

VPN services should answer customer questions in a timely manner. We read community forums and reviews to look for patterns of where a company stands out or is lacking. We evaluate such factors as time in business and changes in service (good and bad). Can you access servers in a wide variety of locations? Are streaming, torrenting and split tunneling available? The best VPNs offer top-tier features while keeping their products simple and easy to use. What encryption does the VPN use? How many servers does it provide? How does it perform in data leak tests? Nothing is more important in a virtual private network than your privacy and security.

Here’s a closer look at how we evaluate VPNs:

All of these features add another layer of privacy and anonymity to your web browsing. Other VPNs like Surfshark offer multihop technology, and CyberGhost has built-in blockers for ads and malware, too, but it’s rare to find a VPN with those capabilities plus the ability to provide a direct Tor connection. Onion over VPN, which sends traffic to The onion router (Tor) without the need to download a special browser.Double VPN, also known as VPN server chaining or multihop, which sends your online traffic through multiple VPN servers instead of just one.CyberSec, NordVPN’s ad and malware blocker.We found Nord Security’s NordLynx protocol (using WireGuard technology) enhanced performance over that of other VPNs. We compared the service’s VPN protocols with those of rivals and conducted several speed tests to evaluate: During our testing, we installed NordVPN on a desktop and tested the service’s security and privacy features by connecting to multiple servers in various countries.
