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How to Get Proton VPN Plus for Free
Callum Tennent
Callum Tennent oversees how we test and review VPN services. He's a member of the IAPP, and his VPN advice has featured in Forbes and the Internet Society. Read full bio
Proton VPN used to offer a 7-day free trial of its premium service, Proton VPN Plus. However, this ended in 2021. Since then, the only way to get Proton VPN premium for free is to claim its 100% refund guarantee. This enables you to use Proton VPN Plus risk-free for 30 days.
Alternatively, you can download Proton VPN Free. You don’t need any payment details to use it, but it’s inferior to the premium version. It only offers 5 server locations, you cannot use it to torrent, and it doesn’t unblock many streaming sites.
In this guide, we show you all the ways to get Proton VPN for free, and what to avoid when claiming your money-back.
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How to Get Proton VPN for Free for 30 Days
Since Proton VPN stopped its genuine free trial, the only way to use Proton VPN Plus or Proton VPN Unlimited for free is to use its 30-day money-back guarantee offer.
You can follow these simple steps to subscribe and claim your refund, risk-free:
1. Subscribe to Proton VPN via the Proton VPN Website
You need to sign up via Proton VPN’s official website to be eligible for its refund policy. If you sign up through an app store, you may not be eligible for its money-back guarantee.
We recommend you choose the one-month plan so you pay less at sign up. If you do forget to cancel, this will also minimize your loss.
Furthermore, do not pay via cash or bank transfer as these are not refundable. We recommend using your usual debit or credit card.
2. Install Proton VPN and Log In
You can now download Proton VPN to a device of your choice and login with the account you created. You’ll now be able to use Proton VPN Plus without restrictions.
Proton VPN’s Secure Core servers setting in the iOS app.
3. Cancel Your Subscription & Get a Full Refund
To cancel your subscription, either contact Proton VPN’s support team using the online form or customer live chat support in the Proton VPN account page. Simply tell them that you’d like a refund within 30 days of signing up.
To get the most from your trial period, cancel your Proton VPN subscription as close as possible to the 30-day expiration date.
In Proton VPNs’s terms and conditions, it describes only offering refunds for “any unused portion of the service period.” This might lead you to think that you’d only get a partial refund. However, after challenging Proton VPN about this, we were reassured that it’s a guaranteed full refund:
We asked Proton VPN to clarify its refund policy.
After your refund request has been submitted, your money will return to you via the original payment method within 30 days.
It’s important to know that you can only claim a refund once. To do so again, you’ll have to use a different email and create a new account.
How to Use Proton VPN Completely for Free
You can get Proton VPN for free by downloading its 100% free version, called Proton VPN Free.
Proton VPN Free is actually our top-rated free VPN because it successfully hides your IP address, securely encrypts your web traffic, and it doesn’t have a data cap, so you can use it indefinitely. It’s safe, private, and useful for getting the feel of Proton VPN Plus.
However, because it’s designed to encourage subscriptions, Proton imposes several restrictions on its free version. For example, you can no longer connect to a server location of your choosing. Instead, Proton automatically connects you to the nearest free server of its 5 locations. It also doesn’t work to unblock streaming sites, such as Max, Hulu, YouTube TV, and Netflix. You cannot torrent with it, either.
Click Get Proton VPN Free. This can be found in the bottom right corner of the subscription plans.
Create a Proton VPN account. You only need to insert an email. You won’t need to insert any payment details.
Install and login to the app using the email you entered. You’ll now be able to use Proton VPN Free.
Proton VPN Free offers servers in 5 countries: the US, Japan, Netherlands, Romania, Poland.
Proton VPN Plus vs Proton VPN Free
There are two ways to get Proton VPN for free, so it’s useful to compare what’s on offer. You can do so in the table below:
Feature
Proton VPN Plus
Proton VPN Free
Duration of Free Service
30 Days
Unlimited
Data Cap
None
None
Server Network
112 countries
5 countries
International Speed
84Mbps
85Mbps
Streaming
Yes
No
Torrenting
Yes
No
Simultaneous Connections
10
1
Encryption
AES-256
AES-256
Advanced Features
Secure Core, NetShield
None
FAQs
Does Proton VPN Offer a Genuine Free Trial?
Proton VPN no longer offers a genuine free trial of its paid service.
Previously, you could trial the paid version for 7 days. But like many other VPN services, Proton VPN stopped its free trial to prevent abuse of its premium servers and features.
According to Proton VPN, it faced issues with users signing up to multiple free trial accounts, which affected server performance and speeds for its paid customers.
The only way to get Proton VPN for free is to use its free version or get your money-back within 30 days of subscribing.
How Much Does Proton VPN Cost?
Proton VPN has two premium subscription tiers: Plus and Unlimited.
Proton VPN Plus is the full premium VPN service, which costs $4.99 on its best price long-term offer. For a month, ProtonVPN Plus costs $9.99.
Proton VPN Unlimited is the full VPN alongside Proton’s Mail, Calendar, and Drive services. This costs $7.99 per month on a 2-year plan or $12.99 per month.