1. Windscribe Free: Best Overall
The overall best free VPN, great for streaming.
Windscribe Free is the best free VPN we’ve seen. It consistently streams US Netflix and BBC iPlayer. It’s also a secure choice for torrenting. It has a minimal logging policy, tight security, and it works on many devices.
The 10GB data cap is generous, but isn’t enough for heavy internet use. Only ProtonVPN Free offers unlimited data. However, ProtonVPN Free is no good for streaming Netflix, or torrenting.
Customer service needs improving, too. There is no human live support to help with more complex issues. The online guides and unreliable chat-bot can only help with simple issues or queries.
Compatible with |
|
---|---|
Data Cap | 10GB |
US Netflix | Yes |
Torrenting | Permitted |
Jurisdiction | Canada (Five-Eyes Member) |
Data Leaks | No |
Works in China | Unreliable |
Good for Torrenting
Windscribe Free is also the best free VPN for torrenting. It allows P2P traffic on the most of its free servers, which is rare.
The software uses secure AES-256 encryption, and the apps include a VPN kill switch. This is particularly rare in free VPNs. It prevents your real IP address from leaking if the VPN drops.
And Windscribe never leaked our IP or DNS information in our tests.
Windscribe Free didn’t expose our true IP address in this leak test
Also, the VPN service doesn’t store web logs that would compromise someone’s identity.
Works with US Netflix
Windscribe is the only free VPN that streams US Netflix. And BBC iPlayer, for that matter.
No other free VPN can unblock streaming content like Windscribe.
Still, the free version of Windscribe doesn’t match the paid version. VPN speeds are about a third slower than the premium VPN. And there are only 10 free server locations available.
You can connect to any of the following locations:
- Canada
- France
- Germany
- Hong Kong
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Romania
- Switzerland
- UK
- US
For the record, Windscribe’s full VPN gives access to 110 server locations.
Still works in China
We tested Windscribe Free’s VPN access in China, and it’s still working.
It’s likely thanks to its ‘Stealth’ connection protocol. It uses the open source Stunnel algorithm to obscure the VPN traffic. It’s only available on the Windows, MacOS, and Android apps, though.
Windscribe Free works best in China when you connect to the nearby Hong Kong server.
The VPN service will also work in other censored countries like Turkey and the UAE.
or read our full Windscribe VPN Review.