Poll Which VPN service would you recommend? Why?

  • Thread starter Thread starter ForgottenSeer 55474
  • Start date Start date

Which VPN would you recommend?

  • CyberGhost VPN

    Votes: 23 6.2%
  • Nord VPN

    Votes: 65 17.5%
  • F-Secure Freedome VPN

    Votes: 27 7.3%
  • ExpressVPN

    Votes: 49 13.2%
  • OkayFreedom VPN

    Votes: 4 1.1%
  • Hide My Ass VPN

    Votes: 5 1.3%
  • PureVPN

    Votes: 9 2.4%
  • TorGuard VPN

    Votes: 10 2.7%
  • IPVanish VPN

    Votes: 3 0.8%
  • Other (Specify in thread)

    Votes: 153 41.1%
  • Proton VPN

    Votes: 8 2.2%
  • Mullvad VPN

    Votes: 10 2.7%
  • Azire VPN

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • PIA VPN

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • AirVPN

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Windscribe

    Votes: 2 0.5%
  • AdGuard,

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • SurfShark

    Votes: 2 0.5%
  • TunnelBear

    Votes: 2 0.5%

  • Total voters
    372
I used Mullvad for years but I had continual issues with various UK servers rented or not, in the end after trying it several times over months I gave up with them, I know others have no problems, at the moment I use ExpressVPN, disliked by many but very fast, simple to use & faultless for months.
I'm not currently using it. But I have used it not long ago and I found it to work very well, even though there are more privacy conscious alternatives.
I've tried several popular VPNs and used ExpressVPN for three years; in my experience, it's the best overall, although it is expensive. Later, I purchased lifetime subscriptions for Windscribe and HideAway; both work well, and I'm satisfied with my choices. I also have a lifetime subscription to PureVPN, but I dislike its bloated interface and overall feel.
 
Been enjoying Proton, but their web extension is quite bad. The software itself works really well, but when using the extension it's sometimes hit or miss where it'll take forever to load some websites. Also has the same issue I had with surfshark where one server (using the UK servers as an example) will give 800-900+ and then another will give significantly lower at like 200-400, so I wish it was a bit more consistent. Anyone got recommendations for a more consistent speed of 1000+ or is this just common due to the server load etc?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sorrento
@Lad With a Dad - I really don't know which VPN will serve you best, & it depends where you are to get the best out of UK servers, if you are distant your ping & speed will be lower - I'm in the UK so 99% of the time I connect to a UK server & that helps with local sites, however I get much he same speed out of most European servers as they are close - There will always be a differing load on servers & especially at peak times - The fastest mainstream VPN I've used is ExpressVPN, this is owned by Kape who have had interesting origins though, but in my case totally reliable.

I never had issues with Express but its not the most privacy orientated, maybe??? - I really don't use web extensions on a VPN that I can remember as its easy to access on Windows from my taskbar, I'm using Mullvad at the moment & lose maybe 10-15% speed from a direct connection, the thing I like with Mullvad is you can just pay for one month or as many as you wish & top up as you choose, the speed is pretty good ? The fastest I've ever used is Kaspersky run by I believe Hotspot Shield, but you can't use it in USA + its not that private!
 
Last edited:
When living in Europe, I was a big fan of AirVPN (an OpenVPN and WireGuard based VPN operated by activists in defense of net neutrality, privacy and against censorship).

When back in South America I bought a 2 year deal of NordVPN and was beyond satisfied. When it was time to renew and the price went up, I switched to Windscribe for a lower price and solid security and interesting features. Since then I've been a user of the last. Of course, no logs policy.
 
Also, using mainstream VPNs for streaming. I think ExpressVPN still offers better applications than NordVPN and Surfshark. I use NordVPN and Surfshark with an access token on my ASUS router via WireGuard/NordLynx, and it works well; ping is low 1-5ms and bandwidth is reduced to 850-950Mbps from 1Gbps.
 
Last edited:
Been enjoying Proton, but their web extension is quite bad. The software itself works really well, but when using the extension it's sometimes hit or miss where it'll take forever to load some websites. Also has the same issue I had with surfshark where one server (using the UK servers as an example) will give 800-900+ and then another will give significantly lower at like 200-400, so I wish it was a bit more consistent. Anyone got recommendations for a more consistent speed of 1000+ or is this just common due to the server load etc?


Probably server load if you ask me, depending where you are in the world it will effect your speed. But I get full speed on Mullvad/IVPN/AirVPN almost anywhere in the world, 5G usually 350+MB anywhere too depending on how isolated the area is.
 
  • Like
Reactions: simmerskool
@Lad With a Dad - I really don't know which VPN will serve you best, & it depends where you are to get the best out of UK servers, if you are distant your ping & speed will be lower - I'm in the UK so 99% of the time I connect to a UK server & that helps with local sites, however I get much he same speed out of most European servers as they are close - There will always be a differing load on servers & especially at peak times - The fastest mainstream VPN I've used is ExpressVPN, this is owned by Kape who have had interesting origins though, but in my case totally reliable.

I never had issues with Express but its not the most privacy orientated, maybe??? - I really don't use web extensions on a VPN that I can remember as its easy to access on Windows from my taskbar, I'm using Mullvad at the moment & lose maybe 10-15% speed from a direct connection, the thing I like with Mullvad is you can just pay for one month or as many as you wish & top up as you choose, the speed is pretty good ? The fastest I've ever used is Kaspersky run by I believe Hotspot Shield, but you can't use it in USA + its not that private!
I'm also in the UK. My download speed is 1600 so it's just frustrating seeing it get all the way down to 200-400 when it does happen, but I know with a VPN I won't always get those speeds
 
I'm also in the UK. My download speed is 1600 so it's just frustrating seeing it get all the way down to 200-400 when it does happen, but I know with a VPN I won't always get those speeds
From my Speedtest laptop app. My default ISP speed.
Screenshot 2025-11-26 152809.png


Connecting with the lowly and often chastised F-Secure (LOL)....and their VPN, connecting to the nearest location to me, Chicago.
Screenshot 2025-11-26 152635.png


That is to much of a loss, unless the, your VPN can't keep up with those speeds? (if something like that could be an issue?)
When I used the Proton paid version and connected to the sever nearest to me, were always close to my ISP speeds, as well as Mullvad.
When I had 300Mbps service, I never saw a big difference between the speeds, either.

Did you try a different server location, or using a different VPN protocol?
 
From my Speedtest laptop app. My default ISP speed.
View attachment 293300

Connecting with the lowly and often chastised F-Secure (LOL)....and their VPN, connecting to the nearest location to me, Chicago.
View attachment 293301

That is to much of a loss, unless the, your VPN can't keep up with those speeds? (if something like that could be an issue?)
When I used the Proton paid version and connected to the sever nearest to me, were always close to my ISP speeds, as well as Mullvad.
When I had 300Mbps service, I never saw a big difference between the speeds, either.

Did you try a different server location, or using a different VPN protocol?
The speeds are very close, it may due to service fluctuation. But the ping has tripled when connected to this VPN. 36 ping is ok for a mobile provider (though it could be way better on 5G standalone).
But for landline internet, it’s a bit too much.
 
The speeds are very close, it may due to service fluctuation. But the ping has tripled when connected to this VPN. 36 ping is ok for a mobile provider (though it could be way better on 5G standalone).
But for landline internet, it’s a bit too much.
On paper, I agree, but it's never been a problem, that slight lag with any of my web connections, unnoticeable :)