These VPNs Can Help Improve Your Online Privacy (2024)

StrongVPN blasts onto our list with excellent infrastructure and a decent price. StrongVPN has a strong no-logging policy and picks up kudos for its large base of IP addresses. It has a solid collection of servers and worldwide locations. For those of you who need a dedicated IP, you can get one from the company but you'll need to contact customer support to get help setting it up.

One of StrongVPN's strengths is the company's network. It owns and operates its entire network infrastructure, which means it has no externally dictated limits on bandwidth or the type of internet traffic allowed on the network.

StrongVPN's regular monthly price of $10.99 is in the middle of the pack, but its regular yearly price of $80 is among the lowest of our contenders.

Our hands-on testing and review process is designed to cut through that hype. When we look at each VPN service, we're not just examining them for their technical weaknesses, but we're also scrutinizing their individual performance strengths. We want to know what each service does best. We test each VPN across over 20 factors, and we're continuallyimproving our methodologyas we learn more.

We test VPNs for browsing and streaming speed in multiple countries, as well as their connection stability and even the smallest potential privacy leaks. By testing across multiple devices and platforms, we're able to assess which VPNs are best for gaming versus those best for streaming, torrenting or sharing sensitive information. Most importantly, we focus on doing the deep-dive research necessary to vet each VPN's historical credibility and itsownership in a notoriously murky market.

The VPNs on this list earn our recommendation for more than just boosting their digital privacy strengths -- they enable easy streaming to overcome geo-blocked media, have torrenting-friendly servers, and are fast enough to support gaming globally. Based on those continued evaluations, you'll see a few bullet points on each entry in our list, highlighting each VPN's strengths and the uses we recommend it for most. And because we strive to keep on top of a fast-changing market, you'll notice that the rank of each VPN service changes as we learn more and retest.

This table shows the speeds we experienced in our testing. Your speeds will vary depending on factors like your internet service plan and connection type. The percentage of speed lost is intended as a general indicator of how much the VPN slows down your connection -- lower numbers represent a faster overall connection.

Picking a VPN requires knowing two basic things to start with: What you want to use it for, and what you're willing to pay. The range of VPN offerings is vast, but those two things will help you find a VPN that has the right blend of speed, security and cost.

Below, you'll find specific FAQ sections on picking a VPN based on the most common needs: gaming, streaming media, working from home andprivacy-criticalprofessions. In general, you'll want a VPN that provides sufficient encryption, doesn't log your activity, offers essential security features like DNS leak protection and a kill switch, has server locations where you need them and can give you fast connection speeds. Our top five VPNs have all these features, although connection speeds will vary based on your internet provider and the server you connect to.

For a deeper dive, check our detailed walk-through ofhow we evaluate and review VPNs. If you're looking for some quick pointers, here are universally applicable advice guides for beginners:

Don't use free VPN services: With the exception of Proton, you'll find only paid VPN options on this list above because they're the only ones we can recommend.

Look for a no-logs VPN, but understand the caveats: The best VPNs keep as few logs as possible and make them as anonymous as possible, so there's little data to provide should authorities come knocking. Even "no-logs" VPNs aren't 100% anonymous.

There are limits to the privacy VPNs currently provide to iOS users: Recent independentresearch has surfacedsuggesting iPhones and iPads running iOS 14 or later may be vulnerable to device-only VPN leaks, regardless of which VPN is used. Apple users concerned with potential leaks can take extra precautions by installing their VPN on a home router to ensure their entire Wi-Fi network is encrypted. Some iOS users may potentially reduce the likelihood of leaks while outside of a home network by enabling their VPN's kill switch and selecting OpenVPN protocols. You can also try closing all apps, activating your VPN, and then enabling and disabling Airplane Mode before using your device normally. Apple advises users to activate their device'sAlways On VPNprofile for additional protection.

VPN transparency is important, but warrant canaries are only the beginning: Many services use "warrant canaries" to passively note to the public whether or not they've been subpoenaed by a government entity. This is because many investigations from national security agencies can't be actively disclosed by law. Like the no-logging issue -- warrant canaries aren't always as straightforward as they seem. You should spend more time investigating whether your prospective VPN has cooperated with authorities in the past, and how and when it's disclosed that fact.

Think twice about using a US-based VPN: The Patriot Act is still the law of the land in the US, and that means US-based VPNs have little recourse if and when the feds show up with subpoenas ornational security lettersin hand demanding access to servers, VPN user accounts or other data. Yes, they may have little data to access if the service has a strong no-logs policy, but why not just choose a service that's based outside Uncle Sam's jurisdiction? (If this is a concern for you, you'll also want to avoid countries with which the US has intelligence-sharing agreements.)

These VPNs Can Help Improve Your Online Privacy (2024)

FAQs

How does a VPN improve privacy? ›

A VPN works by establishing encrypted connections between devices. (VPNs often use the IPsec or SSL/TLS encryption protocols.) All devices that connect to the VPN set up encryption keys, and these keys are used to encode and decode all information sent between them.

Is using a VPN enough for privacy? ›

While they will protect your IP and encrypt your internet history, but that is as much as they can do. They won't keep you safe, for instance, if you visit phishing websites or download compromised files. When you use a VPN, you are still at risk of: Trojans.

How can a VPN protect you when you're online your answer? ›

A virtual private network secures your internet traffic by sending it through an encrypted VPN tunnel, which makes the data unreadable. VPN encryption is one of the most effective defenses against hackers because encrypted traffic is more difficult to intercept.

What is a VPN good for? ›

A VPN protects its users by encrypting their data and masking their IP address, leaving their browsing history and location untraceable. This greater anonymity allows for greater privacy, as well as greater freedom for those who wish to access blocked or region-bound content.

Does a VPN actually protect you on public Wi-Fi? ›

Yes, a VPN protects your internet traffic on public Wi-Fi. If anyone were to try and snoop on your web traffic or access your device on unsecured networks, they would need to break through a layer of encryption. That's why we always recommend a VPN for those who like to frequently use public Wi-Fi.

What is a VPN and how does it work? ›

The VPN acts as an intermediary between the user getting online and connecting to the internet by hiding their IP address. Using a VPN creates a private, encrypted tunnel through which a user's device can access the internet while hiding their personal information, location, and other data.

Is it illegal to use VPN? ›

Are VPNs legal to use? Yes, VPNs are legal in most countries around the world, including the US, Canada, and most of Europe. However, you might risk heavy fines or even imprisonment for using a VPN in a country that bans it, for example, North Korea or Iraq.

Can you trust a VPN? ›

As I covered in the introduction to this article, VPNs are safe to use. The technical process of rerouting your connection through a reputable provider's server won't put you at risk. In the vast majority of territories, using a VPN isn't against the law in any way, so it's “safe” in this crucial, legal sense.

How much privacy does a VPN give you? ›

The VPN software encrypts your online connections. That makes it impossible for anyone to see what you do. The ISP can tell you're using a different IP address from the one it assigned you and figure out you're using a VPN. It can't monitor what you're up to online, though.

Can VPN see what I'm doing? ›

Final thoughts. Any VPN service can monitor your browsing history, but reputable ones won't and will ensure they have no logs of your browsing history that could be handed over to third parties. That way, if they receive a court order to share information, it's impossible for them to comply.

What does a VPN not hide? ›

Though using a VPN hides your search history from your ISP and third parties, it doesn't hide it from the websites you visit. Search engines like Google or Bing can still see, track, and log your search queries if you're logged in — even if you're using a VPN.

Can VPN be tracked by police? ›

Whether police can track VPN traffic is a common concern among users seeking online privacy. The truth is: the police can't monitor encrypted VPN traffic. However, they can ask your Internet Service Provider (ISP) to provide connection or usage logs through a court order, which can lead them to your VPN provider.

Do we really need VPN? ›

VPN use is important for online privacy whenever you're logging into the internet from a public spot because cyber snoops could track your online activity when you are using public Wi-Fi, whether it's on your computer or your mobile device.

Which is the safest VPN? ›

The best secure VPN services in 2024
  • NordVPN. The best all-in-one security suite. ...
  • ExpressVPN. An audited no-logs policy and sleek apps. ...
  • Private Internet Access (PIA) My top pick for Linux with a full stack of security tools. ...
  • Proton VPN. A privacy-focused provider that you can try for free. ...
  • Surfshark.
Mar 20, 2024

What are the pros and cons of VPN? ›

A VPN is an effective tool to enhance online security and privacy, access geo-restricted content, and protect against cyber attacks. The use of a VPN can result in slower internet speeds, compatibility issues with certain devices, and premium services coming at an additional cost.

Can a VPN provider see my browsing history? ›

Final thoughts. Any VPN service can monitor your browsing history, but reputable ones won't and will ensure they have no logs of your browsing history that could be handed over to third parties. That way, if they receive a court order to share information, it's impossible for them to comply.

Can browsing history be tracked through VPN? ›

A VPN encrypts your traffic and hides your IP address. As a result, it also hides your location, browsing history, searches, downloads, and any other activities, such as gaming or streaming. A VPN hides this information from bad actors, ISPs, websites, and even oppressive governments.

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