If you type “VPN” into any search engine, you’ll see links to hundreds of offers from different providers.
Still, not all VPNs are made equal. Some offer superior security and extra features. Others may claim to offer the best protection but don’t live up to their claims.
In this guide, we’ll explore some of the important differences between VPN providers so you can make the right choice.
Higher Price Doesn’t Mean Better Service
It’s easy to imagine that the most expensive VPN services have the best features: after all, isn’t that what you’re paying for? Still, much depends on how your provider spends those funds.
Let’s say VPN A charges $20 to subscribers but spends a heavy chunk of that money on features like AI servers, a flashy VPN client and advertising.
On the other hand, VPN B charges just $10 but invests that money in updating servers to balance network traffic properly, supporting powerful, open VPN protocols and upgrading the client to have extra security features like a kill switch.
In this example, VPN B is the clear winner both on performance and security. This is why it’s important to do your own research into providers and the specific services they offer.
No-Logs Policy
Almost every VPN provider states on their site that it has a clear no-logs policy. In theory, this means that no identifiable information is stored about users connected to VPN servers.
This is an easy claim, and some VPN providers expect you to take their word for it.
But the best VPN services like hide.me VPN arrange independent security audits of their servers to have a third-party confirm this.
Even if a VPN provider claims to have been independently reviewed, make sure to read the reports fully and check exactly which aspects of the VPN service have been inspected.
Protocols
VPN providers usually offer client software that connects to the server via one of several specialist encryption protocols.
Just as not all VPN providers are equally secure, not all protocols offer the same level of security.
The best VPNs support reliable, open protocols like WireGuard, OpenVPN and IKEv2. These all use strong encryption like AES-256, as well as secure methods like RSA-4096 to exchange digital keys and authenticate devices.
Certain providers may instead offer VPN clients and servers that connect using protocols like PPTP, L2TP and IKEv1. These use weak encryption, which bad actors can easily break. This is why we no longer support older protocols like these.
Certain VPN providers have developed their own specialist protocols. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but make sure they have published the source code publicly for independent review.
Clients
In June 2024, security researchers at Top10 VPN analyzed the 100 most popular free VPN apps in the Google Play Store.
The report showed that around 10% failed to encrypt client traffic properly. Almost 90% of them had no DNS Leak Protection or IPv6 leak protection, meaning they revealed identifiable user information.
This is why the best VPN services support open-source clients. As we’ve learned, making the code publicly available means it can be reviewed by the community for any security flaws and then updated as necessary. For example, we do this for our Linux VPN client, which is published on GitHub.
If your chosen provider doesn’t offer an open-source VPN client, check if they support connecting by an open-source third-party client like OpenVPN Connect.
Server Network
Different VPN providers offer a huge variety of server networks both in terms of numbers and where the servers are based.
When choosing a VPN service, make sure to check if its server locations are real or virtual. Virtual servers can be useful for making it appear as though you’re in a different country to access geo-restricted content. However, physical servers tend to offer superior performance.
Individual servers may also only support connections via certain VPN protocols. Most providers have a dedicated server page that allows you to check this.
Speed
Naturally, connecting to the Internet via a VPN server will slow down loading speeds to some extent. You can reduce “latency” by choosing a provider that offers physical servers close to your location.
The best VPN providers also support fast protocols. The WireGuard protocol, for instance, operates directly in the “kernel space,” so it can perform much faster than older protocols. OpenVPN DCO (Data Channel Offload) also operates in the kernel space, but not all VPN providers support this implementation.
Make sure to ask your provider if it carries out connection load balancing on its VPN servers. This means at times of high demand that network traffic is distributed across multiple VPN servers, so no single server becomes overwhelmed.
When trying out a VPN, make sure to use speed test servers from a variety of locations to measure download speeds and ‘ping’ time for gaming as necessary.
Reliability
When it comes to VPNs, reliability is about much more than just server uptime.
If the VPN connection drops for any reason, the IP address of your device is visible to sites you visit unless you use extra features like a kill switch (see below.)
Reliability also covers whether your VPN service releases regular updates for the client so it can run on all your devices. You should also check the number of simultaneous VPN device connections your provider allows.
Top Tier VPN services can also support you in setting up your own VPN router. This makes for an extremely reliable VPN, given that any device using the router’s wireless network automatically connects to the Internet via a VPN server.
Features
Some VPN providers offer a ‘no frills’ secure connection for basic use with surfing, gaming and streaming capabilities to overcome geographic restrictions.
Others offer extra features to improve connection security and performance:
Kill Switch
We’ve already touched on the importance of choosing a VPN client with a built-in kill switch. This means that if the VPN connection drops for any reason, all Internet activity is blocked until it’s re-established. As the only way you can go online is via the VPN, it offers much better protection.
Split Tunneling
Some VPN services also offer Split Tunneling. This allows you to specify which apps to route through the VPN. For instance, if you’re playing Minecraft, you could configure your client to have the game connect to the Internet directly, as you’re not sharing any sensitive information. However, your browser could still connect via the VPN, so the web pages you visit can’t be tracked.
Double VPN
Also known as multihop, this feature allows users to connect to the Internet via two different VPN servers. One knows your IP address (and therefore your location) but not what web content you’re accessing. The other manages your web traffic but doesn’t know who or where you are. This offers a huge security boost over regular VPN usage.
Ad Blocking
Using a VPN in itself won’t protect you from malicious websites. If you click on a link containing malware, it will still download to your device. The best VPN services offer extra security features to prevent this.
For example, hide.me VPN’s SmartGuard uses DNS filtering to protect VPN users from domains known to contain malware, ads and trackers.
Pricing
As we’ve learned, paying more doesn’t necessarily mean a better service. Even if a VPN provider is offering extra features like those described above, you may not need to use all of them.
When choosing your VPN provider, find one that offers either a free trial or a money-back guarantee. That way, you can try out the service without risking your money.
Some of the very best providers, like hide.me VPN, also offer a free tier with a limited selection of server locations.
Note that there’s a difference between legitimate providers offering free plans and VPN services that claim to be 100% free. Virtual Private Networks use a lot of bandwidth and infrastructure, which costs money. If the provider isn’t charging you for the service, they may be selling your data to third parties and/or injecting adverts into your traffic.
Customer Support
The last thing you need when your VPN service goes wrong is to find that your provider has no dedicated support page.
When you have worries or concerns, you need a VPN service that offers you different ways to get in touch, as well as quick replies.
For instance, hide.me VPN offers 24/7 support with a ticketing system, knowledgebase, community forum and live chat.
We love bringing you this content and hope it helps keep you safe and secure online. Feel free to share it with your friends, too.
Here at hide.me we are all about internet freedom, and we are happy to be in a position to bring that to everyone. That is why we give you a 30-day money-back guarantee on our Premium plan. No questions asked and no logs recorded.
If you have any questions, please feel to contact our 24/7 support team either at support@hide.me or via live chat.
