The Best VPNs for France in 2026
NordVPN is the top VPN for France in 2026 with 230+ servers and top-notch security, while Surfshark is best for families, and Proton VPN excels for streaming.
&
Last Updated on Oct 12, 2026
- Helps you avoid internet censorship by the French government
- A total of 230 servers in France ensures a fast connection no matter where you are in the country
- Provides the most security features of any VPN in Paris
- Camouflage mode means the French government won’t even know you’re using a VPN
- Offers security and privacy whether you’re a French citizen or just vacationing in Paris
- Makes it possible to stream French Netflix content
- Over 11,000 servers worldwide, with more than 900 in France
- Apps available for desktops, laptops, phones, streaming devices, and smart TVs
- Pricing starts at just $2.03 per month on a two-year plan
the security.brief
NordVPN is the top VPN for France in 2026 with 230+ servers and top-notch security, while Surfshark is best for families, and Proton VPN excels for streaming.
Ah, France. Is there any more romantic country in the world? We’ve been under its sway since we saw the movie “Amelie” — the Eiffel Tower, the wine regions, and little outdoor cafes. We haven’t been there yet, though a trip to Paris is definitely on our bucket list. But we travel there whenever we can — virtually.
Netflix and other streaming services, for example, have their own French libraries. Ordinarily, you can’t watch those romantic thrillers the French are known for unless you live in France. That is unless you know how to find your IP address and then change your IP address to make Netflix think you’re in France. We use a VPN to do both of those things. It lets us take our sweet digital vacation to France without ever leaving our bed. Plus, while we’re getting our fill of berets and bicycles, we know we’re protected from hackers and anyone else who might want to spy on our online tours.
Here’s the question, though: Which VPNs are best if you’re traveling to France — virtually or actually — or if you’re one of those incredibly lucky people who live there? Below you’ll find everything you need to know about choosing a VPN to facilitate a French adventure. Just because you live in Omaha, or Phoenix, or Brooklyn doesn’t mean you can’t add a little romance to your life.
>> Check Out: Best VPNs for Traveling
Best VPNs for France
- NordVPN - Most Secure
- Surfshark - Best for Families
- CyberGhost VPN - Most Servers in France
- Private Internet Access - Most Affordable
- Proton VPN - Best for Streaming
- PureVPN - Best With Multihop
Side-by-side Comparison of the Best VPNs for France
| System |
NordVPN
|
Surfshark
|
CyberGhost VPN
|
Private Internet Access
|
Proton VPN
|
PureVPN
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranking | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th |
| Ratings | 9.7/10 | 9.5/10 | 8.9/10 | 9.4/10 | 9.4/10 | 8.9/10 |
| Servers in France | 230+ | 76 | 938 | 300+ | 177 | 14 |
| Servers Worldwide | 9,300+ | 4,500+ | 11,700+ | 64,971 | 4,166 | 6,000+ |
| Multihop | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Camouflage mode | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Monthly plans | $3.49 - $14.99 | $2.49 - $17.95 | $2.03 - $12.99 | $1.98 - $11.95 | $0 - $9.99 | $2.03 - $12.45 |
| Contract lengths | 1 month, 1 year, 2 years | 1 month, 6 months, 2 years | 1 month, 6 months, 2 years | 1 month, 1 year, 3 years | 1 month, 1 year, 2 years | 1 month, 1 year, 2 years |
| Read Review | NordVPN Review | Surfshark Review | CyberGhost VPN Review | Private Internet Access Review | Proton VPN Review | PureVPN Review |
A Close-up View of the Best VPNs for France
-
1. NordVPN - Most Secure
Get NordVPN Links to NordVPN
Product Specs
Server locations 137 countries Average Speed Loss 6% download & 4% upload Apps Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Android TV, tvOS Best Monthly Rate $3.49/mo with a 2-year plan Money-Back Guarantee 30 days full refund
Servers
NordVPN maintains over 9,300 servers worldwide. That used to be among the most in the industry. These days, it’s eclipsed by CyberGhost’s 11,700 servers and PIA’s 65,000. Even so, Nord has plenty of servers in France: more than 230. Maybe that’s why we experienced such good numbers when we speed-tested it. Our download speeds decreased an average of just 16 percent, while our upload speeds averaged just 43.5 percent slower. A VPN is always going to slow your device down, but anything under 70 percent is usually a win.
NordVPN iOS app connected to France Privacy and Security
There isn’t really a security technology NordVPN doesn’t have. The foundation of the service is AES-256 encryption, the same encryption used by the U.S. military. Built on top of that are advanced features like multihop, which routes your connection through at least two servers. Multiple hops mean multiple encryptions. We log in to work from coffee houses all over the five boroughs of New York, but we never worry we might get hacked as long as we’re using NordVPN.
Pricing
NordVPN is among the best VPNs out there, but quality comes with a price. NordVPN charges $14.99 for a single month of service, and while the price does drop significantly if you sign up for a long-term contract, even with a two-year plan, you’ll still pay $3.49 per month. Note that VPN brands looking to make a name for themselves can often be had for much cheaper. For example, Ivacy offers a five-year plan that runs just $1.17 per month.
What We Like
- Available dedicated IP addresses
- Obfuscated servers
- Multihop capabilities
- Choice of OpenVPN or WireGuard protocol
What We Don’t Like
- No split tunneling
- Not all servers are configured for torrenting
- Only 10 simultaneous connections
- Relatively high price for a two-year plan
NordVPN doesn’t have everything. It doesn’t come with split tunneling, for instance. And it can run a little slow on Windows devices. If you’re looking for the most secure VPN on the market, you really can’t outdo NordVPN. That’s true whether you’re in France or any other country.
NordVPN’s Split tunneling settings And with Nord, you actually can go basically anywhere in the world. In addition to its 230 French servers, it also maintains servers in 11 additional countries, from Costa Rica to Thailand. That means you can find a server nearby, no matter where you might be traveling, as we discovered when we needed a stable connection when we were visiting our brother-in-law in Japan.
>> Read About: Best VPNs for Japan
Even better, having all those servers in all those countries means you can masquerade as a digital citizen of any one of them. When you log on to a French server, for example, NordVPN assigns you a French IP address, and that means you can access streaming services that are located in France. And that means that you can access Netflix and Prime Video content libraries that are available only in France. If only we’d had NordVPN when we were in college. Our French 101 grade might have been higher if we could have binge-watched a few French sitcoms.
>> Read More: Best VPNs for Prime Video
-
2. Surfshark - Best for Families
Get Surfshark VPN Links to Surfshark.com
Product Specs
Server locations 100 countries Average Speed Loss 8% download & 50% upload Apps Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Chrome, Firefox, Edge, tvOS, Android TV, Fire TV Best Monthly Rate $2.49/mo with a 2-year plan Money-Back Guarantee 30 days full refund
Servers
Surfshark doesn’t have as many French servers as CyberGhost or PIA. It’s also far below NordVPN, sitting at 4,500. That’s not necessarily a problem, though. It all comes down to how much traffic is on any particular server you’re trying to use. And Surfshark’s 76 French servers are more than enough to accommodate all the traffic from those in the country and those who want to log in from other locations.
Certainly, our speed tests didn’t reveal any lags, which you’d expect if all the servers were crowded. Latency on our Windows device increased a little more than we were comfortable with, but downloads and uploads were very fast. We never experienced any decrease of more than 50 percent. That was fast enough to get our work done in half the time it usually takes.
>> See Also: Best VPNs for Windows
Privacy and Security
What Surfshark has over CyberGhost and PIA is camouflaged servers. This feature conceals the fact that you’re using a VPN. That can be handy if you’re worried that the government might be spying on your online activities. A VPN makes you safer just by assigning you an anonymous IP address. But if someone out there knows you’re using a VPN, that can raise their suspicions.
Pricing
Surfshark’s single-month cost is a little high. At $15.45, it’s even more than NordVPN charges, and it’s certainly more expensive than UltraVPN’s $7.99 price tag. The company takes care of its loyal customers, though. If you’re willing to commit to two years of the service, the price drops dramatically, to just $2.49 per month.
What We Like
- Unlimited simultaneous connections on unlimited devices
- Unblocks global Netflix libraries, including France
- AES-256 encryption
- Available split tunneling
What We Don’t Like
- Pricey single-month subscriptions
- Static IP addresses
- Headquartered in the Netherlands, a member country of Nine Eyes
- Slower speeds on Windows devices
Surfshark Dynamic MultiHop in action We didn’t have the benefit of access to French television when we were in college, but kids these days certainly do. If members of your family need access to French streaming services, Surfshark can do the trick. When you’re using one of the company’s obfuscated servers, Netflix and Prime Video won’t even know you’re using a VPN. That means they don’t have a chance to block you from signing in.
And since Surfshark allows you to install its VPN on an unlimited number of devices and to sign on to all those devices at the same time, you won’t have to worry about waiting to secure your laptop until Junior is finished using his tablet. The thing is, these days, everyone in the house is online all the time, and everyone needs protection. VPNs that limit simultaneous connections to two or three just won’t cut it.
>> Read About: The Best VPNs for School
Of course, Surfshark does have its downsides. When we were trying to Zoom with our old college roommate on our Acer laptop, our latency increased by over 2,500 percent. Sure, it was funny when our boss’s mouth froze with his tongue out, but when the signal reconnected, he wasn’t nearly as amused as we were. Luckily, we recently invested in an iPad, and Surfshark’s latency dropped to just 2 percent.
-
3. CyberGhost VPN - Most Servers in France
Get Cyberghost VPN Links To CyberGhost
Product Specs
Multihop No Obfuscated Servers No Kill Switch Yes Split Tunneling Yes Netflix Yes Torrenting Yes
Servers
CyberGhost hosts over 11,000 servers worldwide. It also has the most servers in France, with more than 90. What difference does this make? It means you’re more likely to find a server with light traffic, and that means a faster connection. It’s also the case, though, that you get better speeds when you’re closer to a server. If you happen to be in France, you can count on being near one whether you’re in Paris, Burgundy, or Provence.
Privacy and Security
CyberGhost is another one of those companies that hasn’t yet jumped on the camouflage bandwagon. That means if you’re in the wrong country, you could find yourself targeted by the government just for using a VPN. Luckily, France doesn’t have those sorts of policies. At any rate, in our testing, we found that CyberGhost has the security features to keep you anonymous online, and bonus tools like a kill switch ensure that even if you lose your connection, you’ll remain hidden.
Pricing
CyberGhost’s single-month price is $12.99. If you sign up for two years of service, that per-month price drops to $2.03. While CyberGhost’s prices are on par with other services, when you consider what you get for your money — all the most important security features plus access to streaming content from around the world — it’s a good deal.
What We Like
- Provides support for multiple platforms
- Offers multihop protection
- Maintains nearly 1,000 servers in France alone
- Kill switch standard in all app versions
What We Don’t Like
- Only seven simultaneous connections
- Logs IP addresses, though it logs them anonymously
- Static IP addresses
- Impossible to turn off the kill switch
CyberGhost on MacOS. Photo provided by CyberGhost. If you’re thinking about value, CyberGhost offers seven simultaneous connections. That was plenty for us when we were testing the service. Even running it on our iPad, our Mac, our laptop, and our Firestick, we still had three connections to play with. Larger families, though, might prefer unlimited connections from a company like Surfshark.
Surfshark can’t match CyberGhost’s platform support. In fact, few VPNs can. Surfshark is configured to work with Windows devices, Macs, and Linux systems. It offers support for both iOS and Android. It works with Smart TVs, routers, streaming consoles, and a wide range of gaming consoles, including all recent versions of PlayStation, XBox, and Nintendo.
>> Find Out How: How to Get a VPN on Xbox
The other great thing we discovered when we tested CyberGhost is that it has fast speeds across the board. Our download, upload, or latency speeds didn’t increase by more than 50 percent when connected through French servers. That’s rare. It meant we never had to worry about Fortnite hanging up during the Battle Royale. Nothing drives us crazier than our laptop conking out during the Battle Royale.
>> Deep Dive: The Top VPNs for Fortnite
-
4. Private Internet Access - Most Affordable
View Plans Links to Private Internet Access
Product Specs
Server locations 91 countries Average Speed Loss 5% download & 84% upload Apps Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Chrome, Firefox, Android TV, tvOS Best Monthly Rate $1.98/mo with a 3-year plan Money-Back Guarantee 30 days full refund
Servers
Private Internet Access (PIA) claims to operate almost 65,000 servers. We were a little disappointed to find that only 300 or so of those are located in France. Still, that’s more than all but one other VPN on this list, and it virtually guarantees you’ll find one nearby if you happen to be visiting Paris or Marseilles.
Privacy and Security
We were a little alarmed to learn that PIA is located in Denver. It couldn’t be a more American company, and that puts it squarely in Five Eyes territory. Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, and 14 Eyes are groups of countries that have banded together to share intelligence information with one another. That includes data about their own citizens. Basically, companies in one country have to turn over customer information to any law enforcement agency that comes calling. We were relieved, then, when our reading of PIA’s privacy policy turned up the fact that it doesn’t collect any personally identifying information about our online activities — no IP addresses, no time stamps, no browsing histories.
Pricing
PIA is among the more affordable VPNs on this list. We like its single-month price of $11.99. That’s about three dollars less than NordVPN’s single-month price, which gives us the flexibility to sign up for a month or two. We’re not always great with commitment. But note that its long-term prices are just as appealing: With a three-year plan, you pay just $1.98 per month. We wonder why it doesn’t offer a two-year plan, as many other top VPNs on the market do offer one.
What We Like
- Easy-to-use, intuitive app
- Multihop servers
- Strict privacy policy
- Tens of thousands of servers worldwide
What We Don’t Like
- Headquartered in Denver, which is part of Five Eyes
- Slow speeds on Macs
- No camouflage mode
- Spotty customer service
Private Internet Access’ customizable encryption VPNs can improve your overall user experience in a lot of ways. They can save you money if your ISP likes to throttle you. They can provide you with access to streaming content in countries like France. Their most important feature, though, is their security. You don’t purchase a VPN to get more streaming content. You purchase a VPN to keep you safe, and on that ground, PIA definitely succeeds. The heart of this VPN is AES-256 encryption. That meant we could tell our friends that we were protected by the same encryption the CIA uses. You get to choose which VPN protocol you want to use to deploy that encryption, but both — OpenVPN and WireGuard — have been proven safe through open-source testing.
You take these basic fundamental protections and add on tools like a kill switch and newer technology like multihop, and you’ve got the recipe for online safety and privacy. When we were using one of PIA’s many multihop servers, we liked knowing that even if a hacker managed to decrypt our signal — an impossibility with AES-256 — they’d be confronted with a second level of encryption. Imagining frustrated hackers is how we get to sleep at night.
Like CyberGhost, PIA doesn’t have camouflage mode, and one of these days, that may wind up costing the company users. As streaming services become more sophisticated, they’re starting to recognize IP addresses from VPNs. For now, PIA still manages to unblock Netflix, Hulu+, and Prime Video, and hopefully it will soon see the light when it comes to obfuscated servers.
-
5. Proton VPN - Best for Streaming
View Plans Links to Proton VPN
Product Specs
Server locations 145 countries Average Speed Loss 8% download & 4% upload Apps Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Chrome, Firefox, Android TV, tvOS, Firestick Best Monthly Rate $2.99/mo with a 2-year plan Money-Back Guarantee 30 days
Servers
Proton VPN has fewer servers than any other company on this list, and fewer servers in France itself. As we’ve mentioned already, how many servers a VPN maintains is secondary to how much traffic goes through those servers. One relatively empty server is all you need for a fast, stable connection. We certainly had no problems when we tested the service. We barely noticed any change in ping, for instance. Our Windows latency increased from 10 to 12 seconds, while our Mac latency increased from 10 to 11. The bottom line: We didn’t notice any change.
>> Check Out: Best VPNs for Mac
Privacy and Security
We were impressed with ProtonVPN’s security features. As you’ve probably already gathered, we don’t normally put a VPN on one of our best lists unless it uses AES-256 encryption and either the OpenVPN or WireGuard protocol. Our testing of ProtonVPN turned up that it also provides multihop-configured servers, some of which are obfuscated servers as well. For now, VPNs don’t get much safer than that.
Pricing
It can be tricky talking about pricing with Proton VPN because the company operates on euros, and the exchange rate with U.S. dollars is always in flux. At present, for example, a single month of the service runs around $9.99. That’s a pretty good price. It could get better, but it could also get considerably worse, depending on how the world’s economies rise and fall. We can say for sure, though, that it doesn’t offer a great discount when it comes to multiyear contracts. Forty-five percent off sounds good, but when you consider that Ivacy’s annual price is nearly 90 percent less than its single-month price, 45 percent off doesn’t seem like such a great deal.
What We Like
- Based in Switzerland, outside Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, and 14 Eyes
- Free version available
- Never logs information related to browsing
- Fast on both Macs and Windows devices
What We Don’t Like
- Limited P2P servers
- Relatively high price for long-term subscriptions
- Hard to connect to customer support
- Static IP addresses
Proton VPN app Proton VPN is a country that’s defined by its location in Switzerland. The company was founded by engineers at the famous CERN laboratory by engineers who were looking for a way to ensure their international emails were secure. With a pedigree like that, you can be sure the company takes a forward-thinking approach to safety and security. I mean, if they feel safe sending high-level data about the god particle and how quantum entanglement works, we won’t worry too much that anyone will figure out we’re watching “Bridgerton.”
Switzerland is important for another reason. It’s definitely not a member of the Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, or 14 Eyes surveillance organizations. In fact, the Swiss take privacy as seriously as any country on Earth. You don’t have to worry about a Swiss law enforcement agency, or a law enforcement agency from any other country, showing up with a subpoena and forcing Proton to turn over customer data.
Of course, as we’ve already mentioned, Proton VPN is also solidly Swiss when it comes to its pricing structure. It doesn’t offer any plans in dollars. Instead, we had to take the euro prices listed on the website and run them through a currency converter that was attuned to the current exchange rate. The good news is that most credit card companies and banks will take care of that automatically for you when you make an overseas purchase. It does make researching VPN prices kind of a pain, though.
-
6. PureVPN - Best With Multihop
View Plans Links to PureVPN
Product Specs
Multi-hop No Camouflage Mode Yes Kill switch Yes Split Tunneling Yes Netflix Yes Torrenting Yes
Servers
During testing, we found PureVPN’s number of servers — 6,000 — to be more than enough. Our upload and download speeds on our Windows device increased by just 44 and 11 percent, respectively, and our Mac speeds were just as good. We were a little more concerned when we looked at the number of PureVPN servers in France. Seventy-eight isn’t a terrible number. It’s not even the lowest number on this list. As a percentage of PureVPN’s total servers, though, it suggests the company isn’t as committed to its presence in France as it is to its presence in other countries.
Privacy and Security
PureVPN has all the security features you’d expect from a top-tier VPN, including a kill switch. The fact is, you can never count on the internet to be 100 percent stable. That’s just as true for VPNs as it is for regular Wi-Fi. If your VPN should go down, there’s a risk that someone monitoring your connection could peek at your browsing history or even your personal data. PureVPN’s kill switch ensures that can’t happen. It shuts down your browser the very moment you lose your VPN connection.
Pricing
We don’t always want to make a long-term commitment to a VPN service, so we like the flexibility companies like PureVPN offer. We can get a single month of service for a good basic price: $12.45. But we can also get an annual or a two-year plan. That two-year plan is especially cost-effective at just $2.03 per month.
The downside with PureVPN isn’t really a downside. It’s the fact that it’s simply solid across the board. It doesn’t have the server numbers of PIA or the France server numbers of CyberGhost. It doesn’t have the speeds of Proton VPN. It’s not quite as packed with security features as NordVPN. It doesn’t really have anything particular that stands out about it. But that’s its mark of distinction. With PureVPN, what you see is what you can get, and you can always count on the VPN to keep your browsing secure and private.
>> See Also: The Complete Guide to Private Browsers
What We Like
- Easy to install
- Provides access to Netflix in France and other countries
- Available split tunneling
- Offers camouflage mode
What We Don’t Like
- High latency on Windows devices
- Poor customer support
- Relatively small number of servers in France
- Interruptions are common with the Android app
PureVPN’s app for Mac. Screenshot from PureVPN’s website. We don’t just fill out these lists for the sake of having the right number of VPNs on them. PureVPN is just as good a VPN, and just as good a VPN for France, as any of the VPNs on this list. It has AES-256 encryption, just like all the other VPNs we’ve mentioned. It offers the OpenVPN protocol, a protocol that’s been around for over 20 years and that has been rigorously tested by the entire internet community. It offers multihop technology and camouflage mode, just like NordVPN and Surfshark.
And it doesn’t hurt that PureVPN gave us access to all the most important streaming services and let us stream content from libraries in dozens of other countries. Honestly, we’re probably not going to watch many shows from the Indonesian Netflix library. But it did make us ridiculously happy to know that we could with PureVPN.
>> Read About: Our Favorite VPNs for Hulu
Methodology: How We Selected The Best VPN Services for France
How We Test VPNs
Every VPN on this page passed a comprehensive, real-world testing process governed by our Editorial Guidelines. None of them got here by looking good on a spec sheet. Our reviewers sign up for and run each provider through our full suite of tests, beginning with a careful review of privacy policies to separate verified no-log claims from unsubstantiated ones. From there, we run speed tests across nearby and distant servers, test for DNS, WebRTC, and IP leaks under stable and unstable connections, and confirm kill switch behavior through intentional connection drops. We also verify streaming access across major geo-restricted platforms, and place subscription pricing, simultaneous connection limits, and refund policies and free trial availability under scrutiny. The VPNs that make this list are the ones that held up across every stage of that process.
The Factors We Considered Most
France sits within the EU’s GDPR framework, but also within the Nine Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance. This combination creates a nuanced privacy landscape for French VPN users and has shaped how we approach our France-specific evaluation criteria. Here’s what we weighted most heavily:
- Nine Eyes Jurisdiction and Privacy Policy Depth: We paid close attention to where each provider is headquartered relative to France’s position within the Nine Eyes surveillance alliance. We cross-referenced no-log policies against independently audited findings to assess the real legal exposure French users face.
- Speeds on French and European Server Networks: We measured connection performance specifically on French and nearby European servers, testing across peak and off-peak periods to build a realistic picture of the speeds French users can expect day-to-day.
- Access to French and International Streaming Platforms: We tested each VPN’s ability to unblock French streaming services including Canal+ and France.tv, as well as international libraries on Netflix, Disney+, and BBC iPlayer.
- Long-Term Value and Renewal Pricing Transparency: We looked beyond promotional rates to assess what each VPN actually costs French subscribers over time — factoring in renewal pricing, which features are gated behind premium tiers, and whether money-back guarantees gave users a genuine opportunity to evaluate the service before committing to a long-term plan.
Getting into France meant clearing every one of these bars — not just the ones that are easy to clear.
Why Trust Our Recommendations
Security.org’s VPN testing team is overseen by Brett Cruz, a consumer-first cybersecurity expert and VPN specialist. He has over a decade of experience evaluating VPN services, privacy tools, and security software end to end. Brett’s reader-focused methodology helps us create our VPN guides..
Behind Brett are 20+ security researchers and testers forming the Security.org editorial team. Together, we’ve published over 740 reviews and guides. The team collectively has over 25,000 hours of accumulated testing experience. That team includes:
- Corey Birnstengel: Editor and videographer behind 200+ in-depth video reviews published on our YouTube channel
- Cort Honey: Product tester with an engineering background and 1,000+ hours of hands-on evaluation experience
- Gene Petrino: Former S.W.A.T. commander and law enforcement veteran with 30+ years of real-world security and law enforcement expertise, contributing as a subject matter advisor
- Ozzie Enriquez: West Point graduate with 30+ years spanning the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Defense, contributing expertise in digital risk assessment as a lead advisor
No company can pay to influence our rankings, and no amount of brand recognition, advertising spend, or affiliate arrangement has ever changed that.
Research the Best VPNs for France
Want to do your own research and decide which VPNs you think will work best in France? We’re confident in our own testing to know that you’ll almost certainly wind up with the same choices we made. But there are all kinds of reasons to dig a little deeper into VPNs, like trying to find out how the one you’re currently using measures up against the ones on this list.
Here are some factors you might want to consider along the way.
Encryption: Look for VPNs that use AES-256 encryption. It’s the same encryption used by the U.S. military and the CIA, and the chances of cracking it with a brute-force attack are basically zero.
Additional privacy features: Most VPNs these days offer more than just good encryption. A good kill switch, multihop capabilities, and obfuscated servers should weigh heavily in a company’s favor.
Servers in France: Obviously, if you’re looking for a strong VPN connection in France, you want to choose a company that maintains a strong server presence in the country. But pure numbers won’t tell you the whole story. The best approach is to sign on to a few of those servers and find out how much traffic is typically on them.
Servers in your home country: If you’re looking for French servers because you’re traveling to France, you might also want to investigate how many servers a VPN has in your home country.
Access to streaming services: VPNs can give you expanded access to streaming services. Not all VPNs play nice with all streaming services. Make sure the VPN you choose works well with the streamers you prefer.
Intuitive apps: Can you use a VPN that has a poorly designed app? Sure. But why put yourself through the hassle? VPNs are standard equipment these days for computers, tablets, and mobile devices. You don’t want to be confused trying to make sure your connection is secure.
Customer service: Finally, it always helps to go with a company that has a reputation for strong customer service. When you’re dealing with technology, you never know when it can go wrong. You also can’t ever be sure you’ll know how to fix it. A kind voice on the phone or on the other end of a live chat can be more valuable than you might think.
If you’re traveling and looking for VPNs that work in other countries, consider visiting some of our other best lists:
Why Do You Need a VPN, Anyway?
A virtual private network, or VPN, is becoming more and more of a necessity these days.
What does a VPN do? It has two primary functions. First, it routes your internet connection through a secure remote server. Secure, in this case, means serious encryption. No one’s going to hack your signal while you’re logged on to a top-tier VPN. Second, most commercial VPNs conceal your actual IP address behind an anonymous, untraceable IP address. That means that no one — not even the government — can track your activities online.
That’s what a VPN does. Why do you need one? Simple. Any time you leave the house, you’re logging on to public Wi-Fi. When you’re at the coffee shop, or the grocery store, or the bank, or the car wash, or any place that offers Wi-Fi, your connection is unsecure. That means anyone with the right know-how and the right tools can track you and hack you. In fact, even when you’re at home, your ISP is keeping a record of your browsing, unless you’re using a VPN.
By encrypting your connection and assigning you an anonymous IP address, a VPN keeps you safe, even if you’re logging in through the most porous public Wi-Fi.
>> Read More: What Can Someone Do With Your IP Address?
How Do You Log on to Netflix’s French Library?
A side benefit to using a VPN is that it allows you to pretend you’re a citizen of another city or country. You may not realize it, but your home IP address tells sites and apps where you live. Now, that might not matter ordinarily, but it turns out that Netflix and other streaming services offer different content libraries in different locations. The U.S. library is different from the Canadian library, which is different from the U.K. library, which is different from the Dutch library. And because your IP address tells Netflix where you are, Netflix can keep you out of those other libraries.
VPNs, though, let you log on to remote servers in countries around the world, and when you do, they assign you an IP address from that country. Want to log on to Netflix’s library of French movies and shows? Here’s how you do it:
- Sign up with a VPN, one that you know has servers in France.
- Log in to your chosen VPN and select a server in France.
- Sign in to your Netflix account.
When you sign in, Netflix should list your home country as France, and you should be able to access all the content in the French library.
Of course, if you’re looking to return to your home country’s Netflix library, you need only log out of Netflix, log out of the VPN, and log back in to Netflix.
Conclusion
There are all sorts of reasons to visit France. We’re partial to the cuisine. When we’re at an outdoor French cafe, enjoying a baguette, we don’t want to worry about whether our internet browsing is broadcasting our secrets to the world. We want a VPN, and we want one that’s nearby.
Or maybe you just want to visit France digitally. Virtual trips are almost as good as real-life trips these days. Among other things, when you’re digitally based in France — when your IP address says you’re from France — you can take a peek at streaming libraries that are available only there.
Not just any VPN is going to help you visit France. You need the right one. We feel confident that the right one will be one from this list.
FAQs
Still have questions about which VPNs are best for France? We’ve got answers.
-
Will using a VPN slow down my internet connection?
Yes. A VPN will slow down your internet connection. Any time you’re running an extra program on your device, it will slow down that device’s functions. In addition, because you’re routing your connection through a remote server rather than connecting directly, it takes longer for your signal to get to its ultimate destination. That said, some VPNs definitely slow devices less than others.
-
What’s the best VPN overall?
The best VPN overall is NordVPN. After exhaustive testing and research, we believe that NordVPN has the best balance between security features, convenience, and price. While you’ll get advanced technology like multihop and camouflage mode, you’ll also be able to connect to all the most popular streaming services. And you get all of that for a price that’s reasonable whether you’re signing up for a single month or a two-year plan.
-
Are there any free VPNs with servers in France?
Not really. Most free VPNs limit you to free server locations in the US, the Netherlands, Japan, or Singapore.
-
Are VPNs legal in France?
Yes, VPNs are absolutely legal in France. Always keep in mind, however, that illegal online activities are illegal whether or not you’re using a VPN.
-
What’s the most affordable VPN to use in France?
The most affordable VPN to use in France is Proton VPN since the company offers a free version of its service. However, if you are looking for a paid subscription plan with no restrictions, your best bet is CyberGhost. Prices start at $2.03, and it offers the most servers in France. This means you’ll likely connect to a server with fewer people, resulting in faster speeds.
