Guide for Free VPN Services 2023
Want to use a VPN service but don’t want to pay for one? There are a lot of free VPN services available for both computers and mobile devices.
However, it’s important to proceed with caution because free VPNs fall short in terms of security, privacy, and functionality. The best VPN like ExpressVPN, on the other hand, provides full functionality and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
With the rise in cyber risks, demand for VPNs has increased. Despite the fact that they provide inferior protection, limited server selection, and bandwidth, free VPNs are extremely popular.
But how can you choose between reliable and sketchy VPNs when there are so many to choose from?
Over the years, we’ve tested loads of VPNs, both free and paid. In this article, we provide you with the best free VPN services that are both secure and reliable. We’ll also highlight their important features.
Why We Do Not Recommend Free VPN Services
There is no doubt that many people use free VPN services, but most privacy-conscious users strongly advise against using them.
The reason for this is that free VPN services sell user data to third parties, who then use it to target users with irritating advertisements. They are also known for:
- Collecting and selling user browsing data to third parties
- Offering a low amount of bandwidth, insufficient for streaming or torrenting
- Providing a restricted number of servers that can be annoyingly slow
- Invading your browser with unwelcome advertisements
Free VPN Services to Consider
We provide you with the best free VPN services in 2023 that are safe to use. We have tested free VPNs on different parameters including server access, speed, data allowance, and security. Here is a breakdown of the best free VPN services:
ProtonVPN — Best Free VPN Service with Unlimited Bandwidth
- 34.63 Mbps on a 100 Mbps connection
- Free VPN service with unlimited bandwidth
- Email address required
- 3 server locations only (US, Netherlands, and Japan). Works with YouTube and Kodi
- Compatible with browsers, macOS, Linux, Windows, iOS, Android, and more
- 256-bit AES encryption
ProtonVPN is the most well-known, best free VPN service with unlimited bandwidth and data. Its free plan provides unlimited data, allowing you to download and stream as much as you like. This is incredible because most free VPNs only provide 500 MB to 10 GB of bandwidth at best.
Furthermore, free users can only connect to servers in three countries (Japan, the United States, and the Netherlands). It does not function with Netflix, but it can unblock other websites such as YouTube, Spotify, and others. However, torrents cannot be downloaded using ProtonVPN’s free plan.
CyberGhost VPN – Two months for free
- Around 8000 servers on 100+ locations in 90+ countries across the globe
- Simultaneous connections allowed (up to seven)
- Excellent speed
- Several security products, including a private browser
- Free trial and 45-day money-back guarantee
CyberGhost has been one of the leading VPN service providers for over a decade now. Via our site you can get CyberGhost free for twho months!
This provider is best known for the vast array of features promising secure and anonymous online activities.
Users can expect four pricing plans with a 45-day money-back guarantee deal.
In addition to the VPN service, CyberGhost also provides a password manager and a security suite for Windows users.
Read our detailed CyberGhost VPN review for additional information about this famous brand.
PIA VPN – 30-Day Money-Back Guarantee!
Private Internet Access, or just PIA, is a trustworthy, modern VPN service provider with a long history. It has excellent add-ons that provide additional online protection. PIA has all the standard and several unique features for a hassle-free VPN experience.
PIA VPN Review Pros & Cons
- More than 30,000 servers and presence in each US state
- Simultaneous connections on up to 10 devices
- Advanced split tunneling
- Advanced encryption settings
- 24/7 customer support
- WireGuard protocol
- Crypto-friendly
Private Internet Access, or just PIA, gives you a 30-day money back guarantee, so you can use it free for am month. If you don’t like it in the end, you can quit. PIA is a trustworthy, modern VPN service provider with a long history. It has excellent add-ons that provide additional online protection. PIA has all the standard and several unique features for a hassle-free VPN experience.
ExpressVPN – 3 months for free
Express VPN is a well-known provider, especially suited to first time VPN users and content streamers. You can get Express VPN for free trough us for three months.
With its unique, easy to use multi-platform functionality and security features all suited to streaming content already baked in, what more could you ask for?
So, if you’re egging on to watch the latest episode of Mary Berry on BBC or trying to stream an episode of Too Hot to Handle through Netflix without leaving a crumb of evidence behind, browser history excluded, then this may just be the VPN for you!
Hotspot Shield — Best Free VPN for Torrenting
- 44.63 Mbps on a 100 Mbps connection
- 1 free server in the US
- No email address required
- Best free VPN for torrenting
- 256-bit AES encryption
- 500 MB/ day free data
- Works with Kodi, and YouTube
- Compatible with Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, browsers, and more
One of the best free VPN services for torrenting is Hotspot Shield. The main disadvantage of this VPN service is that its free plan only allows you to connect to servers in the United States.
Furthermore, it only allows 500 MB of data each day, which is insufficient for enthusiastic broadcasters.
TunnelBear — User-friendly Free VPN Service
- 500 MB free data per month
- Email address required
- User-friendly Free VPN service
- AES 256-bit encryption
- Servers in 23 countries
- 55.81 Mbps on a 100 Mbps connection
- Works with YouTube, HBO, Kodi, and more
- Compatible with iOS, browsers, Android, Windows, macOS, and more
TunnelBear is one of the most user-friendly, best free VPN services, with simple apps ideal for novices. It has a charming, animated bear that helps you through the application, which makes the UI highly appealing.
TunnelBear’s free plan only permits 500 MB of data per month, which is insufficient for streaming and other bandwidth-intensive tasks. You can get 1 GB of extra bandwidth for free if you tweet about TunnelBear or suggest them to a friend.
Hide.Me — Secure Best Free VPN Service
- 73.97 Mbps on a 100 Mbps connection
- No email address required
- Secure best free VPN service
- 2 GB of free data per month
- AES 256-bit encryption
- 4 free servers in the US, the Netherlands, Germany, and Canada
- Works with Netflix Canada, Sky Go, ABC, YouTube
- Compatible with Android, macOS, browsers, Windows, iOS, and more
Hide.Me is one of the most secure best free VPN services, offering 256-bit encryption as well as additional privacy, and security features.
It provides 10 GB of free monthly data as well as access to four server locations. These servers are in Canada, the United States, the Netherlands, and Germany.
These servers are incompatible with Netflix US and other popular streaming providers.
Speedify — Free VPN with 2 GB data/ month
- 52.61 Mbps on a 100 Mbps connection
- Free VPN with 2 GB free data per month
- No email address required
- Works with Kodi, YouTube, HBO, and more
- Allows torrenting
- Servers in 35 countries
- Compatible with Android, macOS, iOS, Windows, browsers, and more
Speedify is one of the best free VPN services on the market. Speedify provides 2 GB of data each month. While 2 GB of monthly bandwidth is plenty for web browsing and social networking, it is insufficient for streaming or torrenting.
Unfortunately, it does not function with Netflix or other popular streaming services such as BBC iPlayer, Hulu, and others.
OperaVPN — Unlimited Free Data
- 32 Mbps on a 100 Mbps connection
- 3 server locations on the free plan
- Works with YouTube, HBO, and more
- Free VPN with unlimited free data
- Browser extension for Opera browser
- Compatible with iOS, Windows, macOS, Android, and more
The name OperaVPN refers to a built-in VPN extension accessible in the Opera browser. Although it is not a full-fledged VPN, it is one of the best VPN services.
It hides your IP address while you browse various websites and prohibited content.
Betternet — A VPN service with 500 MB free data/ data
- One device per account
- VPN service with 500 MB/ day free data
- Works with Google, YouTube, and more
- 1 server location (US)
- Works with Windows, Android, macOS, iOS, and more
Betternet provides 500 MB of bandwidth each day, which is insufficient to view HD material or download torrent files.
You can only stream for roughly 1-2 hours with this much data.
You can’t access geo-restricted websites from other regions or countries if your free account only has one available location (the United States).
It does not, however, operate with popular American streaming services such as Netflix US, HBO Max, Hulu, and others.
Is a Free VPN Service Worth It
In most countries, using a free VPN service is legal. However, because they provide anonymity and the ability to conceal your online activity, they have also been utilized for a variety of potentially unlawful tasks.
Free VPN services may utilize questionable security tactics that should be avoided. To connect to the internet, most people utilize the point-to-point tunneling protocol (PPTP), which, while extensively used, isn’t secure.
Services that do not identify the protocol type they employ may not be encrypted at all. While these are still useful for bypassing geographical limits, they provide no security.
When looking for a VPN service, avoid those that do not fully reveal their security standards. Even if that means having to settle for a service that throttles your connection or limits your bandwidth.
How to Choose A Free VPN Service
The availability of free VPN services will be determined by your unique requirements. For example, if you frequently use public Wi-Fi, a free VPN service will protect your internet activity by connecting to an encrypted server.
While it is not as powerful as a paid VPN service, it may be sufficient to keep you safe while browsing the web. The best free VPN service will have a simple UI and be simple to set up. And you’ll be relieved to know that it’s entirely legal.
Excessive advertising should also be avoided by free VPN services. While some pop-ups are irritating, other ad-serving VPNs go much further.
They sneak ad-serving trackers into browsers using media-reading functionality. These ad-serving VPNs can track your internet activity and leave a digital trail. If you are worried about this, you should use a premium VPN service.
Some service providers may endanger your security, so examine the terms and conditions of the service you’re contemplating.
Be wary if the service lacks a privacy policy. It’s also possible that the provider will encrypt your browser history and save your personal data.
Some VPN services are subjected to comprehensive third-party audits. Clearly, this isn’t a guarantee of quality work. However, if the audits are meaningful, that is a better sign.
And if the provider does not charge you for the service, you can know it is not a good VPN service.
Are Free VPN Services Safe?
Free VPN services, like any other business, must make money in some way. They make money by engaging in dubious tactics such as selling your data to third parties or selling your bandwidth.
Aside from ignoring their primary goalkeeping your data safe and confidential — free VPN services have a slew of other drawbacks.
Here’s a comprehensive list of some of the problems you could encounter if you use a free VPN:
Track Your Online Activity
One of the primary reasons to use a VPN service is to preserve your privacy and hide your internet activity. Your data will be encrypted, and your ISP will not be able to view your internet activities. Despite this, around 72% of free VPNs track your internet activity.
They gather information about your internet activities and sell it to third-party advertising corporations.
Their advertising partners, they claim, offer adverts based on your usage data, which they obtain by analyzing your cookies.
Most premium VPNs offer a no-log policy, which means they don’t log your online activities and your data is fully secret when you use the service.
Are Extremely Slow
When using the internet, you want it to be quick and easy. You’ll receive anything but that with a free VPN. Some free VPNs intentionally slow down your internet speed in order to entice you to upgrade to their premium plan.
Others simply provide you with access to their slowest servers, either to ensure that you upgrade or because it is all they can afford. And it can get considerably worse at times.
They not only stifle your online experience, but they also bombard you with advertisements that use your bandwidth.
Limited Security Features
Several free providers give limited functionality as an inducement to upgrade to a paid service. As a result, you may not be able to obtain adequate DNS leak protection or a kill switch. If something goes wrong with your VPN connection, your identity and activity will be exposed.
DNS requests can be used to track you if they fall into the wrong hands, making you more vulnerable to hackers. If the encrypted connection dies, a VPN without a kill switch will not keep you safe.
Your personal information can be intercepted and stolen by anyone who is in the right location at the right time.
Other users’ use of your resources and Internet connection
Some free services bring in revenue by utilizing your computer as an exit node for paying customers. This means that their traffic, whether legal or illegal, may wind up passing through your Internet connection.
Your ISP, as well as anyone else who happens to be watching, will believe it’s yours.
VPN Free Trial
The majority of VPN services offer free trials that can last up to 30 days. This is beneficial because it assists consumers in determining whether to upgrade to the paid version or switch to another VPN service.
When choosing a VPN service, you should seek one that offers a free trial period. It is critical to select a free trial VPN that provides a 30-day free trial.
All the VPN services on our list provide a 30-day free trial, after which you can upgrade to the paid version if you like the service.
Free VPN Service vs Paid VPN Service
As previously stated, non-paid VPN services have numerous restrictions in terms of performance and security. However, it all falls down to individual choices. For example, if you want a VPN for secure surfing, a non-paid VPN service is a decent option; however, if you want a VPN for streaming other privacy chores such as online banking, a paid VPN is the ideal option.
Speed
Since they have limited and overloaded servers, the majority of free VPNs provide incredibly sluggish connections. Paid premium VPNs, on the other hand, have thousands of servers in various places and hence provide excellent performance and speed.
Streaming
The majority of non-paid VPN services are restricted by streaming services such as Netflix, Disney+, and others. Premium VPNs, on the other hand, regularly update their IP addresses in order to allow you to circumvent geo-blocks.
Security and Privacy
Paid VPNs are the way to go if you desire anonymity and online protection. This is because premium VPNs have no-logging rules and are frequently audited by third parties such as ExpressVPN. Paid VPNs also provide top-of-the-line security features.
Conclusion
If you are still debating whether or not to get a free or paid VPN? Well, there’s a compromise. Most of the best VPNs out there will actually let you try them for free!
Some of the best have been mentioned in our review already. And that’s because most of them will give you a 30-day money-back guarantee. Due to this, you can actually test out the VPN, enjoy its services and decide later if it’s the one for you.
Of course, you do have to pay upfront first, but these money-back offers are generally hassle-free allowing you to claim your money back quickly and easily. You’re then free to go and try another one.