Best free VPN in February 2024 (2024)

With more businesses adopting remote work, many are looking for a VPN service to help protect data and employees working around the world. The best free VPNs might not provide comprehensive security like paid tools, but they can be a solid solution if you’re on a tight budget.

Some free VPNs have a poor reputation as they commodify your data. That’s why we conducted vigorous research and tested multiple VPNs to find the best options for a free VPN for your business.

Why we picked it

Proton VPN initially began as a crowdfunded secure mail service called Proton Mail in 2014. According to the company, it created its VPN to protect activists and journalists in countries with strict censorship, which is why it prioritizes security.
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Proton VPN is entirely open source and independently audited, which keeps the project accountable and publicly verifiable. What’s enticing about Proton VPN’s free service is that it has an unlimited free data plan without any advertisem*nts. Additionally, having a reliable VPN with strong security and unlimited data is valuable for businesses as they can operate without worrying about bandwidth limits.
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Although it comes with unlimited data, Proton VPN only offers around 150 servers in just a handful of countries. Having fewer server locations could pose trouble for some, as they might struggle to find a server near them, ultimately meaning surfing speeds will dip. However, in business settings where low latency and high speeds might not be major factors for concern, Proton VPN is a great overall choice, due to the aforementioned data security and privacy benefits.
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Another factor that makes Proton VPN the best free VPN for small businesses is that the free service is supported by paid subscriptions, meaning you have access to the same security and speeds. One of these features is Proton VPN’s proprietary protocol called Stealth, which bypasses restrictions and blocks because it’s more unrecognizable than traditional protocols. The free service also comes with a kill switch — which disconnects you from the internet if your VPN connection drops — for continued protection during sudden network disruptions as well as guaranteed data protection under the company’s no-logs policy (meaning it doesn’t log the websites you visit or any related information). If you decide to upgrade your plan, you also get features like SecureCore — which protects against network attacks — and the company’s VPN Accelerator, which optimizes speeds.
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Despite its many benefits, Proton VPN’s free plan only supports a single device connection per account. So, if you’re trying to use a VPN for a whole team, you’d have to encourage every team member to download and use it, which can be complicated. If you try the free version and want to upgrade and increase the number of allowed simultaneous connections, you have three different plans to choose from: one month ($9.99 per month), one year ($5.99 per month) and two years ($4.99 per month). All plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee for a full refund if you’re unsatisfied with the service.

Who should use it

Proton VPN is our best free VPN recommendation, so we encourage any small business looking for a free plan from a top VPN provider to try using it. While smaller teams can adopt this free VPN if each employee downloads it on their devices, larger teams may struggle to make the most out of the free plan, so we recommend researching to determine whether the paid plans are in your budget and suit your needs.

Why we picked it

hide.me was founded in 2012 to provide a free VPN service with fast connection speeds and accessibility for the public to enjoy better network security and privacy. The company is based in Malaysia, which has no local laws regarding storing consumer data. To ensure user privacy, hide.me has a strict no-logs policy, a plus for those concerned about government surveillance and third-party tracking. If the Malaysian government, foreign countries or private institutions ask for your data, hide.me can’t oblige as the data doesn’t exist.
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Like many free VPNs, hide.me is a freemium service, meaning it offers basic services to encourage you to purchase a subscription and access more features. The software has a strikingly simple interface with no intrusive ads or complicated settings screens. Making an account, installing the VPN and connecting to a protected server is straightforward and quick. We like that the free version requires no personal data — no email, no credit card. You can simply download the VPN and start using it.
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hide.me has slower connection speeds on its free VPN servers compared to its paid ones. This is common across all VPNs, as the free servers have more server load. If this is an issue for you and your business, the premium servers are considerably faster. However, for general business use, you probably won’t notice a dip in speeds. The free plan gives you the option to connect to seven different server locations: Germany, France, Netherlands, Spain, the UK, the US and Singapore. Most are located in Europe, so users in Asia or the Southern Hemisphere may experience more latency.
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With only one device connection per account for free customers, you might want to upgrade to a paid plan if you work with a small team. Its paid plans are offered in one-month ($9.95 per month), 12-month ($4.57 per month) and 26-month ($2.69 per month with two months free) increments. With any of these subscriptions, you instantly increase your number of allowed simultaneous connections to 10 and have access to all premium features like more server locations, StealthGuard (which allows you to choose which apps connect to the VPN) and a kill switch to prevent IP leaks during network downtime.
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Some free VPNs host ads, which annoys customers and clutters the service. hide.me has no ads, so you can connect to a server in seconds without the added hassle of waiting for ads or closing them. On top of that, unlike some other providers, hide.me offers customer support to its free VPN users. It claims to offer technical support 24/7, regardless of whether you’re a free or paid user.

Who should use it

If you’re looking for a solid free VPN that requires no email, credit card or other personal information, hide.me is a great option. The 24/7 customer support also comes in handy, especially when trying to integrate the VPN into your business operations. We recommend trying the free service and upgrading to a paid membership to unlock all of hide.me’s features. If it doesn’t suit you, there’s a 30-day money-back guarantee for a full refund.

Why we picked it

Windscribe was founded in Toronto, Canada, and is completely self-funded, meaning it has no pressure from stakeholders to pursue constant profit. Windscribe places heavy emphasis on transparency, with open-source software and encouragement for its users to communicate directly with Windscribe’s team through social media channels like Discord and Reddit. In these communities, users can talk with each other, contact support staff directly and receive announcements straight from Windscribe’s team. Windscribe also publishes a transparency report that includes real-time data requests from copyright and law enforcement agencies.
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Users can take advantage of Windscribe’s free plan without sharing any personal information (like with hide.me above), but without providing an email address you only get 2GB of free data instead of 10GB. Like most freemium services, Windscribe’s free VPN servers aren’t as fast as the premium ones. If this is an issue for your business needs, consider purchasing a paid subscription to utilize faster servers that can tunnel to more locations worldwide. Windscribe’s paid plans include a month-to-month plan ($9 per month) and a yearly plan ($5.75 per month). You can also build a plan that lets you customize your subscription based on your needs and budget.
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Free users have access to 11 server locations across the globe, including the US, Turkey, Canada, Hong Kong and Germany.
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One of the most enticing aspects of Windscribe’s free plan is its unlimited simultaneous connections. You can put your whole team on a single plan without needing everyone to create a separate account. With the maximum 10GB bandwidth limit for free users, though, you’ll probably need to upgrade for extended use. Additionally, Windscribe doesn’t lock any premium features behind a paywall. The free servers have the same security and privacy features as the premium ones, like R.O.B.E.R.T. (which blocks ads, trackers and malware), split tunneling (which lets you choose which apps use the VPN) and more. Businesses also have the option to upgrade to Windscribe’s ScribeForce plan, which is specifically for business use and only costs $3 per month per seat.

Who should use it

Windscribe is a good option for businesses looking for transparency (open-source software, transparency reports, etc.). Since the free plan has unlimited simultaneous connections, small teams can test the service out to see if it suits their needs. If you feel the need to upgrade, you have the option to put all team members under one subscription plan or use ScribeForce.

Why we picked it

Headquartered in Toronto, TunnelBear was founded in 2011 by Daniel Kaldor and Ryan Dochuk. The VPN has an approachable design with its bear branding, and although it isn’t featured in our best VPN services guide, it’s a respectable free VPN for unblocking geo-restricted content due to its plentiful server locations. You can connect to nearly 50 countries across the world (the most on our list for a free plan), making TunnelBear one of the best options for a global remote workforce.
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Team members all over the globe can access a nearby server. Those in Asia can connect to servers in Japan, South Korea or Taiwan, and there are also multiple servers in Africa, the Middle East and South America. It’s worth noting, however, that the free plan only offers 2GB of data per month, which runs out quickly, especially if you’re using it on multiple devices
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TunnelBear promises no logging of any customer activity, strong encryption and no limit on the number of devices you can connect. One of its unique features is SplitBear, where you control which websites and apps are protected by TunnelBear, ultimately freeing up your network for faster speeds. For more technical users, you can choose which VPN protocols TunnelBear uses (this setting is set to auto by default). If you want to change VPN protocols, TunnelBear recommends WireGuard, as it’s currently the most up-to-date and attack-proof technology.
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If you’re interested in upgrading to a paid subscription for your business, TunnelBear has a separate plan called TunnelBear for Teams. The pricing differs depending on how many employees are on your team, with the lowest annual cost being $138 per year for two members or $5.75 a month per seat. For non-business subscriptions, there are three paid plan options: one month ($9.99 per month), one year ($4.99 per month) and three years ($3.33 per month).

Who should use it

TunnelBear is a great choice for businesses with a global workforce because of its large list of server locations across the world. Employees from anywhere can connect to a server near them, ultimately providing faster connection speeds. TunnelBear for Teams can also be an economical plan for your operations.