We found the best VPNs for Canada by reviewing all the major paid and free VPNs against a Canada-specific testing criteria.
We expect server locations in Canada and overseas, fast speeds connecting in and out of Canada, the ability to unblock domestic and international streaming services, and excellent privacy protections.
Here’s a more detailed list of the exact categories we test for along with how much of our overall Canada rating they make up:
1. Canada Streaming: 35%
Minimum Requirement: Access to US Netflix and CBC Gem.
We Recommend: Access to multiple international streaming libraries, Netflix Canada, and DAZN.
Our experts manually test every VPN to find out whether they work with geo-restricted streaming services.
We reward the services that work with multiple international libraries on streaming services such as Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Disney+, HBO Max, Hulu, Hotstar, and more.
We also test every Canada VPN to make sure it works with Canadian Netflix, CBC Gem, CTV, and DAZN from overseas.
2. Number of Canada Servers: 25%
Minimum Requirement: A selection of VPN servers in Canada.
We Recommend: A large selection of VPN servers in multiple Canadian cities.
We count how many Canadian VPN servers every VPN has. The more servers there are spread across the country, the less congestion there will be across the network.
VPN services with lots of servers in multiple Canadian cities are rewarded, along with VPNs with servers in nearby countries like the US. If a VPN does not offer multiple servers in Canada, it receives a lower rating.
3. Privacy & Logging Policy: 20%
Minimum Requirement: A clear privacy policy with only anonymized connection logs.
We Recommend: A strict zero-logs privacy policy.
We research every VPN’s privacy policy to find out whether it stores your activity data, for how long, and whether that data is considered sensitive.
Services that have a strict no-logs policy are rewarded, along with those that collect anonymous connection data. VPNs that collect unnecessary or identifying information are heavily penalized.
4. Speed: 10%
Minimum Requirement:Average long-distance download speeds of 40Mbps.
We Recommend: Average long-distance download speeds above 60Mbps.
We measure the average download speed of every VPN before and after connecting to servers in Vancouver from our base in New York.
We reward the VPNs that affect your download speeds as little as possible on both local and international connections, as they will be the best for streaming and torrenting.
5. Torrenting: 10%
Minimum Requirement: P2P support in specific regions, kill switch support, and strong encryption.
We Recommend: All of the above, plus P2P-optimized servers available in multiple regions.
Due to Canada’s strict copyright laws, we reward VPNs that take the necessary steps to protect torrenters. This includes implementing a working kill switch and strong encryption to keep your torrenting activity private.
Our torrenting tests also measure for P2P-optimized servers and fast average bitrates, to ensure the best possible torrenting speeds.
Lastly, we take into consideration the VPN’s policy towards torrenting, with services that permit torrenting across its server network being rewarded more highly.
Data Cap Penalty: Up to 50% Reduction
Nearly every free VPN service is restricted by a data cap. This is intended to limit the functionality of the VPN and, in turn, encourage users to upgrade to the premium version.
Using up your data cap prevents you from connecting to the VPN anymore, including connecting to the Canada VPN server. As a result, you won’t be able to obtain a Canadian IP address or watch geo-blocked Canadian streaming services.
Plus, your torrenting activity will no longer be encrypted, leaving you susceptible to Canada’s strict copyright laws.
We apply a penalty to the VPN’s final overall rating for Canada based on its data cap:
- 10GB per month: -20% to the overall rating
- 500MB per day: -25% to the overall rating
- 5GB per month: -30% to the overall rating
- 1GB per month: -35% to the overall rating
- 500MB per month: -50% to the overall rating