanced features
Pricing Plans
$9.90/mo
$6.00/mo over 3 months
$2.00/mo over 36 months
Servers
200
Compatible with
Windows
Mac
iOS
Android
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Android TV
Apple TV
Router
Chrome
PrivateVPN is an affordable, no-logs VPN with user-friendly applications that make it easy to secure your connection on free public WiFi.
This Sweden-based VPN provider is a great choice if you can’t afford one of the very best VPNs — its basic but functional apps will satisfy most beginner or casual users.
However, if you want a fully-featured VPN with plenty of server locations, advanced settings, and the fastest speeds, PrivateVPN isn’t the best VPN to choose.
Advanced WiFi Protection on Insecure Networks
PrivateVPN’s applications are not only beginner-friendly, they’re also very secure.
Through a very simple interface, the VPN software encrypts internet connections using the AES-256 cipher and a 2048-bit RSA handshake.
By combining simplicity with good security, PrivateVPN is ideal for securing free public WiFi in airports, hotels, and coffee shops, where the risk of man-in-the-middle attacks is heightened.
The lack of advanced features compared to other top VPNs is very evident, though. For example, there’s no option to use multi-hop servers or split tunneling.
PrivateVPN is also the only VPN in our top 10 list that doesn’t use some form of the WireGuard protocol.
Easily Beats Streaming Geo-Restrictions
PrivateVPN is surprisingly good at unblocking websites and applications, despite its limited server park.
The VPN currently unblocks 10 Netflix regions as well as BBC iPlayer, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and Hulu, to name a few.
At least one PrivateVPN server could stream US Netflix in our tests.
Compatibility is limited, though. There is no Smart DNS tool so you’ll have to set up PrivateVPN on your router to use it with devices like games consoles, which don’t allow direct VPN app installs.
Small Server Network & Slower International Speeds
PrivateVPN’s main drawback is its small network of servers. It only offers 200 servers compared to ExpressVPN’s 3,000.
This limited server network often causes congestion issues on the network, which is why PrivateVPN’s long-distance connections are often slower than its competitors.
As an indication, we experienced speed losses of 39% and 24% connecting to South Africa and Australia respectively.
As a result, you can’t always expect 4K quality when streaming foreign video content.
Huge improvement in speed & unblocking performance
Rare full IPv6 connection support
Dedicated & effective streaming servers
Port forwarding setting for torrenters
10 simultaneous connections
Ugly & outdated apps
Lacks user-friendliness of its rivals
Windows software is overly-complex
Kill switch isn't automatically active
Doesn't have servers in many popular countries
No Smart DNS solution
Pricing Plans
$9.95/mo
$4.57/mo over 12 months
$2.69/mo over 26 months
Servers
1,800
Compatible with
Windows
Mac
iOS
Android
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Android TV
Apple TV
Router
Chrome
Hide.me VPN has made huge strides to become a superb VPN — as long as you can get over its ugly and outdated-looking apps.
What stands out with Hide.me is the software’s ability to run smoothly on both IPv4 and IPv6 connections. This is a rare feature, with most other VPNs either blocking IPv6 connections, or leaking your IPv6 location.
Hide.me is also exceptionally fast, and it even bypasses internet restrictions inside China, Russia, and other highly-censored countries.
Video Review
Incredibly Fast & Reliable Global Speeds
Hide.me isn’t the fastest VPN we’ve tested, but it’s tied with IPVanish as the fastest VPN in our top 10 VPN recommendations.
Wherever you are in the world, Hide.me delivers VPN connections fast enough for you to not even notice you’re using a VPN.
We were especially impressed with the VPN’s upload speeds, which resulted in lag-free video calling and improved P2P file sharing in our tests.
Its download speeds on close connections are also fantastic, losing just 4% connecting to the closest VPN server.
As a result, Hide.me is a good choice if you want VPN protection without having to frequently configure it. You can simply connect once and leave your VPN running 24/7 without any noticeable downsides.
Effective at Beating Strict Censorship
In the past 12 months of testing, Hide.me’s premium version has been able to unblock international websites from China 84% of the time.
The VPN’s obfuscation and multi-hop tools now work to bypass strict web censorship, but you have request custom multi-hop servers from customer support.
We used Hide.me’s multihop feature to bypass the Great Firewall in our tests.
If you connect to standard VPN servers then the VPN won’t bypass aggressive internet filters.
Usability Remains an Issue
In terms of basic functionality, Hide.me is a good VPN. Having tested Hide.me for years, we particularly appreciate how much it has improved in recent years.
In the past, Hide.me’s apps suffered from regular crashes and abrupt disconnections, but they now offer a reliable experience.
They’re still not the best-looking apps, though, and they’re not as easy to use as we’d like them to be.
The Windows client in particular is overly-complex, with unnecessary protocols (SSTP) and adapter configuration options.
Extra features include multi-hop servers & diskless servers
Desktop apps are open-source
Both paid & free VPNs bypass web filters in China
Unlimited simultaneous connections
Doesn't always stream geo-blocked video in HD or UHD
Occasional video blurriness even on paid servers
No independent no-logs audit
No human live chat support
Smart DNS requires an additional subscription
IP addresses from fewer countries than competitors
Pricing Plans
$9.00/mo
$5.75/mo over 12 months
Servers
120+
Compatible with
Windows
Mac
iOS
Android
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Android TV
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Like Proton VPN, Windscribe comes in two versions: free and paid (known as Windscribe Pro). Windscribe Pro’s stand-out attribute is its ability to bypass streaming geo-blocks and aggressive web filters — almost without fail.
For a free VPN, Windscribe Free is great at unblocking, too. It works with many popular content platforms, and it bypasses internet filters in China.
Sadly, slow international speeds, poor server connection times, and inconsistent customer support let this otherwise great VPN down.
Video Review
Unblocks 32 Netflix Regions
What sets Windscribe apart is how easily the VPN beats Netflix geo-restrictions around the world.
In our tests, we unblocked 32 Netflix regions, including:
While the free VPN no longer unblocks US Netflix, it still works with 5 other Netflix regions, HBO Max, Hulu, and more — a huge achievement for a free software product.
Keep in mind that Windscribe Free is limited by a 10GB monthly data cap, which equates to roughly four hours of HD streaming.
Slow International Speeds & Connection Times
Windscribe’s great streaming capabilities are sadly hindered by its disappointing international speeds, which are much slower than ExpressVPN and NordVPN.
For instance, we measured losses of up to 20% and 16% when connecting to South Africa and Australia.
These slower speeds visibly affect the quality of the picture. We experienced a blurry broadcast several times in our recent tests.
Furthermore, connecting to certain Windscribe servers took many seconds at best, but many minutes at worst. Sometimes we couldn’t even connect at all.
Because of the lack of 24/7 live chat support, when we couldn’t connect to a server, we had to wait over 24 hours for a support agent to help fix issue.
To put that into perspective, with providers like ExpressVPN and PIA, our issues are typically resolved in under 10 minutes.
Residential IPs Available in the US & Canada
Windscribe is also one of the rare VPNs to offer American (Chicago, Dallas) and Canadian (Toronto) residential IPs. The US IP addresses are provided by AT&T.
Residential IP addresses make your VPN connection appear as a typical household/cellular one, so they’re far less likely to be detected and blocked by streaming services.
Since these IP addresses are static and never change, they’re ideal if you need to keep using the same IP address. They do cost an extra $8.00 per month, though.
Remember, these IPs are allocated to a handful of users (not just you), so you won’t be as private as using the dynamic IP addresses (shared by many customers) of the standard servers.
Of the 61 VPNs we’ve reviewed, many popular ones didn’t make our recommendations list for various reasons.
Many of the excluded services had their own strengths in our tests, but they struggled to compete with the best VPN software in relation to speed, server coverage, or unblocking capabilities.
Below are some of the most popular VPNs that fell short of appearing on our top 10 list:
Avast Secureline
Avast VPN offers basic security, is poor at bypassing geo-restrictions, and it logs too much sensitive data. Put simply, it does not perform well compared to the top VPN services.
Hotspot Shield
Hotspot Shield logs too much information. This includes your IP address, approximate geolocation, connection timestamps, bandwidth used, device information, and non-personal logs of the websites you visit.
Mullvad
Mullvad VPN is very secure, but it’s not able to bypass geo-restrictions. It doesn’t unblock most streaming platforms, and it doesn’t work in high-censorship countries.
Norton Secure VPN
Norton VPN doesn’t unblock geo-restricted websites, and it only allows torrenting on its server locations in the Netherlands.
PureVPN
PureVPN can’t unblock US Netflix, Disney+ or Prime Video, it can’t bypass strict web blocks, and its logging policy isn’t privacy-focused enough.
TunnelBear
TunnelBear has a very limited server network and it can’t beat most geo-restrictions. This means it doesn’t work well for streaming or for use in high-censorship countries.
VPNs by Purpose & Device
We rate our recommended VPN services extremely highly, but the truth is there is no definitive ‘best VPN’. The right VPN depends on your specific needs and requirements.
Follow the links below to see our recommendations by purpose, device or country.
Streaming & Gaming
See our chosen VPNs for unblocking geo-blocked streaming and gaming content on popular platforms.
We conducted all tests in a consistent environment to minimize external influences and ensure that our recommendations are both fair and directly comparable.
Below is a more detailed breakdown of each testing category and its weighting towards the overall rating:
1. Privacy (20%)
Test Conducted: We read and analyzed each VPN’s privacy policy and noted which data points it logs about its users and for how long they retain it. We also assessed the VPN’s ownership and history, and tested its privacy-enhancing features.
Why It’s Important: To ensure your data is protected and that the VPN provider isn’t collecting or selling sensitive information.
Optimal Result: No-logs policy verified through independent audits and a real-world test, alongside diskless VPN servers that have a proven track record of safeguarding user data.
We manually read every VPN’s logging policy and run it through our ratings calculator.
2. Streaming (15%)
Test Conducted: We connected to servers around the world and attempted to access over 100 different streaming services, including Netflix, Max, Disney+, and BBC iPlayer. These tests are always ongoing to assess the VPN’s reliability.
Why It’s Important: This is essential for accessing geo-restricted streaming content from anywhere in the world.
Optimal Result: Consistently unblocks all major streaming services with reliable performance.
We test every VPN with all the popular streaming services monthly, to ensure our data is always up-to-date.
3. Speed (15%)
Test Conducted: We connected to the VPN’s servers in locations around the world and measured its download speed, upload speed, and ping.
Why It’s Important: Fast speeds allow for a seamless experience for many web activities, including streaming, gaming, and downloading files.
Optimal Result: Less than 10% speed reduction when connected to any server location with the availability of WireGuard or a proprietary VPN protocol.
We used our proprietary speed test tool to record each VPN’s speeds.
4. Security (15%)
Test Conducted: We used packet-sniffing software and leak test tools to assess each security feature including encryption protocols, kill switch, and DNS leak protection.
Why It’s Important: Fast speeds allow for a seamless experience for many web activities, including streaming, gaming, and downloading files.
Optimal Result: Less than 10% speed reduction when connected to any server location with the availability of WireGuard or a proprietary VPN protocol.
We used Wireshark to verify each VPN was actually encrypting our traffic.
5. Server Locations (10%)
Test Conducted: We analyzed the server locations listed on each VPN’s website, then verified these claims by testing every available location in the VPN software.
Why It’s Important: A wider range of server locations lets you get an IP address from a wider range of countries, bypass more geo-restrictions, and connect to a server closers to your physical location.
Optimal Result: Over 100 countries with servers with multiple city-level options and 1,000+ total servers, all verified through our testing.
We check the VPN service’s website and directly in its apps to assess the server locations available.
6. User Experience (10%)
Test Conducted: We downloaded each VPN from scratch and evaluated the download process, setup experience, its app design, and how it felt to use in everyday situations.
Why It’s Important: To allow you to use the VPN often, regardless of your previous experience with VPNs or similar software.
Optimal Result: Simple download process, quick and easy onboarding, automatic server selection, consistent cross-platform interface, and minimal connection disruptions.
We use every VPN app hands-on and record our experiences.
7. Torrenting (5%)
Test Conducted: We performed standardized tests by downloading a self-hosted 1GB torrent file from a private tracker while connected to each VPN’s local servers.
Why It’s Important: You need both fast speeds and complete privacy while torrenting to prevent your ISP or anyone else in the torrent swarm from monitoring your P2P activity or seeing your real IP address.
Optimal Result: Fast P2P speeds so you can download the file as quickly as without a VPN, strong encryption, port forwarding, and a no-logs privacy policy.
Our torrenting tests are as controlled as possible, using the same 1GB file for each test.
8. Device Compatibility (5%)
Test Conducted: We installed any available VPN apps to ensure they worked properly. We also checked for browser extensions and a Smart DNS tool.
Why It’s Important: To ensure you can use the VPN on as many platforms as possible.
Optimal Result: User-friendly apps for mobile, desktop, streaming devices, and router. Plus, a Smart DNS tool included within the base subscription.
We check the VPN’s entire suite of apps and compatibility options.
9. Additional Features (5%)
Test Conducted: We checked for extra features like split tunneling and 24/7 live chat and documented our experience of using them.
Why It’s Important: To accommodate your specific reasons for using a VPN, like bypassing censorship or blocking ads.
Optimal Result: A variety of useful VPN features, responsive customer support, and effective anti-censorship capabilities.
We test whether a VPN bypasses the Great Firewall by remotely connecting to a PC in China.
FAQs
What Is a VPN and How Does It Work?
A VPN (virtual private network) service is a program that gives its users access to proxy servers in order to bypass internet geo-blocks.
In essence, a VPN serves two main functions: to hide your public IP address and encrypt your internet traffic.
VPN software forms an encrypted connection between your device and the websites and applications you use. It does this by connecting to a secure VPN server.
When you connect to a VPN server, your public IP address is replaced with the server’s IP address. This can make it appear as if you’re browsing from a different city or country.
Encrypting your data transfers and changing your IP address significantly improves your internet privacy, security and freedom.
How Do I Set Up and Use a VPN?
The process of setting up a VPN depends on the device you’re using it with.
To set up a VPN on a computer or smartphone, simply sign up to the VPN service on its website and use the download link to install the software on your device. Then, sign in to the application with your account details and you can begin to use the VPN.
To use a VPN on Fire TV devices, subscribe to a VPN with a Fire OS application and then search the Amazon App Store for the app. Install the app on your device, sign in with your account details, and then launch the application to start using it.
To use a VPN on devices like Apple TV and games consoles, you’ll need to subscribe to a VPN service with Smart DNS functionality. Once you’ve done so, use the DNS credentials provided by the VPN and then update your device’s DNS settings accordingly to start unblocking content.
Are VPNs Legal?
VPNs are legal in most countries, including the US, UK, Canada and Australia.
However, VPNs are illegal in Belarus, Iraq, North Korea and Turkmenistan. There are also government restrictions on VPN usage in China, Iran, Oman, Russia, Turkey, and the UAE — although they’re not banned completely.
Are VPNs Safe?
VPN software itself is completely safe to use. In fact, VPNs are actually designed to make using the internet even safer.
The problem is not all VPNs are trustworthy. When you connect to a VPN server, the responsibility for your data shifts from your ISP to the VPN company.
You’re trusting that the company’s claims about its logging policy are honest, and that the VPN itself truly encrypts your data and hides your IP address without leaks.
That’s why it’s so important to carefully research which VPN to choose, and to prioritize services with verified strong security measures and private logging policies.
Many free VPNs, for example, put users at greater risk than using no VPN at all. Some popular free services sell user data to third parties, leak your true IP address, and even make you vulnerable to malware.
Finally, even if you’re using a safe VPN, it’s your responsibility to ensure your activity doesn’t break laws or regulations in your jurisdiction.
What Is the Fastest VPN?
Based on our recent speed tests, the fastest VPN service is Hotspot Shield, with an incredible internet speed loss of just 99Mbps across short and long-distance connections.
The VPN that comes closest to Hotspot Shield right now is IPVanish with an overall speed loss of 88Mbps.
Is It Worth Paying for a VPN?
Free VPNs come in a wide spectrum of quality, just like all VPN software. Some free VPNs are perfectly safe and capable of encrypting your data and hiding your IP address. However, even the best free VPNs are limited by data caps, slower speeds, torrenting restrictions, and inferior streaming capabilities.
It costs money to support a server network, maintain strong security, and constantly refresh IP addresses. Due to the extensive resources required, it simply isn’t possible to match premium VPN services completely for free.
While you can get some of the benefits of VPN software with a free service, it’s absolutely worth paying for a VPN subscription, especially if you plan to use one for bypassing streaming geo-restrictions, torrenting, or handling sensitive data.
What Are the Limitations of VPNs?
VPN services are great for improving your online security, privacy, and freedom. But even the best VPNs come with limitations.
Below are some things that VPN software can’t do:
Provide complete virus and malware protection. Always use trusted antivirus software, even if your VPN has a malware-blocking tool.
Store all your passwords securely. Some VPNs now offer password managers, but we suggest using established ones like 1Password.
Increase your internet speed. The only exception is if your ISP is throttling your connection.
Block ads. Some VPNs come with an ad-blocker. If yours doesn’t, it’s worth getting one. We recommend uBlock Origin.
Make you completely anonymous. VPNs can improve your privacy, but they can’t make you completely anonymous. There are other ways to track your activity online including browser fingerprinting, tracking scripts, and traffic analysis.