TOP NOTCH VPNS
Virtual Private Networks (VPN) have gone from being an obscure networking concept to big business. You’ve probably seen the ads from your favorite YouTuber, on podcasts, and even during the Superbowl with claims about how a VPN can make you anonymous or let you access free video streaming. Do the products live up to the hype? Although VPNs can be useful tools for protecting your privacy, it’s important to understand how these tools work so you can decide whether they will actually help you. We break down what VPNs do and what they don’t do to help you understand why you’d want one and how to pick the one that’s best for you.
Features
Why Use a VPN?
Safe & Secure
If you are at all concerned with your data privacy, VPNs are an easy-to-use, reasonably priced security measure that gives you a base level of internet protection. While it may seem silly to protect your data when you aren’t doing anything “wrong” on the internet, even the most innocent among us do have data secrets online, such as sensitive passwords and financial information.
A VPN’s encryption and identity protection services are like a lock on a door, or in other words, a basic security measure that everyone should have.
More Configurable
- Security on Public Wi-Fi. …
- Data Privacy From Your Internet Service Provider. …
- Data Privacy From the Apps and Services You Use. …
- Data Privacy From Your Government. …
- Access to Any Content in Any Place. …
- Security When Working Remotely. …
- Adaptable to Numerous Smart Devices. …
- Smart Savings
Save Money
Security is not all that a VPN can offer. By changing your IP address, it can also help you to save heaps of money.
It’s no secret that airline companies tend to increase the ticket price based on your actual IP location. However, if you choose a VPN server that’s further from your home region, you can snatch some delicious flight deals.
The same thing happens with streaming platforms, video game distributors, and other organizations. These providers also base on the country’s economic norms. So, if you live in the US, you might be overpaying compared to the countries such as Mexico.
Overall, correctly setting up a VPN and choosing the right server location can bring you a fortune!
Keep up as crypto continues to battle its way back.
Did you know some iptv services offer payment in many crypto ? Just another added layer of protection of your identity and confidence in purchasing on the web.
Things to know about VPNS
What Else Does a VPN Do?
VPNs are a fairly simple tool, but they can be used to do a wide variety of things:
- Access a Business Network While Traveling: VPNs are frequently used by business travelers to access their business network, including all its local network resources, while on the road. The local resources don’t have to be exposed directly to the Internet, which increases security.
- Access Your Home Network While Traveling: You can also set up your own VPN to access your own network while traveling. This will allow you to access a Windows Remote Desktop over the internet , use local file shares, and play games over the Internet as if you were on the same LAN (local area network).
- Hide Your Browsing Activity From Your Local Network and ISP: If you’re using a public wi-fi connection your browsing activity on non-HTTPS websites is visible to everyone nearby, if they know how to look. If you want to hide your browsing activity for a bit more privacy, you can connect to a VPN. The local network will only see a single, secure VPN connection. All the other traffic will travel over the VPN connection. While this can be used to bypass connection-monitoring by your Internet service provider, bear in mind that VPN providers may opt to log the traffic on their ends.
- Access Geo-Blocked Websites: Whether you’re an American trying to access your Netflix account while traveling out of the country or you wish you could use American media sites like Netflix, Pandora, and Hulu, you’ll be able to access these region-restricted services if you connect to a VPN located in the USA.
- Bypass Internet Censorship: Many Chinese people use VPNs to get around the Great Firewall of China and gain access to the entire Internet. (However, the Great Firewall has apparently started interfering with VPNs recently.)
- Downloading Files: Yes, let’s be honest — many people use VPN connections to download files via Bittorent. This can actually be useful even if you’re downloading completely legal torrents — if your ISP is throttling BitTorrent and making it extremely slow, you can use BitTorrent on a VPN to get faster speeds. The same is true for other types of traffic your ISP might interfere with (unless they interfere with VPN traffic itself.)
How Does a VPN Work?
When you connect your computer (or another device, such as a smartphone or tablet) to a VPN, the computer acts as if it’s on the same local network as the VPN. All your network traffic is sent over a secure connection to the VPN. Because your computer behaves as if it’s on the network, this allows you to securely access local network resources even when you’re on the other side of the world. You’ll also be able to use the Internet as if you were present at the VPN’s location, which has some benefits if you’re using public WI-FI or want to access geo-blocked websites.
When you browse the web while connected to a VPN, your computer contacts the website through the encrypted VPN connection. The VPN forwards the request for you and forwards the response from the website back through the secure connection. If you’re using a USA-based VPN to access Netflix, Netflix will see your connection as coming from within the USA.
What Is P2P Specialty Service for a VPN?
Some VPNs offer special servers that are optimized to function with peer-to peer (P2P) services. Common examples of P2P services include:
- BitTorrent (and other torrent programs)
- Some multiplayer gaming services
- Some voice chat services
- Plenty of messaging apps.
Because of how they work — and how they’re often used — P2P services are sometimes blocked by VPN providers. Using a dedicated P2P server may improve performance and reduce your chances of running into technical difficulties. You may even find that your VPN provider will switch you to connect to a special P2P VPN server if you’re doing something like torrenting.
P2P VPN servers aren’t inherently less secure than any other VPN server you might use, so there really isn’t any downside to using one, and there are some potential benefits.
How Do You Get a VPN, and Which One Should You Choose?
Depending on your needs, you can either use a VPN from your workplace, create a VPN server yourself, or sometimes host one out of your house — but realistically, the vast majority of people are just looking for something to protect them while torrenting or help them watch some media online that they can’t seem to access from their country. Not all VPNs provide exactly the same functionality, and you might have specific requirements for vpns.
The easiest thing to do is pick one of the best vpns, sign up, and download the VPN client for your Windows PC, Mac, Android, iPhone, or iPad. It’s as easy as that.
Here are some of the best VPN’s on the market.
Why we chose it: Coming in at No. 1 in our rating of the Best VPNs of 2023, ExpressVPN offers an excellent value, even though it isn’t the cheapest at $12.95 a month or $8.32 per month annually. Among other things, users have access to more than 3,000 servers in 94 countries – a larger server network than many VPNs in our rating.
Moreover, because ExpressVPN is based in the British Virgin Islands, you don’t have to worry about intelligence sharing by the Five Eyes alliance, which includes the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand. It also follows a strict no-logs policy.
Bottom Line: ExpressVPN will satisfy most people with its large number of servers in many countries, lack of participation in intelligence-sharing agreements, compatibility with many streaming services, and key features like split tunneling that others don’t offer.
Why We Chose It: Coming in at No. 5 in our rating with a score of 3.8 out of 5, U.S.-based IPVanish offers users access to more than 40,000 IP addresses. This helps protect anonymity online because it’s unlikely that a given user will use the same IP address more than once.
IPVanish costs a reasonable $10.99 a month or $14.99 quarterly and allows an unlimited number of simultaneous device connections. It is compatible with social media, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. However, those who want to use streaming services are out of luck, as IPVanish won’t work with popular ones like Amazon Prime, Disney+, and Hulu.
Bottom Line: If you don’t need to stream using a VPN and don’t need a huge number of servers, IPVanish should be on your shortlist.
CYBER GHOST
Why We Chose It: Also tying for No. 6 with a score of 3.7 out of 5, CyberGhost is based in Romania and thus is not under the jurisdiction of the Five Eyes information-sharing alliance. This VPN service costs $12.99 a month, which puts it among the more expensive VPNs in our rating. However, if you’re willing to sign up for a year, that price drops significantly to $4.29 a month, with even cheaper monthly rates for multiyear plans.
Cyberghost allows seven simultaneous connections, offers 24/7 customer support, and provides the longest money-back guarantee in our ratings at 45 days. A dedicated IP address is available at an extra cost, and you can also add CyberGhost’s Windows Security Suite. The security suite includes antivirus software, a privacy tool that lets you customize information-sharing settings, and a tool that tracks when apps on your laptop or tablet are due for an update.
Bottom Line: VPN users who are also looking for antivirus software and other security products, as well as those who are wary of the Five Eyes information-sharing alliance, would do well to consider CyberGhost.
Why We Chose It: Surfshark scores 3.9 out of 5, tying Private Internet Access for No. 3 in our rating. It also comes in at No. 3 in Best VPNs for iPhones rating. If you have a large family, Surfshark should be on your shortlist because it’s our highest-rated VPN that offers an unlimited number of simultaneous connections. At a monthly rate of $12.95, you’ll pay somewhat more for Surfshark than many other VPNs in our rating. However, you can lower the effective monthly rate to $2.95 by going with an annual subscription.
Bottom Line: Offering unlimited simultaneous connections, Surfshark will suit users who have a lot of devices and don’t mind spending a bit more than some other VPNs charge.
Why We Chose It: Private Internet Access also ties for No. 3 with a score of 3.9 out of 5. This budget-friendly VPN provider has the cheapest annual plan out of the companies in our Best VPNs of 2022 rating. For just $3.33 a month with an annual plan (or $9.95 per month on a monthly plan), Private Internet Access’ subscription gives you 10 simultaneous connections, which is plenty for most people.
This VPN offers an array of other features like email breach monitoring, a one-year cloud storage subscription for your encrypted files, good speeds, and key privacy and security features like a kill switch, DNS leak protection, and a malware-blocking add-on. A dedicated IP address is available for an additional $5 a month.
Bottom Line: Private Internet Access has plenty of features and the lowest-cost annual plan among all of the VPNs we reviewed, making it great for people on a budget.
Why We Chose It: Tying with ExpressVPN for the No. 1 spot in our rating, NordVPN earns a score of 4.3 out of 5. Based in Panama, NordVPN is located outside of Five Eyes jurisdiction, providing subscribers with an extra layer of anonymity.
NordVPN costs $11.00 per month, with a lower rate that breaks down to $4.99 per month available if you pay annually. NordVPN differentiates itself from the competition with its Double VPN feature. This process encrypts the information twice by routing traffic through two different VPN servers simultaneously. It also provides six simultaneous VPN connections, and professional reviewers say its interface is easy to use in their own NordVPN reviews.
Bottom Line: NordVPN offers privacy because it’s outside of Five Eyes jurisdiction, has more servers than any other VPN in our rating, and provides unique features like its Double VPN and a dedicated IP address for users who are looking for more than just the basics
WINDSCRIBE
Why We Chose It: This VPN ties for No. 6 in our rating with a score of 3.7 out of 5. Windscribe is based in Canada, which is under Five Eyes jurisdiction. Windscribe’s annual plan costs a relatively reasonable $4.08 per month and is the cheapest VPN in our rating that lets you cover unlimited devices.
A static IP address is available for an additional cost. Windscribe also offers an anti-tracking feature that aims to avert browser tracking by adjusting or rotating the data used by the browser. No kill switch is offered, but the VPN claims that its built-in firewall is more effective than a kill switch at preventing data leaks.
Bottom Line: Windscribe has one of the best free VPN plans out there, its unlimited connections are a boon to both free and paid users, and the ability to create a custom plan is great for subscribers who only want to use the VPN in certain locations.
VIDEOS TO HELP GET YOU STARTED
OUR TOP PICKS
EXPRESS VPN
For it’s easy flexibilty and easy customer use we recommend this VPN. Give this one a try.
SURF SHARK
Surf Shark is a very friendly user platform. The security is top not and we recommend this as one of our top choices.
Final Thoughts about VPNs.
But keep the following in mind: A VPN is only as secure as the data usage and storage policies of its provider. Remember that the VPN service transfers your data to their servers and these servers connect over the internet on your behalf. If they store data logs, make sure that it is clear for what purpose these logs are stored. Serious VPN providers usually put your privacy first and foremost. You should therefore choose a trusted provider for best privacy.
Remember that only internet data is encrypted. Anything that does not use a cellular or Wi-Fi connection will not be transmitted over the internet. As a result, your VPN will not encrypt your standard voice calls or texts.
