It’s a known fact that VPNs keep you safe. VPNs are available across multiple platforms, few of these include Mac.
There are several reasons you might have chosen a Mac device. Mac provides a unique user interface, good look and feel, hardware and so on. Multiple reasons, why users find it appealing.
However, what about its security? While you have antivirus and other security software, a VPN can provide ultimate security.
A point to note here is that not all VPN solutions offer support for Mac. So, in case you are a Mac user, you need to choose the solution after making a thorough review.
Here I will discuss the different VPNs available for Mac. So, the list I have consolidated are free VPNs for Mac.
| VPN | Trial Duration | Credit Card Required? | Price after trial | Money Back Guarantee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NordVPN | Risk-free for 30 days | Yes | $11.95 monthly $83.88 yearly | 30 days |
| Hide.me | Completely free | No | $12.95 monthly $99.95 yearly | 30 days |
| Vyprvpn | Risk-free for 30 days | Yes | $12.95 monthly $45.00 yearly | 30 Days |
| Windscribe | Completely free | No | $9.00 monthly $49 yearly | 30 Days |
| TunnelBear | Completely free | No | $9.99 monthly $49.99 yearly | No Designated |
| Expressvpn | Risk-free for 30 days | Yes | $12.95 monthly $99.95 yearly | 30 Days |
With this let’s get started and check the different free VPNs which are available for Mac.
Option 1: NordVPN
NordVPN one of the popular VPN service provider comes with a downloadable app for macOS available in App Store.
NordVPN has over 5100 servers spread across 60 countries and provides unlimited bandwidth. Is suitable for streaming services.
Features & Security:
Getting on next to its features, there is a lot that NordVPN provides. Like I mentioned earlier NordVPN does not throttle your bandwidth and provides seamless web experience.
The app is extremely simple to set up and can work well with Mac. While NordVPN has good speed, it is equally good when it comes to security.
NordVPN provides industry standard encryption and provides the kill switch mechanism to ensure your connections are completely secure at all times. This also comes with additional malware protection.
NordVPN severs maintain high-security standards. Using this, you can switch between the different protocols based on your preference. NordVPN maintains no logs.
Things I like & dislike:
Starting on first what I like about NordVPN is their UI which is simple to use and understand. You can view your recent connections.
Again, it fares well when it comes to security and reliable services. NordVPN certainly has all security features in place, provides double VPN and can provide good speed.
Moving on next, let me speak about what I dislike over here. NordVPN for some reason does not have phone support. While it does have chat support, I think it would be good to also include phone support.
NordVPN app does have some negative reviews and there are claims that it crashes in between. However, the company has fixed these issues in the recent updates.
Option 2: Hide.me
Hide.me has 1400 servers spread across 55 locations. A good number of servers ensure you get consistently good speed.
Using Hide.me you can auto connect to the VPN whenever you are connected to your device. This also comes with auto server selection which automatically can get the fastest available server for you.
Features & Security:
Hide.me macOS app is simple to install and setup. This comes with inbuilt kill switch mechanism and IP Leak protection. Also included is a DNS leak protection.
For every 2 weeks, you get 500 MB of data transfer limits. You can renew as many times as you want and can avail their free services.
Hide.me comes with good inbuilt security feature and supports multiple protocols.
Things I like & dislike:
What I like about Hide.me is that it is a suitable choice for people looking for budget-friendly VPN options. This comes with a good number of servers and gives unrestricted bandwidth.
Along with this, it comes with good security features with no logging and good customer support. This is easy to use and works well when it comes to torrenting.
What I dislike about Hide.me is that it doesn’t work when it comes to Netflix.
Next, the free plan is restricted to just 1 device. This again doesn’t come with phone support.
Option 3: Vyprvpn
Vyprvpn has more than 700 servers and spreads across over 70 global locations. Vyprvpn works over its proprietary chameleon technology to bypass geo restrictions.
Vyprvpn supports OSX 10.10 and higher versions. You can directly download this for their official website and start using it for free.
Features & Security:
Vyprvpn maintains no logs. This is completed managed by Vyprvpn without any third-party intervention.
You can automatically connect to the VPN or can turn off auto connect as per your preferences for different applications.
Vyprvpn supports the kill switch mechanism and works over L2TP/IPsec, OpenVPN protocols.
Things I like & dislike:
Something I like about Vyprvpn is the fact that they provide transparent services.
Over their website, you can see a changelog which displays the enhancement or the fixes that have been added to the downloadable version.
This is a VPN service, which covers most of the basic features and provides substantial bandwidth.
Now moving on next, there isn’t much that I found is not good about Vyprvpn. Though I feel they could add more security add-ons such as DNS leak protection, malware protection.
Another point to note is that their services intermittently fail in China. This is a known issue and is being addressed by Vyprvpn.
Option 4: Windscribe
Windscribe is a collection of tools that includes a VPN and much more. So not only does it unblock geo restrictions and safeguard online privacy.
Windscribe also can block ad trackers and web beacons. This is based in Ontario, Canada.
Features & Security:
Windscribe being a complete security tool provide strong privacy and security features. With OpenVPN, it also supports TCP, UDP, SOCKS5 and IKEv2 protocols.
It absolutely does not track user information or maintain any logs and this can be seen from their disclaimer.
This can bypass most geo restrictions and can quickly stream contents. This works with Netflix as well, though you need to use their Windflix severs for this.
Things I like & dislike:
What I like about Windscribe is that it has strong security features and can be used for torrenting. It is easy to set up on Mac and start using.
To add on, Windscribe also has a kill switch mechanism and provides most of the basic VPN features.
Now, what I don’t like about Windscribe is their support. The bot managed chat is at times not helpful, especially for technical queries.
Windscribe has around 480 servers which are way lesser as compared to other VPN providers. The issue is not about this being a lower number but at times certain servers don’t respond.
Option 5: TunnelBear
TunnelBear started in 2011 is based in Toronto, Canada. It is spread across more than 20 countries.
TunnelBear has the ability to bypass restrictions in most countries. The app built for Mac devices is simple to install, setup and use.
Features & Security:
TunnelBear stores absolutely no logs and can bypass region specific censorship. TunnelBear uses GhostBear which is its own proprietary technology that can bypass restrictions successfully. This is also sometimes referred to as Stealth Mode.
TunnelBear uses AES-256 encryption and can support up to 5 devices. TunnelBear has good support for basic protocols and includes IPsec/IKEv2, OpenVPN. This also provides inbuilt kill switch mechanism.
Things I like & dislike:
What I like about TunnelBear is that it is extremely simple to work with. This comes with good basic security features in place and good multiple protocol support.
TunnelBear has equally receptive customer support.
The things I thought TunnelBear could do better is, they work across just 22 locations. This certainly challenges the speed they offer as compared to other VPNs.
Another point is that TunnelBear is not suitable for streaming and does not work well when it comes to Netflix.
Option 6: Protonvpn
Switzerland based Protonvpn is yet another good VPN over Mac. Protonvpn is developed by the same people who developed the largest encrypted email network ProtonMail.
Since this is closely associated with CERN, security is something that is extremely strong when it comes to Protonvpn.
Features & Security:
Protonvpn supports OpenVPN both UDP and TCP, IKEv2 protocols. This uses industry standard AES-256 encryption.
Like I mentioned earlier, Protonvpn has good inbuilt security features and provides perfect forward secrecy.
Protonvpn maintains no logs and can support up to 10 devices. This gives unlimited bandwidth. Protonvpn can unblock Netflix.
Things I like & dislike:
About Protonvpn I like their security features. Not only do they maintain security but also safeguard your online privacy.
While not the fastest speeds, Protonvpn still gives a decent speed and can unblock most geo restrictions.
What I dislike about Protonvpn is that they have limited options for consumer support. This certainly could have been better.
Apart from this, at times you need to figure out which server might work for you. Like Netflix does not work over all the servers.
Option 7: Expressvpn
Expressvpn was launched in 2009 and has its headquarters in British Virginia Islands. This is geographically distributed across almost 148 locations.
Expressvpn Mac app is simple to install and use. This guarantees a 99.9% uptime and does not throttle your bandwidth.
Features & Security:
Expressvpn supports a list of Mac devices. This supports OpenVPN both UDP and TCP, L2TP/IPsec, IKEv2, PPTP and SSTP protocols.
Expressvpn provides kill switch mechanism and AES-256 encryption. This maintains high security and runs its own DNS on every server. With no third-party dependency, Expressvpn ensures strong security and maintains online privacy.
Expressvpn supports split tunneling where you can bifurcate and send partial traffic via VPN.
Expressvpn has over 3000 servers and provides good bandwidth. This can work with Netflix.
Things I like & dislike:
I like the security features provided by Expressvpn. This has basic as well as a few advanced features incorporated within the VPN.
Another appealing factor is that Expressvpn is suitable for torrenting and P2P transfer. This also has good customer support.
To be honest, there isn’t much that I found Expressvpn lacks. Initially, Expressvpn used to support 3 simultaneous connections on different devices. However, recently this has been changed and can support 3 devices of the same type.
Well, probably they can increase the number of simultaneous connections.
What are the disadvantages of Free VPNs?
Free VPNs always sound appealing. But wait, if free VPN exists then still why do some people choose paid VPNs?
There certainly are a few minute features that we miss and go ahead for a free VPN. However, free VPNs come with certain risks.
Few of the disadvantages of free VPNs are:
- VPN Authenticity: When it comes to free VPNs there is no way you can verify the authenticity of the VPN provider, especially when you are using not so popular VPN services. So, the VPN services you use might be a bait laid by a hacker. This would mean your sensitive and personal information gets compromised without you knowing about it.
- Privacy and Security: Most free VPNs do not really care much about security. In several cases, many security features are suppressed or never implemented which leaves you more vulnerable.
- Advertisements: Free VPNs earn mostly through advertisements. So while using a lot of these free VPNs, you might be bombarded with a series of advertisements. These advertisements require analytics data to show the most suitable Ads for you. Grossly, this would mean your data no longer remains private and is accessible by these advertisers.
- Data sharing: To keep running their free services, many free VPN providers share user data with analytical partners for various reasons. In short, they track your online activities.
- Legal Consent: The fact that free VPNs are so easy to set up and get started is sceptical. First, it does not come with any well-defined terms of the agreement before using its services. Since there is no legally bound clause for these services you eventually put yourself at a higher risk. This exposes you to a higher risk in an event of misuse of your information.
- Hidden fees: Free VPNs impose certain restrictions such as bandwidth, data usage or allow access to only certain domains. Some of the free VPNs are free only for a certain initial duration and then to renew you may have to pay additional fees.
Conclusion:
Finding the right VPN for your Mac device certainly needs you to test each one and check what works based on your preference.
However, if I had to highlight one such option, then it would be Expressvpn. Expressvpn does most of the basic VPN functionalities.
While Expressvpn has all the essential features, this very well also incorporates advanced security features and gives a huge number of server options.
