You see VPNs everywhere these days. YouTubers hawk VPNs at you day and night, telling you that you can secure your internet privacy and watch region-locked shows on Netflix and other video streaming services. In just a few years, they’ve turned from a technology that’s obscure to most people in the mainstream into an online necessity.
Let’s take a look at some of the best and most reliable VPN services of 2021 and why they stand head and shoulders above everyone else.
What is a VPN?
Short for “Virtual Private Network,” a VPN is software that lets you connect to the Internet through encrypted tunnels that are meant to be more secure and hide your IP address from prying eyes by having your computer or device show up in a different location.
VPNs have two major selling points, which are privacy and circumventing region locks. The former is about being able to stay anonymous online through an encrypted connection that lets you stay away from prying eyes, whether it’s hackers, your internet service provider, or even your government. This makes VPNs a must-have for countries with strict online regulations.
And because you’re able to change your IP address in a different location, even in a different country, you’re able to use region-locked services that are otherwise inaccessible to you. This feature is often used for streaming services like Netflix, letting users watch shows, films, or live sporting events that are only available in other countries.
Whether you’re a tourist traveling to a country with a lot of internet censorship or just a user whose favorite app is banned in their own location, a reliable VPN service is a good thing to have. It’s also important for anything that involves financial transactions, like online banking, money transfers, cryptocurrency, and so on. Using a VPN as insurance can give you peace of mind while doing tasks that involve sensitive personal information.
Are VPNs trustworthy? Many users around the world do think so, and that has given rise to a growing competitive online market full of VPN services that have been gaining more and more customers in recent years. Now that you know what a VPN is and how important it is to have one, let’s take a look at the most reliable VPN services out there.
Top VPN Services of 2021
This list is taken from the best VPN reviews 2021 that have some of the best VPN services available on the Internet right now. These services offer the same basic set of features, along with their own strengths, unique features, and pricing plans that set them apart from each other.
ExpressVPN
This is one of the most popular and trustworthy VPN services on the Internet. You may have heard of it from sponsored YouTube videos. It’s incredibly easy to use, has fast server connections in 90+ countries, enterprise-level encryption, and excellent 24/7 customer support. It also has free cloud backup and a 30-day risk-free trial period.
ExpressVPN boasts top marks in security and usability across the board and compatibility with almost every platform under the sun. It does have a drawback of having fewer simultaneous connections compared to some other VPN services out there, but it’s still more than enough for most regular users.
NordVPN
This is ExpressVPN’s closest competitor, being another VPN service that’s prominently featured in sponsored YouTube videos. NordVPN is highly rated in most VPN reviews thanks to its military-level encryption with the NordLynx protocol, a new-generation VPN technology that provides faster connections and improves security and privacy. That sets it apart from the rest of the pack.
While it’s not as easy to use as its popular rival, it does provide unparalleled security that few can match. Another downside is that NordVPN only has a few options available when it comes to its subscription plans. Despite that, it does offer excellent value with its two-year special offer and has a 30-day money back guarantee for those who wish to try it out.
Surfshark
A VPN service that has been on the rise lately, Surfshark is quickly becoming an underdog favorite for many users due to its incredible value. For a very affordable price of $2.50 per month, you can have Surfshark for an unlimited number of devices with an easy-to-use interface and excellent unblocking capabilities that takes no time to set up.
However, connections are not as fast as the other top options, and it doesn’t have as many bells and whistles. But if you’re a regular user who just wants to consume region-locked content and do some data-sensitive tasks every now and then, Surfshark is adequate for those purposes.
If you wish to try it out, Surfshark has a 30-day money back guarantee that makes trying it out relatively risk-free.
Private Internet Access
From its name to its features, Private Internet Access (PIA) is a robust VPN service that offers excellent user experience, advanced network settings, and good connection speeds. The app is packed with features, letting you use PIA for different applications. You also get a whole lot of servers to choose from, so you can tunnel into just about anywhere around the world.
They could do a lot better in communicating their privacy policies, and they’re infamous for having no security audits, so you’ll have to take them by faith. Also, their WireGuard speeds can be inconsistent at times. But for the huge set of features it has, the pricing offers a ton of value.
Hotspot Shield
This one has been around for a while, and it has massively improved its VPN service to feature some of the fastest connection speeds in the market. It’s also incredibly easy to use with a set of features that even beginners can understand. Hotspot Shield provides full access to 1,800+ servers in more than 80 countries for up to five devices and has 24/7 customer support.
While it’s not as flashy as a lot of the other VPN services out there, they’ve been in the game for quite a while. If your main device is an iPhone, you’ll find their app a bit lacking, but at least it’s easy to use. Hotspot Shield is better if you’re mostly using it for consuming content, while their security and privacy features could still use some improvement. But with a 45-day money back guarantee, it doesn’t hurt at all to try.
TunnelBear
This one looks cute with a bear that tunnels to its servers when you turn it on. TunnelBear is one of the most affordable and user-friendly VPN services out there, letting you circumvent region locks and get encrypted connections easily. This Canada-based VPN service has earned a reputation for hitting a good balance between security and user experience, being quite excellent in both.
While it has no trial period, it does have free data allocation for those trying it out. However, it doesn’t provide as good of a performance for those looking to use it to stream content. But if you just need something to use for financial transactions and such, TunnelBear is perfect.
CyberGhost
Featuring one of the largest VPN server networks you’ll ever find, CyberGhost is an excellent choice for power users. With more than 7,000 servers across more than 90 countries, CyberGhost has all the basics covered and more. This is the VPN service favored by people who regularly do torrent downloads, so you know it has excellent performance.
You may find it lacking in supporting some streaming platforms, but its desktop apps are jam-packed with features. CyberGhost may not be as trustworthy when it comes to privacy since it has no audits, but it certainly doesn’t fall behind its competitors.
ProtonVPN
The Proton brand is becoming synonymous with online privacy, and its VPN service is no different. ProtonVPN provides numerous privacy tools and features that make it amazing for online security and privacy. The best thing about ProtonVPN is that it has a free plan with unlimited bandwidth.
Of course, that also means it’s not as fast as most other VPN services, so it’s not the best for streaming and torrenting. Also, it doesn’t have live chat support. But if you’re looking to secure your online connection with your devices, then this is one of your best possible options, especially with a basic premium plan of $5 a month.
Windscribe
Another underdog choice, Windscribe has been gaining ground with its reliable VPN service that has been steadily improving over the years. Windscribe has been known to offer unlimited device connections with solid security and privacy features. Connections are fast and secure thanks to its support for WireGuard protocol.
While it does have fewer servers compared to the competition at a measly 400 and lacks live chat support, Windscribe is a good tool to have whenever you need a secure encrypted connection wherever you go. Its free plan provides 2-10GB of bandwidth and its paid plan is more than adequate for streaming.
VyprVPN
For those who are especially security-conscious, VyprVPN is an underrated favorite among users who are more tech-savvy. Based in Switzerland, VyprVPN is more specifically focused on privacy, but is still great for streaming. It can be used for pretty much every streaming platform on the Internet, and it has a great Android app that’s feature-packed and easy to use.
It only has around 700 servers across 60+ countries, but it doesn’t rely on third-party hosts that may make security questionable. It has a kill switch, DNS leak protection, startup and auto-reconnect options, URL filtering, and all other features that make it one of the most trustworthy VPN services out there.
NetProtect
With servers in more than 40 countries and support for 26 languages, NetProtect is a VPN service on the rise. After acquiring SaferVPN as a part of the J2 Global family of online security services, alongside IPVanish, StrongVPN, and Encrypt.me, it has only made NetProtect better by being able to exchange notes with these other upcoming VPN services.
NetProtect describes itself as a “global leader in internet protection,” which are bold words. But with their widening array of VPN services and other security solutions, it’s becoming harder to argue on the contrary. Soon, they may start to overtake industry leaders like NordVPN and ExpressVPN.
PureVPN
While not as popular as the other VPN services on this list, PureVPN is making a name for itself with its strong encryption, torrenting support, and a whole array of protocols to choose from. It has garnered some loyal fans over the years with this combination of features.
However, it doesn’t support WireGuard, which does take it down a peg, especially when it comes to streaming. But on the surface, its VPN does check most of the boxes with AES-256 encryption, ability to unblock region-blocked streaming, and no DNS leaks.
VPN Proxy Master
If you’re looking for a free VPN for Mac, iOS, or Android, then you may want to check out VPN Proxy Master. It’s a popular service, with over 10 million installs on the Google Play Store, most likely due to its status as a free VPN service.
Since it’s entirely for free, don’t expect too much from it. Connection speeds are not the fastest, the customer support leaves much to be desired, and lacks some security features. It’s also not that good for streaming. But if you’re in a pinch and need a free VPN, this may fit the bill.