It’s scary knowing your data might not be private. VPNs help shield your online activities. To help you pick the right one, these are the best VPN services.
Looking for the best VPN to ensure your online privacy at an affordable price? In today’s internet-driven world, protecting your personal and financial data from cybercriminals is more important than ever. Identity thieves, hackers, and other digital miscreants cause substantial financial losses to businesses and individuals around the world every year. The good news is that a reliable VPN is one of the easiest, cheapest, and most effective ways to safeguard your online activities from unwanted network intruders. However, selecting the most suitable VPN for your specific needs and budget can be challenging. Don’t worry — we’ve got you covered. Our comprehensive guide to the best VPN services covers pricing, features, and all the information you need to make an informed decision.Best VPN 2023
NordVPN
ExpressVPN
Surfshark
IPVanish
AtlasVPN
Hotspot Shield
PrivadoVPN
CyberGhost
PureVPN
TunnelBear
Private Internet Access
Kaspersky VPN
AdGuard VPN
Mullvad VPN
Torguard
Strong VPN
Proton VPN
VPN Unlimited 1. NordVPN
Country of registration: Panama
Cost: $13 per month; $60 for the first year; $96 for the first two years
Clients supported: Windows, MacOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Android TV, VPN routers
Number of servers & locations: 5,200+ across 60 countries
Number of simultaneous connections: Up to six
Special features: Split tunneling
NordVPN isn’t free, but with three different encryption protocols (IKEv2/IPsec, OpenVPN, and NordLynx), it’s easy to see that this provider values your privacy. The company has also worked hard to build up its server network to include more than 5,200 servers in 60 countries around the world.
One stand-out feature that makes NordVPN a strong contender for the best VPN service out there is split tunneling. If you’re not familiar, split tunneling is the ability to whitelist some activities (such as gaming or streaming) to bypass the VPN and use the regular “clearnet” for better performance.
From protected DNS queries to a kill switch feature that automatically disables your connection when you lose sync with the VPN server, NordVPN wants you to know that your information won’t fall into the wrong hands. It’s also one of the most open VPNs about exactly what servers it offers in what countries, and provides 24/7 live chat support for questions.
The company has recently improved its platform support, adding dedicated apps for iOS and Android and thus overcoming its one weakness. You can also use it on six devices simultaneously. The NordVPN client provided one of the most attractive interfaces, and connecting to a server is straightforward and very quick, so much so it’s one of our top picks for the best Chrome VPN extension.
It’s also available for a host of devices and made our list for the best Fire TV Stick VPN. NordVPN can be installed in a VPN router as well, which expands the list of supported devices to include Chromecast, Raspberry Pi, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, and Fire TV (in other words, anything connected to your VPN router). During our testing, we also found it to be the fastest VPN in our NordVPN vs ExpressVPN comparison, so if it’s speed you’re after, look no further.
2. ExpressVPN
Country of registration: British Virgin Islands
Cost: $13 per month; $60 for six months; $100 per year
Number of servers & locations: 3,000+; 160 locations across 94 countries
Clients supported: Windows, MacOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Kindle Fire, Chrome OS, smart TVs, gaming consoles, VPN routers
Number of simultaneous connections: Up to five
Special features: Split tunneling
ExpressVPN’s “#1 Trusted Leader in VPN” claim may be a bit difficult to prove, but the service offers a compelling list of features nonetheless. It also constantly tries to make regular improvements in speed and simultaneous streaming capabilities, and with support for all major platforms (Windows, MacOS, Android, etc.), you won’t need to worry about compatibility. ExpressVPN shows up on a number of best VPN lists, including our list of the best VPN for Linux and the best VPN for Windows, so its relatively high prices seem justified.
The more than 3,000 servers are all well-placed throughout common travel destinations and urban centers. Any package will land you high-speed unlimited bandwidth and 24-hour customer service. With so many features, including bypassing ISP throttling, built-in threat protection, and split tunneling, it’s no wonder this vendor is considered the best VPN by many users — although you should note that ExpressVPN only supports up to five simultaneous connections with a single subscription, which is the lowest number of the services on our list.
But they also provide a workaround of sorts for that: If you install ExpressVPN on your router, your router can protect all of your devices (as the router itself only counts as one device towards your subscription), regardless of how many other devices are connected to that network hub. This way, you can have well more than five devices protected at once.
Setting up ExpressVPN and connecting to a VPN server was easy enough. Netflix complained about a proxy in use when we used the automatic configuration option, but it worked fine when we manually selected a local U.S. server, so it’s a working Netflix VPN. Amazon Prime Video played just fine, and our other internet tests were completed without issue.
Learn More3. Surfshark
Country of registration: British Virgin Islands
Cost: $13 per month; $48 for the first year; $60 for the first two years
Number of servers & locations: 3,200 across 65 countries
Clients supported: Windows, MacOS, Linux, iOS, Android, smart TVs, VPN routers
Number of simultaneous connections: Unlimited
Special features: Double VPN hop, 7-day free trial (for Android, iOS, MacOS)
It may not quite rank as the best VPN, but when it comes to price, Surfshark is hard to beat and is a great option for those looking to protect their privacy while minimizing costs. Surfshark is available for as cheaply as $60 for the two-year plan, and to sweeten the deal even more, that includes an unlimited number of simultaneous connections.
Feature-wise, Surfshark is fairly basic. This isn’t necessarily a problem if you don’t need any bells and whistles and just want a solid VPN on the cheap. In fact, the simple, no-nonsense interface, intuitive setup, and simple operation could easily be selling points if you explicitly don’t want to fuss with unnecessary complications. It supports a host of different devices, and it’s one of our top picks for the best Apple TV VPN, too.
That’s not to say it’s completely bare-bones, though; you get multiple encryption protocols to choose from (OpenVPN UDP or TCP, IKEv2/IPsec, and WireGuard) and a double VPN hop that lets you route your connection through two remote servers instead of one, adding an extra layer of security when desired.
Surfshark also works quite well with streaming services, although its speeds aren’t quite as good as other top VPN services like NordVPN and ExpressVPN. All in all, though, it’s the best VPN of 2023 for those on a budget, and especially for larger local networks such as family homes and offices.
4. IPVanish
Country of registration: United States
Cost: $12 per month, $54 for the first year, $80 for the first two years
Number of servers & locations: 2,000+; 75+ locations across 50 countries
Clients supported: Windows, MacOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Chrome OS, Fire TV
Number of simultaneous connections: Unlimited
Special features: Independently audited no-logs policy
IPVanish offers all the key features you could need from a VPN at a great price. With regular sales being part of the IPVanish experience, you can commit for a year at a very low cost, enjoying the protection that comes from a choice of more than 2,000 VPN servers across more than 75 different locations.
Besides offering extensive protection whether you’re browsing from home or using a public Wi-Fi hotspot, IPVanish also makes it simpler to avoid Deep Packet Inspection — a method used by ISPs to limit your internet speed at times. The VPN offers unmetered data transfer caps and there’s no limit on how many devices you can use it with so it’s incredibly flexible for high-volume users and larger local networks.
No logs are kept, plus there’s a choice of multiple connection protocols which is useful if you want to get more involved in your VPN settings. 24/7 customer support means the VPN is always on hand to help you out, too. Not that you should need it too often thanks to simple-to-use apps for all major platforms. It’s a great service and it’ll even help you avoid geo-restrictions on many of your favorite streaming apps.
5. AtlasVPN
Country of registration: United States
Cost: $12 per month; $49 for the first year; $72 for the first three years (plus three free months)
Number of servers & locations: 750+, 37+ locations across 30+ countries
Clients supported: Windows, MacOS, iOS, Android, Android TV, Fire TV
Number of simultaneous connections: Unlimited
Special features: Unlimited simultaneous connections for full-coverage protection.
AtlasVPN is a newcomer to the VPN industry, but it comes packed with secure and steadfast features that challenge even the big players. What’s amazing about this VPN is that it has a comprehensive free data plan that is one of the best on the market, and if you decide to upgrade to the faster, premium servers, then it only costs $49 per year or $72 for three years. While the server network may be considerably smaller than its competitors, it is a newer service with much more room to expand.
In terms of security, although the service is young, it didn’t cut any corners when constructing the server security. You can feel comfortable knowing you’re protected behind 256-bit encryption, WireGuard protocols, IPv6 leak protection, and a whole host of other features. Whether you’re browsing the internet casually, conducting important transactions, gaming, or streaming, you’ll find that AtlasVPN’s servers are ideal for you.
What’s more, Atlas now offers SafeSwap servers, a brand-new feature that enhances anonymity and security. With SafeSwap, you can rotate IP addresses without ever having to swap between VPN servers. As of now, AtlasVPN is the only provider that offers something like this. SafeSwap draws from a pool of IP addresses with outgoing traffic routed to the various addresses, yet you’ll experience no decrease in speeds — that’s super important if you’re streaming.
Last, but certainly not least, you can use AtlasVPN on all of your devices (if the client supports the VPN) and keep yourself protected wherever you are. With unlimited simultaneous connections, you don’t need to worry about getting booted off the VPN in case you reach the limit. The application is easy to install on all devices that even your grandparents could use AtlasVPN and stay protected online. The free data plan can help accommodate you or your family members to VPN services to better understand the inner workings of staying safe online.
Learn More6. Hotspot Shield
Country of registration: United States
Cost: $13 per month or $96 per year for Premium plan; $20 per month or $144 per year for Premium Family plan
Number of servers & locations: 3,200+ across 70+ countries
Clients supported: Windows, MacOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Chrome OS, smart TVs, VPN routers
Number of simultaneous connections: Up to five, or up to 25 with Premium Family plan
Special features: Gigabit speeds, free speed-capped basic plan, 45-day money-back guarantee, free 7-day trial
Speed can be a limiting factor with even the best VPN, and Hotspot Shield — a relatively new player in the virtual private network space — sought to make that problem its main focus. With up to gigabit speeds, we can safely say that Hotspot Shield seems to have succeeded in that endeavor.
The virtual private network was named the fasted VPN in 2019 and 2020 by Speedtest.net, too, so that doesn’t appear to be mere marketing. But Hotspot Shield isn’t a one-trick pony and has more to offer than just fast speeds. Its list of features also includes military-grade encryption and unlimited bandwidth (at gigabit speeds, mind you).
Hotspot Shield is also very simple to set up and use, but we’d like to see a few more customization options, such as control over encryption protocols. This is part of the deal you get with this VPN, though, as Hotspot Shield utilizes its own proprietary “Hydra” encryption protocol which the company claims is what makes it so fast. That’s just the nature of this beast, it seems.
Another consideration, and a potential drawback, is that as with ExpressVPN, you’re limited to five simultaneous connections per subscription. If you accept these limitations and can deal with some compromises in favor of speed, though — perhaps you’re looking for the best VPN for gaming or the best VPN for Kodi — then Hotspot Shield is an excellent choice that lives up to its promise of speed.
And in the event that you find it’s still not snappy enough for your digital lifestyle, Hotspot Shield also offers a VPN free trial. New subscribers get an extended 45-day money-back refund period, which is the most generous guarantee on our list. There’s also a free VPN plan, although speeds are capped at 2Mbps.
7. PrivadoVPN
Country of registration: Switzerland
Cost: $11 per month; $60 per year; $48 for two years
Number of servers & locations: 320+; 55+ physical locations across 45+ countries
Clients supported: Windows, MacOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Fire TV, Android TV, VPN routers
Number of simultaneous connections: Up to 10
Special features: P2P transfers, SOCKS5 proxy support, free data-capped basic plan
With VPNs, it’s all about location, location, location.
