What is the best free VPN of 2025?
Proton VPN is the best free VPN, and it's the only no-cost virtual private network provider we recommend. Most free VPNs impose heavy restrictions on things like data allowances, usage time and connection speeds, making them practically useless for anything beyond virtually negligible online activities, like browsing the web and checking your email. Some free VPNs may even sell your data or plaster your screen with ads. Proton VPN, however, imposes no such limitations on its free users.
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Still, Proton VPN's free tier isn't without its restrictions. It only offers access to five server locations and doesn't let you manually select a server -- you're stuck using the country's server that Proton automatically routes you through. By comparison, its paid plan provides the full roster of 14,900-plus servers in 122 countries. Proton VPN's free plan also lacks the full suite of features you get with a paid subscription, including the ability to create custom profiles to connect to certain servers. Competitor PrivadoVPN's free plan lets you pick a server manually while limiting you to 10GB of monthly usage. However, Proton VPN has had its no-logs policy audited and gives you unlimited data while Privado hasn't, so it's especially useful for privacy-conscious users. Additionally, Proton's zero-dollar tier delivers the same level of encryption and includes the same foundational privacy features as its premium version. Proton VPN's free plan is fast and works well with some streaming services. You can even use Proton's free plan on Android without signing up or creating an account.
If you're willing to step up to Proton VPN's paid plan, you'll get a massive international server network that's excellent for geo-unblocking. It's a fantastic upgrade path for folks with more demanding needs which offers a larger server selection and more simultaneous connections. Whether you've got critical privacy needs, want to stream foreign Netflix and Disney Plus libraries or need a VPN for travel, Proton VPN is a compelling choice.
About free VPNs
VPNs are handy privacy tools that let you hide your browsing history from your internet service provider, unblock region-restricted content like foreign Netflix libraries and avoid censorship or throttling. If you want to enhance your privacy without paying, a free VPN service could be the answer. But you'll want a reputable no-cost VPN, because even if you're not paying money, you might be paying in other ways -- like sacrificing privacy. Our years of accumulated experience in VPN testing at CNET have shown us that most free VPNs are underwhelming in almost every imaginable aspect. For starters, the privacy protection offered by free VPNs is often questionable at best, with some of these services not even offering a zero-log policy (let alone any third-party audits). This means you have no way of knowing whether your internet data is in safe hands.
Free VPNs also usually only feature a limited number of server locations compared to paid VPNs. Even if you can find the location you want, the performance of these servers may be underwhelming, and your server speeds may be throttled. Many free VPN apps are plastered with ads. In the very worst case scenario, a free VPN you've downloaded could contain malware, so you'll want to look out for red flags when downloading apps. The bottom line? If you're not paying for your VPN with cash, it's almost certainly true that you're paying with something far more valuable instead.
At CNET, we’re constantly testing and comparing VPN providers, and based on our testing, Proton VPN is the best free VPN -- and only no-cost VPN we enthusiastically recommend. Proton VPN offers strong privacy guarantees thanks to third-party audits of its no-logs policy. Best of all, there's no data usage cap and no time limits, so you can really use Proton's free version as a day-to-day VPN.
However, many paid VPN providers offer free trials, which allow you to try out a VPN and see how you like it before committing to a purchase. As such, we've also listed a few of the best paid VPN providers, which offer either a timed trial or a money-back guarantee. By taking advantage of the money-back guarantees from VPNs in our list of trusted VPN companies, you can take any of the services we've listed for a trial run with access to all of the features you'd find available in the full version, without the risk of committing to a long-term subscription.
Best free VPN services in 2024
Best Open-Source VPN
Proton VPN
Pros
- Free plan doesn't throttle your data, plaster your screen with ads or limit your monthly usage
- Open-source apps
- Strong commitment to privacy and transparency
- Excellent paid plan as an upgrade path
Cons
- Can't choose a server manually on the free plan
Proton VPN is the best free VPN and the only truly zero-dollar VPN that we wholeheartedly vouch for. It ticks all of the privacy basics and then some, with an audited no-logs policy, open-source apps for top-tier transparency and fast server speeds. You'll get unlimited data usage and an ad-free app experience, all without paying. But you can't manually choose a VPN server, and are limited to using a VPN on one device at a time on the free plan -- you can install a VPN and log in on as many devices as you like, but you can't have active VPN sessions running concurrently on the zero-dollar tier. While the no-cost tier is limited, Proton VPN offers an exceptional paid premium plan as an upgrade path for folks who need more servers, multi-device connectivity or better streaming support.
Why we like it
We like that Proton VPN's free tier is private and, unlike with many other free VPNs, you get unlimited data usage with no speed throttling. Additionally, Proton VPN doesn't track you or plaster your screen with ads like other free VPNs do. We were even able to access Netflix using Proton VPN's free servers. Free users get access to servers in five countries (US, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Japan) and can connect on one device at a time. Note that you can't manually select a server with the free plan -- you're automatically shuffled onto a VPN server. Still, unlike many other free VPN providers, Proton doesn't limit your monthly usage, throttle your internet speeds or bombard you with ads. Plus, Android users don't even need to create an account to use Proton's free tier, boosting its privacy even further. You can simply use the "continue as guest" option on Android phones or tablets. Proton announced in a blog post that it plans to bring guest mode to iOS and iPadOS in 2025.
There are some downsides: the free plan lacks support for torrenting, you can't manually select a server -- meaning you can't unlock content available on services in specific countries -- and it doesn't include all the bells and whistles as Proton's paid subscriptions. Springing for a Proton VPN premium plan gets you 14,900-plus servers in 122 countries, which is helpful for international travel or streaming. But Proton VPN's free plan doesn't cut privacy corners.
Proton provides fully open-source apps across all platforms, and the company undergoes routine audits by reputable third parties. Proton VPN has all the standard privacy features you'd expect from any VPN provider worth its salt, including a kill switch, DNS leak protection and AES 256-bit encryption (OpenVPN and IKEv2) or ChaCha20 (WireGuard) included on its free tier. Paid subscribers get additional security protections like an ad/malware blocker, access to Secure Core servers, Tor over VPN and a Stealth protocol to help cloak the VPN connection and bypass firewalls. Proton VPN's paid plans cost $10 a month, $60 a year or $108 for two years (the one- and two-year plans renew at $80 annually) and include access to 14,900-plus servers in 122 countries and support for 10 simultaneous connections. Paid plans also include a 30-day, money-back guarantee.
- Also nominated in: Best VPN, Best VPN for Netflix
Pros
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Strong commitment to privacy and transparency
- Forward-thinking security enhancements
- Excellent for streaming
- Streamlined, easy-to-use app across platforms
Cons
- Expensive
- Only eight simultaneous connections
ExpressVPN is a top-notch VPN provider, demonstrating a steadfast commitment to privacy and transparency. It’s a safe choice for privacy-conscious VPN users and a fantastic option for casual users because it’s extremely simple to use, fast and excellent for streaming. While there's not a free plan, ExpressVPN does offer a seven-day free trial, after which you'll be charged $13 a month if you don't cancel. There's also a money-back guarantee, so you can request your money back within 30 days. In July 2025, ExpressVPN revealed that its server network had locations in all 50 US states, making it an excellent choice for traveling to or within the United States, and unblocking regional content, like streaming NFL games.
Why we like it
With ExpressVPN, you’ll get a simple interface and consistent user experience across platforms, making ExpressVPN an ideal choice for beginners. Apps are available for Windows, MacOS, Android, iOS, Apple TV, Android TV, Fire TV Stick and even a newly released GUI app for Linux. ExpressVPN’s streaming performance is impressive. We were able to access content from popular streaming sites like Netflix, Disney Plus, Hulu, Max and Amazon Prime Video across all devices we tested. You can connect up to eight devices simultaneously with ExpressVPN, which is fewer than many other VPNs offer (NordVPN allows for 10 and Surfshark unlimited), but should still be enough for most users.
You’ll want fast speeds for streaming and other data-heavy activities like gaming and torrenting. Thankfully, ExpressVPN delivers. We measured an 18% average speed loss in our latest speed tests with ExpressVPN, which represented significant improvement over our previous testing. The provider was able to remedy some recent speed woes with a couple of inventive solutions on both Lightway and OpenVPN protocols on its latest Windows app.
If you have heightened privacy needs, you’ll appreciate ExpressVPN’s approach to transparency and user privacy. The provider leads the industry with 23 independent audits since 2018 and sets a standard by consistently rolling out innovative privacy improvements. ExpressVPN has kept pace with post-quantum security standards and integrated ML-KEM into the Lightway protocol to beef up its post-quantum protections. IP Shuffle is another helpful feature that works in the background and changes your IP address each time you load a website, which helps make it even more difficult to track you online. ExpressVPN’s kill switch works as advertised and we encountered no leaks in our latest tests. The VPN employs industry-standard AES 256-bit and ChaCha20 encryption with its Lightway protocol and also supports OpenVPN and IKEv2 protocols. Its TrustedServer technology takes the RAM-only server infrastructure to the next level by reinstalling the entire server stack in addition to wiping any data with every reboot.
ExpressVPN is a well-rounded VPN and one of the very best you can buy. But the catch is that you’ll pay a premium. The monthly subscription plan costs $13 per month, which is pretty standard across the industry. If you choose the yearly subscription, you’ll pay $100 for the first year while the two-year plan costs $140 total for the first two years combined (the one- and two-year plans renew at $117 a year). Those prices are approximately in line with what its closest competitor, NordVPN, charges: $13 per month, $60 for the first year or $83 for the first two years combined (the one- and two-year plans renew at $140 per year). Other top VPNs like Surfshark and Proton VPN are considerably cheaper, renewing at $79 and $80 per year.
Also nominated in: Best VPN for iPhone, Best VPN for Windows
Pros
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- 7-day free trial on Google Play Store and Apple App Store
- Wallet-friendly prices
- Lots of unique security features
- Unlimited simultaneous connections
Cons
- 14 Eyes jurisdiction (Netherlands)
Surfshark is a solid option for anyone looking for a premium VPN experience for a cheaper price than ExpressVPN or NordVPN. There's no free plan, but Surfshark offers a seven-day free trial if downloaded through the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. Like ExpressVPN and NordVPN, Surfshark also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. Surfshark boasts an impressive roster of useful premium features that deliver a lot of value despite a recent price hike. It can’t quite match NordVPN’s speed or ExpressVPN’s overall privacy position, but it comes remarkably close at a cheaper price. All in all, Surfshark is a top-notch VPN that demonstrates consistent improvement year after year.
Why we like it
Surfshark’s apps are slick, simple to use and deliver a consistent user experience across platforms, including Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Apple TV, Fire TV and Android TV. Streaming enthusiasts will appreciate that Surfshark does a good job of unblocking content on most platforms and streaming services and that it offers apps for smart TVs as well as streaming devices. Other than a few minor hiccups, Surfshark’s streaming experience was solid, which we would expect from a top-tier VPN service, and it offers unlimited simultaneous connections while most VPNs limit you to 10 or fewer.
We’re impressed with Surfshark’s consistently fast speeds over the past few years, with an average speed loss hovering in the high-teens. We measured an average speed loss of 21% in our 2025 speed tests -- which is technically slower than previous years, but shouldn’t result in a noticeable difference in practice. Surfshark’s network of over 3,200 servers across 100 different countries is large, but somewhat smaller than those provided by ExpressVPN (105 countries), Proton VPN (122 countries) and NordVPN (126 countries). A large network of servers like what Surfshark offers can help ensure fast speeds and stable connections by minimizing congestion and offering more options for more users to connect to servers nearby their physical location.
In addition to standard privacy protections like its kill switch, no-logs policy and DNS leak protection, Surfshark includes a few unique features that help it stand out from the pack. Dynamic Multihop lets you tunnel through any two server locations of your choosing for an added layer of privacy, and Rotating IP switches your IP address every few minutes, making it harder to track you online. Surfshark’s Alternative ID lets you create an alter-ego complete with full name, physical address, and email address that you can use online without divulging your true identity. Following the lead of other VPN providers including ExpressVPN, Mullvad and NordVPN, Surfshark plans to roll out post-quantum protections this year to protect against potential future threats from quantum computers. Even though Surfshark is still playing catchup in terms of transparency, we’re encouraged by company representatives telling us that a no-logs audit has been commissioned for this year (its first since 2022) and that the company is committing to annual third-party audits.
While Surfshark’s $15.45 per month rate makes it one of the most expensive monthly subscription prices in the industry, pricing for its longer-term plans is reasonable. The yearly plan costs $48 for the first year while the two-year plan costs $60 total for the first two years combined (the one- and two-year plans renew at $79 annually). Surfshark’s renewal prices increased this year, but its overall pricing is still significantly cheaper than ExpressVPN’s $100 for the first year or $140 total for the first two years (the one- and two-year plans renew at $117 a year), as well as NordVPN’s $60 for the first year or $83 total for the first two years (the one- and two-year plans renew at $140 a year).
- Also nominated in: Best VPN for Amazon Prime Video, Best VPN for Gaming
Pros
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Blazing-fast internet speeds
- Strong privacy and transparency
- Great for streaming service unblocking
- User-friendly apps
Cons
- Inconsistent pricing structure
- Not as transparent as other VPN rivals
NordVPN is the best VPN for users who need blazing-fast speeds for 4K video streaming, competitive online gaming or lag-free Zoom calls. Like most of our top picks, NordVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, letting you try the service without committing to it. On Android, NordVPN has a seven-day free trial. It also offers a handful of privacy-boosting options and some innovative features like Meshnet. While Express remains slightly ahead in privacy and transparency and other VPNs offer cheaper long-term prices, NordVPN still provides an impressive all-around service that continues to improve.
Why we like it
NordVPN is the fastest VPN we tested by a long shot, with a best-in-class 3% average internet download speed loss -- its closest competitor was Proton at 16% speed loss. In our testing, we found NordVPN an excellent choice for streaming, with effortless unblocking of foreign Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus and Max libraries. Additionally, we had no issues watching BBC iPlayer, CBC Gem, Hulu, Crunchyroll and several other regional streaming services. Coupled with fast speeds, its excellent region-restricted content unblocking makes Nord one of the best VPNs for streaming.
With a sizable roster of 8,000-plus servers peppering 126 countries, NordVPN is excellent for international travel and streaming -- its global reach is slightly more than Proton VPN, Surfshark and ExpressVPN. Its 10-device simultaneous device allowance is excellent for power users with many devices. While some providers, like Surfshark and PIA, offer unlimited simultaneous device policies, Nord’s longtime rival ExpressVPN limits you to eight.
We like that NordVPN’s strong privacy chops go beyond the basics. Alongside the industry-standard NordLynx (WireGuard-based) and OpenVPN VPN protocols, Nord offers its proprietary obfuscation-oriented NordWhisper, which masquerades as traditional web traffic to try slipping through firewalls. NordWhisper could be helpful in situations like on school Wi-Fi, when the network you’re on doesn’t play nicely with VPNs. You’ll get double VPN (which uses a second VPN connection) and Onion over VPN servers (which use Tor) to make it even more difficult to trace your traffic back to its source compared to a standard VPN connection. Meshnet lets you create a virtual local network of PCs, mobile devices and streaming devices for secure file sharing, hosting LAN parties or accessing services like Netflix without pesky multi-factor authentication.
Initially, NordVPN is a great value at $13 per month, $60 for the first year or $83 total for the first two years. However, the one- and two-year plans renew at an astronomical $140 per year, which is considerably more than the $79 to $80 that Surfshark and Proton VPN renew for, but in the same ballpark as ExpressVPN's $117 a year renewal prices. Although you can avoid a pricey renewal price hike by stacking subscriptions, we’d like to see Nord’s pricing model be more transparent. Despite its extortionate renewal price, NordVPN is a superb VPN for everyone from streaming fanatics to folks with critical privacy needs.
- Also nominated in: Best VPN for Fire TV, Best VPN for Streaming
Factors to consider in a free VPN
Privacy
The primary consideration for any VPN should be privacy. If a free VPN can't protect your online privacy, that VPN is useless. At a minimum, your VPN should employ industry-standard AES 256-bit encryption (over the OpenVPN and IKEv2 VPN protocols) or ChaCha20 (WireGuard or IKEv2) along with offering basic privacy protections like a kill switch, DNS leak protection and a no-logs policy. For critical privacy needs, you'll also want a VPN provider that is based in a privacy-friendly jurisdiction. Look for a VPN with jurisdiction outside of the Five, Nine or 14 Eyes data-sharing alliances.
While secure VPN protocols should ensure proper data encryption, you may want RAM-only server architecture -- which doesn't save any data to a hard disk, meaning your VPN session data theoretically isn't recoverable. Alternatively, we find full-disk encryption for servers perfectly acceptable. While they don't paint a full privacy picture, look for a VPN that undergoes regular third-party security audits, which can help bolster trust in the VPN's ability to protect its users' privacy. It's important to do your research and make sure the company behind the free VPN you're considering is legitimate and isn't tracking and selling your data.
Speed
The speed of your VPN can have a major effect on activities like streaming, downloading, video conferencing, gaming and general web browsing. To keep things running as smoothly as possible, you'll want to look for a VPN that will have as minimal an impact on your regular internet speeds as possible. Some VPNs can cut your internet speed in half, but we find that the fastest VPNs reduce your internet download speed by only 25% or less. Many free VPNs put limitations on speeds, but there are some -- like Proton VPN, which clocked an impressive 16% average internet download speed loss in our 2025 testing -- that don't. In such cases, you can actually achieve decent speeds.
All VPNs slow down your internet connection somewhat, but the highest-performing VPNs only reduce your internet download speed by an average of 25% or less. We benchmarked VPNs by running over 250 different speed tests -- with and without a VPN enabled -- and across various international servers. Especially when looking for one of the best free VPNs, you'll want to make sure your virtual private network provider doesn't slow your speeds down. NordVPN was the fastest VPN we clocked, with Mullvad, Surfshark, Proton and ExpressVPN delivering excellent connectivity. Here's how the internet speed loss of our top VPNs stacked up:
| Provider | Speed loss |
|---|---|
| Proton VPN | 16% |
| ExpressVPN | 18% |
| Surfshark | 21% |
| NordVPN | 3% |
Usability
A good free VPN should run smoothly and be easy to use regardless of your technical expertise. It should also be free of severe limitations that prevent it from doing what you need it to do. You'll want all essential functions -- enabling or disabling your VPN, changing servers, switching protocols and enabling features like split tunneling or the kill switch -- to be clear and obvious.
How we test free VPNs
When evaluating a free VPN, the main things we focus on are safety and privacy. In other words, we want to be as certain as possible that the VPN isn't logging user data or selling it to outside parties, and we want to ensure that the encryption the VPN employs is up to industry standards. Accordingly, we only recommend no-cost VPNs that prioritize privacy and have been audited regularly by reliable third parties.
We test zero-dollar VPNs with the same rigor as paid options, checking for leaks, ensuring privacy features like kill switches work properly, poring over privacy policies and running over 250 individual internet speed tests. We evaluate how useful the free VPN is for the average user, in a practical sense. Is it fast enough for general browsing? Does it allow for streaming? Does it have data or usage limitations? A good free VPN is safe to use and is actually useful because it doesn't impose overbearing limitations that render it essentially ineffective as a VPN, like extremely restrictive monthly data allowances.
Other VPNs we tested
PrivadoVPN
PrivadoVPN is a decent no-cost VPN for casual users, with cheap VPN plans as upgrade paths. Whereas Proton VPN provides unlimited usage but doesn't let you pick a server manually, Privado limits you to 10GB per month of data but lets you pick from servers in 13 cities. The company features a privacy-friendly Swiss jurisdiction, a reader-friendly privacy policy and a great streaming service unblocking for watching foreign Netflix, Disney Plus, BBC iPlayer or other content libraries. Because of its Apple TV app, Privado is a good Apple TV VPN option. You'll pay $11 a month, $20 for the first year or $30 total for the first two years (the one-year plan renews at $60 and the two-year package renews at $96 every two years).
PrivadoVPN has a no-logs policy, but it hasn't been audited and hasn't published any transparency reports, meaning it's not ideal for folks with serious privacy concerns. Investigative journalists, political activists, asylum-seekers or paranoid torrenters may consider a VPN with better privacy, like Proton. Additionally, Privado's uneven internet speed loss (we clocked an average of 48% internet download speed loss in our 2024 testing) was pretty high. Its modest network of servers in 50 countries falls well below the 100-plus countries that many of our top VPN recommendations provide. Still, Privado could be a worthy choice as a free or cheap VPN, especially for basic privacy and streaming service unblocking.
Mullvad VPN
Mullvad VPN is a good budget VPN. It costs $5 a month with no price hikes, has blazing-fast internet speeds, cutting-edge privacy initiatives like a RAM-only server infrastructure and a privacy-conscious signup process. For privacy-concerned folks -- like investigative journalists, political activists or worried torrenters, Mullvad is a great option. Its small server network of 730 servers in 49 countries, coupled with its uneven streaming service unblocking capabilities, makes it a tough sell for people who want to stream foreign Netflix libraries or globetrot. If you want beefy privacy on a budget, Mullvad is a good choice.
PIA
PIA is a wallet-friendly VPN that’s cheaper than most competitors at $12 per month, $40 for the first year (renewing at $50 annually) or $79 total for three years of service. While there's no free tier, PIA is cheap. Plus, it offers a 30-day free trial. PIA offers unlimited simultaneous connections, too -- a benefit that pricier VPNs such as Proton, ExpressVPN and NordVPN don’t have. It’s suitable for streaming service unblocking, provides a solid network of 35,000-plus servers in 91 countries and has highly customizable, albeit a little unpolished, apps. Folks who live in or frequently travel to the US may appreciate PIA’s servers in all 50 states -- handy for streaming regional sports like NFL games.
We like that its apps are open-source, meaning anyone can inspect the source code for bugs or vulnerabilities, which is solid transparency. Only a few other providers, including Proton VPN and Mullvad, have open-source apps. While PIA largely sticks to covering the basics, it features some neat privacy amenities, including split tunneling on MacOS (which lets you use a VPN for certain apps and services but not others) -- a rarity among VPN providers. Notably, Surfshark also has Mac split tunneling.
But unfortunately, PIA was rough around the edges in our latest round of testing. We clocked its internet speed loss at an underwhelming 49% average, meaningfully higher than the 25% average we like to see. Additionally, we encountered many CAPTCHAs while trying to perform basic tasks like running a Google search. Although streaming was largely decent, we had to change servers more often than with other providers, like NordVPN, Proton VPN, ExpressVPN or Surfshark. You can get Surfshark, which delivers far faster speeds, a better streaming experience and more forward-thinking privacy features, for a little more money. Still, PIA is a solid budget choice for those who need full US server coverage. Otherwise, your money is probably better spent on Surfshark or Proton VPN, both of which offer faster server performance and robust privacy while charging slightly more cash than PIA.
Free VPN tips
Free VPNs simply aren't as safe
Free VPNs can be very dangerous. Why? Because to maintain the hardware and expertise needed for large networks and secure users, VPN services have expensive bills to pay. As a VPN customer, you either pay for a premium VPN service with your dollars or you pay for free services with your data. If you aren't ordering at the table, you're on the menu.
Some 86% of free iOS and Android VPN apps -- accounting for millions of installs -- have unacceptable privacy policies, ranging from a simple lack of transparency to explicitly sharing user data with Chinese authorities, according to two independent 2018 investigations into free VPN apps from Top10VPN. Another 64% of free VPN app offerings had no web presence outside their app store pages, and only 17% responded to customer support emails.
In June 2019, Apple reportedly brought the hammer down on apps that share user data with third parties. 80% of the top 20 free VPN apps in Apple's App Store appear to be breaking those rules, according to a June update on the Top10VPN investigation.
In 2021, 77% of apps were flagged as potentially unsafe in the Top10VPN VPN Ownership Investigation -- and 90% of those flagged as potentially unsafe in the Free VPN Risk Index -- still posed a risk.
"Google Play downloads of apps we flagged as potentially unsafe have soared to 214 million in total, rocketing by 85% in six months," the report reads. "Monthly installs from the App Store held steady at around 3.8 million, which represents a relative increase as this total was generated by 20% fewer apps than at the start of the year as a number of apps are no longer available."
On Android, 214 million downloads represent a lot of user login data, culled from unwitting volunteers. What's one of the most profitable things one can do with large swaths of user login data?
You can catch malware
Let's get this out of the way right now: 38% of free Android VPNs contain malware -- despite the security features on offer, a CSIRO study found. Yes, many of those free VPNs were highly-rated apps with millions of downloads. If you're a free user, your odds of catching a nasty bug are greater than 1 in 3.
Ask yourself which costs less: a secure VPN service for about $100 a year, or hiring an identity theft recovery firm after some chump steals your bank account login and Social Security number?
It couldn't happen to you, right? Wrong. Mobile ransomware attacks are skyrocketing. Symantec detected more than 18 million mobile malware instances in 2018 alone, constituting a 54% year-over-year increase in variants. In 2019, Kaspersky noted a 60% spike in password-stealing Trojans.
Malware isn't the only way to make money if you're running a free VPN service; there's an even easier way.
The ad-valanche
PCMAG, DO NOT USE ON CNET
Aggressive advertising practices from a free plan can go beyond getting hit with a few annoying pop-ups and quickly veer into dangerous territory. Some VPNs sneak ad-serving trackers through the loopholes in your browser's media-reading features, which then stay on your digital trail like a prison warden in a B-grade remake of Escape from Alcatraz.
HotSpot Shield VPN earned some painful notoriety for such allegations in 2017 when it was hit with a Federal Trade Commission complaint (PDF) for over-the-top privacy violations in serving ads. Carnegie Mellon University researchers found the company not only had a baked-in backdoor used to secretly sell data to third-party advertising networks, but it also employed five different tracking libraries and actually redirected user traffic to secret servers.
When the story broke, HotSpot parent company AnchorFree denied the researchers' findings in an email to Ars Technica: "We never redirect our users' traffic to any third-party resources instead of the websites they intended to visit. The free version of our Hotspot Shield solution openly and clearly states that it is funded by ads, however, we intercept no traffic with neither the free nor the premium version of our solutions."
AnchorFree has since offered annual transparency reports, although their value is still up to the reader. More recently, HotSpot Shield was among just a handful of VPN apps found to respect users' refusal to permit ad tracking. In a November 2021 study from Top10VPN, just 15% of free VPN apps respected iOS users' choices when they declined voluntary ad-tracking. The rest of the free VPN apps tested by Top10VPN simply ignored users' Do Not Track requests.
Even if credit card fraud isn't a concern, you don't need pop-ups and ad-lag weighing you down when you've already got to deal with another major problem with free VPNs.
Buffering... buffering... buffering
One of the top reasons people get a VPN is to access their favorite subscription services or streaming site -- Hulu, Max (formerly HBO Max), Netflix -- when they travel to countries where those companies block access based on your location. What's the point in accessing the geo-blocked video content you've paid for if the free VPN service you're using is so slow you can't watch it, despite a good internet connection?
Some free VPNs have been known to sell your bandwidth, potentially putting you on the legal hook for whatever they do with it. The most famous case of this was Hola VPN, which was caught in 2015 quietly stealing users' bandwidth and selling it, mercenary-style, to whatever group wanted to deploy the user base as a botnet.
Back then, Hola CEO Ofer Vilenski admitted they'd been had by a "spammer" but contended in a lengthy defense that this harvesting of bandwidth was typical for this type of technology.
"We assumed that by stating that Hola is a [peer-to-peer] network, it was clear that people were sharing their bandwidth with the community network in return for their free service," he wrote.
If being pressed into service as part of a botnet isn't enough to slow you down, free VPN services also usually pay for fewer VPN server options. That means your traffic is generally bouncing around longer between distant, overcrowded servers, or even waiting behind the traffic of paid users.
To top it off, subscription streaming sites are savvy to those who try to sneak into their video services for free. These services routinely block large numbers of IP addresses they've identified as belonging to turnstile-jumping freeloaders. Free VPNs can't afford to invest in a long list of fresh IP addresses for users the way a paid VPN service can.
That means you may not even be able to log into a streaming service you've paid for if your free VPN is using a stale batch of IPs. Good luck getting HBO Max to load over that VPN connection.
Paid options get better all the time
The good news is that a lot of solid VPNs on the market offer a range of features, depending on your needs and budget. You can browse our ratings and reviews to find the right VPN software for you. If you're looking for something mobile-specific, we've rounded up our favorite mobile VPNs for 2024.
If you'd like a primer before deciding which service to drop the cash on, we have a VPN buyer's guide to help you get a handle on the basics of VPNs and what to look for when choosing a VPN service.
