We've tested all of the best free VPN services so you can take a dip into the world of VPN without paying a penny.
We'll be honest right from the outset...free VPN services have their pros and their cons - especially if your real goal is to get yourself the best VPN service out there. There are certainly plenty of free VPNs you can download right now that will allow you to encrypt your traffic, stay obscured online and allow you access to blocked or IP-restricted sites. And obviously the price point (or lack thereof) is a huge appeal.
But there are also some real dangers with free VPN services worth knowing about. The main one is that they need to make a profit somehow and this is not usually a good thing for the end user. Free VPNs tend to have fewer servers, little in the way of customer service and come with plenty of technical issues that standard VPN services do not have.
Not to mention, the way some of the providers monetise is to turn you into a product they sell on to other parties. That essentially means logging some of your data and flogging it to people you'd rather didn't even know you existed.
Free VPN services based offshore are almost always a lot less sophisticated than paid ones, and that means using a free service to try and access US Netflix with a VPN and the like can be an extremely frustrating experience. Sometimes it might work, sometimes it might not. And even if it does, you'll be limited in terms of the GBs (or even MBs) you can stream in a month.
So our frank advice is to not use a free VPN unless it really is for occasional, very casual use. For the odd IP-hopping use case, they can work. But if you're planning on using the VPN a lot, then we'd highly recommend going for one of the overall best VPN services - they're not free but they're also pretty cheap in the grand scheme of things. With ExpressVPN leading the way
And what's the best overall VPN?
The best VPN service in the world right now: ExpressVPN
From all our testing, we have concluded that our number one choice is Express. It's a premium VPN service but still keeps cost low! And for that you get the finest VPN in the world, without any security concerns, with 24/7 customer support, guaranteed access to Netflix US, almost constant uptime and a 30-day money back guarantee (no questions asked) if you change your mind. Check out ExpressVPN!
The best free VPN services 2020:
1. Hotspot Shield Free VPN
The best FREE VPN service currently available
Specs
- Number of servers: N/A | Server locations: 25 | IP addresses: N/A | Maximum devices supported: 5
Pros
- Easy-to-use
- 500MB daily data allowance
- Security focused
Cons
- Performance can suffer a bit
- Set up is a bit fiddly
Hotspot Shield is a premium VPN service that offers a free tier to hook customers in. And the great news is that the free tier is actually good enough for pretty much anyone who just needs a basic VPN to hide their identity and encrypt their web traffic.
It gives you 15GB of free data every month which works out at about 500MB per day - more than enough for regular web browsing and the occasional YouTube video.
The Hotspot Shield free VPN apps are really smart and easy to use as well, so if you're worried about not knowing how to work your VPN then stop worrying right now! The only minor complication with Hotspot Shield is that it does require you to agree to a free trial of the premium service when you first log in to the service - when that expires then you are free to fall back to the free tier.
2. TunnelBear
TunnelBear is another excellent free VPN service you can download today
Specs
Free: Yes | Number of servers: ~1,000 | Server locations: 20+ | IP addresses: N/A | Maximum devices supported: 5
Pros
- User friendly apps
- Use it on mobile and desktop
Cons
- Very basic
- Only 500MB each month
TunnelBear is one of the best known best free VPN services available. It's a serious VPN that's serious about customer satisfaction, privacy and security. So the upside is that you're getting a VPN that works, and can be trusted not to hold loads of data on you and sell you out at the earliest opportunity!
The downside is that the free tier of TunnelBear only gets you 500MB bandwidth each month which is a lot less than Hotspot Shield above. That means for many people having it always-on will leave you caught short well before the end of the month, and absolutely rules out using it to stream endless episodes of Rick and Morty on Netflix.
The free VPN tear at TunnelBear is certainly designed as a gateway to the paid tier which offers unlimited data but will cost you real money. If you're going to pay for a VPN we'd suggest getting a premium one like ExpressVPN, but if you're only interested in a free option then TunnelBear is a decent option.
3. Windscribe
Windscribe is the best free VPN if you need a generous amount of free data
Specs
Free: Yes | Number of servers: N/A | Server locations: 8 | IP addresses: N/A | Maximum devices supported: 1
Pros
- 10GB of data per month
- Sterling privacy policy
Cons
- No Android client
Windscribe's free VPN actually offers 20x as much free data as TunnelBear above, so if you're planning on staying connected at all times or streaming video/music through the VPN, this one will get you most of the way there.
Windscribe is easy to sign up for and doesn't require any personal information (makes sense to give your email address though, otherwise you'll be locked out if you forget your password). Windscribe will boost your data by 5GB if you send out a tweet about the service, and if you refer a friend who subscribes to the paid tier you'll be given access to that higher tier at no charge!
And of course, there's nothing to stop you installing more than one of these services at the same time and switching between them. So you could always combine your Windscribe account with either (or both) of the two above.
4. Speedify
Speedify is a turbocharger VPN which will speed up your connection
Specs
Free: Yes | Number of servers: 30+ | Server locations: 20+ | IP addresses: N/A | Maximum devices supported: 5
Pros
- Awesome performance boosting
- Solid on the privacy front
Cons
- Only 1GB data
- Basic service
Speedify the fourth free VPN service that we recommend thinking about signing up to. It's a little different than the options above in that it's designed from the ground up to absolutely maximise your connection speed.
So if you're on a laptop with ethernet and wifi connections, it'll utilize both to pull bits out of the internet to the max. If you're on a phone it can use your 4G and WiFi connections at the same time to do the same time - to maximise throughput of data, improving download speeds and render times.
In our tests this all proved to be more than just hot air - it really did work to speed up our download and browsing speeds. At the same time it's doing all the things you'd want from a VPN, ecrypting and obscuring, so you're private, safe and anonymous. The catch here is that you only get 1GB of free data. You get 4GB in the first month but that drops down to 1GB after that which just isn't enough if you're planning to use it a lot.
5. ProtonVPN Free
Unlimited data allowance
Specs
Number of servers: 628 | Server locations: 44 | IP addresses: N/A | Maximum devices supported: 5
Pros
- No monthly data limits
- Great on the privacy front
Cons
- One device limit
- Only three locations to choose from
One of our favorite things about ProtonVPN it doesn't have any bandwidth restrictions, so you’re free to use as much data as you want every month.
Although, it does still come with a few restrictions - you can only utilise it on one device, only three locations, and free users get a lower priority when it comes to speed compared to paying subscribers. There’s no P2P support either.
But if you can live with that, this is an impressive provider with a strict no logging policy, and you can sign up with nothing more than your email address. There aren’t even any ads on the website, let alone the client.
Speaking of clients, there are a good range of these – with native software for Windows PC, Mac, Linux, iOS, plus Android – and we found performance levels were pretty solid too.
However, speeds may drop at peak times when lots of users are around and paying folks get priority; at which point you may be tempted to upgrade to a paid plan. But clearly, with its unlimited data allowance, this is one freebie which is well worth considering.
