Mullvad EUR €60/Year

Mullvad is a fast and inexpensive VPN with a serious focus on transparency and security. They have been in operation since 2009. It is the only VPN provider that currently meets our criteria for recommendation. Mullvad is based in Sweden and does not have a free trial. Visit mullvad.net to create an account.

406+ Servers

Mullvad has 409 servers in 39 countries at the time of writing this page. Typically the more servers a provider offers, the better: With hundreds of servers in operation, you are far more likely to find a fast connection and a server geographically closest to you.

WireGuard Support

In addition to standard OpenVPN connections, Mullvad supports WireGuard. WireGuard is an experimental protocol with theoretically better security and higher reliability, although it is not currently recommended for production use.

Independently Audited

Mullvad's VPN clients have been audited by Cure53 and Assured AB in a pentest report published at cure53.de. The security researchers concluded:

...Cure53 and Assured AB are happy with the results of the audit and the software leaves an overall positive impression. With security dedication of the in-house team at the Mullvad VPN compound, the testers have no doubts about the project being on the right track from a security standpoint.

IPv6 Support

Mullvad supports the future of networking IPv6. Their network allows users to access services hosted on IPv6 as opposed to other providers who block IPv6 connections.

Remote port forwarding

Remote port forwarding is allowed on Mullvad, see Port forwarding with Mullvad VPN.

Accepts Bitcoin

Mullvad in addition to accepting credit/debit cards and PayPal, accepts Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, and cash/local currency as anonymous forms of payment. They also accept Swish and bank wire transfers.

No Mobile Clients

While iOS and Android clients are reportedly in the works, mobile users will need to use a traditional OpenVPN client and configuration files, which are a bit more difficult to configure.

Extra Functionality

The Mullvad VPN clients have a built-in killswitch to block internet connections outside of the VPN. They also are able to automatically start on boot. The Mullvad website is also accessible via Tor at xcln5hkbriyklr6n.onion.

ProtonVPN Free USD $96/year

ProtonVPN is a strong contender in the VPN space, and they have been in operation since 2016. ProtonVPN is based in Switzerland and offers a limited free pricing tier, as well as premium options. Unfortunately due to its lack of an independent security audit it does not meet the complete criteria for recommendation, see our notes below.

Not Audited

ProtonVPN has not undergone a security audit by an independent third party, and therefore cannot be strongly recommended at this time. We have still chosen to list it on this page with the assumption that an audit will be published soon:

We are currently undergoing a complete security audit of our VPN applications by a reputable Swiss security company. The results of the audit will be summarized in a public report for cases like this.

We will reevaluate this listing at the end of Q1 2020 or when the aforementioned report has been published, whichever is sooner.

610+ Servers

ProtonVPN has 610 servers in 44 countries at the time of writing this page. Typically the more servers a provider offers, the better: With hundreds of servers in operation, you are far more likely to find a fast connection and a server geographically closest to you.

Accepts Bitcoin

ProtonVPN does technically accept Bitcoin payments; however, you either need to have an existing account, or contact their support team in advance to register with Bitcoin.

Mobile Clients

In addition to providing standard OpenVPN configuration files, ProtonVPN has mobile clients for iOS or Android allowing for easy connections to their servers.

Extra Functionality

The ProtonVPN clients have a built-in killswitch to block internet connections outside of the VPN. They also are able to automatically start on boot. ProtonVPN also offers "Tor" servers allowing you to easily connect to onion sites, but we still strongly recommend using the official Tor Browser for this purpose.

IVPN Standard USD $60/Year Pro USD $100/Year

IVPN is another strong premium VPN provider, and they have been in operation since 2009. IVPN is based in Gibraltar and offers a 3 day free trial. Unfortunately, due to its lack of an independent security audit, it does not meet the complete criteria for recommendation, see our notes below.

No Security Audit

IVPN has undergone a no-logging audit from Cure53 which concluded in agreement with IVPN's no-logging claim. However, IVPN has not undergone a more comprehensive security audit by an independent third party, and therefore cannot be strongly recommended at this time.

We have still chosen to list it on this page with the assumption that an audit will be published soon. IVPN has hired Cure53 to undertake a comprehensive audit covering the IVPN website, public and internal server infrastucture. They expect the audit to begin in November 2019 and be completed by the 6 auditors in January 2020.

77+ Servers

IVPN has 77 servers in 31 countries at the time of writing this page. Typically the more servers a provider offers, the better. IVPN has a decent (but not exceptional) server count that will most likely provide adequate coverage to most users.

Remote port forwarding

Remote port forwarding is possible with a Pro plan. Port forwarding can be activated via the client area. Port forwarding is only available on IVPN when using OpenVPN and is disabled on US servers.

Accepts Bitcoin

In addition to accepting credit/debit cards and PayPal, IVPN accepts Bitcoin and cash/local currency (on annual plans) as anonymous forms of payment.

Mobile Clients

In addition to providing standard OpenVPN configuration files, IVPN has mobile clients for iOS or Android allowing for easy connections to their servers.

Extra Functionality

The IVPN clients have a built-in killswitch to block internet connections outside of the VPN. They also are able to automatically start on boot. IVPN also provides "AntiTracker" functionality, which blocks advertising networks and trackers from the network level.