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A VPN (or “virtual private network”) is a must for people who want to bypass online geo-blocking, stop their ISP from selling their browsing data to advertisers, or to hide their torrenting activity. I’ve already written about the best free VPN services, which are great, but their feature sets are limited compared to what you’ll get from paid competitors.
Once you’ve decided you want to pay for a VPN, it can be overwhelming to decide which to go with, because there are a lot of options out there that all want to convince you they’re the best. To take some of the uncertainty out of the equation, here are my recommendations for the best paid VPNs, depending on what matters most to you.
Best VPN for privacy enthusiasts
Credit: Mullvad
Mullvad offers something that not many other VPNs do—complete anonymity. When you sign up, Mullvad does not require you to provide an email address. It does not allow you to set up recurring subscriptions because the company does not want to store that data. You also have the option to pay via cash or privacy-focused cryptocurrency options such as Monero. The pricing is quite simple: €5 per month (yes, it charges in euros; right now that’s about $5.41). You can also check which servers are owned by Mullvad and which ones are rented.
Another VPN with top-notch privacy
Credit: IVPN
IVPN is a slightly pricier alternative to Mullvad, but it offers one feature that Mullvad does not: IVPN allows you to set up a multi-hop connection, in which your traffic is routed through more than one VPN server. On its Pro plan, you can choose which server your traffic enters IVPN’s network from, and which one it exits from. This is a great feature for privacy nerds. IVPN also doesn’t require your email ID to sign up, and accepts cash and Monero. IVPN costs $6 per month for the standard plan and $10 per month for Pro, with discounts for longer plans.
Best free VPN that offers more with a paid plan
If you are looking for a free VPN, you always have to be wary of companies selling your data. However, ProtonVPN offers a good free service and it comes from the makers of ProtonMail, a privacy focused email service. The company has a good track record for privacy, and offers one of the best free VPN services. It has no data caps, but is limited to three servers and one connection per account. If you upgrade to the paid plans, you’ll get lots of great features such as multi-hop connections and censorship circumvention. ProtonVPN’s plans start at $10 per month, with discounted rates for people who sign up for longer plans.
Best VPN for unlimited device connections
Surfshark, a service owned by NordVPN’s parent company, offers plans with unlimited device connections. If you have more than five devices that you want to connect to a VPN at the same time, this service may appeal to you. Surfshark costs $15.45 per month, with discounts for longer-term plans.
Best VPNs for bypassing geoblocking
If all you need a VPN for is watching streaming sites from other regions, CyberGhost or ExpressVPN could serve you well. Both VPNs push it as a primary feature, and both are reliable. Cyberghost charges $12.99 per month while ExpressVPN will run you $12.95 per month. Both offer annual plans at discounted rates.
Check out all of our recommended VPNs:
Mullvad: €5 per month
IVPN: $6 per month (standard), $10 per month (pro)
ProtonVPN: free, $10 per month (paid)
Surfshark: $15.45 per month
CyberGhost: $12.99 per month
ExpressVPN: $12.95 per month