Every time are more users concerned about their security (and therefore interested in a VPN) due to the growing cyber threats and the cases of massive espionage that have become media coverage. Even more so in times of pandemic, when SARS-CoV-2 forces many to telecommute, which means handling sensitive or private company data from home networks that may not have business protection measures.

The VPN can not only provide you with an extra layer of security for your office or home connections, it can also help you in other ways. For example, you could change the origin of your IP as you wish, being able to choose the country of origin to be able to access services that are limited or restricted for your country of origin. Something that also attracts many users, especially streaming content services, to a VPN.

Top 10 VPNs

Between the best vpn services We recommend this Top10:

North VPN

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A cheap premium VPN. Its outstanding features are:

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 59 countries
  • Fast speed
  • 6 simultaneous devices
Stand out for its promotions

Available on:

CyberGhost

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A cheap premium VPN. Its outstanding features are:

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 90 countries
  • Fast speed
  • 7 simultaneous devices
Stands out for its safety

Available on:

Surfshark

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A cheap premium VPN. Its outstanding features are:

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 61 countries
  • Fast speed
  • Unlimited devices
Stands out for its price

Available on:

ExpressVPN

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A cheap premium VPN. Its outstanding features are:

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 94 countries
  • good speed
  • 5 simultaneous devices
Stands out for its quality of service

Available on:

ZenMate

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A cheap premium VPN. Its outstanding features are:

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 74 countries
  • good speed
  • Unlimited devices
Stands out for its quality-price

Available on:

Hotspot Shield

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A cheap premium VPN. Its outstanding features are:

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 80 countries
  • Fast speed
  • 5 simultaneous devices
Noted for its speed

Available on:

tunnel Bear

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A cheap premium VPN. Its outstanding features are:

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 22 countries
  • good speed
  • 5 simultaneous devices
Stands out for its technical service

Available on:

Hide My Ass!

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A cheap premium VPN. Its outstanding features are:

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 190 countries
  • Fast speed
  • 10 simultaneous devices
Very good for P2P and Torrent

Available on:

ProtonVPN

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A cheap premium VPN. Its outstanding features are:

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 46 countries
  • good speed
  • 10 simultaneous devices
Ideal for use with Netflix

Available on:

PrivateVPN

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A cheap premium VPN. Its outstanding features are:

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 56 countries
  • good speed
  • 6 simultaneous devices
Good option for families

Available on:

Everything you need to know about a VPN

Before hiring a VPN you need to know a series of details to be able to choose the one that best suits your needs and also to determine if you really need a VPN service or not.

What is a VPN?

Una VPN (Virtual Private Network), or virtual private network, is basically a service that allows you to connect to a network like the Internet in a secure way. To do this, an obfuscation of the origin of network traffic is used, it provides an IP different from the original one provided by your Internet service provider (ISP).

Also, a VPN will generate a “tunnel” connection with encrypted traffic, that is, all incoming and outgoing data traffic will be protected by an encryption algorithm so that third parties cannot intercept them in plain text through attacks using sniffers (network packet sniffers) such as MitM (Man in the Middle), and will even remain hidden from certain services and providers that can capture your traffic and store it.

All of the above has some additional “side effects”. For example, by changing the IP, it will also allow you access content that is restricted or limited in your geographic area. For example, surely you have tried to watch a streaming channel from another country and it shows you a message informing you that this service is only available to users from that country. Well, this type of restriction could be avoided with a VPN…

free vs paid

There are some totally free VPN services, and other paid ones that offer limited free services. When you consider using a VPN, it is because you need maximum security or access to certain restricted services in your area. And that's not something you should entrust to free services.

One of the reasons is that free services tend to have a lower degree of protection but, above all, because they have traffic limitations daily, weekly or monthly. This will prevent you from being able to make intensive use of the free ones and that is not feasible for streaming video services that consume a lot of data (especially if they are HD or 4K). And what's worse, free VPN services do not allow you to work with streaming services in many cases.

Therefore, when you access one of the free VPN services you will end up frustrated and ending up in a paid service by not getting what you really wanted. In addition, paid services do not have to be expensive, far from it, there are quite juicy offers that for a few euros per month will allow you to have premium services.

Our favorite VPNs

nordvpn

NordVPN

From3, 10 €
cyber ghost

CyberGhost

From2, 75 €
Surfshark

Surfshark

From1, 79 €

And remember what they say, when something is free, the product is you. That is, some free services are going to monitor your activity and can use it to sell it to third parties, show ads according to your preferences, or get some kind of economic return for it. Therefore, they offer free service, but they are making profit on the other side…

Other services might even sell bandwidth to other customers of your payment service. That is, they use part of your resources to transfer them to users who have a premium account.

Third-party VPN or your own?

It is true that you can create your own VPN using a server with GNU/Linux and OpenVPN (or other operating systems and similar software). But this type of VPN will be somewhat more limited in terms of speed by your network bandwidth and you will have to do the hardening and administration yourself, and that also includes dealing with technical problems that may arise on the server.

This is not an option for the vast majority of users, not even for many professional users. Therefore, the most comfortable contract a third party VPN service and enjoy the comforts it offers. In this case, you will only have to worry about installing the client and starting to enjoy the service from day one.

Is it a good option to buy a VPN router?

It is true that there are also some routers, or routers, that they offer a VPN already included. They are premium routers that usually cost a little more than the average, but they offer a series of quite interesting advantages and extra services. For example, you can find some examples like:

  • Linksys WRT 3200 ACM
  • Asus RT-AC86U
  • Asus RT-AC5300
  • Linksys WRT32X Gaming
  • D-link DIR-885L/R
  • Netgear Nighthawk X4S
  • Synology RT2600AC

Although it is a great option in some cases, You should be careful with some cheap VPN router models. Some of them indicate that they have this type of service but it refers only to the client, and they lack the service provided by the server. Therefore, you will also have to hire a third-party service to make it functional.

So that you do not have any problems, we have made a compilation of the best VPN routers that you can access by pressing the following button:

Watch out for this! Many buy one of these routers and have peace of mind, but their data is still just as unprotected.

Advantages of using a VPN

Like any other product and service, a VPN has its pros and cons. But surely the advantages are much more powerful to convince you to hire her:

  • Encryption of network traffic so that your data is not transferred in plain text and to respect confidentiality (information transferred between a sender and receiver cannot be accessed by third parties without permission). And that includes all the traffic in its entirety, and not like the proxy servers that you can configure for a web browser or for certain specific apps. In this case, all traffic from your devices will be protected.
  • Greater privacy and anonymity. Not only for encryption, but also for hiding the origin of the IP.
  • Bypass restrictions in your geographical area using an IP from other countries for which that service is operational without limits.
  • Your Internet provider or ISP (Telefónica, Orange, Eurona, Jazztel, Vodafone,…) will not be able to know the use you make of your connection. Without a VPN it will be able to know the pages you visit, if you download pirated content, etc. This is so since all the traffic will go through their servers and a record of it will remain. In addition, the law requires the ISP to store such data for several years. All this data can be sold or transferred to advertising companies, government agencies, etc.
  • data integrity, so that when they arrive at their destination they are the same ones that left from the origin. That is, they are not altered along the way.
  • A VPN is very simple, and sometimes it only involves pressing a button to start or stop it. Instead, other alternative services such as proxy servers, and other different security measures, could mean more complexity.
  • Saving. Although it has a price, it is much lower than that of other services or payments to security experts who can secure the network.

Disadvantages of a VPN

Certainly a VPN does not have Bad points very remarkable. Only two points could be highlighted that act against it:

  • Price: Although there are free ones, I have already commented that they are not the most appropriate. Therefore, to have a good VPN you need to pay. However, they are not high prices and are permissible for most people. With a router with VPN you could also avoid these fees…
  • Connection speed: Obviously, when encrypting the data, it must be encrypted and decrypted so that you can see it as if you did not have a VPN. That is, even if it is transparent to you, but that supposes an extra load that will reduce the speed. If you have a fast ADSL, fiber optic, or 4G/5G line, it won't be too much of a problem. It could only be quite harmful for slow connections (or when you have some kind of data limit and it slows you down for the rest of the month).

Why do I need a VPN?

North VPN

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

  • AES-256 encryption
  • IP's from 59 countries
  • Fast speed
  • 6 simultaneous devices
Stand out for its promotions

Available on:

You should evaluate if having a VPN makes any sense in your particular case. In principle, for privacy and security reasons alone, it is worth it. In fact, privacy is a right on the network that is being violated every day by large corporations. With a VPN you could put a solution to this. But regardless of this, there are also other reasons why you would need a VPN:

  • SARS-CoV-2: The pandemic has transformed society and has changed the way of acting in many ways, also in the workplace. Now there are many more companies and freelancers teleworking. This involves using your own devices to connect (see BYOD) and your home network. Many companies handle sensitive customer data (tax data, private photos, information protected by intellectual property, medical data,…) and without a VPN they will be vulnerable to being leaked or intercepted by unauthorized third parties.
  • Protect your browsing data: With a VPN you have an extra layer of protection as I mentioned in the previous point. This is especially vital when you use public or insecure WiFi connections to access certain banking services, etc., without others being able to intercept passwords and other type of credentials or data entered.
  • Bypass internet censorship: If you come across a service or app that is not available in your geographical area, with a VPN you could access it by obtaining an IP from another country. This can be very practical to watch some online channels, access content that is not available on certain streaming platforms (AppleTV, Netflix, Disney+, F1 TV Pro,...), and even for certain restricted apps on Google Play, App Store, etc. etc.
  • P2P and Torrent Downloads: to download content by Torrent or P2P networks, among other websites to download pirated or illegal content, you can count on a VPN to do it in a more anonymous way and that the ISP cannot be aware of this activity. Although this is illegal and you will do it at your own risk…

As you can see, the applications of a VPN go beyond simple security...

What do I have to know to choose the best VPN?

There are certain technical details you should keep an eye on especially when you are comparing some VPN services between which you have doubts. They can be a good indicator to determine the quality of the service and if it better suits your needs.

Number of servers and IP

VPNEncryptionSpeedIPsDevicesStrong point
NordVPNAES-256QuickFrom 59 countries6 simultaneousPromotions
CyberGhostAES-256QuickFrom 90 countries7 simultaneousSecurity
SurfsharkAES-256QuickFrom 61 countriesUnlimitedPrice
ExpressVPNAES-256GoodFrom 94 countries5 simultaneousQuality of service
ZenMateAES-256GoodFrom 74 countriesUnlimited 
Hotspot ShieldAES-256QuickFrom 80 countries5 dispositivosSpeed
tunnel BearAES-256GoodFrom 22 countries5 dispositivosTechnical service
Hide My Ass!AES-256QuickFrom 190 countries10 simultaneousVery good for P2P and Torrent downloads
ProtonVPNAES-256GoodFrom 46 countries10 simultaneousIdeal for use with Netflix
PrivateVPNAES-256GoodFrom 56 countries6 simultaneousGood option for families

Some VPN services have a large number of servers spread across several countries, which will be a clear advantage. In addition, some provide you with a Different IP random, but other services go further and let you choose the origin of said IP.

This is very interesting for the restricted services or content. For example, imagine that you want to access a service that is only available in Sweden. With one of these VPNs you can get a Swedish IP and thus access as if you were one more Swede...

Encryption algorithm

It is one of the most important data for safety from service. It can also influence performance. Obviously, the more secure the more speed you will lose, although some quality VPN services have managed through some technologies so that this is not the case and they can provide very good speed and security.

Whenever you choose a VPN, you should choose one with a strong encryption algorithm that has no known vulnerabilities. One of those algorithms is AES-256which is a great choice. In fact, many payment services opt for military-grade protection, which is among the highest available.

In addition to encryption, some payment services have extra protection technologies or measures for their customers. But be that as it may, avoid insecure algorithms like SHA-1, MD4, and MD5 that have been violated.

And remember, there is no 100% secure system. The most dangerous thing is to believe that you are invulnerable. In fact, some cybercriminals They have been able to violate these connections by taking advantage of some type of vulnerability or other fraudulent methods such as key theft.

Speed

It is another of the most important data if you do not want the VPN to depress your network speed in a considerable way. Therefore, you always have to choose services with a good speed. Many of the current services offer services with a fairly high speed, so it will not be too much of a problem, especially if you use a fast connection (ADSL, fiber optics,...).

Privacy and anonymity

I am not referring to the network itself, but to the data that the VPN service provider itself can store. As I mentioned before, the data will not pass through the ISP's servers, but it will pass through those of the VPN provider.

Some of the providers save log data such as your name, payment details, your real IP, etc. Data that can help identify you. That is recommended, so you should read the fine print on whether or not these providers save this data. Be wary of those who keep them and always choose the ones that store the least records.

technical support

Some free VPN services lack technical or customer service or is quite poor. In the case of payment services, this is usually somewhat better and 24/7 (24 hours and 7 days a week), but it is not the same in all cases.

Some services only offer attention English en, others will also have it in Spanish. They are usually both by phone call and by email, and some even have live chat to answer your questions or solve possible problems that may arise.

Support or platforms

Free VPN services have somewhat less support, but most of the paid ones have great support in terms of supported platforms. These services have client programs that can be installed on various operating systems such as Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, etc. Some even allow it to be done on certain smart TVs and in browsers through add-ons.

Take a good look at the type of operating systems you use at home or work and always select a VPN provider that can offer you a official client supported.

Friendly GUI

Those clients I am talking about in the previous section have a graphical interface that can be more or less amicable. They are usually quite simple and you don't need any computer skills to turn the VPN on and off or to make certain settings on it.

It's usually as simple as running the VPN client and Press a button so that the service is activated and begins to do its “magic”.

Payment methods

In paid VPN services you can find several methods to pay the subscription. These payment methods can be several:

  • Credit card: It is comfortable and usual for most users.
  • PayPal: some platforms also accept payment through this secure platform where you only need your email.
  • App stores: Some VPNs for mobile platforms allow payment through the payment services of the app stores of mobile platforms, such as Google Play, App Store, etc.
  • Cryptocurrencies: cryptocurrencies allow totally anonymous payments, such as those made with Bitcoin. Many VPN providers support this type of cryptocurrency payment.
  • Others: Some also support other different methods.

DMCA requests

Maybe the term doesn't ring a bell DMCA, but it is a term referring to the copyright protection law of the United States. This law protects all types of content such as movies, music, software, books, etc. against piracy.

And what does this have to do with the VPN? Well simple, some VPN providers have their headquarters in countries with laws that do not contemplate responding to requests from the United States when some fraudulent activity has been committed. That is, they are in legal havens that protect their clients if data were requested to be judged.

But not all VPN services operate from this type of paradise outside these laws, some are in territory where they do Those requests will be accommodated.. So if you use your VPN for criminal activities, you should pay attention to this. However, from this blog we do not encourage fraudulent use…