The Best Free VPN of 2021
You don't have to spend a penny to encrypt your web traffic with a VPN.
We can cite dozens of reasons why getting a VPN subscription is a worthwhile investment, but that doesn’t change the fact that a paid VPN just isn’t for everybody. If you’re looking for a free VPN service that can take your digital security up a notch, keep your personal data private, and protect your computer or mobile phone from the prying eyes of hackers, this review is especially for you.
Why We Don’t Recommend Free VPNs
While we’ve tested out many decent free VPNs, they’re simply not as comprehensive as paid VPNs. Why? Because many have limits on things like:
- The amount of servers we can connect to
- Our daily data usage
- The number of devices we can connect
- The amount of time we can use the VPN for.
You know what they say: there’s no such thing as a free lunch, and that’s never been more true than for free VPNs. In order to profit off of your service, many of them will sell your personal information, or even your web traffic or private IP addresses, to third-party companies. These companies will then sell your data to advertisers and marketers to create targeted ads. For someone looking for a VPN, you want to keep your personal information and web activity private, so depending on the service, a VPN’s privacy policy could defeat the purpose of a VPN itself. And so, with a final plea, here are the VPNs we recommend the most overall. Although they’re not free, their prices are so affordable we think you just might change your minds.
Best Overall
ExpressVPN
Best Encryption
NordVPN
That being said, you may be fine with these limitations and logging policies, and if that’s the case, read on to find out our top picks for the best free VPNs, all personally tested by us. Note that all of these VPNs also have paid options so if you end up wanting to use them on more devices, use more bandwidth per day, or what have you, you can always upgrade if you so please. Without further ado, we bring you 2021’s best free VPNs!
Side-by-Side Comparison of the Best Free VPNs of 2021
| System |
Surfshark
|
TunnelBear
|
Windscribe VPN
|
Hotspot Shield
|
ProtonVPN
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranking | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th |
| Ratings | 9.2/10 | 8.8/10 | 8.7/10 | 8.6/10 | 8.5/10 |
| Works on | iOS, Android, MacOS, Windows, Linux, Fire TV Stick apps, Xbox | Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, and Linux with browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Opera | Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS with browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Opera | Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS | Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, and Linux |
| Data Usage Limit | None | 500 MB per month | 2 GB per month or 10 GB if you login and confirm using your email address | 500 MB per day, refreshes every 24 hours | Unlimited |
| Connection Speed Limits | No speed limit | No speed limit | No speed limit | 2 Mbps | No speed limit, but prioritizes connection of premium users |
| Server Locations | 63 locations | Over 20 locations | 10 locations (USA, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Switzerland, the UK, and HongKong) | US-based server location only | 3 locations (USA, Netherlands, and Japan) |
| Split Tunneling | Yes | Yes (Android only) | Yes (Android app only) | No | Yes (Windows and Android clients only) |
| 5 Eyes, 9 Eyes, or 14 Eyes Member | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Limitations of Freemium Version | 30 Day Free Trial | 500 MB data usage per month, No Netflix access, Up to five simultaneous connections | 10 GB data usage per month, Netflix works in the US and the UK only | 500 MB daily data usage limit, Up to five devices only, One simultaneous connection only, 2 Mbps speed limit, One server location (US) | Three server locations, One simultaneous connection, Lower speed priority than premium users |
| Premium Subscription Pricing | $12.95 monthly or $30 yearly | $9.99 monthly or $59.88 yearly | $9 monthly or $49 yearly | $12.99 monthly or $95.88 yearly | ProtonVPN Basic: $5 monthly or $48 yearly; ProtonVPN Plus: $10 monthly or $96 yearly |
| Read Review | Surfshark Review | TunnelBear Review | Windscribe VPN Review | Hotspot Shield Review | ProtonVPN Review |
The Best Free VPNs of 2021
- Surfshark - Best Free VPN Overall
- TunnelBear - Best Free VPN for Beginners
- Windscribe - Best Free VPN for the Security
- Hotspot Shield - Best Free VPN for Windows and Mac Users
- ProtonVPN - Best Free VPN with Unlimited Data Usage
A Closer Look at the Best Free VPNs of 2021
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1. Surfshark - Best Free VPN Overall
What We Liked:
- Five Eyes non-member
- Torrenting and Netflix access
- Split tunneling
- AES-256 encryption
What We Didn’t Like:
- Free VPN only lasts 30 days (Still better than others)
- Static IP addresses
- Latency on Windows
- No phone support
Low Prices After Trial Ends
Sure, we’re not thrilled that SurfShark’s free trial only lasts a month. But that trial period does have its advantages. One, we weren’t limited at all on how we could use the VPN in terms of servers, data, or speed limits, so we could really try it out accurately. And even once that month is over, the prices didn’t exactly break the bank.
Time Length Overall Cost Monthly Cost 2 Years $59.76 $2.49 6 Months $38.94 $6.49 1 Month $12.95 $12.95 We signed up for two years to lock in that $2.49 a month rate, billed one time as about $60.
Unlimited Simultaneous Connections
It’s no secret that we spend a ton of time online; sometimes, we’re on our laptops, watching Netflix on our Chromecast and checking Instagram on our phones at the same time. So we need a VPN that doesn’t limit us on how many devices we can connect simultaneously. Enter Surfshark, which allows for unlimited connections at the same time. Not only that, but it worked on a ton of our devices, including:
- iOS
- Android
- macOS
- Windows
- Linux
- Fire TV Stick
- Xbox
This opens up SurfShark to most people online, plus, anyone that uses Chrome or Firefox, as it has browser extensions for both.
Netflix Access
We’ll let you in on a little secret: Netflix is not a fan of VPNs. After pressure from TV networks and studios, they blocked a ton of VPN IP addresses, forcing VPN companies to scramble for new servers. Fortunately, we had no issues watching Surfshark on Netflix, so if you need to finish that show that’s last season is only on Netflix in another country, you can connect to Surfshark and switch regions.
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2. TunnelBear - Best Free VPN for Beginners
What We Liked:
- Easy to use and intuitive user interface
- Over 20 server locations for free users
- Up to five simultaneous connections
- Works across all major operating systems (Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS)
What We Didn’t Like:
- Based in Canada, a Five Eye alliance member
- No Netflix access
- No phone or live chat support
- 500 MB per month data usage limit
Fun and Easy To Use
Most VPNs have a serious vibe going on with their user interface, but TunnelBear took a different approach with its intuitive yet fun and easy to use user interface. It connected to the encrypted tunnels with one click of a button, and once connected, the application showed us our server location through a virtual map. That was incredibly helpful because choosing a server location closest to our physical location usually yielded faster upload and download speeds. Whenever we felt a slowdown, we simply clicked on the “tunnel”, an icon representing TunnelBear’s server locations, closest to us to get a better connection.
FYI: FYI: TunnelBear offers over 20 server locations to choose from, all of which are accessible even to free users.
Up To Five Simultaneous Connections
Although TunnelBear is a free VPN, it allows up to five connections at any single time. In fact, on several occasions, we used it to encrypt our MacBook Air, Android smartphone, and iPad while they were all connected to a public library Wi-Fi network. And that’s another advantage of the TunnelBear as a free VPN: it worked across all major operating systems for desktop and mobile, including Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS. Like Windscribe, it also had browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Opera, which allowed us to encrypt only our browsing data rather than encrypting our laptop or smartphone’s entire online activity.
The TunnelBear App 20+ Server Locations
While other VPNs limit the number of virtual locations accessible to free users, we loved that TunnelBear let us connect to over 20 different server locations. It allowed us to choose a server closest to us for faster speeds and to switch over to different servers if our current connection wasn’t good. And for those like us who aren’t geography buffs, TunnelBear’s interface makes it a lot easier to visualize the location of the servers, thus making it easier to find other close proximity servers in case the closest one doesn’t yield good speeds.
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3. Windscribe - Best Free VPN for the Security-Minded
What We Liked:
- At least 10 server locations for free users
- Adware and malware blocker with the browser extension
- Desktop client includes a built-in firewall
- Split tunneling on the Android app
What We Didn’t Like:
- Based in Canada, a Five Eyes alliance member
- Logs more data than the bare minimum
- 10 GB per month data usage limit
- Live chat support through an automated bot
Worked On Desktops, Smartphones, and Browsers
Windscribe worked on just about any device we used at home. There were desktop clients for Windows, Mac, and Linux, apps for iOS and Android, browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Opera, and even an app for our Amazon Fire TV. Now that’s impressive, but let’s go back to the basics. We used Windscribe mostly on our MacBook Pro. The desktop client connected all our apps to the VPN tunnel, while the Windscribe extension we installed on our Chrome browser only encrypted our browser activity. That was helpful because, given the 10 GB per month data limit, we used Windscribe mostly to browse the Internet. If, for instance, we wanted to Google something while on a Skype call, we could simply connect our browser to Windscribe without having to connect Skype and all our other desktop applications.
Pro Tip: You can get additional data allowance by tweeting about Windscribe, referring friends, or hanging around Windscribe’s official Subreddit.
Ads, Tracking, and Social Network Blocking
There was another advantage to using the Windscribe browser extension: it included ad-tracking and social network blocking. These three features made our online browsing experience with Windscribe a lot more enjoyable and private. It blocked all ads, tracking malware, and social media widgets of websites we visited that could be used to track our browsing activity. You know those Like, Tweet, and Share widget buttons that appear on various websites? Turns out, they were tracking our browsing data even though we hadn’t clicked on any of them.2 Windscribe blocked those widgets so that we could browse the Web without being tracked by Facebook, Twitter, or any other social networks (though we could still access our social media accounts). That just goes to show how serious the company is about keeping its customers’ online activity private.
Windscribe Data Logging Policy Data Logging Policy
As far as logging data goes, Windscribe didn’t keep track and store any identifying data such as our real IP address and the websites we visited while connected to the VPN. However, they did log a little more information than the bare minimum, including the amount of data we’ve used during our sessions and the times of our connections. That’s a little bit concerning, but to be fair, Windscribe’s data privacy policy requires them to discard such data as soon as we disconnected from the service. The only records they kept were the number of parallel connections at any given time and a counter of our data usage within a 30-day period to help us keep track of our data usage limit and to prevent abuse and account-sharing.
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4. Hotspot Shield - Best Free VPN for Windows and Mac Users
What We Liked:
- Generous 500 MB data usage allowance per day
- Works on Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS
- Doesn’t log browsing activities
- Up to five devices per account
What We Didn’t Like:
- Only one simultaneous connection allowed
- US-based servers only for free users
- 2 Mbps speed limit
- Based in the US, a Five Eye alliance member
500 MB Daily Data Usage Limit
Hotspot Shield did limit our data usage, but they were more generous than most other free VPNs. The data allowance was refreshed every 24 hours, giving us 500 MB of bandwidth to consume every day. That’s about 15 GB per month, provided that we max out our allowance daily. However, unused data didn’t roll over to the next day, so if we used only 400 MB in one day, we would still only receive 500 MB the next day. The daily limit made sense as it helped us control our data usage. Instead of giving us 15 GB per month, which frankly, we could blow through in just a week or so, it limited our daily usage so we’d still have bandwidth left towards the end of the month. Now that’s just smart.
Works On Up to Five Devices
We’ve been able to login using our Hotspot Shield account using five different devices. It worked on Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS, so whether we were in the office working on our MacBooks, at a coffee shop browsing on our smartphones, or at home with our Windows PC, we had access to Hotspot Shield. Only one device connected to Hotspot Shield at a time, though, but it was easy enough to switch between devices thanks to the VPN’s fast connection times. We usually got connected to a VPN tunnel in under 5 seconds, which is impressive for a free VPN.
Hotspot Shield Windows Kill Switch No Ads on Windows and Mac Clients
Most free VPNs generate revenue by injecting ads into the websites we visit, and while Hotspot Shield did that in the past, they recently changed their policy and only placed ads in their mobile apps. Also, instead of injecting the ads into websites, Hotspot Shield only showed us short ads after we connected and disconnected our mobile phone VPN. Of course, it’s never fun to see ads, but with a freemium VPN with a generous data usage allowance, going through a couple of ads every session didn’t hurt.
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5. ProtonVPN - Best Free VPN with Unlimited Data Usage
What We Liked:
- No data usage limit
- Strict “No Logs” policy
- Intuitive user interface
- Works across all major operating systems (Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS)
What We Didn’t Like:
- Server locations limited to the U.S, the Netherlands, and Japan
- One simultaneous connection only
- Connection speed priority for premium users
- No other way to contact support besides email support tickets
Unlimited Browsing, Streaming, and Downloads
The most common limitation we’ve encountered while testing free VPNs was the data usage limit, which is why we love the fact that the ProtonVPN had no such restrictions. We browsed, streamed, and downloaded all we wanted while our MacBook Pro remained connected. On top of that, our Internet speed didn’t drop that much. We had no problem watching Netflix and playing online games, except of course during peak hours. The ProtonVPN gives higher speed priority to paying customers as an incentive, so as users of the free version, our connection slowed down as the traffic increased, but it was still manageable.
Strict “No Logs” Policy
ProtonVPN’s main servers are located in Switzerland, which is a good thing because Switzerland has strict data privacy laws in place.1 Switzerland is also not a member of the Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, or 14 Eyes international surveillance alliance, so the U.S. government cannot force ProtonVPN to give up its users’ data. The funny thing was, there’s no data to give up in the first place. The company has a strict “no logs” policy. They didn’t log our browsing activity or any information about our VPN connection. The only information they stored was a single timestamp of our more recent login for our account’s security. That’s hardly an identifying data, so we had no qualms with them logging it. They did, however, store our account information locally on their servers, like our email address, support requests and reports, and payment information once we decided to spring for the premium version, which they claimed to have deleted when we canceled our subscription. This is all normal, though, and believe us, we’ve read a ton of VPN privacy policies!
ProtonVPN Privacy Policy Three Server Locations, One Simultaneous Connection
One of the most important questions we asked ourselves while testing free VPNs was, “Can we live with its limitations?”. Fortunately, ProtonVPN’s limitations barely bothered us. First, there were only three server locations— Japan, the Netherlands, and the United States— which meant that we had fewer options to choose from once those servers started filling up with paying users; however, that wasn’t a problem when we connected to a New York server. Second, we were only able to connect one device at a time. If we were already browsing using our smartphone, we couldn’t use ProtonVPN on our laptop to watch Netflix. That was a little harder to bear, but again, we were using the free version so we can’t complain. And while we’re tech-obsessed, we usually only use one device at a time, anyway.
Our Video Review
If you liked our list, be sure to also check out our video review of the best free VPNs. It has additional information about our top picks and you’ll get to see our featured free VPNs in action as well.
Methodology: How We Tested Free VPNs
That’s pretty much it for our list of the best VPNs you can access for free. But if you want to explore your options yourself, here’s an insider’s look at our review process and what we look for in VPNs, whether free-to-use or otherwise.
Speed
First of all, we want our VPN to protect our privacy without making much of an impact on our browsing experience, particularly our Internet speed. Almost any VPN we’ve ever tested slowed down our connection, but ideally, the difference should not exceed 40 percent in any of the speed categories— namely, the latency (ping), download speed, and upload speed.
We tested free VPNs using Speedtest by Ookla. To make the results uniform, we connected only one device to our router at a time, and then we took a speed test using the device without the VPN. We then performed a second speed test, this time with the VPN. We logged the results and computed the difference between the latency, download speed, and upload speed in terms of a percentage. We performed the tests both on our Mac and Windows computers.
Keep in mind that speed test results don’t always tell the whole story. There are a number of other factors that may affect the results, like our proximity to the server, the current online traffic of both our Internet Service Provider and the VPN, and the device we used, just to name a few. So while we try to keep our test results as accurate as possible, we don’t fully rely on the speed alone to determine our top picks.
Security
VPNs are mostly used to preserve personal data online by encrypting the user’s web traffic, which usually contains identifying data that could compromise a person’s identity and online activity history if it falls into the wrong hands. Unfortunately, while most VPNs do encrypt web traffic, there are some that collect other kinds of metadata that they sell to third parties to turn a profit.
That’s especially true with free VPNs. As they say, “if you’re not paying for a product, you are the product.” To see which VPNs do that and which ones don’t, we looked into their privacy policies and checked which kinds of data they collect and store. There are some, like ProtonVPN, that have strict logging policies, but there are also others that store some types of data but immediately delete everything as soon as you disconnect. Both are acceptable, but ideally, we want our VPN to not collect any data at all aside from the bare minimum needed to uphold our account.
We also looked at each VPN company’s legal obligations to share customer information with the government. Companies based in member countries of the Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, and 14 Eyes international surveillance alliance are particularly risky because their government could force them to hand over customer information. While we won’t go as far as to avoid them, we want our readers to know the risks.
On the more technical side of things, we tested for DNS and WebRTC leaks using online tools. We can see if the VPN has a DNS leak by comparing our IP address with the IP address that appears on the DNS Leak Test website.3 A similar method applies to WebRTC leaks, which we test using ExpressVPN’s online tool.4
Features
The VPN’s performance also matters to us. We are always on the lookout for useful VPNs features. For instance, we checked if the VPN has a kill switch, which stops all online activity in the event that the VPN fails. This feature ensures that no data is leaked to the ISP. Split tunneling is another useful feature as it allows devices to connect to the Internet through two different tunnels. One tunnel is protected by the VPN, while the other connects to a public network as if there’s no VPN. This feature is useful for multi-tasking and it creates faster speeds as it allows lower bandwidth. Finally, we gave special credit to VPNs with multi-hop or at least double-hop connections, as they encrypt data several times as it hops through different servers.
Subscriptions
For this review specifically, we didn’t put much weight on the pricing, given the subject matter. However, we’d like to note that all four free VPNs on our list have paid versions. We base our assessment on a number of factors, including the features the VPN offers and the pricing of competitors. In our experience, paid VPNs could cost as low as less than a dollar per month, but the more expensive ones could cost up to $15 per month.
Customer Support
No matter how tech-savvy we are, we still run into issues we can’t troubleshoot ourselves, so we also like to know how easy (or hard) it is to contact the VPN company’s support team. Email support is not the most ideal for us because most companies are slow to respond to email support tickets. We prefer companies with live chat or phone support, and if those channels are available 24/7, even better.
Apps
Finally, we looked into both the Android and iOS app of the VPN, focusing on its functionality. Is it easy to use? Does it work well? What are other users saying about the app? We also read customer reviews and compare their observations with ours to see if any patterns emerge.
FAQs About Free VPNs
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What are the best free VPNs of 2021?
The best free VPNs of 2020 are ProtonVPN, Windscribe, TunnelBear, and Hotspot Shield. TunnelBear’s free trial has no time limit and supports up to 500 MB of data per day, and Hotspot Shield also has no time limit on their free trial, although it only works on one device.
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Can free VPNs bypass geographic restrictions?
Most free VPNs can bypass geographic restrictions, but for best results, we recommend free VPNs with servers in more than 10 locations.
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What are the limitations of free VPNs?
The limitations of free VPNs often include data usage limits, speed capping, and limited simultaneous connections. Some VPNs may also limit the number of server locations you can access.
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Are free VPNs safe?
Not all free VPNs are safe, which is why we recommend getting a free version of a reputable paid VPN rather than downloading a VPN advertised as 100% free.
The Federal Council. (1999). Federal Constitution of the Swiss Confederation.
admin.ch/opc/en/classified-compilation/19995395/index.htmlWall Street Journal. (2011). ‘Like' Button Follows Web Users.
wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704281504576329441432995616dnsleaktest.com. (2020). DNS Leak Test.
dnsleaktest.com/Express VPN. (2020). WebRTC Leak Test.
expressvpn.com/webrtc-leak-test