The Best VPN Free Trials

Surfshark comes packaged with many additional security features like CleanWeb ad blocking and Bypasser, its split tunneling setting.

You’ll also be able to use its multi-hop feature, which routes your traffic through two different VPN servers for extra security.

Android users can even spoof their GPS location using Surfshark’s built-in Override GPS location function.

Some of Surfshark’s advanced settings.

Most importantly, Surfshark puts privacy first. It enforces a privacy-first logging policy that only collects minimal anonymous usage data, and publishes a warrant canary to warn about government requests.

Surfshark is also user-friendly and popular with streamers and torrenters. It runs P2P-optimized servers and it unblocks multiple streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and HBO Max.

Surfshark is certainly not as fast as NordVPN or ExpressVPN but it’s no slouch, either.

Internet speeds have been fairly consistent across the VPN’s 4,500 RAM-only (diskless) servers spread across 100 countries.

The most noticeable speed slowdowns happened connecting to distant countries, precisely where ExpressVPN and NordVPN excelled.

Even so, Surfshark still offers excellent value at $2.49/mo over 27 months. It appeals to newcomers and more advanced VPN users alike, thanks to its balance of usability, a friendly UI, and abundance of features.

Surfshark’s 7-day free trial is available on Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android: all you need to do is download the software either from the official website or through your device’s app store.

Bear in mind you can only get the free trial if you subscribe to a 12- or 24-month plan. Once you’ve created your account, the free trial will automatically start.

Signing up to Surfshark’s 7-day free trial via desktop.

You can then use your login details to sign into up to three Surfshark apps simultaneously, since the service’s unlimited device policy only applies to paid subscribers.

Also, while Surfshark doesn’t charge you at checkout, it will bill you after the 7-day trial period is over.

To avoid that, cancel auto-renewal in your account right away. You’ll still have free access to Surfshark for the entire seven days.

If you forget, and your free trial upgrades to a 12- or 24-month subscription, you’ll still have 30 days to claim a full refund under the service’s 30-day money-back guarantee, provided you signed up on Surfshark’s own website.

Sign-ups made through Google Play or the App Store fall under those stores’ refund policies instead.

Private Internet Access is one of the safest and most private VPNs on the market. Its no-logs policy has been verified by court cases, server seizures, and regular transparency reports.

PIA VPN also uses the best VPN security protocols, including WireGuard and OpenVPN, and secures your internet connections via AES-256 and ChaCha20 encryption, respectively.

Thanks to fast internet speeds and the fact P2P activity is allowed on all servers, PIA is an exceptional VPN for anonymous torrenting and file sharing.

PIA VPN performed extremely well in my torrenting tests.

Private Internet Access has an extremely large server network, with 18,651 individual endpoints available.

This includes a number of streaming-optimized servers that work reliably to access major streaming platforms, including BBC iPlayer, US Netflix, JioHotstar, Hulu, HBO Max, and Amazon Prime Video.

It’s not all positive, though: PIA still struggles to access Disney+, and its Smart DNS proxy and Fire TV Stick app are unreliable for bypassing streaming geo-blocks.

To use PIA VPN for free, you’ll need to download the app via Google Play or Apple App Store.

You won’t see an ad or option to select the free trial at first, but it appears once you download and install the VPN on your device.

When asked to choose a payment plan, select the yearly option. This is the only way to get the 7-day free trial, since it isn’t available through the monthly plan (although the 30-day money-back guarantee is).

You can use PIA for free for seven days when you sign up via mobile.

To activate the trial you’ll need to enter your payment details. You can cancel auto-renewal as soon as your subscription is activated, though, and I’d do this straight away so you don’t forget later.

With auto-renewal canceled, your PIA account will deactivate automatically with no payment incurred. If you then want more time, you can subscribe directly on PIA’s website and cancel within 30 days to claim the refund.

The trial itself is completely unrestricted. You get access to all 13,360 fast servers across 113 countries, with no feature limits.

ExpressVPN’s speed test results continue to be extremely good: we measured a short-distance speed loss of only 2% locally, and 15% internationally.

You can also test the VPN on multiple devices at once, thanks to its 10 simultaneous device allowance.

ExpressVPN server list on Android (left) and iOS (right).

This is made even easier by ExpressVPN’s best-in-class apps, which cover Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Fire TV, and Apple TV.

ExpressVPN is a great VPN for unblocking geo-restricted streaming platforms like Netflix, HBO Max, and Prime Video.

Out of all the VPNs I’ve reviewed, ExpressVPN can access the most content platforms around the world: 115 out of 120 I put it against.

ExpressVPN unblocked 18 Netflix regions in my tests, including the American library on all its US servers.

I also had excellent results using the VPN with MLB.TV, Peacock, Paramount+, YouTube TV, and even to bypass Hulu’s Live TV geo-blocks.

ExpressVPN worked just as well to access international content on platforms like BBC iPlayer, DAZN, Disney+, Kayo Sports, and Sky Go.

You can stream via ExpressVPN’s excellent browser extensions, or its dedicated apps for Fire TV Stick, Android TV, and Apple TV.

For consoles like Xbox and PlayStation, MediaStreamer (ExpressVPN’s Smart DNS proxy) is one of the best solutions for unblocking US and UK content.

You can get ExpressVPN’s 3-day free trial for iOS and Android by downloading the app from the Apple App Store and Google Play.

Once installed, launch the app and you’ll see two options: Start Free Trial and Sign In.

Signing up to an ExpressVPN free trial on iOS.

On Android devices, you won’t need to provide any credit card or payment details. Simply select the free trial option and enter your email address.

You can see how many days are left via the Account menu. Once the trial period is over, you’ll be asked by email if you’d like to upgrade to a paid account.

On iOS, you’ll have to enter payment details and you’ll be automatically upgraded to a paid subscription unless you cancel within three days.

Installing ExpressVPN through the iOS App Store also makes you subject to Apple’s refund policy, so cancel before the trial expires to avoid the hassle.

Once you’ve signed up on iOS or Android, you can use your new account credentials with any other ExpressVPN app.