How We Test & Review VPN Services
We put every VPN we review through an extensive and unbiased testing process. In this guide you’ll learn about our testing lab, how we evaluate VPNs, how our rating system works, and why you should trust our process.
Why You Should Trust Our VPN Reviews
All 65 VPNs on our website have been thoroughly tested using our extensive and fair testing program, ensuring consistency and comparability of our results.
We’ve designed this system to make sure we only recommend the very best VPN services.We selected these 65 VPNs after analyzing mobile app store
data to identify the most popular VPNs, and by considering those frequently referred to by other industry experts.
Our VPN testing process is fully transparent. Each VPN review includes its rating in every category. Our findings are also reproducible; by following our testing process, you can replicate our findings yourself.
Fully Independent:
Unlike many other VPN review websites, we are independently-owned and entirely separate from every VPN service. There’s no potential for conflicts of interest and there is no pressure from financial stakeholders to alter reviews.
Expert Reviewers:
Simon Migliano, whose cybersecurity research has been featured in dozens of leading news publications. His ongoing research into internet shutdowns is regularly cited in public policy documents and academic papers.
JP Jones, who has over 25 years of software engineering and networking experience. His extensive knowledge of VPN protocols and network security has been shared in several online publications.
Original Research:
Unlike many other VPN review websites, we conduct our own testing and research to evaluate a VPN’s performance. Our reviews are the result of extensive hands-on testing and analysis using a range of primary and third-party tools.
Up-to-Date Information:
A VPN’s performance can vary significantly over time. For example, even if it unblocks US Netflix one week, it may not work the following week. Additionally, VPN services are constantly adding new features to respond to new security threats.To ensure our VPN reviews remain accurate and relevant, our team is continually retesting VPN services and updating our content. Every VPN review we publish is updated on a weekly basis for the rest of its lifespan. An initial review may involve upwards of 40 hours of testing, but we spend many more hours each month updating it.
Consistent Testing Environment:
To ensure that our VPN reviews are both fair and directly comparable, we conduct all of our tests in a consistent environment. This means that every VPN is tested hands-on from New York using standardized hardware, running the latest OS release.
Additionally, every VPN is tested in an independent virtual machine to prevent interaction with other installed software and limit the potential for inaccurate results. This approach improves the consistency and comparability of our test results.
We’ve been testing and reviewing VPN services since 2016. We also publish VPN research and advice to help protect your internet privacy and security.