Are you torrenting without a VPN? Didn’t you hear the news? There are HUGE penalties for being caught torrenting. By not using a VPN or any other kind of security tool while using a torrent client, you are risking federal punishments, civil lawsuits,and even jail time.
Yes, that last movie you so successfully downloaded can get you jailed. So how do you escape the shackles of law? Well, VPNs do offer the much needed protection. What kind of protection?
- A VPN can transfer your IP to a country where torrenting is legal or has less strict laws (Switzerland)
- A VPN hides your traffic from your Internet Service Provider
- A VPN lets you access restricted websites in your region
Since all VPNs do the same thing, why even bother reading this list? Well, because my fellow netizens, although all VPNs serve the same purpose, they aren’t all equal. Some ARE better than others and offer more features or functionality.
So, here we have a few of the best VPNs that offer the best torrenting speeds and don’t let the government guys find you. Let’s begin, shall we?
| VPN | Money-back Guarantee | Price |
|---|---|---|
| ExpressVPN | 30 Days | $8.32/mo |
| NordVPN | 30 Days | $3.49/mo |
| ProtonVPN | 30 Days | $4.00/mo |
| VyprVPN | 30 Days | $2.50/mo |
| CyberGhost | 45 Days | $3.69/mo |
| TorGuard | 7 Day Trial | $4.99/mo |
| IPVanish | 7 Days Trial | $3.25/mo |
1. ExpressVPN
ExpressVPN forms one of the pillars of today’s VPN world. You can go to every best VPN list in any category all over the internet and NOT hear about ExpressVPN at least once. It’s THAT good. And it does live up to all the hype too as it has gained millions of users across the globe.
So what makes ExpressVPN so great? Performance. No matter what country you switch to, the speed feels abundant for every task. In our ExpressVPN review, we tested both torrenting as well as streaming and ExpressVPN turns out aces every time.
pros
- Easy to use without sacrificing flexibility
- A long list of servers with dozens of countries to choose from
- No-logs policy
cons
- On the expensive side
2. NordVPN
Just like Express, NordVPN forms another pillar of the VPN world. Express & Nord might seem like they offer the same thing in a different package but that is certainly not the case. Nord makes up for its own set of million users that access the service daily.
NordVPN has been known for its huge marketing campaign across the internet. If you use Youtube regularly, there’s a good chance you’ve heard about NordVPN. Nord has been featured in popular magazines & publications and hence, has built a large prestige.
pros
- Best in class UI for both desktop & mobile variants
- Great performance along with over 5000 servers to choose from
- Autonomous server management with no third parties involved
cons
- Not many countries to switch to
- Limited VPN Protocols
3. ProtonVPN
If there is one VPN on this list that we could wholeheartedly recommend, it has to be ProtonVPN. ProtonVPN is located in Switzerland, a country known for its strong stance on privacy & free speech laws.
ProtonVPN was initially conceptualized as an extension of their ProtonMail service, but its pure potential warranted a separate entity. Being Swiss-based, it’s no-logs policy feels the most trustworthy, and you have Tor anonymity which means total invisibility over any network.
pros
- A free plan
- Server security that can withstand bombings
- Tor over VPN
cons
- Fewer servers compared to competition
- No live chat
4. VyprVPN
VyprVPN is another one in the league of fast & secure VPN. We have tested VyprVPN in the past, so you can check out our review here but to put it in a nutshell: VyprVPN is super fast, easy to use, with a great UI and responsive customer support.
What’s more is that VyperVPN can fit right under your budget. The 2 year plan is $2.95/month which you can cancel at any time. But where VyprVPN truly shines though is the enormous chain of global servers.
pros
- Unlimited server switching
- Multiple VPN protocols
cons
- Limited number of simultaneous connections
5. CyberGhost
CyberGhost can ‘Ghost’ your IP from potential onlookers and has been doing that for all its 30 million users. Yet it is still somehow deemed as underrated by some but don’t be fooled by its obscurity, CyberGhost has dedicated servers for streaming & torrenting.
In our review, we tested CyberGhost’s dedicated server for torrenting and the results were phenomenal. We were able to get a good amount of seeds which certainly boosted speeds but the network also helped quite a bit.
pros
- Specialized servers for torrenting/streaming with added security
- Annual transparency reports
- Located in Romania, hence less visibility to government organisations
cons
- Can feel a bit expensive
- Less server count compared to the competition
6. TorGuardVPN
Tor is a name that is synonymous with anonymity. Tor or ‘The Onion Router’ is a software that hides your IP among layers of encryption & protection to safeguard your network from anyone trying to break in without compromising speed.
Now, TorGuardVPN puts its own spin on Tor and replicates it in the form of a VPN. The thing that makes TorGuard stand out from the competition is its stealth VPN protocols like stunnel, shadowsocks, and Openconnect that can bypass any network blockades.
pros
- Targeted towards torrent users
- Advanced privacy settings for the people who want to tinker more.
- Large server network
cons
- Not beginner-friendly
- Knowledge base is clunky
7. IPVanish
IPVanish wouldn’t have made the list if they had not integrated SugarSync, a cloud service that actively syncs all your files across all your devices for access & sharing. SugarSync acts as a security suite across both your computer & mobile devices.
As for the service, IPVanish emulates great performance across the board with fast speeds for streaming & torrents. The application is easy to use & looks pretty good to be honest. And the best thing is that the SugarSync service is available over all plans.
pros
- Unlimited Bandwidth
- SOCKS5 Web Proxy
cons
- Sometimes in
cons
istency in performance
Conclusion
Finally, to put it in perspective, torrenting has become more & more tedious over time. Besides running out of seeds, downloading can have legal repercussions. Hence, a VPN provides that much needed safety net to troubleshoot privacy laws.
Not that everything you would download is going to be illegal. There are many sites & services that can’t afford to rent servers, therefore they rely on torrents to distribute their product like for example certain linux distributions.
Also, not to forget the trial periods & money-back guarantees that each of these options come included with. So what do you think? Did we miss any VPN that you would like to add? Have you been using VPN for torrenting? Please comment down below & let us know.