Best Free VPNs

When looking for a free VPN service, it’s advisable to opt for a trustworthy and renowned VPN that also provides free-forever and trial plans. Simply searching for ‘best free VPN’ and clicking on the first link may result in dodgy companies tricking you into paying them – whether with cash or private information.

Free VPN trials

There are many different types of free VPN trials. While free versions commonly include restrictions on the available features and servers, free trials are guaranteed to come with a time limit.

Then there are providers who don’t offer either option and instead serve up a refund policy. Though this does require an initial payment, this method does result in full access for the time the refund policy is applicable. After that, if a user is not happy with the service, they can easily ask for their money back.

Best free VPN trials

Risks of free VPNs

The reason why everyone should opt for services that offer free trials or limited versions of plans is simple – it’s far too easy to be fooled by untrustworthy companies.

• Data collection: some VPN apps collect data about their users to sell online, which may mean that not only does the user’s private details fall into the hands of unknown third parties, but banking information can be compromised.
• Dodgy free trials: other options make use of limited-time free trials to trick their users into committing to upgrading to an over-priced plan – often without any warning – which is made worse by the fact it’s very complicated to uninstall such apps.
• Advertising: There are also companies that use advertising in their free VPN version in addition to the income they earn on their paid premium version.

The providers that we recommend use a freemium model where they monetize their free services by limiting the available features hoping that customers eventually upgrade to a paid subscription. However, they still protect users’ privacy and follow strict data protection rules.

Considering all this, it’s extremely important to read reviews and the opinions of users to find out whether a VPN service can be trusted.

Paid VPN vs free VPN

Like any other business, the objective of any VPN provider is to make a profit from users’ subscriptions, which explains some of the conditions and limits on the free plans. The difference between a free and a paid VPN is considerable and not solely limited to the number of servers, unlimited bandwidth, or speed:

• Advanced features: Some of the free VPN services leave the more advanced security features to their respective premium subscriptions. Kill switches or the ability to choose between VPN protocols, for instance, are two extras that are often only included with paid accounts. This is also true for being able to add more devices to an account or use exclusive settings for less common platforms like game consoles or smart TVs, often via router configurations.
• Higher number of servers: Available locations are typically extended in premium accounts, usually unlocking additional servers inside larger or more popular countries.
• Dedicated servers: Some providers offer exclusive access to specific servers reserved for torrenting and streaming on their paid subscriptions. These provide even higher security and are created to ensure high download times and uninterrupted streaming.

What to look for in a free VPN

Free VPN for torrenting

Since p2p is illegal in many countries, it’s crucial to use a VPN when torrenting to hide your IP address. A kill switch is also important, as it shuts down all internet connections if the VPN fails, ensuring that no real IP addresses are ever shown. Finally, getting a VPN that comes with p2p-dedicated servers is a big plus, as these usually provide faster download speeds.

Free VPN for Kodi

Kodi is one of the most popular online media streaming services, allowing users to watch foreign TV channels. Because of this, VPNs are necessary not only to overcome geographically blocked content but to remain hidden from ISPs, too.

Since they can’t see what users are doing when connected to a VPN, they won’t throttle any connections to those who have bandwidth restrictions. The most suitable is a VPN with DNS leak prevention, a kill switch, and streaming servers.

Free VPN for Netflix

As with Kodi, using a VPN for Netflix is recommended to gain access to the streaming service’s libraries in other locations. The U.S., Canada, and Mexico have the most complete selection in the world by far, but other regions include programs and movies that you might not find in these libraries.

Additionally, using a VPN is handy to avoid any ISP throttling. In fact, this has become such a common practice that Netflix started blocking users’ connections if it detected that they were using a VPN. The good news is that some free services still manage to get past the Netflix ban, especially if they include servers dedicated to streaming only.

Free VPN for Windows

Windows is the most popular operating system in the world, with a mix of older and different versions still in use. VPN companies know this and there isn’t a single provider that doesn’t offer a client for Windows 11 or older. Having a VPN for Windows protects the entire computer, and most providers often go as far as Windows Vista, Windows 7, or even all the way back to Windows XP.

Free VPN for Android

Android is to mobile devices as Windows is to computers; it’s the number one mobile operating system. Because it’s so common to connect to public Wi-Fi hotspots, most VPN providers also provide dedicated Android apps.

This is vital to ensure that your smart device is protected from the many dangers of public networks. Their trials or free-forever versions can often also be enjoyed on mobile and enabling features like automatic connection while on Wi-Fi is advisable.