Choosing the Right VPN Provider: 7 Factors to Consider

If you’re reading about how to choose VPN providers, it’s safe to assume you have some good reasons for protecting your privacy. You may have concerns about keeping your data and search history out of the hands of third parties. Your friends may have recommended that you use a virtual private network to help you bypass firewalls or censorship so you can access regional content from anywhere in the world.

These are all great reasons to start using a VPN, but a quick search will show you hundreds of options. Most of them advertise heavily, publishing numbers and features that mean little to first-time users. So how do you know which is best? We’ve put together an explanation of the main factors to help you select the best VPN services for your needs.

Price

These days, VPN prices are highly competitive and generally only cost a few dollars each month. So, cost shouldn’t be a big concern when choosing the right provider. Just be sure to look into what you’re getting for the money because some providers offer many great extra services like malware protection and cloud storage in addition to their secure VPN.

Free VPNs are also available but usually provide slower speeds that can throttle your use. They may also make money by showing you ads or selling your personal information, so they’re probably not worth the savings.

Security and Safety

The number one reason people use VPNs is to protect their data and use the internet anonymously.

Strong 256-bit encryption is an industry standard, and reliable VPNs use strong protocols like OpenVPN, WireGuard, IKEv2/IPSec, and SSTP instead of outdated and unreliable protocols to transmit data.

A kill switch, which disconnects your device from the internet immediately if your connection with the VPN is ever lost, adds extra security to ensure no data is transferred while you’re not protected by encryption.

Logging Policy

VPN providers must operate under the national laws where they are located. Many countries require providers to log sessions or the user’s activity. These logs create the potential for your details to be compromised or handed over to government bodies. On the other hand, VPN services that don’t log anything never have user activity and identity information to give to anyone. So, if privacy is important to you, choose a VPN that won’t log your information.

Although most VPNs clearly state their logging policy, check out reviews and comments to see if users have reported any breaches of these policies.

Convenience

Most VPN providers will claim easy setup and an intuitive user interface; however, you won’t know how they work for you without giving them a try.

What you can look at is the number of simultaneous connections you’re provided with. If you’re a lone wolf using just one or two devices at a time, this might not be a major concern, but this can be a limiting factor for a household with multiple devices on the go.

If you choose one VPN, it’s also important to make sure that it supports the operating systems on all the devices you need to use, including your mobile devices.

Speed

All VPNs will slow your connection at least slightly. However, a slower connection can cause serious lag in videos and gaming. VPN providers will claim high speeds but rarely back up their claims with speed test sources. It’s more effective to look at user reviews and independent speed test comparisons to find out the truth if connection speed is a crucial factor for you.

Servers

A large number of servers gives you plenty of choices for how to present your usage on the internet. But what’s even more important is checking where these servers are located. If you want to appear as though you’re a user in the UK, you should choose a VPN with lots of servers in that country, for example. While more servers give you more options, the overall total is less important than having them in the countries you’ll be accessing.

Trial Period

Many VPN providers offer a free trial period or a money-back guarantee to allow new users to try out their services. This is essential to determine if the VPN provides the connection speed you need, a user interface you like, and the convenience you’re looking for.

Make the Right VPN Choice

Every user has different needs when selecting a VPN, so it’s great that there are so many providers to choose from. Take advantage of free trials to find the service that gives you superior security and privacy while matching best with how you will use it.