Free VPN for PC: The Best Free Plans for Windows and Their Limits
This page lists 131 VPN services with a Windows client and a free tier; only 12 have passed an independent no-logs audit. For daily browsing pick one of those audited, ad-free tiers and accept the trade-off: few locations, one device, moderate speed. Streaming and torrenting call for a trial or a cheap plan; the cheapest here is €0.36 a month, the median €2.70. Read more
Part of Free VPNs.
Sorted by this page’s weighting: ecosystem weighs 35% on this page. Each row also shows the overall score.
131services on this page
12with an independent no-logs audit
€0.36cheapest paid plan, a month
Ready-made lists
- Works under heavy blocking
- Anonymous
- Honest free
- Trial without a card
- No price rise at renewal
- Netflix and streaming
- Gaming
- For business
All filters by topic: Price and payment · Anonymity and privacy · VPN security · VPN protocols · VPNs by platform · VPNs by use case · Travel and restrictions · VPN jurisdictions · VPN servers by country · VPN customer support · VPN segments
| # | Service | Page score | Data limit | Speed | Locations | Ads | From | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CitadelVPN | 8.43overall 8.74 | Yes | — | — | No | Data limit: yes; Ads: no | €1.38per month |
| 2 | X-VPN | 6.89overall 6.05 | — | — | 26 regions (UK, CA, AU, 13 US… | Yes AdMob, InMobi, Chartboost,… | Locations: 26 regions (UK, CA, AU, 13 US…; Ads: yes (AdMob, InMobi, Chartboost,… | €2.57per month |
| 3 | Proton VPN | 6.40overall 6.12 | unlimited (no data limits) | medium speed, no artificial limits | 10 randomly selected countries | no ads | Data limit: unlimited (no data limits); Speed: medium speed, no artificial limits; Locations: 10 randomly selected countries; Ads: no ads | €3.00per month |
| 4 | ZoogVPN | 5.66overall 4.36 | 10 GB/month | limited (possible congestion) | 5 locations | Yes in Android app (Google AdMob) | Data limit: 10 GB/month; Speed: limited (possible congestion); Locations: 5 locations; Ads: yes in Android app (Google AdMob) | €2.14per month |
| 5 | LightningX VPN | 5.57overall 4.96 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €4.30per month |
| 6 | Canada VPN | 5.35overall 4.11 | — | — | 6 servers in 5 countries (US, UK,… | — | Locations: 6 servers in 5 countries (US, UK,… | €1.99per month |
| 7 | VMP VPN (VPN Master Pro) | 5.19overall 4.48 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €5.01per month |
| 8 | BelkaVPN | 5.19overall 4.25 | — | — | US; Canada (browser extension… | — | Locations: US; Canada (browser extension… | €2.36per month |
| 9 | Hotspot Shield | 5.10overall 3.94 | 500 MB/day (watch ads on mobile… | up to 2 Mbps | 1 (US, virtual) | Yes ads on mobile | Data limit: 500 MB/day (watch ads on mobile…; Speed: up to 2 Mbps; Locations: 1 (US, virtual); Ads: yes (ads on mobile) | €2.08per month |
| 10 | Symlex VPN | 5.08overall 4.47 | limited bandwidth | moderate | 3 servers / 3 locations | Yes not ad-free | Data limit: limited bandwidth; Speed: moderate; Locations: 3 servers / 3 locations; Ads: yes (not ad-free) | €1.91per month |
| 11 | FreeVPN.com | 4.95overall 3.92 | 1 GB/day | — | 3 | — | Data limit: 1 GB/day; Locations: 3 | €3.43per month |
| 12 | Windscribe | 4.94overall 4.09 | limited | — | some locations | — | Data limit: limited; Locations: some locations | €2.58per month |
| 13 | CactusVPN | 4.84overall 4.17 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €3.41per month |
| 14 | Turbo VPN | 4.75overall 4.05 | — | — | a handful of servers | Yes mobile | Locations: a handful of servers; Ads: yes (mobile) | €2.86per month |
| 15 | StelsVPN | 4.74overall 3.81 | 300 MB/day | — | minimum countries | — | Data limit: 300 MB/day; Locations: minimum countries | €3.99per month |
| 16 | UFO VPN | 4.71overall 4.00 | — | — | free servers e.g. US, UK, IR, RU,… | — | Locations: free servers e.g. US, UK, IR, RU,… | €2.57per month |
| 17 | Hide.me | 4.46overall 3.97 | unlimited data | restricted speeds | 8 | — | Data limit: unlimited data; Speed: restricted speeds; Locations: 8 | €2.69per month |
| 18 | VPN Fast (GREEN DYGITAL CONSULTING) | 4.40overall 3.20 | daily data cap | basic speeds | limited | Yes | Data limit: daily data cap; Speed: basic speeds; Locations: limited; Ads: yes | €3.86per month |
| 19 | BearVPN | 4.31overall 3.62 | unlimited | standard speeds | random/auto-selected server only | Yes Premium is ad-free | Data limit: unlimited; Speed: standard speeds; Locations: random/auto-selected server only; Ads: yes (Premium is ad-free) | €1.44per month |
| 20 | Betternet | 4.19overall 3.28 | unlimited (claimed) | up to 1 Gbps (claimed) | 5 | Yes | Data limit: unlimited (claimed); Speed: up to 1 Gbps (claimed); Locations: 5; Ads: yes | €5.16per month |
| 21 | VPNEU | 4.19overall 3.78 | — | limited | fewer servers | No | Speed: limited; Locations: fewer servers; Ads: no | €1.08per month |
| 22 | VPN Proxy Master - Safer Vpn (SecureGuard) | 4.18overall 3.62 | — | — | — | Yes | Ads: yes | €3.18per month |
| 23 | ZenMate | 4.15overall 3.19 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €1.99per month |
| 24 | V3VPN | 4.11overall 3.38 | — | — | — | claims ad-free | Ads: claims ad-free | €2.57per month |
| 25 | VPN 360 | 4.04overall 3.29 | unlimited | — | — | — | Data limit: unlimited | €1.71per month |
| 26 | Bitdefender VPN | 3.99overall 2.81 | 500 MB/day | — | 3 or fewer | Yes ads and upsells | Data limit: 500 MB/day; Locations: 3 or fewer; Ads: yes (ads and upsells) | €2.51per month |
| 27 | Norse Labs DVPN | 3.98overall 3.50 | — | — | a few locations permanently free | No policy: no advertising | Locations: a few locations permanently free; Ads: no (policy: no advertising) | €2.86per month |
| 28 | VPN Proxy Master | 3.96overall 3.68 | 500 MB (review | — | — | likely (AdMob, Liftoff, InMobi,… | Data limit: 500 MB (review; Ads: likely (AdMob, Liftoff, InMobi,… | €3.18per month |
| 29 | 12VPN | 3.95overall 3.09 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €9.45per month |
| 30 | Fexyn | 3.93overall 3.98 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €2.57per month |
| 31 | PrivadoVPN | 3.91overall 3.43 | 10 GB / 30 days (then free… | — | 13 (a handful) | — | Data limit: 10 GB / 30 days (then free…; Locations: 13 (a handful) | €0.95per month |
| 32 | TikVPN | 3.91overall 3.43 | — | — | 8: Singapore, Japan, Chicago,… | — | Locations: 8: Singapore, Japan, Chicago,… | €2.14per month |
| 33 | TunnelBear | 3.89overall 3.59 | 2GB/month | — | — | — | Data limit: 2GB/month | €2.86per month |
| 34 | Malwarebytes Privacy VPN | 3.77overall 3.97 | limited | — | — | — | Data limit: limited | €3.33per month |
| 35 | iTop VPN | 3.75overall 3.58 | unlimited (VIP lists unlimited… | slower (VIP 10x faster) | 10+ free servers (US, UK, JP, DE,… | — | Data limit: unlimited (VIP lists unlimited…; Speed: slower (VIP 10x faster); Locations: 10+ free servers (US, UK, JP, DE,… | €2.15per month |
| 36 | Speedy Quark VPN | 3.67overall 2.56 | — | — | — | Yes AdMob, Unity Ads | Ads: yes (AdMob, Unity Ads) | €4.29per month |
| 37 | Trickbyte | 3.64overall 2.48 | — | — | — | Yes | Ads: yes | €1.79per month |
| 38 | URnetwork | 3.57overall 2.75 | 30 GiB/day | — | — | — | Data limit: 30 GiB/day | — |
| 39 | VpnHood! | 3.48overall 2.84 | unlimited | no limit | 6 countries | Yes AdMob, rewarded ads; Google… | Data limit: unlimited; Speed: no limit; Locations: 6 countries; Ads: yes (AdMob, rewarded ads; Google… | €3.35per month |
| 40 | IceVPN | 3.45overall 2.98 | 20 GB/month | — | 3 countries / 3 cities (JP, NL,… | — | Data limit: 20 GB/month; Locations: 3 countries / 3 cities (JP, NL,… | €2.57per month |
| 41 | FoolVPN | 3.45overall 2.80 | unlimited (claimed) | up to 200 Mbps (claimed) | 10+ countries | Yes ad-supported, very few ads | Data limit: unlimited (claimed); Speed: up to 200 Mbps (claimed); Locations: 10+ countries; Ads: yes (ad-supported, very few ads) | — |
| 42 | VPN One Click | 3.43overall 2.95 | — | — | — | Yes mobile | Ads: yes (mobile) | €1.21per month |
| 43 | SkyVPN | 3.33overall 2.27 | almost unlimited (fair use at… | may be throttled | limited (premium has more servers) | Yes third-party… | Data limit: almost unlimited (fair use at…; Speed: may be throttled; Locations: limited (premium has more servers); Ads: yes (third-party… | €1.71per month |
| 44 | FlyVPN | 3.24overall 2.28 | — | — | HK (7); JP (3); KR (5); KZ (1); … | — | Locations: HK (7); JP (3); KR (5); KZ (1); … | €4.27per month |
| 45 | VPN Jantit | 3.23overall 2.82 | unlimited | same as premium (no limit stated) | ~70 countries listed | Yes | Data limit: unlimited; Speed: same as premium (no limit stated); Locations: ~70 countries listed; Ads: yes | €0.86per month |
| 46 | 7VPN | 3.21overall 2.80 | unlimited (claim) | — | fewer than Premium | Yes | Data limit: unlimited (claim); Locations: fewer than Premium; Ads: yes | €8.59per month |
| 47 | Hiddify | 3.20overall 3.15 | unlimited (own server) | own server | — | No | Data limit: unlimited (own server); Speed: own server; Ads: no | — |
| 48 | VPNHouse | 3.19overall 2.58 | — | standard speed (premium: max… | free servers only; premium… | Yes short in-app ads on free… | Speed: standard speed (premium: max…; Locations: free servers only; premium…; Ads: yes (short in-app ads on free… | €2.19per month |
| 49 | OllaVPN | 3.18overall 4.00 | unlimited (fair-use daily… | 10 Mbps | all countries (standard exits) | No | Data limit: unlimited (fair-use daily…; Speed: 10 Mbps; Locations: all countries (standard exits); Ads: no | €2.57per month |
| 50 | uVPN | 3.17overall 2.04 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
Show all 131Show top 50 only
| # | Service | Page score | Data limit | Speed | Locations | Ads | From | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 51 | Mudfish | 3.13overall 2.14 | — | no limit (claim) | free public nodes | — | Speed: no limit (claim); Locations: free public nodes | — |
| 52 | ChibaTunnel | 3.13overall 3.12 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 53 | VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy (VPN Super Inc / Mobile Jump) | 3.13overall 3.12 | unlimited | no 10 Gbps servers | 100+ countries (claim) | Yes AdMob, IronSource, Unity,… | Data limit: unlimited; Speed: no 10 Gbps servers; Locations: 100+ countries (claim); Ads: yes (AdMob, IronSource, Unity,… | €5.15per month |
| 54 | Ciphra VPN | 3.12overall 2.74 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €2.86per month |
| 55 | WorldVPN | 3.10overall 2.86 | 200 MB/day | — | — | — | Data limit: 200 MB/day | €0.96per month |
| 56 | Tcpvpn | 3.09overall 2.08 | — | lifetime account speed-limited | — | — | Speed: lifetime account speed-limited | — |
| 57 | Blokada | 3.03overall 2.18 | — | — | — | No | Ads: no | €5.00per month |
| 58 | StarVPN | 3.02overall 2.94 | capped | — | — | — | Data limit: capped | €6.88per month |
| 59 | VPN Nederland | 2.98overall 2.51 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €3.99per month |
| 60 | Safing SPN (Portmaster) | 2.96overall 2.93 | — | — | none (SPN not included) | No | Locations: none (SPN not included); Ads: no | €3.33per month |
| 61 | PotatoVPN | 2.93overall 3.00 | — | — | 7 servers: SG, US, CA, UK, IN, DE… | Yes AdMob, Chartboost | Locations: 7 servers: SG, US, CA, UK, IN, DE…; Ads: yes (AdMob, Chartboost) | €5.15per month |
| 62 | Geph | 2.90overall 2.74 | — | medium-speed (free); Plus =… | — | — | Speed: medium-speed (free); Plus =… | — |
| 63 | MASQ Network | 2.85overall 2.56 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €6.88per month |
| 64 | Shellfire VPN | 2.84overall 2.46 | unlimited | 1,000 kbit/s | 2 (Germany, US) | — | Data limit: unlimited; Speed: 1,000 kbit/s; Locations: 2 (Germany, US) | €3.26per month |
| 65 | Hola VPN | 2.83overall 1.58 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 66 | FreeVPN.us | 2.83overall 2.27 | 10 GB OVPN quota per account… | — | all 23 servers (10 countries) | Yes | Data limit: 10 GB OVPN quota per account…; Locations: all 23 servers (10 countries); Ads: yes | €1.53per month |
| 67 | Riseup VPN | 2.80overall 2.82 | — | — | — | No | Ads: no | — |
| 68 | Urban VPN | 2.79overall 2.44 | unlimited except Android (limit… | — | fewer territories than Premium | — | Data limit: unlimited except Android (limit…; Locations: fewer territories than Premium | €4.26per month |
| 69 | Cloudflare WARP (1.1.1.1) | 2.76overall 1.80 | — | — | nearest Cloudflare data center… | No | Locations: nearest Cloudflare data center…; Ads: no | — |
| 70 | Karing | 2.73overall 1.95 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 71 | OnionHop | 2.68overall 2.69 | — | — | — | No | Ads: no | — |
| 72 | QubitVPN | 2.63overall 1.99 | unmetered | — | standard VPN locations | — | Data limit: unmetered; Locations: standard VPN locations | €4.30per month |
| 73 | Cloudbric VPN | 2.60overall 2.72 | — | — | selected locations only | — | Locations: selected locations only | €1.79per month |
| 74 | OneVPN | 2.60overall 2.53 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €3.44per month |
| 75 | CloudVPN Pro | 2.59overall 2.30 | — | — | Android: LT, NL; iOS: NL, LT, PT | Yes | Locations: Android: LT, NL; iOS: NL, LT, PT; Ads: yes | €3.58per month |
| 76 | Disconnect | 2.53overall 1.71 | — | — | — | No | Ads: no | — |
| 77 | Hide Expert VPN (4K-SOFT) | 2.52overall 2.43 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €3.44per month |
| 78 | VuzeVPN | 2.51overall 2.22 | 50 MB/day (vpnMentor) | — | fewer servers | — | Data limit: 50 MB/day (vpnMentor); Locations: fewer servers | €7.10per month |
| 79 | Meile dVPN (MathNodes) | 2.45overall 2.55 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €2.70per month |
| 80 | Yuutto | 2.41overall 1.54 | — | — | — | No ad-free claim | Ads: no (ad-free claim) | €0.36per month |
| 81 | Psiphon | 2.39overall 2.66 | — | 2 Mbps (review) | — | Yes Google AdMob | Speed: 2 Mbps (review); Ads: yes (Google AdMob) | €2.48per month |
| 82 | Ultrasurf | 2.38overall 2.23 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 83 | VPNmine | 2.36overall 1.81 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €1.79per month |
| 84 | Panda VPN | 2.33overall 1.25 | 150 MB/day | — | 1 default virtual location | — | Data limit: 150 MB/day; Locations: 1 default virtual location | — |
| 85 | UH VPN | 2.28overall 1.91 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 86 | Shadowsocks | 2.19overall 1.57 | — | — | — | No | Ads: no | — |
| 87 | Free VPN by FreeVPN.org | 2.18overall 1.92 | — | — | 1000s of worldwide locations… | Yes free access supported by… | Locations: 1000s of worldwide locations…; Ads: yes (free access supported by… | — |
| 88 | RitaVPN | 2.17overall 2.16 | limited data | limited | — | Yes | Data limit: limited data; Speed: limited; Ads: yes | €4.59per month |
| 89 | Touch VPN | 2.17overall 1.57 | unlimited (claimed) | — | 27 virtual locations (developer… | Yes Unity Ads, ironSource,… | Data limit: unlimited (claimed); Locations: 27 virtual locations (developer…; Ads: yes (Unity Ads, ironSource,… | — |
| 90 | MyVPN | 2.16overall 2.12 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 91 | Steganos VPN Online Protection | 2.14overall 2.09 | 500 MB (free version with ads)… | — | — | Yes review | Data limit: 500 MB (free version with ads)…; Ads: yes (review) | €2.91per month |
| 92 | Begzar | 2.12overall 1.47 | free/unlimited (without any… | — | — | No | Data limit: free/unlimited (without any…; Ads: no | — |
| 93 | Avira | 2.09overall 1.84 | 500 MB/month | — | — | — | Data limit: 500 MB/month | — |
| 94 | Bitmask | 2.08overall 2.00 | — | — | — | No | Ads: no | — |
| 95 | OkayFreedom | 2.08overall 2.44 | 500 MB/month | — | limited locations | — | Data limit: 500 MB/month; Locations: limited locations | €1.44per month |
| 96 | Identity Cloaker | 2.08overall 2.22 | — | — | few servers | — | Locations: few servers | — |
| 97 | Super Free VPN | 2.04overall 1.37 | unlimited (claim) | unlimited (claim) | all | No meta claim | Data limit: unlimited (claim); Speed: unlimited (claim); Locations: all; Ads: no (meta claim) | — |
| 98 | Lokinet (Oxen/Session) | 2.01overall 2.16 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 99 | WireVPN | 2.00overall 1.89 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 100 | Avira Phantom VPN | 2.00overall 1.70 | 500 MB/month (1 GB/month with… | — | — | — | Data limit: 500 MB/month (1 GB/month with… | — |
| 101 | VPNBook | 1.99overall 1.65 | unlimited (claimed) | — | US; CA; UK; others (list cut off) | — | Data limit: unlimited (claimed); Locations: US; CA; UK; others (list cut off) | — |
| 102 | VPNEER | 1.97overall 1.48 | limited bandwidth | moderate speed servers | 3 countries | — | Data limit: limited bandwidth; Speed: moderate speed servers; Locations: 3 countries | — |
| 103 | Reindeer VPN | 1.94overall 1.66 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €2.80per month |
| 104 | GalleonVPN | 1.93overall 1.43 | unlimited (claim, directory) | — | — | No claims ad-free | Data limit: unlimited (claim, directory); Ads: no (claims ad-free) | €3.44per month |
| 105 | Shecan | 1.90overall 1.20 | unlimited traffic; 500… | up to 4 Mbps | — | No | Data limit: unlimited traffic; 500…; Speed: up to 4 Mbps; Ads: no | — |
| 106 | FreeVPN.me | 1.89overall 1.52 | unlimited | — | 1 (Amsterdam) | site ads (Google DART); no app | Data limit: unlimited; Locations: 1 (Amsterdam); Ads: site ads (Google DART); no app | — |
| 107 | Lagom VPN | 1.86overall 0.93 | unlimited (claim) | — | — | No | Data limit: unlimited (claim); Ads: no (claim) | — |
| 108 | JumpJumpVPN | 1.84overall 1.67 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €1.72per month |
| 109 | Leaf VPN | 1.84overall 1.67 | unlimited (claim) | — | — | No | Data limit: unlimited (claim); Ads: no (claim) | €0.85per month |
| 110 | SpeedX VPN | 1.83overall 1.47 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €0.84per month |
| 111 | Oblivion VPN | 1.74overall 1.38 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 112 | Internxt VPN | 1.73overall 1.58 | — | — | 1 (France) | — | Locations: 1 (France) | — |
| 113 | GoFly VPN | 1.68overall 1.53 | unlimited (claim) | — | — | Yes | Data limit: unlimited (claim); Ads: yes | — |
| 114 | DroidVPN | 1.66overall 1.45 | 100 MB/day, resets at midnight… | — | free servers only | — | Data limit: 100 MB/day, resets at midnight…; Locations: free servers only | €2.57per month |
| 115 | KeepSolid VPN Lite | 1.64overall 1.39 | unlimited | slower than paid (review) | 1 (US California) | — | Data limit: unlimited; Speed: slower than paid (review); Locations: 1 (US California) | €3.44per month |
| 116 | JumpJump VPN | 1.57overall 1.30 | — | — | — | Yes | Ads: yes | €1.72per month |
| 117 | VPN Fast - VPN 2027 (VPN Freedom) | 1.56overall 1.28 | — | — | — | Yes | Ads: yes | — |
| 118 | RelyVPN | 1.47overall 1.38 | 300 MB full speed (one-time),… | 160 kbps after 300 MB | — | No no ads even on free plan | Data limit: 300 MB full speed (one-time),…; Speed: 160 kbps after 300 MB; Ads: no (no ads even on free plan) | €4.30per month |
| 119 | JewelVPN | 1.43overall 1.55 | unlimited | — | — | Yes Play: contains ads | Data limit: unlimited; Ads: yes (Play: contains ads) | — |
| 120 | Bright VPN | 1.42overall 1.13 | unlimited | — | 150+ countries | No | Data limit: unlimited; Locations: 150+ countries; Ads: no | — |
| 121 | Freegate (DynaWeb) | 1.41overall 1.07 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 122 | VPN Gate | 1.37overall 1.02 | unlimited (no stated limit) | not guaranteed (volunteer servers) | all listed volunteer servers | No | Data limit: unlimited (no stated limit); Speed: not guaranteed (volunteer servers); Locations: all listed volunteer servers; Ads: no | — |
| 123 | Proxy Mask | 1.32overall 1.61 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | €0.86per month |
| 124 | Decentr | 1.27overall 0.51 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 125 | GalaxyVPN | 1.22overall 0.82 | — | — | — | Yes advertising data per privacy… | Ads: yes (advertising data per privacy… | — |
| 126 | MxTunnel | 1.21overall 1.02 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 127 | playit.gg | 1.13overall 0.90 | — | — | — | No | Ads: no | €2.58per month |
| 128 | biubiu Game Booster | 1.07overall 0.82 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 129 | SovaVPN | 0.50overall 0.47 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
| 130 | EonVPN | 0.48overall 0.44 | — | — | 8+ countries | — | Locations: 8+ countries | — |
| 131 | ChrisPC Free VPN Connection | 0.47overall 0.43 | — | — | — | — | Not stated | — |
Guide4 min read
What a free VPN plan actually gives you on a Windows PC
Free tiers fund themselves somehow: metered data, a slow lane, a short location list, ads or upsell screens. A computer drains a quota faster than a phone, and one cumulative Windows update can wipe out a daily allowance on its own.
Data caps, speed, locations and devices
| Service | Free data | Speed | Free locations | Devices |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proton VPN | unlimited | medium | 10 random countries | 1 |
| Hide.me | unlimited | restricted | 8 | 1 |
| PrivadoVPN | 10 GB per 30 days | not stated | 13 | 1 |
| ZoogVPN | 10 GB a month | limited | 5 | 1 |
| TunnelBear | 2 GB a month | not stated | not stated | not stated |
| Hotspot Shield | 500 MB a day | up to 2 Mbps | 1 (virtual US) | 1 |
61 of the 131 publish free-data terms: 28 cap them (500 MB a day, 2 GB or 10 GB a month), 70 stay silent. Ads show up in 33 free tiers, 26 ship none.
The top three free Windows VPNs, compared on the same fields
| Field | CitadelVPN | X-VPN | Proton VPN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Page score / overall | 8.43 / 8.74 | 6.89 / 6.05 | 6.40 / 6.12 |
| Jurisdiction | Panama | Singapore | Switzerland |
| Free access | free plan, no ads, plus 5-day 5 GB trial | Basic plan, no sign-up | free plan, unlimited data |
| Ads in free tier | no | yes (4 ad networks) | no |
| Email to sign up | no | no | yes |
| No-logs audit | yes | ISAE 3000, auditor unnamed | yes |
| Cheapest paid | €1.38/mo | €2.57/mo | €3.00/mo |
| Refund | 14 days | 30 days | 30 days |
Each funds its free side differently. X-VPN lives on advertising from four mobile networks: AdMob, InMobi, Chartboost and Liftoff. Its no-logs claim is an ISAE 3000 attestation with no auditor named; in return you get 26 free regions, 13 US cities among them, without an account. Proton blocks ads and leaves data unmetered but gives free users one device, medium speed, no streaming, no P2P, no NetShield. CitadelVPN runs an ad-free plan under Panamanian law plus a 5-day, 5 GB trial of the paid network (two devices, once, no card).
How this page scores free VPNs for Windows
Ecosystem carries 35%: apps across platforms, split tunnelling, support. Privacy takes 21.7%, security 14.4%; value plus bypassing censorship get 10.8% apiece, network 7.2%. Each row's overall score uses standard weights, which explains the gap: X-VPN takes second here on the strength of a 9.0 platforms subindex, yet overall Proton VPN (6.12) finishes ahead of it (6.05).
Free Windows VPNs to skip
Twenty-nine entries here come with a red flag. Twenty retain your connection IP, which undoes the whole point of running a VPN. Five answer to Chinese jurisdiction, and four have had a publicly known security incident; Hotspot Shield is one.
Installing a free VPN on Windows without picking up malware
Fake download sites push trojanised installers at people hunting for a free client. Three habits keep you clean:
- Download only from the VPN company's website, then open the .exe's Properties → Digital Signatures: the signer must match the provider.
- Treat the UAC prompt as a signal: a VPN installer should request only the virtual network adapter (TAP or Wintun).
- After uninstalling, delete leftover TAP/Wintun adapters in Device Manager, or the next client may connect yet pass no data.
Enable the kill switch before your first public Wi-Fi session: if the tunnel drops, it is the only barrier between your traffic and the open network.
Free plan, free trial or a cheap paid plan
On café Wi-Fi a free plan covers mail and browsing, and split tunnelling stretches a capped allowance by pushing only the browser through the tunnel. To test premium-level functionality briefly, begin with Windows VPNs with a free trial. When banners get on your nerves, switch to free Windows VPNs without ads. For regular streaming or torrents, paying wins: plans start at €0.36 a month, the median €2.70.
FAQ
Is there a truly free VPN for PC with no limits?
No. Wherever data is unmetered, you pay with fewer locations, restricted speed or a single device.
Can I watch Netflix on a free Windows VPN?
Rarely: Proton VPN, for one, excludes streaming from its free tier.
Can I use a free VPN on PC without logging in?
Yes. X-VPN's Basic plan runs without an account, and CitadelVPN needs no email either.
Are free VPNs legal?
Yes, in any country where VPNs themselves are permitted. Where the provider is based affects your privacy, not your right to run the app.
Does the same free VPN work on a Mac?
Not always: support differs by platform. Check the dedicated free VPNs for Mac.
Short answer for busy readers
Of these 131 free VPNs with a Windows app, 12 passed an independent no-logs audit, 33 show ads in the free tier and 20 log connection IPs. Pick an audited ad-free tier for everyday browsing; for streaming or torrents, paid plans start at €0.36 a month, the median €2.70.
The other 81 on this page: page score under 3.2
Below place 50 the differences are small: most of these services publish little that earns points for this page.
- 20.0
- 10.5
- 111.0
- 171.5
- 222.0
- 202.5
- 83.0
Same list for
Other features
- Windows VPNs with OpenVPN
- Windows VPNs for Netflix
- Windows VPNs with WireGuard
- Windows VPNs with split tunneling
- Windows VPNs with a kill switch
- Windows VPN trials
- Windows VPNs with VLESS
- Cheap VPNs for Windows
- Windows VPNs without email
- Windows VPNs for torrenting
- Obfuscated VPNs for Windows
- Windows VPNs with crypto