Prices will always be a factor put into consideration when surveying services for purchase, VPN services inclusive. Users generally want a VPN providing top-of-the-line features and yet offering them at pocket-friendly prices.
They want a VPN service that offers high speeds for internet browsing, downloading, and streaming, stable and reliable connections, and guaranteed security for their privacy and data. But they don’t want to break the bank to pay for this.
And that is why many VPNs claim that they offer top-notch services at cheap prices. In reality, this often is not the case.
Many of the VPNs that proffer dirt-cheap fees do not provide high-quality services. But many of the top VPNs will give you great deals if you go for long-term plans instead of shorter ones. Paying for a yearly subscription, for example, will have you paying much less in the long term than paying monthly.
In this article, I’ll be running down a list of 10 of the best and yet cheapest VPNs that you can hop on to get the best value for your money.
The 9 Best Cheap VPNs
1. Surfshark
Surfshark tops our list of the best cheap VPNs, and with good reason too. With over 3200 high-speed servers across 63 countries and advanced security features, you can get this VPN for less than $2.49 a month, if you hop on a 2-year plan.
This mouthwatering cost does not mean that Surfshark skimps on quality. It offers advanced data encryption with an array of security protocols and security features such as the Chameleon mode, which is great for bypassing the toughest geo-blocks. You also get MultiHop, which routes your traffic through two servers, an automatic kill switch, and a strict no-logs policy.
Surfshark is generous with more than just its pricing. Subscribers are allowed to connect an unlimited number of devices simultaneously, on one account. You can test it out, taking advantage of a 30-day money-back guarantee.
2. PrivateVPN
PrivateVPN starts at a mouth-watering $1.89 a month on a 2-year plan, which is incredibly affordable for the quality of service it provides.
Not only do you get dirt-cheap pricing, but you also get access to its 150+ servers across 60+ countries, fast speeds, advanced encryption, a strict no-logs policy, and excellent customer service.
Admittedly, PrivateVPN’s network of servers is small, but it offers super-fast connection speeds regardless. Additionally, it can unblock several streaming services. PrivateVPN also has servers optimized for torrenting and P2P sharing.
Users are allowed up to 6 connections from the same subscription at the same time. If you decide to try it out, you are offered a 30-day money-back guarantee.
3. NordVPN
Despite being close to the top of most rankings of the best VPNs available, NordVPN is also surprisingly cheap. If you get on a 2-year subscription plan, you would effectively pay about $3.71 a month over that time period.
NordVPN is packed full of quality features. It has a wide network of over 5,500 servers across over 60 countries, with servers optimized for streaming and torrenting at lightning-fast speeds.
When it comes to security, you cannot find any better. It offers advanced encryption for your data, with OpenVPN and IKEv2/IPSec protocols available. You also get an automatic kill switch, DNS/IP leak protection, and strict zero-logging.
The security of your data and privacy is doubly sure with its Double VPN feature. Double VPN routes your internet traffic through different servers. There is also the Onion over VPN feature, which instead sends your traffic through the Onion network.
With NordVPN, you can connect up to 6 of your devices to one account at the same time. If you want to try it out, you will be backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee.
4. CyberGhost
CyberGhost is popular, and deservedly so. It has a huge network of over 6,800 servers spread across more than 90 countries.
These servers are superfast and optimized for streaming and P2P activity. That means that you can unblock a host of streaming services and access your favorite TV shows and movies in high-quality video, without having to bother about lags and buffering.
High-level data encryption, a strict no-logs policy, automatic kill switch, DNS/IP leak protection, and a lot of other security features and tools ensure that you don’t have to worry about exposure on the internet. All of these for $2.25 a month on a 2-year plan.
You are allowed up to 7 simultaneous connections of your devices on one subscription. There’s a 45-day money-back guarantee to go along if you decide to test it out.
5. VyprVPN
Finally, we have VyprVPN, with an offering of $2.50 a month, for two years. VyprVPN has a modest network of 700+ servers in 64 countries.
Its servers are great for bypassing geo-blocks and censorship restrictions, especially when its Chameleon protocol is used. It can bypass the Great Firewall of China, and stream content on a host of streaming platforms.
VyprVPN does not slack regarding security, with military-grade 256-bit encryption, DNS leak protection, Multi-Protocol, remote access, a strict no-logs policy that ensures that you do not leave any identifying data trails, and more. Unfortunately, it does not offer a kill switch.
You can try VyprVPN out by hopping on its 30-day money back guarantee.
6. ZenMate
ZenMate’s pricing is not an indication of all the advanced features it packs. For $1.99 a month on a 12-month Pro plan, you’ll be provided a service with an easy-to-use interface, advanced security features, and a lot of extra features.
You get over 2,300 servers to choose from spanning across more than 78 countries, with P2P support. ZenMate’s servers are fast and can unblock a host of streaming platforms. In fact, if you are unable to unblock a streaming platform’s geo-blocks to access content, then you are offered a discount on your subscription.
To ensure your data is secure, you get top-notch encryption. There’s an automatic kill switch, so you don’t need to worry about getting exposed when there is an interruption in the connection.
ZenMate also follows a strict no-logs policy. None of your internet sessions are logged and so cannot be traced back to you.
There is a 7-day policy available so you can test it out for free, and a further 30-day refund guarantee.
7. Hotspot Shield
Hotspot Shield would also be on a list of the top free VPN services because it has a free plan. Of course, the features of the free service are limited. So if you prefer to upgrade to premium, you would only pay from $2.99 a month, for a 3-year plan.
On the paid plans, you get unlimited bandwidth and access to its 1,800+ servers across 80 or so countries. For security, there’s an advanced data encryption and an automatic kill switch. You also get high speeds, with its Catapult Hydra protocol able to compress your data. You are allowed to simultaneously connect up to 5 devices.
Hotspot Shield is generous with its refund policy, allowing up to 45 days for risk free testing.
8. HMA
For $2.97 a month, you can hop on the 3-year premium HMA plan. HMA has servers across 290 locations in 190 countries around the world. Its servers are optimized for streaming and can bypass tough geo-restrictions. They are also optimized for torrenting.
HMA packs a punch when it comes to security. It comes with military-grade encryption, kill switch, a strict no-logs policy, IP refresh, and split tunneling. It has user-friendly apps with preset modes to keep things nice and simple.
You are allowed up to 5 connections simultaneously on one account. There are a 7-day free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
9. Trust.Zone
You won’t find many VPNs less expensive than Trust.Zone, with its 2-year plan coming up to $2.33 a month on a 2-year plan, way below the industry average. It has a small network of about 200 servers across 44+ locations, but it offers stable and high speeds in spite of that, with servers that support streaming and P2P sharing.
Trust.Zone is also security conscious, offering advanced data encryption with L2TP and IPSec protocols, a static IP address offer for users, a strict no-logs policy, and an automatic kill switch on Windows.
You can connect up to 5 devices simultaneously on the VPN. New users are offered a 3-day free trial, together with a 10-day refund guarantee.
What about Free VPNs?
You may be wondering why you need to pay for a VPN at all, cheap or not, when there are several providers offering them completely free of charge. After all, if they offer the same services, wouldn’t it just be a waste of money?
Well, the truth is that they are usually not completely “free” and even in the cases that they are, the services free VPNs offer are never on the same level of quality as those offered by premium VPNs. Free VPNs are still businesses, and the companies operating them must still make money somehow.
Since they don’t make their money off your subscriptions, then they do so by aggressively pushing ads and giving access to your data to trackers. They gather and sell your data to the highest bidder.
It’s not just in terms of privacy and security that free VPNs fall short. For subscribers to most of the popular streaming platforms, free VPNs do not cut it. Services like Netflix, Hulu, HBO, BBC iPlayer, and Amazon Prime Video place geo-restrictions on their content, limiting different libraries to different regions. Free VPNs generally cannot bypass those restrictions.
Torrenting on a free VPN is not recommended. Most free VPNs do not operate servers that support torrenting and P2P sharing anyway, but even if they do, you should reconsider. You want full, guaranteed protection when you access a torrent site and download from it, as they can be a hotbed for malware.
Generally, free VPNs are not always a great idea, and you should probably stay away. The alternative if you are on a budget is choosing among quality cheap VPNs.
Summary
While you should generally avoid free VPNs, you do not have to break the bank for quality premium service. There are cheap VPNs that offer high-quality features at pocket-friendly prices.
The VPNs on this list all offer great value for money, providing top services and features while saving you a lot of money.