Proton VPN Review: Is It the Best VPN for Your Needs

Proton VPN is a popular choice among VPN users, and for good reason. It's based in Switzerland, a country known for its strong privacy laws.

Proton VPN uses the Secure Core network, which routes your traffic through multiple servers to add an extra layer of security. This makes it harder for hackers to intercept your data.

The VPN offers a robust set of features, including a kill switch, DNS leak protection, and a built-in ad blocker. This is great for users who want to stay secure and private online.

Proton VPN supports a wide range of devices, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS.

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Proton VPN has a total of 15,187 servers, spread across 16 different nations, as of September 2025. This extensive server network is available for use on a variety of platforms, including Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS, and ChromeOS.

The service utilizes multiple protocols, including OpenVPN, IKEv2, and WireGuard, with AES-256 encryption for added security. It also features a Stealth Protocol that disguises VPN traffic as HTTPS traffic, making it harder to detect.

Proton VPN has a no-logs policy, which has been independently audited by Securitum, a European security auditing company. This policy ensures that user data remains private and secure.

Here are some of the key features of Proton VPN's paid version:

Proton VPN has a total of 15,187 servers, spread across 16 different countries. This extensive network provides users with a wide range of options for secure and private browsing.

One of the standout features of Proton VPN is its ability to operate on multiple platforms, including Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS, and ChromeOS. You can even install it on a wireless router for added convenience.

Proton VPN utilizes OpenVPN, IKEv2, and WireGuard protocols, all of which are secured with AES-256 encryption. This ensures that your data remains safe and protected from prying eyes.

The Stealth Protocol is a recent addition to Proton VPN, allowing users to disguise their VPN traffic as HTTPS traffic. This makes it even harder for authorities to detect your VPN usage.

Proton VPN has a no-logs policy, which means that your browsing history and other data are not stored or shared with third parties. This policy has been independently audited by Securitum, a European security auditing company.

Here are some of the key features of Proton VPN's paid version:

Proton VPN also offers a range of protocols, including IKEv2, OpenVPN, WireGuard, and Stealth, which can be automatically selected by the Smart Protocol Selection (SPS) feature in the app.

Proton VPN has an app for every major platform, including Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Linux. The apps are available across a range of devices and platforms, including Android TV and Fire Stick VPN apps.

The Proton VPN app design is unique, with a map-based interface that displays a map of every VPN location you can access. This design flair is a nice touch, and the pleasing purple and black color scheme is also a plus.

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The Chrome version of the app is rated lower than the other browser extensions, but Proton VPN has recently released a free version of all its browser apps. This should help alleviate some of the complaints about the Chrome extension.

The apps are easy to use, with quick-connect and a handy list of countries that you can connect to. The redesign of the apps has also gotten rid of some of the previous issues with the mobile apps.

Proton VPN's Android VPN app is more powerful than its iPhone VPN app, but both are still perfectly good apps. The Android app lacks split tunneling, while the iOS app has features like always-on VPN and kill switch.

The apps also offer options for more advanced users, allowing you to fully configure your VPN connection. You can choose the country, server, encryption protocol, and even use a Secure Core server.

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Proton VPN's download speeds are impressive, with a speed reduction of just 2.8% in our testing. This is relatively fine, but it shines in upload speed testing with a reduction of just 0.22%, the best result we've seen.

Proton VPN's upload speeds are incredibly fast, maxing out our connection at over 950 Mbps in local testing. This is more than fast enough for most users, and will handle 4K streaming without any issue.

In our testing, Proton VPN increased latency by 170.31%, which is a significant increase. However, latency is just one aspect of performance, and Proton VPN's speeds are still more than fast enough for most users.

Proton VPN's latency was lower than both NordVPN and Surfshark, with a best result of 19.6 milliseconds. This is excellent, and means that Proton VPN won't cause your games to lag out or make your emails take minutes to load.

Proton VPN's speeds are more than 25 times faster than you need to stream 4K, which is impressive. This means that you won't have to worry about buffering or slow speeds, even with demanding activities like streaming.

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Proton VPN has a server network that covers 112 countries, which is impressive for a VPN provider.

The company has made significant strides in expanding its geographic distribution, doubling its coverage in just over a year. This is a testament to Proton's commitment to investing in its network growth.

Proton's server count has increased to over 8,000 this year, with 3,600 new servers added last year alone. This is a remarkable feat, especially considering the company's relatively recent growth.

Proton VPN's servers are housed in secure facilities, including an old military base, to ensure the highest level of security and protection for users.

The company's Secure Core servers make two hops, once from your device to the Secure Core servers and then onward to the VPN server you select. This setup guarantees your information is protected from your computer to the Secure Core server.

Proton VPN offers a significant number of virtual servers, which are software-defined servers that can host multiple virtual locations. These virtual locations are configured to appear somewhere other than their physical location.

The company uses Smart Routing to provide VPN servers in regions where it may not be safe to house servers physically or to expand its server capacity in high-demand areas.

Proton VPN has a strong focus on serving areas of the world that have been traditionally underrepresented by VPNs, such as Africa and the Middle East.

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Proton VPN is built from the ground up for privacy and security, making it a reliable choice for those who value their online anonymity.

The company uses either AES-256 or ChaCha20 encryption to protect user data, both of which are rock-solid.

Proton VPN supports a range of protocols, including OpenVPN, WireGuard, IKEv2, and Stealth, ensuring that your data is kept private.

In testing, Proton's kill switch was rock-solid, not failing once, and it also has a fully-functioning kill switch that blocks your internet connection if the VPN connection fails.

Proton's Secure Core servers route your traffic through hardened servers in Switzerland, Iceland, and Sweden, all countries with strong privacy laws to keep your data safe.

This multi-hop approach increases security as your connection is sent through multiple VPN servers, meaning even if one of them is compromised, your IP address and online traffic remains secure.

Proton VPN barely logs anything, with the only thing recorded being the timestamp of the last successful login attempt.

The company has also passed an independent no-logging audit, which verified that the service doesn't log any data that can be used to track what you do online.

Proton VPN also has DNS leak protection, with no DNS leaks detected in testing via DNSLeakTest.com on both mobile and desktop.

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The install process for Proton VPN is a breeze, taking just a single click to get started with the quick connect feature.

You can easily navigate the app's world map interface to plot out your Secure Core connection and optimize your connection speed.

Proton VPN's guided tour is available to help you explore its advanced features, but you can easily ignore it if you just want to get started quickly.

The app's navigation menu is easily accessible at the bottom of the screen, making it simple to connect to a server, disconnect, or switch to a new server.

Proton VPN's "Profiles" feature allows you to configure your own VPN settings, selecting features, protocol, country, and server, and even giving it a name for easy access.

The app's recent app overhaul has gotten rid of its cluttered map-based interface, making it less overwhelming to look at.

Proton VPN provides a huge amount of detailed and comprehensive support articles to help users troubleshoot common issues, although some may be confusing for less experienced users.

The app's "report an issue" tab allows users to quickly and easily fix their problems, and if that doesn't work, you can get more direct help from Proton VPN using the "contact us" form.

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Proton VPN's pricing is quite competitive, with a base-level tier starting at $9.99 per month.

You can also opt for an annual plan for $59.88 per year, or a two-year plan for $107.76, which works out to $4.49 per month.

The monthly average for VPNs is $10.30, while the annual subscription average is $58.30, so Proton VPN is right in the middle.

Proton VPN also offers a free tier with access to five VPN server locations, including Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, and the US.

However, the free tier only allows one device to be connected at a time, and you'll need to create an account with Proton to access it on most platforms.

But if you're an Android user, you can use the free tier without an account by choosing the "continue as guest" option in the mobile app.

One of the best things about the free tier is that it doesn't limit the amount of data you can use, so you can download and upload as much as you want.

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In comparison, some other free VPNs like TunnelBear limit you to 500MB of secured traffic per month, while Windscribe limits you to 2GB.

Proton VPN's prices are exclusive to TechRadar readers, with discounts for annual and two-year plans.

For example, you can get the annual plan for $3.99 per month, or the two-year plan for $3.59 per month.

Proton VPN starts at $9.99 a month, which is a pretty standard price for a VPN.

However, you can get a discount if you sign up for a 24-month contract, which costs $107.76 in total, or $4.49 per month.

If you're looking for a more comprehensive plan, Proton Unlimited starts at $9.99 per month and includes access to ProtonMail, Proton Calendar, Proton Drive, and Proton Pass.

Here's a breakdown of Proton VPN's plans:

Proton VPN also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can try out the premium offering risk-free.

Proton VPN has a comprehensive knowledge base that outlines how the app works and offers solutions for common troubleshooting problems.

The live chat is only available for paying customers, so if you have trouble signing up, you'll have to email them or send a support ticket.

Proton VPN's live support isn't 24/7, unlike some other VPNs, and is only available between 9 AM and 5 PM CET.

The support staff can be helpful, but there have been some poor interactions that resulted in a 2.4 score on Trustpilot.

Proton VPN has a decent amount of options when it comes to customer service, including an extensive library of support articles.

These articles can be quite technical, so they may not be suitable for VPN newbies.

The "report an issue" tab is a handy feature that takes you to a series of troubleshooting tips to help solve the issue.

If these are unsuccessful, you can click the "contact us" button to report your issue directly.

Proton VPN does have a live chat, but it's only accessible from the website and can be difficult to find.

Many users complain of slow response times from Proton's customer service agents, but I personally didn't experience this.

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If you're looking for an alternative to Proton VPN, Surfshark is a great option, offering speeds that are just as fast as Proton VPN, but at a lower price of $2.19 per month.

Surfshark is also a full-blown privacy suite, making it a great value for its price. However, if you're willing to pay a premium for performance, ExpressVPN is another top choice, with lightning-fast speeds and excellent unblocking capabilities.

ExpressVPN's apps are incredibly polished, and its custom VPN protocol, Lightway, combines high speeds with obfuscation to allow you to connect from anywhere on the planet.

Proton VPN is a top-notch VPN service that offers stellar security, easy-to-use apps, and excellent speeds. It's a great fit for experts who demand extra privacy features like Secure Core.

Its commitment to user privacy is evident in its open-source apps, self-managed servers, and audited no-logs policy. Proton VPN has a verified no-logs policy, which means it doesn't collect any user data.

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The service has a vast server network, with servers located in countries known for their data privacy laws. This makes it an excellent choice for streaming and Netflix, as it can unblock almost every streaming site in the world.

While Proton VPN is not the cheapest option, it offers a free plan that's excellent for testing out the service. However, beginners may find its complex apps and expert-oriented features overwhelming.

Overall, Proton VPN is a great choice for those who prioritize VPN security and want a fast, secure VPN that unblocks streaming services. It's also a good option for torrenting, as it supports torrenting on all of its servers.

However, it's worth noting that Proton VPN may not be the best choice for those who want the cheapest VPN option, as there are cheaper alternatives available.

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If you're looking for a cheap VPN option, Surfshark is a great choice, starting at just $2.19 per month.

Surfshark is not only affordable, but it's also incredibly fast, making it a top contender in our speed tests.

Its excellent unblocking capabilities make it a great option for accessing content from around the world.

ExpressVPN, on the other hand, is a premium option that's worth considering if you're willing to pay a bit more for top-notch performance.

ExpressVPN's custom VPN protocol, Lightway, offers high speeds and obfuscation, making it a great choice for connecting from anywhere.

ExpressVPN's apps are also incredibly polished, making it a great option for those who value a seamless user experience.

Proton VPN is a beast when it comes to unblocking streaming services. It unblocks Netflix and other popular streaming services like Amazon Prime and Disney Plus instantly, without any issues.

Proton VPN has been tested against a wide range of streaming services, including regional variants of Netflix in the US, UK, Japan, Canada, and Australia. It also unblocks regional services like BBC iPlayer, Channel 4, ITVX, 10Now, and 9Play.

Streaming with Proton VPN is a breeze, all you have to do is pick the location you want to watch from and get streaming. This is because Proton VPN has servers that are optimized for streaming, making it easy to access your favorite shows and movies.

Proton VPN also supports port forwarding, which makes torrenting a breeze. This feature allows you to easily connect to other peers in a P2P network, making it perfect for downloading large files.

In fact, Proton VPN's unblocking score is a perfect 10 out of 10, making it one of the best VPNs for streaming and unblocking. Its ability to unblock Netflix content from Japan, Australia, Canada, the UK, and the US is particularly impressive.

Proton VPN stands out from the competition with its impressive collection of features and high-performance server network.

It's worth noting that Proton VPN has the best free plan we've seen, making it an excellent choice for those on a budget.

Its paid subscription is a fantastic value, offering everything you need at a price that's hard to beat.

Proton VPN's secure calendar, email, and storage tools are just a few of the many features that set it apart from other VPN services.

Few competitors can match Proton's mix of affordability, design, and features, which is why it's earned our top recommendation.

Proton VPN has received our Editors' Choice award, a testament to its exceptional performance and value.