Best VPNs for Business in 2024

1. NordLayer - Best Managed VPN for Businesses

Editors Rating:

9.7 /10

View Packages

How We Review

Product Specs

Multihop	Yes
Camouflage Mode	Yes
Kill switch	Yes
Split Tunneling	Yes
Netflix	Yes
Torrenting	Yes

You might have heard of NordVPN; it currently sits atop our annual list of the best VPNs for personal use. NordLayer is its counterpart wearing a corporate suit.

NordLayer is a network access security solution. That means it offers VPN features, but it’s also so much more. It covers a wide scope of cybersecurity features including Firewall as a Service (FWaaS), a dedicated control panel for your IT team, and password/access management for programs and networks your business uses.

NordLayer Overview

NordLayer started off as a NordVPN spin-off. It’s actually a rather amusing story: NordVPN started offering NordVPN for Teams in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to help businesses with remote work arrangements. It had a centralized billing and a dashboard for network admins, but it was still just NordVPN for bigger groups. In 2021, however, Nord Security added more network access security features and spawned NordLayer.

NordLayer is a managed cybersecurity solution. That means you and your employees will not have to interact with it; everything will be managed by your IT team. That also means you will need to have a dedicated IT team, or even just an IT person, to manage everything cybersecurity-related. On the bright side, though, NordLayer’s dashboard makes onboarding new team members a breeze and it comes complete with all custom settings you’ll need – from biometric and two-factor authentication to custom DNS.

Performance

NordLayer uses a different server network than NordVPN. NordVPN has over 60 server locations; NordLayer has only about 30. The upside is that your business’ traffic will flow alongside other NordLayer customers only. While NordLayer uses a different network than NordVPN, it provides roughly the same performance in terms of speed. My speed tests with NordLayer averaged 237 and 221 Mbps for downloads and uploads. My NordVPN readings around the same time were 233 Mbps and 225 Mbps, respectively.

I also like that NordLayer’s VPN is always on. That takes human error out of the equation, i.e. employees forgetting to turn on their VPN. Plus, there are several other useful features too. I like Smart Remote Access, in particular. When two devices from your business are connected to NordLayer, they can share files securely. It’s like a peer-to-peer network (think torrenting and P2P file sharing), but more secure.

Cost

NordLayer offers three levels of service, with Lite being the most basic and Premium offering the most features. The price range is $10 to $18 per month per user if you pay monthly or $8 to $14 per month per user if you pay yearly. I think that’s a fair price considering it’s not just a VPN, but a near-complete cybersecurity solution.

NordLayer also offers custom-fit solutions for enterprises with 50 or more users. The pricing varies but starts at $5 per month for each user. Enterprise solutions are customizable but always come with priority, premium customer support.

2. Private Internet Access VPN - Best VPN for Smaller Businesses

Editors Rating:

9.4 /10

View Plans

How We Review

Product Specs

Multihop	Yes
Camouflage Mode	No
Kill switch	Yes
Split Tunneling	Yes
Netflix	Yes
Torrenting	Yes

Private Internet Access, or PIA for short, is one of the highest-quality VPNs on the market. It boasts the largest fleet of servers of any commercially available provider — 35,000 servers across 91 countries — and offers some of the speediest and most secure protocols, including WireGuard. Switching protocols is actually a common fix for VPN issues, so we like that PIA lets us choose which one we use. It’s affordable for business owners, and its highly customizable nature is great news for your IT person to boot.

PIA Overview

PIA is an easy-to-use, powerful VPN that allows business users to keep their data safe over an absolutely massive network of global servers. For reference, when we reviewed NordVPN, one of our favorite consumer VPNs, they only had about 5,500 servers compared to PIA’s 35,000 servers. All of its software is open-source, which means everything is transparent and verified by third parties, and it has more than 15 million customers worldwide. That’s a pretty solid résumé.

I also appreciate Private Internet Access’ 24/7 live customer support. I was testing VPNs for Linux computers a few weeks ago, and I was having a difficult time getting PIA to install properly. I contacted customer support a little after regular business hours, and I was connected to someone who knew exactly what my problem was and helped me resolve it. That’s the kind of customer service I never expect when it comes to digital products, but I certainly appreciated it.

Performance

PIA’s fleet of servers is far and away the largest of any VPN on the market, which means server-load issues are rarely — if ever — a problem. Using any VPN, however, will slow you down a bit. To get a clearer understanding of what the slowdowns look like, here’s the data on my most recent PIA speed test:

Download Speeds on Mac

Download Speeds on Windows

Upload Speeds on Mac

Upload Speeds on Windows

As you can see, it performed a little better on my Windows computer. My download speeds decreased by only 15 percent, while they decreased by almost 65 percent on my Mac. That’s why it made our list of the best VPNs for Windows. Keep in mind, though, that a speed test is just a snapshot of how the VPN is performing at a moment in time. Your results may differ, but this is pretty representative of what your experience will be.

Price

For businesses, PIA offers discounts for bulk account subscriptions. The minimum is three accounts for a total of 30 devices, or 10 for each account, to get the discount. Even if you buy PIA with a bulk discount, you can still use their 30-day money-back guarantee. This lets you test out the service for your entire business risk-free. Here’s a quick overview of PIA’s bulk pricing with each account including 10 connections:

The bulk discount will be applied at checkout, and the amount scales up with the number of accounts you create. That’s good news if you’re a small business looking to scale. To start, though, you’ll need to figure out exactly how many accounts you want based on how many employees you have and how many devices they will be using for business purposes.

I always recommend maximizing savings with a yearly subscription. With a yearly plan for three accounts, you’ll pay only $3.33 per month for each account. Each account allows up to 10 simultaneous connections, so that breaks down to just $0.33 per month per connection. For more information, check out my guide to PIA’s pricing.

3. PureDome VPN - Most Flexible VPN for Business

Editors Rating:

8.9 /10

How We Review

Product Specs

Multi-hop	No
Camouflage Mode	Yes
Kill switch	Yes
Split Tunneling	Yes
Netflix	Yes
Torrenting	Yes

The brainchild of PureVPN, PureDome was created to cater to businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced entire organizations into work-from-home arrangements and left IT professionals scrambling to keep networks safe.

Built on PureVPN’s backbone, PureDome boasts 6,500 servers across 78 countries. It doesn’t have as big of a footprint as PIA, but it’s pretty close. This means it has more than enough space to handle customers no matter the size of their organization.

PureDome VPN Overview

PureDome is brought to you by the folks that brought you PureVPN, which, as you can learn about in my PureVPN review, is a solid service for folks looking to improve their online anonymity.

Businesses, though, have different needs than individuals, and PureVPN took note of this fact. PureDome has an upgraded user interface built with private industry in mind, allowing your IT staff to manage your staff’s connections both nationally and internationally. Modern workplaces don’t look anything like they used to — thanks COVID — but by deploying a solution like PureDome, business leaders can make sure their teams stay connected and their network stays safe no matter where they’re located.

>> Learn more: Best VPNs for Travel

Performance

PureDomeVPN uses the same server architecture as PureVPN, so its performance is nearly identical to that service. The last time I took that service for a spin, it performed noticeably better on my mac than it did on my PC. If your business is mostly creative types, sipping a latte at the coffee shop, pushing their thick-framed glasses up with one finger to better see their slack notifications on their company-issued Macbook Pro, this might be the service you’re looking for.

Hipster jokes aside, I’ve used these services extensively to connect to various companies’ networks with no problem — especially since PureVPN and PureDome both support split tunneling. That allows me to whitelist certain traffic — like YouTube, if I need a little extracurricular entertainment — while still securing my connection to my company’s inbox. That said, here’s how PureVPN performed during my last performance test:

PureVPN Speed Test

Download Speeds on Mac

Download Speeds on Windows

Upload Speeds on Mac

Upload Speeds on Windows

PureDome’s Pricing

Since PureDome focuses specifically on business clients, it prices things a little differently than I detailed in my guide to PureVPN costs. Specifically, it offers three different services, each with associated costs. Here’s the breakdown:

The minimum number of VPN licenses you can purchase is 5, and the maximum on the website is 300. That said, PureDome does offer customized solutions for organizations with unique needs, so if your organization is substantial you can contact them to get a quote. Also worth noting, if you pay annually for your VPN licenses, you’ll save 20 percent. That’s just $6.76 per user per month.

4. KeepSolid VPN Unlimited - Best Business VPN With Lifetime Subscription

Editors Rating:

8.0 /10

View Packages

How We Review

Product Specs

Multihop	No
Camouflage mode	Yes
Kill switch	Yes
Split tunneling	No
Netflix	Yes
Torrenting	Yes

Last but certainly not least is the VPN Unlimited from KeepSolid, a New York-based company with over 500 servers in more than 80 locations around the world. It’s also one of the few VPNs to offer Lifetime subscriptions, ideal for businesses that will be around for the long term.

KeepSolid VPN Unlimited Overview

It’s not a super well-known name in the VPN world, but this sleeper isn’t one to overlook. KeepSolid has 3,000 servers in 80 locations around the world. It’s not as many as PureDome VPN or PIA, but that doesn’t matter a whole lot when it comes to performance — particularly on a Mac.

One of the main reasons it’s on this list, though, is the associated security features it has available, including DNS firewalls, password managers, and two-factor authentication services to comprehensively protect all your employees.

>> See Also: The Best Firewalls

I’ve used a KeepSolid password manager for years. It’s basically a way to store your passwords in one place and encrypt them so no one can access them. It’s super helpful, since I use a lot of different devices and have a ton of different accounts across them. Rather than having to remember a bevy of passwords, I can just link everything to the manager and — bingo! — it’s accessible to me and no one else.

Performance

This is a bit of a surprise. You know how I said using a VPN will slow you down pretty significantly? Well, that’s not the case with KeepSolid VPN Unlimited — particularly when you’re on a Mac. Take a look at the data from my most recent speed test:

Control

VPN engaged

My speeds were almost unchanged on an iMac — a little less than 10 percent. That’s way more than can be said for the 65 percent speed decrease I saw with PIA. Those numbers are just a moment-in-time look at how the VPN was performing right then, but, anecdotally, VPN Unlimited absolutely screams on my Mac.

>> Learn More: Best VPNs for Mac

Price

KeepSolid VPN Unlimited’s prices are pretty affordable when it comes to business applications. It’s also pretty straightforward. It’s not as affordable as PIA, but it’s not that far off either.

I really like the lifetime option. It’s not something I’ve seen with other VPN providers, and it will certainly benefit your bottom line by not having a recurring payment every month.

5. Astrill VPN - Best Business VPN For Torrenting

Editors Rating:

8.5 /10

See Our Top 10 VPNs

How We Review

Product Specs

Multihop	Yes
Camouflage mode	Yes
Kill switch	Yes
Split tunneling	Yes
Netflix	Yes
Torrenting	Yes

Astrill VPN isn’t a huge hit among individual privacy purists because it doesn’t have a great policy for logging user data. If you’re just using your VPN for business security purposes, though, that shouldn’t be too big of a problem — especially since it’s a great option for almost any device you install it on.

>> Learn More: Best No-Log VPNs

Astrill VPN Overview

Astrill VPN is one more fast, powerful, and secure VPN option to consider for your business. It’s well rounded in terms of features and relatively affordable for small, large, and enterprise customers.

Where it really stands out, though, is that it works extremely well on pretty much any device. That’s good news if you have a lot of remote workers or a bunch of employees bringing their own devices to the office. Not everyone will be using the same hardware, after all.

As a tech writer, I’m always switching among devices while traveling from city to city. I literally have a giant black crate for a full-size iMac that I’ve dragged through almost every airport in almost every major city on the East Coast, so I appreciate that Astrill is tailored to work well on that iMac, my Acer Aspire, my iPhone, my work Android, and my partner’s MacBook Air. If you scale that up to a workforce — where everyone is using the device they prefer — they’ll appreciate that you’ve selected a VPN that doesn’t slow them down.

>> Learn More: VPNs Best for the iPhone

Performance

Like KeepSolid VPN Unlimited and PIA, speed decreases were pretty negligible the last time I tested Astrill. The difference, though, is that it performed almost exactly as well on a Windows computer as it did on a Mac. There were some pretty significant latency issues, though, which can cause lag when you’re streaming or gaming — two activities your employees shouldn’t be doing anyway.

Astrill Speed Test Results

Price

Similar to VPN Unlimited, Astrill’s pricing makes it easy to see exactly how much you’ll pay per account per month. It also sells multiple data packages, from 100 GB of traffic per month to 1,000 GB per month. For our purposes, I’ll stick that slider right in the middle and give you the prices for a 500 GB data package, which would be about right for a small business. If you’re in doubt, though, I recommend contacting Astrill to discuss your exact needs.

Astrill for Business Cost Breakdown

That’s about on par with how much an individual VPN costs, so you’re not saving a whole lot of money by buying in bulk. Depending on the size of your business, you may get a better price with PIA, but Astrill is a little more flexible with setting up your account.

6. HMA VPN - Best Business VPN With Dynamic IP

Editors Rating:

8.3 /10

How We Review

Product Specs

Multi-hop	No
Camouflage mode	No
Kill switch	Yes
Netflix	Yes
Torrenting	Yes

HMA’s full name is a little NSFW — ahem, Hide My Ass — but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take it seriously. It’s a rock-solid VPN with exceptional speeds, great security features, and the capacity to scale with your growing business.

HMA Overview

HMA is a strong VPN that gets the job done where it counts. It may lack a few of the frills that others on this list have, such as multihop and server obfuscation, but those features aren’t super important for business applications anyway. If you’re looking to protect your company’s data from prying eyes, it will get the job done just fine.

Performance

At just 1,100 servers, HMA’s fleet isn’t enormous — PIA has over 35,000 — but that doesn’t mean that it’s sluggish. Each server can handle up to 20 Gbps connection speeds, which is plenty fast even for the most data-hungry use cases.

I’ve tested HMA numerous times over the years, and I’ve never been disappointed — but I haven’t been blown away either. To give you an idea of what your performance may look like, here’s a quick look at the data from my most recent test. HMA performed a little bit better on my Mac than it did on my Windows laptop, but the results weren’t that far off.

HMA Speed Test Results

Speed aside, I also really like HMA’s kill switch functionality. It’s something all good VPNs should have — and, indeed, all the VPNs on this list have it — but HMA is one of the few I’ve had function exactly as it should in a real-world situation. I was on a backpacking trip in South America, checking my bank account from an internet cafe with a pretty crummy Wi-Fi connection. The VPN service gave out and took my internet connection with it. It took me a second to realize what happened, but I realized it was HMA doing exactly what it should — protecting my data during a moment it was vulnerable.

>> Further Reading: Understanding VPN Kill Switches

The functionality can be really helpful if your employees travel to meet clients and access company data from public Wi-Fi connections. You never know who may be on that network with them, so you want to make sure your company’s data won’t be exposed if the VPN fails.

Price

HMA’s pricing for businesses is pretty straightforward. You can purchase a license for 10, 20, 30, or a custom amount of connections, and you can pay monthly or yearly. It’s a little more expensive than PIA and Astrill, but I like that the company will work with you for your organization’s specific needs.

HMA Cost Breakdown

It really pays to sign up for an annual subscription, which goes for almost all VPNs. You’ll pay more up front, but you’ll save almost 50 percent on your month-to-month costs.

>> Learn More: Most Affordable VPNs