VPNs are a great part of your cybersecurity toolkit, allowing you to keep your information private and away from companies and advertisers.
They’re also fantastic if you want to watch content in other regions, allowing you to enjoy something that’s not available in your country.
If you’ve decided to get a VPN, you’ve likely seen many free options available for download right now. Even better, right? Not quite.
If you don’t pay money for a VPN, you’ll be paying for it in other ways.
Why I still pay for a VPN even though Google gives me one for free
VPN by Google is far too basic for my needs
Most ‘free’ services steal your information
It’s essentially the opposite of what you want from a VPN
Open Google Play, search ‘VPN,’ and you’ll see all sorts of “free” VPNs available for you to download.
You might wonder why you’d buy a VPN at all, with all of these free options just begging for you to download them.
But just like with “free” internet, you’re still paying for a “free” VPN like this. Namely, you’re paying with your data.
It’s ironic when you think about it. Many people will be using VPNs to evade advertisers and ISPs, making it so that they aren’t constantly bombarded by targeted ads.
But many of these free options will claim to protect your data, then turn around and sell it to the same advertisers you’re trying to avoid.
Even if you’re only using VPN to bypass regional limits, having your information stolen and sold is ultimately not worth watching a regionally exclusive show in your area.
When public internet is free, it’s because you’re the product
There is a way to use free public Wi-Fi safely, though
Actual free and safe VPNs have strict limits
And endless emails asking you to upgrade
Not every single free VPN is out to steal your information and sell it to advertisers.
There are quite a few VPNs that offer services for free without doing anything shady with your personal data.
But these are also almost always a free tier of a paid VPN service, which leads to its own annoyances.
For example, take Windscribe. Windscribe is a reputable VPN service that offers a generous free tier, giving you 10GB of data per month across ten server locations.
It’s pretty great, but Windscribe will never let you forget that you’re on this free tier when there’s a paid Pro tier, ready and waiting for you to pay up for more data and more access.
I don’t blame Windscribe for the practice. The company needs to pay the bills after all, and they’re not selling your information.
Still, the stream of emails I get from the VPN is off-putting. It does the opposite of the intended effect and makes me look elsewhere for a paid VPN.
Other free VPN options, like Google’s VPN on Pixel devices, can be too basic to be worth using, and you end up upgrading anyway.
Paid VPNs aren’t expensive
Introductory rates keep overall prices low
All of the above reasons are valid when it comes to using a free VPN, but if you’re considering using one, that’s likely because you don’t have the funds to go “all in” on a premium VPN.
But here’s the secret: VPNs aren’t expensive. At all.
What you need to do is take advantage of introductory offers and understand exactly what you need from a VPN.
Most people want just two things from a VPN: privacy and the ability to bypass regional restrictions. So, for most people, the lowest tier of a budget VPN is the perfect choice.
Budget VPNs like Surfshark offer their lowest tier for about $2 a month for new users, as long as you pay for two years upfront.
That sounds like a lot to ask for, but paying for 24 months of a VPN that cheap is around $50, it’s a worthwhile investment.
Then, you can set an alarm or calendar even for a couple of weeks before the subscription changes to the normal price, and repeat with another budget VPN.
A little work moving services every other year is well worth the benefits of a paid VPN, that’s for sure.
- Logging policy
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No-logs policy
- Mobile app
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Android and iOS
- Number Of Servers
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3,200+
- Free Trial
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7-day
- Encryption
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AES-256 encryption
Surfshark’s most basic plan is usually on sale for around $2 for new users, making it a perfect budget option for people who are trying to search for a VPN that won’t break the bank.
If you’re considering a free VPN, you’ll need to do some serious research to make sure you’re not getting scammed or the service provides what you need.
But instead of that, why not spend that time researching budget VPNs instead, spend just a bit of money, and not think about it again for two years?
It’ll save you a lot of fuss, and you’ll get a great, premium service as a result.
This article was produced in partnership with Surfshark.
