Choosing the best VPN can feel daunting, but there are a few key things to keep in mind. We look for security protocols, encryption levels and development teams that prioritize making improvements over time.
CyberGhost is a long-time favorite thanks to its solid connection speeds and torrent-friendly servers. It also offers an easy-to-use app and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Speed
Many VPNs slow down your internet connection slightly because they encrypt and route data through a server before sending it to websites, apps and services. Casual users with faster internet connections won’t notice much — or any — speed loss, but for gamers, 4K video streaming and working from home, it matters. We look for VPNs with minimal speed loss, enough encryption to ensure your privacy and essential security features like DNS leak protection and a kill switch. In addition, a few VPN providers offer proprietary VPN protocols that can offer faster speeds than traditional OpenVPN or other common VPN protocols.
PIA is one of the best VPNs for speed, delivering consistently fast connection speeds in our tests. It also offers a no-logs policy, strong encryption and robust security features including a kill switch, split tunneling for using apps without a VPN and obfuscated servers that make it harder for apps to detect the presence of a VPN. You can connect up to five devices at a time with this provider, which offers apps for Windows, MacOS, iOS and Android.
Security
A virtual private network (VPN) encrypts your data and masks your location so that websites and other online services can’t see where you are or what you do. A VPN is especially important for people who use public Wi-Fi networks and may be exposed to snooping from other users on the same network.
A good VPN also adheres to strict encryption and no-logs standards, ensuring that it doesn’t retain any information about your activity. It also should have minimal impact on your Internet connection speeds.
PIA stands out as one of our top picks for its privacy features, including split tunneling that allows you to choose which apps run through the VPN and obfuscation servers that make it harder for ISPs and other services to identify when you’re using a VPN. The service also offers a kill switch, 256-bit encryption and diskless RAM servers that keep no data in memory when not in use. Unlike some other services, it also doesn’t log or sell your data.
Privacy
Privacy is the ability to control who can see what you do online, and VPNs help with that. The best VPNs offer simple, easy-to-use apps that make it possible to keep your online activities private and untracked. They can also thwart invasive tracking practices like web-site and social media app tracking. People with critical privacy needs should look for a best v2ray vpn that offers features like obfuscation and Tor over VPN (for additional encryption using the Tor network).
ExpressVPN is one of our top picks for privacy, offering unmatched transparency and an outstanding security policy. Its diskless servers run everything in RAM for maximum data protection and its Lightway protocol offers reliable speeds with post-quantum security, cleanly balancing performance and privacy. It also allows up to 10 simultaneous connections, a feature many of its competitors don’t offer. Its only shortcoming is a somewhat limited number of server locations. Other services, however, offer similar or better performance for lower prices.
Reliability
PIA’s privacy suite is solid, offering a kill switch, split tunneling for obfuscating specific apps and 256-bit encryption. It doesn’t have as many country locations or fast download speeds as its pricier rivals, but it does offer a Windows client that has been redesigned to make tweaking settings easy.
NordVPN is a robust service that offers a variety of useful features including a password manager, malware scanning and encrypted cloud storage. Its basic plan includes multiple simultaneous connections, while higher-tier plans add on services such as email breach monitoring and cyber insurance.
Mullvad is an excellent VPN option for power users, but its simple interface and limited toolkit makes it a bit harder to use than other options on this list. However, it’s a great choice for anyone concerned about their online security and privacy who wants to feel comfortable entrusting their data to a company that operates in the US. It also recently dumped its email-based identifiers in favor of randomly assigned account numbers and supports several payment methods for additional privacy.
