Mb Daily Data Usage Limit
Hotspot Shield did limit our data usage, but it was more generous than most other free VPNs. Hotspot Shield refreshed our data allowance every 24 hours, giving us 500 MB of bandwidth to consume every day. Thats about 15 GB per month, provided that we max out our allowance daily. However, unused data didnt roll over to the next day, so if we used only 400 MB in one day, we would still only receive 500 MB the next day. The daily limit made sense as it helped us control our data usage. Instead of giving us 15 GB per month, which frankly, we could blow through in just a week or so, it limited our daily usage so wed still have bandwidth left towards the end of the month. Now thats just smart.
Hideme Good & Secure Free VPN For Android
While the Hide.Me premium subscription offers 1,900+ servers in 75+ countries, and its free version offers five server locations and a 10 GB monthly free data limit.
The provider easily provides the ability to bypass any form of geo-restricted content, including various popular streaming platforms such as Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video.
It supports zero-log policy and essential security features such as AES-256-Bit encryption, Split Tunneling, Stealth Guard, Advanced IP Leak Protection, IPv6 Support, and the popular VPN connection protocol WireGuard.
As I said earlier, with the free plan, Android free users will get a bandwidth limit of 10GB/month. This will translate to about you want to use Hide.Me with services such as YouTube TV.
For a more detailed evaluation, check out our Hide.Me review.
- Kill switch and DNS protection
- User-friendly
Ads Tracking And Social Network Blocking
There was another advantage to using the Windscribe browser extension: it blocked ads, trackers, and social network widget buttons that often contain trackers. You know those Like, Tweet, and Share widget buttons that appear on various websites? Turns out, they can track our browsing data even if we dont click on any of them.2 Windscribe blocked those widgets so that we could browse the Web, Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks couldnt track us. That just goes to show how serious the company is about keeping its customers online activity private. But dont worry, we could still access our social networks even with the blocking feature.
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Are Free VPNs Legal
In short, yes. VPN software itself is no less legal than any other mainstream software.
However, using it as a torrenting VPN to download copyrighted files is still illegal, as is accessing any other illicit content.
Essentially, while a free VPN is perfectly legal to own and use, it doesn’t make illegal acts legal just because it makes the crime harder to detect.
- Want to make your money go further? Check out the best cheap VPN
Expressvpn Most Recommended VPN For Android
After reviewing over 200 Virtual Private Network providers, it was clear that only ExpressVPN can fulfill all the requirements of internet users simultaneously. It stands out any day in terms of speed, security, features, accessibility, and performance against many free VPNs and other premium providers.
With a Play Store rating of 4.4/5.0 and compatibility with Android 11, 10, Pie, Oreo, Nougat, Marshmallow & Lollipop, you are guaranteed to get the ultimate form of anonymity, security, and data protection. Plus, it comes with a no-questions-asked 30-day refund policy with 12 months + 3 months free on ExpressVPN annual subscription.
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Which Free VPNs Don’t Work On Firestick
The majority of free VPNs dont work well on Fire TV devices simply because they dont have apps for the platform.
While there are plenty of free VPNs, very few have the necessary tools to be easily installed on Amazons streaming device.
If your free VPN doesnt have a native Fire OS app, an .APK file, or is incompatible with routers, itll be very hard to use on a Firestick.
We recommend the free VPNs on this page because they are fast, safe, and come with native apps for Firestick or have an .APK file you can side load.
Popular free VPNs we dont recommend for use on Fire TV devices are Avira VPN, Hotspot Shield and TunnelBear.
What Makes A Great Mobile VPN App
When looking at mobile VPN apps, there are a few things to keep in mind.
Firstly and most importantly for the majority of users is it easy to use? If youre stuck three taps deep in a settings menu just to change your server, youre not going have a good time using the app in the long term. Simplicity rules here, and all the VPNs on this list are clean and clear.
Secondly, make sure theres enough functionality compared to the desktop client. Many VPNs offer incredibly in-depth settings on their PC VPN for Windows, but open the app and you might struggle to find options youve grown used to.
Many users wont care about things like switching protocols or UDP/TCP, but if you do or think you might ever have the urge to investigate make sure the app is powerful enough for you.
Finally, value! There are a lot of top-quality VPNs out there now, so theres no point paying through the nose for an average service. The very best will never be the cheapest , but weigh up your budget and your needs to find a happy medium.
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Three Server Locations One Simultaneous Connection
One of the most important questions we asked ourselves while testing free VPN services was, Can we live with its limitations?. Fortunately, ProtonVPNs limitations barely bothered us. First, there were only three server locations Japan, the Netherlands, and the United States which meant that we had fewer options to choose from once those servers started filling up with paying users. However, that wasnt a problem with the New York server we connected to. Second, we were able to connect only one device at a time. If we were already browsing using our smartphone, we couldnt use ProtonVPN on our laptop to watch Netflix. That was a little harder to bear, but again, we were using the free version so we cant complain. And while were tech-obsessed, the one device limit helped us reduce our screen time, which we needed anyway.
Sensible Logging Policy And Good Server List
We like Avira Phantoms minimal logging policy as it means none of your browsing activity can be linked back to your specific Android device.
Whats even better is its good choice of servers. 52 locations in 38 countries spread evenly around the world. This is rare for a free Android VPN.
The Avira Phantom VPN Free mobile application.
One of these servers is even dedicated to US streaming. Regardless, we successfully unblocked US Netflix on a number of free US servers.
While Avira Phantom isnt quite as quick as our top recommendations, the VPNs speeds are still fast enough for standard internet activity on your Android smartphone.
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Overall Free VPN Rating: 68/10
We calculate this overall rating based on the following subcategory ratings. Learn more.
- Data Cap:
- 00.0/10
ProtonVPN is the only free and safe VPN you can leave on all the time. Thats because it doesnt impose any data limits whatsoever.
You can use ProtonVPN as much as you want, completely free, and without adverts.
The VPN delivers good speeds, protects against IP leaks, and has a privacy-friendly logging policy.
While its an excellent VPN for security, it only gives access to 3 free server locations. It also doesnt work for streaming, or with P2P traffic.
| Compatible with |
|---|
Do Free VPNs Work With Chromecast Or Fire TV Stick
Youre probably wondering why you should go through all the trouble of installing a VPN on your router just to get access to more Netflix shows via your TV app if you can just cast the shows from your phone to the TV via a . Well, the problem is that VPNs and Chromecasts dont play well together. While your phone is connected to a VPN, your Chromecast is not, so the two cant communicate with each other. The way to get around this is to connect both the devices to the same VPN server, which you can do by installing a VPN on your router.
Things are a bit different for since the device doesnt need to be paired with a phone. All you have to do is download a VPN app to the Fire TV Stick, switch it on, and youre ready to go. The free VPN providers on this list that offer an app for the Fire TV Stick are Hotspot Shield, Hide.me, and Windscribe.
Its a similar story with the latest since it has a user interface, offers access to the Play Store, and doesnt need to be paired with a mobile device to work.
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How To Get A Premium VPN For Free
Still just can’t quite decide on whether to go for a free VPN or a premium paid-for option? There may be a perfect compromise, as pretty all of the world’s best providers let you try them risk – and cost – free. Our dedicated guide to the best VPN free trials will help you locate one and get started.
You’ll see some familiar names mentioned there. Our #1 one favorite service in the world ExpressVPN tops the list, allowing you to give it a try for 30 days. While the news is even better with the likes of Hotspot Shield, where the money back guarantee extends all the way to 45 days.
It’s worth pointing out that you do have to pay upfront for these services. But they pride themselves on making the money back as hassle free as possible, allowing you to claim a full refund online without trouble.
Read more:
Which Free VPN Is Best For Netflix
Free VPNs generally cant bypass Netflixs rock-solid geoblocks. They simply dont have the resources to upgrade their server networks to keep up with IP blocks Netflix enforces to reduce VPN traffic on its site. However, I was surprised that Kaspersky Secure Connection VPN did manage to access Netflix.
I recommend trying out ExpressVPN because its the only VPN that could consistently access US and UK Netflix during my tests. It has an extensive and reliable server network thats constantly updated. It even unlocks other streaming platforms like Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, and more. If youre not happy with it you can always claim a full refund within 30 days.
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What Is A Site
This is when the VPN technology uses a gateway device to connect the entire network in one location to a network in another location. The majority of site-to-site VPNs that connect over the internet use IPsec. Rather than using the public internet, it is also normal to use multiprotocol label switching clouds as the main transport for site-to-site VPNs.
VPNs are often defined between specific computers, and in most cases, they are servers in separate data centers. However, new hybrid-access situations have now transformed the VPN gateway in the cloud, typically with a secure link from the cloud service provider into the internal network.
Here are some additional tips on what to consider when choosing a VPN, each of which link to a more in-depth discussion.
Don’t use free VPN services: You’ll find only paid VPN options on this list above because they’re the only ones we can recommend.
Look for a no-logs VPN, but understand the caveats: The best VPNs keep as few logs as possible and make them as anonymous as possible, so there’s little data to provide should authorities come knocking. But even “no-logs” VPNs aren’t 100% anonymous.
If you subscribe to only one CNET newsletter, this is it. Get editors’ top picks of the day’s most interesting reviews, news stories and videos.
Up To Five Simultaneous Connections
Although TunnelBear is a free VPN, it allows up to five connections at any single time. In fact, on several occasions, we used it to encrypt our MacBook Air, Android smartphone, and iPad that we connected to a public library Wi-Fi network. And thats another advantage of the TunnelBear as a free VPN: it worked across all major operating systems for desktop and mobile, including Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS. It also had browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Opera, which allowed us to encrypt only our browsing data rather than encrypting our laptop or smartphones entire online activity.
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Amazing VPN Pros > Cons
This VPN is amazing. 6 ads for 24 hours with lighting connecting speeds. One of the first times I’ve ever wrote a review, but this free vpn is good quality, although sometimes it will randomly disconnect you or the speed will go down a lot, you can just disconnect & reconnect another thing is that it sometimes doesn’t work and will ask for a password to connect, this issue fixes itself once you just keep trying to reconnect. ALSO you can pay for a boosted version which I’m guessing will solve all the cons
Worth Considering: Free Trial With A Premium VPN For 30 Days
Free VPNs generally come with certain limitations. Premium paid VPNs, on the other hand, are more secure and offer more options, such as unlimited data, unlimited speeds, proper customer support, and access to streaming services from all over the world.
If you want to try a premium service for free, theres a strong up-and-comer we wholeheartedly recommend: Surfshark. For only $2.49 per month, you get all the advantages of a premium VPN. The free trial comes in the form of a 30-day money-back guarantee. Within those first 30 days, you can get your money back without any problems.
If you want to know how you can use the Surfshark money-back guarantee to your advantage, you can check out this Surfshark free trial guide. Or find out more about trial periods with all the biggest VPN providers.
If a free VPN is really what you are looking for, there are a few reliable options. You might run into data limits or speed caps, but the free VPN providers in the list below are generally recommendable and are completely free.
You dont have to provide your payment information or make use of a money-back guarantee. Free really is free with these VPN providers.
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Disadvantages Of Using A Free VPN
Even though getting a free application is always nice, theres usually some kind of a catch, and VPNs are no exception.
Most likely, certain restrictions will sour your free VPN experience. For example, this can be a frustrating data limit , which will eventually lead to the purchase of a paid version of the VPN. You will also have a poor selection of server locations and experience speed limitations. You will also be limited with a single simultaneous connection.
Theres also the risk of your data being collected and sold to third-parties. If youve heard the saying If the service is free, you are the product, then you know what Im talking about. Invasive ads, privacy breaches, and many other risks are associated with fully free VPN services, which is why all the VPNs we listed are freemium – subsidized by the paying customers of the same service.
In short, you have to be really careful when choosing your free application – dont blindly trust everything a VPN website advertises. In case you’re afraid to use free VPNs , you can choose a premium VPN from our list of thebest VPN services.
Hotspot Shield Free VPN For Android
A few things make Hotspot Shield one of the best free VPN services for Android you can get. It offers 500MB of data per day or around 15GB per month. Thats not enough for heavy usage, but it is more than what you get with most other free virtual private networks.
Its also super easy to get started, as you dont have to share your email address or your credit card info with the provider. Just download the app on your device, tap Connect, and youre ready to go. The major drawback is that you cant select the server you want to connect to the app will do that for you automatically. There are also ads present in the Android app, which is annoying.
Like the rest of the services on this list, Hotspot Shield has a no-logging policy. It also offers paid plans starting at $7.99 per month that get rid of the ads and the rest of the limitations.
The nitty-gritty:
- Paid plans: Start at $10 per month
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Who Are Free VPNs Best For
Even the best free VPN services are only good for occasional use, such as when traveling or in a café. They simply don’t provide enough data usage or speed for 24/7 home VPN connections. If you want to encrypt all your home internet traffic, all the time, you should pay for one of the best VPN services our top pick is ExpressVPN.
If a VPN service is based in the USA, it will be subject to search warrants presented by US law-enforcement agencies. Also, all free VPN services log user connections, no matter what the service claims.
Many of the services we review here are based in Canada, Switzerland or Germany, which have stronger privacy laws, but one of the Canadian services, TunnelBear, was recently bought by a US company and will have to honor US warrants and subpoenas under a new US law.