Nobody likes the idea of being spied on, but the minute you connect to the internet, your privacy goes out the window. It’s not a conspiracy theory: your ISP is watching you. If you want to safeguard yourself from prying eyes eager to sell your data, you need a VPN. A VPN, or Virtual Private Network, is one of the easiest and most effective ways to browse the internet anonymously.
By signing up for one of the services below and connecting through their app, it’s as if you’ve entered a railway tunnel: your ISP can see that you connected to a server but all of your browsing activity is hidden until you disconnect. Better still, most VPNs allow you to connect through servers all around the world, making the sites you visit believe you’re from that country. That U.K. Netflix series you’ve been dying to see is finally within your grasp. There are lots of VPN choices out there, but we’ve done the research for you and these are the best ones.
TL;DR – These are the Best VPNs for Gaming
1. ExpressVPN
Best VPN for Gaming
If you're trying to game with a VPN, you've got to be certain that it's not adding excessive latency into your connection. We've tested ExpressVPN (read our review), and it manages incredibly low latency while gaming as well as high bandwidth (just make sure you're not choosing a server that's increasing the distance between you and a game's servers). As far as a VPN for gaming is concerned, that should be enough to make ExpressVPN a winning choice. But, it goes further than that.
ExpressVPN is reasonably priced for what it offers, and it allows you to connect up to five devices at once. You'll also find substantial platform support with everything from laptops and mobile devices to consoles and media players covered. All your connected devices will benefit from the option to connect to over 160 server sites in 94 countries without any bandwidth caps. Plus, ExpressVPN is a secure option with encrypted connections and a zero-logging policy. That will let you game quickly and privately.
2. Surfshark
Best Budget VPN for Gaming
We’ve all got so many subscriptions, paying for one more just to tweak the way you use your Internet may seem like one step too far, but Surfshark makes it cheap enough that it’s easy to take the plunge. Starting at $2.49 a month, Surfshark is an easy option that can cover a bunch of your devices, since it supports Windows, Mac, Android, iOS ChromeOS, Amazon Fire TV, and even Xbox Series X/S and PS5, plus it doesn’t have a limit on how many devices you can have connected to the service simultaneously.
You might be wary of a VPN with such a low price, but we put it through some testing and found it more than dependable enough, with low enough latency and high enough bandwidth to handle video streaming and online gaming. In fact, we could get download speeds above 100Mbps. That may not seem like much if you’re on a Gigabit connection, but it’s ample speed for most online activities short of downloading massive video games you want to play right away.
3. TunnelBear
Best Freemium VPN for Gaming
Even if you haven’t been looking for a VPN before, you’ve probably heard of TunnelBear (read our review). The brand has been advertised widely, and it’s not a popular VPN for no reason. TunnelBear offers fairly compelling service, has the capabilities you need for gaming, and it even will let you dabble for free. You can try it out completely free for as long as you like, in fact, but you’ll be limited to just 500MB of data per month. That may be enough if you just need to visit a few websites to catch up on some geo-restricted news, but for gaming you’ll likely need to go in for the subscription.
TunnelBear plans aren’t terribly expensive, starting at $4.17, and the service provides servers in 41 different countries. You can use TunnelBear on a wide range of devices, and you’ll be able to keep five different devices connected to the service at the same time. TunnelBear may not be the fastest VPN we’ve tested, but you can always just take advantage of the free tier of service to see if it’ll do the job for you before needing to commit.
4. CyberGhost
Best VPN for Streaming
If you want to get gaming in some nights and streaming in other nights, CyberGhost (read our review) has got you covered for both. CyberGhost's VPN can offer latency that's low enough for gaming and bandwidth that's high enough to handle streaming. Thanks to CyberGhost's 6,900 servers in 90 countries, you can connect your devices to local servers around the world to access streaming content. And, since streaming services are consistently blocking VPN servers, CyberGhost can help you find servers that are still working for streaming.
In our testing, CyberGhost was able to offer an average speed above 25Mbps, which is the recommended speed for streaming 4K video from Netflix. Of course, if your aim is to stream over a VPN, you need to be able to actually connect your streaming devices through the VPN, and there's where CyberGhost excels. CyberGhost has the usual assortment of apps for PC, Mac, iOS, Android, and web browsers. But, it also has VPN apps for smart TVs, Android TV, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and consoles (including PS5 and Xbox Series X).
5. IPVanish
Best VPN for Game Streaming
IPVanish (read our review) wasn’t the best when it came to download speeds, but when it came to uploading, it was a chart-topper. During off-peak hours, it offered nearly a 1Mbps upload advantage over its closest competitor. When other VPNs began to struggle during network-congested evening hours, however, IPVanish stayed consistent and increased its lead, offering a greater upload speed than with no VPN at all!
Taken as a whole package, IPVanish covers most bases. Its app is a bit overwhelming, but it offers 256-bit encryption and zero logging to keep your connection secure. It also supports up to 10 simultaneous connections with no bandwidth limit. It’s a top contender for latency when gaming, which helps make up its mediocre download speed.
6. NordVPN
Best VPN for Privacy
NordVPN (read our review) may just be the best known private network out there thanks to their heavy presence on YouTube. Thankfully, it’s not all marketing hype as this VPN performed well in our latency and download tests. It didn’t top the charts in speed (though it was consistently one of the top performers), but it becomes a great value when you take a closer look at its features.
NordVPN offers the standard encryption and zero-logging policy, but it takes things a step further with Double VPN IP masking. In essence, this service changes your IP address twice to make it even more difficult to track. Conversely, if you would rather have a static IP through its network, you can do that too. To prevent sensitive data leaks, enable the VPN Killswitch and take the DNS Leak Test. If downloading is more your style, you’ll be pleased to know that it’s P2P optimized.
What To Look for in a VPN
Looking for a VPN can be daunting. Even though many are very easy to set up and use, nearly all of them throw intimidating network terminology at you while all offering the same basic service. Here’s how to choose the right VPN for you.
Security: The single most important thing you should look for in a VPN is how secure it is. Anonymity is the reason to use the service in the first place, so only choose a provider that guarantees absolutely zero logging. After you’ve found one, Google different reviews to see what kind of vulnerabilities might have surfaced. Related to this, do not use a free VPN if you care about your anonymity. Though many claim to be 100% secure, remember that something that sounds too good to be true probably is. As the saying goes, if the service is free, you (and your data) are probably the product.
Somewhat related to this, always search for stories related to controversies the company may have been involved in. These can often reveal situations you may not be comfortable with, such as parent companies, or instances where it hasn’t been honest in the past.
Connection Quality at Different Times of the Day: Many people avoid VPNs because they’re worried it will leave them with a laggy connection. While it’s true that any VPN is a middle man and can theoretically slow down your gaming, many are fast enough to have no impact at all. Read sites like ours to find out about the connection quality at different times of the day. Be leery of any review that doesn’t disclose the time of day their test was conducted as network congestion can have a large impact on your ping.
Additional Features: Many VPNs offer additional features to differentiate themselves from the competition. Be sure to look at what, if any, extra security features the VPN offers to earn your subscription. Private Internet Access, for example, includes a VPN Killswitch that pauses your network if you disconnect suddenly, ensuring your activity doesn’t slip out by accident. NordVPN allows you to test for DNS Leaks. These features can enhance your peace of mind and offer extra value with your monthly sub.
Does it accomplish what you’re looking for? Before choosing a VPN, think about everything you would like to do with it. If your goal is to stream video content from different countries, you’ll need to make sure your VPN of choice will make that easy for you. If it’s to connect your whole home through your router, you should ensure the developer supports that service and has documentation to help you get setup. Not all VPNs are created equal and, oftentimes, it’s worth sacrificing in one area to ensure that it performs in the area you need.
Chris Coke is a tech critic that cares way too much about mechanical keyboards. Check him out at IGN, MMORPG.com, or PC Perspective. Follow him on Twitter @gamebynight.
