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9 min read
Reviewed ByRebecca EdwardsWith 9 years in journalism, John focuses on smart home tech, previously writing for ASecureLife and serving as Smart Home Editor at Top Ten Reviews.
Not everyone can afford a paid VPN service, but you don't need to settle for your internet service provider's default privacy and security options. Instead, get a free VPN to help you, like Proton VPN Free, our top pick.
It's not a complete substitute for a paid virtual private network, but we love its fast download speeds and unlimited data. See how Proton VPN Free compares to our other free VPN picks in hands-on tests and why it claims the top prize.
Service | Best for | Countries in free version | Data limit in free version | Kill switch | Learn more |
| Best overall | 10 | Unlimited |  Yes | View Plans | |
| Best for some streaming | 9 | 10 GB per month | Yes | View Plans | |
| Best server selection | 48+ | Up to 1.5 GB per month | Yes | View Plans | |
| Best for US-only servers | 1 | 500 MB per day |  No | View Plans | |
| Best settings options | 4 | 10 GB per month | Yes | View Plans |
Info current as of post date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
Info current as of post date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
Proton VPN Free is the best free VPN service for folks wanting always-on privacy and protection because it doesn't limit how much data you can use. It also boasts fast download speeds and has one of the best selections of servers in our lineup.
Encryption: Network traffic with AES-256, exchange keys with 4096-bit RSA, and HMAC with SHA384 for message authentication.
Strict no-logs policy
10 countries 
Streaming not supported/guaranteed on free plan
1 device only on free plan The free plan with Proton VPN includes unlimited data and randomly selected servers in 10 countries. There are no ads or logs, and you can use the kill switch. While you can only use it on one device, for a completely free plan, you get a ton of value. Proton VPN uses VPN protocols: OpenVPN, WireGuard, and Stealth.
Screenshot of free plan on Proton VPN, using a Chrome web browser extension. Proton VPN connected me to the fastest server at the time, which is in Seattle. Screenshot from Kelly Huh, SafeWise.com
While Proton VPN didn't earn top marks during our download speed testing, its median download speed of 206.1 Mbps—about 29% slower than our base download speed—was second only to Privado VPN. This is an excellent result considering Hotspot Shield, TunnelBear, and Hide.me didn't even crack 100 Mbps.
Proton VPN's worst test result came during upload testing with a relatively weak median speed of 4.6 Mbps, just above Hide.me's 4.2—about 49% slower than our upload speed without a VPN. Lastly, it had more latency than other free VPNs but outperformed our ISP's server.
Overall, we think that Proton VPN Free is an exceptional free VPN because it won't cut you off for using too much free data. Its excellent download performance help outweigh lower upload speeds and lack of streaming services.
You can upgrade to Proton VPN Plus to unlock 140+ countries and 20,000+ servers. It also includes access to streaming services, file-sharing sites, faster servers, ad-blocking, and VPN connections for up to 10 devices.
Info current as of post date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
Privado VPN Free consistently produced the highest download speeds during our tests. The performance was better than many paid VPNs—it's an absolute force of nature. It's also the only provider on our list that can unblock a streaming service in other countries.
Fastest download speeds
Fast upload speeds
Unblocked streaming services
Monthly data limit You can access servers in nine countries with Privado VPN Free, more than most other free VPNs we tested but still behind TunnelBear. But unlike TunnelBear's minuscule data limit, Privado can handle some light streaming on Netflix UK or Canada.
Bear in mind that it's still easy to blast through Privado's 10 GB monthly data ration with HD video, but you might get a few episodes or a movie in before then. There's always a chance that streaming services will block Privado's free servers so you won't have the flexibility of a paid VPN service like NordVPN.
Privado VPN's free locations.
Screenshot: John Carlsen, SafeWise.
Privado VPN's download speeds obliterated the competition with an impressive median speed of 266.7 Mbps, which was only 9% slower than our download speed without a VPN. Fun fact, Privado VPN's best test result was higher than the lowest base speed on each browser we used.
Even though downloads were Privado's best subject, it was also a strong performer for upload speeds, hitting a median upload speed of 9 Mbps—a hair faster than our base upload speed. Still, Privado couldn't beat the HotSpot Shield and TunnelBear upload speeds. Privado VPN was also really responsive, with the second lowest latency in our tests behind Hotspot Shield.
On the whole, we really like Privado VPN Free. It's speedy and doesn't block streaming services like other free VPNs. While the 10 GB monthly data limit is a bit of a bummer, it's one of the more generous offerings on a free VPN plan.
We like that the Privado VPN paid plan starts at just $7.99 a month—the lowest monthly price for a VPN service. Its $60 annual plan lays on the value even more and costs about as much as Surfshark, our paid value pick.
Info current as of post date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
TunnelBear Free is the only free VPN we tested with access to server locations in over 48 countries—it's an excellent resource for accessing region-specific websites. It even boasts fast upload speeds, but its data limits are the worst in our review.
Tons of international servers
Fast upload speeds
Low latency
Tiny monthly data limit
Low download speeds TunnelBear's biggest drawback is its 500 MB monthly data limit—so small that we finished only one round of speed testing before it was gone. Luckily, you can score an extra 1 GB by tweeting the company on Twitter. We had an increased balance within a few minutes of tweeting, a big plus.
At the end of the day, TunnelBear's 1.5 GB of free data is okay for light web browsing, but it won't last long for other activities, especially compared to Proton VPN's unlimited data. TunnelBear could be a useful international backup to another free VPN provider—there's no reason you can't use multiple free VPN apps on your device. The TunnelBear app is easy for beginners since there aren't many settings to fiddle with.
TunnelBear's server location map.
Screenshot: John Carlsen, SafeWise.
TunnelBear posted the second-lowest median download speed in our tests: 61.8 Mbps—about 79% lower than our base speed. For upload speeds, TunnelBear was second best at 11.1 Mbps—only slightly slower than Hotspot Shield. A low latency result also means quick and reliable communication with servers.
At first glance, TunnelBear Free doesn't seem like it can compete with other free VPNs, but that selection of international servers keeps it from falling further down our list. It's a niche option for occasional international research. At least the lower download speeds could help keep your data allotment from evaporating as quickly.
You can remove that pesky data limit with TunnelBear Unlimited (about $10 a month), but you don't gain much in the way of new features. Still, the simple app controls make it a good choice for folks that don't need granular control over VPN protocols.
Info current as of post date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
We have a bit of a love-hate relationship with Hotspot Shield Basic. We're huge fans of the lightning-quick upload speeds and the sneakily-good daily data limit. Still, there's no flexibility with the US-only servers, and the ads are tiresome.
Fastest upload speeds
Decent download speeds
500 MB daily data limit
US-based servers only
No kill switch
Ads when connecting or disconnecting Hotspot Shield's 500 MB daily bandwidth limit doesn't seem like much, but there's more value than free VPN apps with monthly limits. A fresh batch of 500 MB every 24 hours means you can access around 15 GB monthly.
Using the free plan means connecting only to United States servers. The app chooses the server automatically, so accessing a good one is a dice roll. Weirdly, our last speed test connected to a non-US server location in Southeast Asia, with poor latency results—we're not sure why.
On a computer, Hotspot Shield Basic has an excessive habit of opening a browser ad when connecting or disconnecting the VPN. Ugh. Plus, there's no kill switch—an essential security feature—to cut your internet if the VPN connection fails.
Hotspot Shield Basic automatically connects to a US-based server.
Screenshot: John Carlsen, SafeWise.
Hotspot Shield VPN's median download speed clocked in at 82.1 Mbps, but it was still less than half as fast as Privado VPN and Proton VPN. It scored the best upload speed at 11.3 Mbps—over 25% faster than our ISP. There was practically no latency delay aside from our last speed test.
The most realistic scenario for using Hotspot Shield Basic in the US is to improve your upload speed during a Zoom call. Still, it's great for folks wanting to access US servers from outside the country.
Hotspot Shield Premium VPN (about $12.99 a month) is one of the most expensive VPNs, but you gain access to a healthy selection of international server locations, streaming services, and split tunneling. Still, we think ExpressVPN is a better option at this price.
Info current as of post date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
You won't find many Hide.me Free features among other free VPNs. You have full control over which apps use the VPN or the internet. Too bad the slow download and upload speeds make it run like molasses.
Split tunneling
App-specific internet restrictions
10 GB monthly data limit
Slowest download speeds
Slowest upload speeds Hide.me Free offers almost as many features as any paid VPN. We love the split tunneling feature, so you can tell the VPN to run on Google Chrome but not Firefox. Or you can turn off the internet for individual apps using the Stealth Guard feature.
The 10 GB monthly data limit puts Hide.me on level ground with Privado VPN but still behind Proton VPN. This is the only free service that doesn't automatically renew each month, so you need to do so manually, especially if you don't use Hide.me often.
Hide.me's free locations.
Screenshot: John Carlsen, SafeWise.
Practically everything nice about Hide.me Free falls apart when you look at internet speeds. The median download speed was the slowest at just 25.9 Mbps. For context, that's 91% slower than our base internet speed. Oof. Upload speeds were also the lowest at 4.2 Mbps—half as fast as without a VPN. Latency was fairly low, so at least the VPN server is responsive.
We like a lot about Hide.me Free. Its robust features like split tunneling and Stealth Guard make it easy to customize when your VPN runs. But the low internet speeds may wrinkle a few brows among folks that value fast internet.
Upgrading to Hide.me Premium VPN (about $10 a month) will snag you its fastest servers, remove the data limit, enable streaming, and unlock a few more tools.
Proton VPN Free is an easy choice for the best free VPN service. While it doesn't top any of our testing metrics or offer the most features, Proton VPN offers the basic features you need for a single device.
But the beauty of free VPNs is that you can use them all for the tasks that best suit you without compromising. Sure, managing five VPN apps could be tedious if you switch between them often, but it worked great for us. If you want something a little more stable than a free VPN app, we recommend checking out our picks for the best paid VPN services.
Yes, Proton VPN offers a 100% free VPN plan with no credit card information required.
Free VPNs are probably safer than skipping out on a VPN altogether but don't always have all of the security features of paid VPNs. That said, reputable free VPN providers, like our top picks, work to protect your privacy and secure your device.
This speed test result is one of 36 in our free VPN testing.
Screenshot: John Carlsen, SafeWise.
We looked at 10 reputable free VPNs and settled on five favorites for testing. All of our picks work on Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS while allowing one active connection on your account.
We installed each VPN on a Mac laptop to explore available features and to run internet speed tests. Our speed testing wasn't too intensive due to time constraints but went as follows:
We learned a lot in our testing but also combed through customer support articles and product pages to ensure we didn't miss any important features. Since these are free apps, we didn't research any customer reviews and kept our focus on testing. Learn more about how we rank, test, and review services in our full methodology.
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