A Virtual Private Network or a VPN is a privacy-enhancing product that increases your anonymity in the online world. It also encrypts your data and changes your location if you want it to. That is a great way to prevent websites and online services from knowing where you live and changing the content they show you.
After all, you should decide what type of content you would like to see. Modern VPNs work on all platforms, including mobile and desktop devices.
Many people download VPN apps because they want more privacy and an extra layer of protection against hackers. Other people use VPNs to access a computer in their office or school to continue working from home securely. Some people use VPN services so that their internet service provider is unable to collect data on their online activities. If you like torrenting, a VPN becomes an essential tool for your privacy since you don’t want other seeds in the same cluster as you to know your real IP address or location.
Before you go out there and buy a VPN subscription package, you need to know the attributes that make a good VPN service. Let’s get into it.
What To Look for in a Good VPN
It goes without saying that before buying any product, you should have a look at its price. But expensive VPN services aren’t necessarily better than cheaper VPN services. In the end, everything will depend on your individual needs and preferences.
Most of the time, though, you should first check out the website of the VPN service that interests you. Take a look around to see if the service looks legitimate. You should consider: Is the VPN service upfront about what it offers? Is it updated? Does it look like it’s still active?
When you’re done with that, take a look at the VPN protocols they offer. Currently, the best VPN protocol is OpenVPN, so look for that. The next consideration is server availability.
Note:
A good VPN will offer lots of servers and plenty of locations for those servers. If a VPN is not offering an extensive network of server options worldwide, you might want to find a service with more comprehensive coverage.Additionally, any VPN that wants to be taken seriously has to offer at least five simultaneous connections. This allows users to share their VPN package with other friends or family members and across different devices. On that note, you should also review the platforms for which the VPN service has dedicated apps. There is no point in signing up for a VPN that only supports macOS devices when you have a Windows and Android computer and smartphone.
Since you’re paying for your VPN service, you should expect unlimited bandwidth and unthrottled connections. Any VPN that isn’t doing this does not deserve your money.
Needless to say, a VPN should never keep logs. Even if it does, they should be at a bare minimum level. The only information you should give up, ideally, is how much data you have used.
On that note, a good VPN will provide you with a way to pay anonymously because paying via PayPal and/or debit card can give your details away to the VPN service or any hacker that may have compromised the website of the VPN service you’re interested in.
And finally, the best VPN will have at least one advanced security feature, such as a kill switch.
Without it, there’s no point in signing up for a VPN for privacy since the inherent nature of the internet is chaotic, and you’re likely to lose your VPN connection from time to time due to technical issues.
With that out of the way, let’s take a look at the best VPNs in 2021.
1. NordVPN
Simultaneous Connections: Six
Money-Back Guarantee: 30 days
With more than 5,000 servers located in over 60 countries at just $3.71 per month, you can’t go wrong with NordVPN. It offers advanced security features, strong encryption and dedicated P2P VPN servers optimized for high-speed downloads. To top all of that, NordVPN gives users a 30-day money-back guarantee with no questions asked. It has a double-hop VPN feature and supports six devices per package.
The only downsides to NordVPN (which aren’t even related to the service itself) are the lack of live chat features and inconsistent VPN servers, where some perform fast while others perform slow.
VPN Apps
Apple
Windows
Linux
macOS
Chrome
Firefox
Read our full NordVPN review by clicking here.
2. ExpressVPN
Simultaneous Connections: Five
Money-Back Guarantee: 30 days
ExpressVPN offers user-friendly apps with over 3,000 servers located in 160 locations and a 30-day-money back guarantee.
ExpressVPN is one of the most recognized VPN services in the industry, and you really can’t go wrong with a VPN that offers 256-bit AES encryption and fast servers. With that said, it is on the expensive side ($6.50 per month) and only supports three devices per account.
VPN Apps
Apple
Android
macOS
Windows
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Read our full ExpressVPN review by clicking here.
3. CyberGhost
Simultaneous Connections: Seven
Money-Back Guarantee: 45 days
At $2.25 per month with 6,000 servers in 90 countries and an extended 45-day money-back guarantee in addition to P2P servers and unlimited bandwidth, it is hard to beat CyberGhost.
It has a zero-logs policy and offers simple apps that are useful for beginner and advanced VPN users alike. It doesn’t support torrents on all servers, though.
VPN Apps
Apple
Android
macOS
Windows
Linux
Amazon Fire TV
Read our full CyberGhost review by clicking here.
4. Surfshark
Simultaneous Connections: Unlimited
Money-Back Guarantee: 30 Days
With a zero-logs policy and top encryption, Surfshark allows users to connect to over 1,700 servers in more than 100 locations for just $2.49 per month.
Moreover, it supports P2P servers and offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. It is not the fastest VPN in the industry, though.
VPN Apps
Windows
macOS
Linux
Android
Apple
Chrome
Firefox
Amazon Fire TV
5. ZenMate
Simultaneous Connections: Unlimited
Money-Back Guarantee: 30 days
ZenMate supports P2P servers on many of its 3,600 servers spanning 74 locations. It does have a decent privacy policy and offers 24/7 live chat support.
The apps are simple to install and use. You get all of that for just $2.05 per month.
VPN Apps
Apple
Android
macOS
Windows
Linux
6. IPVanish
Simultaneous Connections: Ten
Money-Back Guarantee: 30 days
With its 40,000-plus IP addresses, 1,300-plus servers, 60-plus locations and 10 simultaneous connections per account, IPVanish offers a very balanced VPN service. And all you have to pay for it is $2.91 per month. It has a 30-day money-back guarantee and offers advanced security features like a kill switch.
IPVanish is based in the U.S., though, and that can be a problem for more privacy-conscious users concerned about surveillance.
VPN Apps
Apple
Android
macOS
Windows
Amazon Fire TV
Read our full IPVanish review by clicking here.
7. StrongVPN
Simultaneous Connections: 12
Money-Back Guarantee: 30 days
You will be hard-pressed to find another VPN that has close to 60,000 IP addresses, more than 650 servers, coverage of 26 countries and its own server infrastructure for just $5.83 per month.
Combine that with a good privacy policy and a money-back guarantee, and you have yourself a pretty decent VPN service.
VPN Apps
Windows
macOS
Apple
Android
Amazon Fire TV
8. Private Internet Access
Simultaneous Connections: 10
Money-Back Guarantee: 30
Private Internet Access (PIA) charges just $2.11 per month and offers over 19,000 servers, 71 locations and five simultaneous connections, in addition to excellent app performance and a kill switch feature.
It has a 30-day money-back guarantee period and supports 10 devices per account, with dedicated apps for all major platforms.
VPN Apps
Windows
macOS
Linux
Android
Apple
Chrome
Firefox
Read our full Private Internet Access review by clicking here.
9. TorGuard
Simultaneous Connections: 8
Money-Back Guarantee: 7 days
TorGuard is ready to offer you its services for just $4.99 per month, with dedicated apps for iOS, Android, Linux, macOS and Windows. It provides more than 3,000 servers in over 50 countries, OpenVPN and the WireGuard protocol, and eight simultaneous devices per account.
It offers unlimited bandwidth and doesn’t keep logs, much like the other elite VPNs we have mentioned in this list. However, it does have a short money-back guarantee of seven days, so watch out for that.
VPN Apps
Windows
macOS
Linux
Android
Apple
Amazon Fire TV
Chrome
Firefox
10. HMA
Simultaneous Connections: 5
Money-Back Guarantee: 30 days
At $2.99 per month, HMA (HideMyAss) offers over 1,000 servers in more than 190 countries and supports five simultaneous devices per account. With a 30-day money-back guarantee and dedicated apps for Linux, iOS, Android, macOS and Windows, HideMyAss is a decent VPN service.
It supports OpenVPN and includes a kill switch feature, along with P2P and live chat. Overall, a solid VPN service.
VPN Apps
Windows
macOS
Linux
Android
Apple
Read our full HMA review by clicking here.
Conclusion
These are the VPN services you should keep in mind when shopping for the best VPN for you. There may be other VPNs that offer equally good service, but the ones we’ve mentioned here have both quality and experience. They have been in the business for long enough to not just pack up and disappear overnight.Let us know if we missed your favorite VPN.
