The Best Worst Vpns For Mac
Although it is generally believed that Apple products, mainly MacOS, are somewhat superior to the ones of Microsoft (Windows), the Mac users shouldn’t be too complacent about the integrity of their personal data. The cybercriminals, as well as the government authorities, both of which dream about laying their hands on your sensitive information, are getting more and more resourceful in breaching various firewalls and deciphering the encrypted data. Back in the days, an antivirus solution used to be more than enough for protecting your privacy and security. However, in 2018, your personal data will always be in danger unless you use a Virtual Private Network.
In most countries, including the US and the UK, the ISP (Internet Service Provider) is obliged to keep logs on its users and give the government access to their private data. Therefore, all Mac users could benefit from some extra security measures. But instead of trying to build an impregnable security system, which consumes a lot of system resources and can’t provide total protection, you could just wear a digital camouflage which will conceal all your online activities, so you would be able to surf the Web completely undetectable. The disguise which we refer to is called VPN (Virtual Private Network), a technology that can help you change (digital) faces just like Jaqen H’ghar from Game of Thrones. TOP-3 High-Ranked VPNs for Mac.
What is the best VPN for Mac? Without at least some basic understanding of what it’s all about, you’re running the risk of wasting your money on a Network that’s moderate at best. Here’s what you should be looking for in a Virtual Private Network: first of all, make sure that it follows the no-logs policy. That means the provider won’t have anything to give to the government when they request your personal logs, simply because they were never collected. Security also matters (obviously). Features like Kill Switch (kills the connections whenever the VPN goes offline) and Double Encryption (puts your connection through two servers at the same time) will make sure you’re well protected.
As far as the security protocols go, 256-bit encryption is the industry standard today. Speed and performance come next. The more servers a provider has, the higher the speed will be.
Our experts took it all into consideration and made a list of the best Virtual Private Networks for Apple’s OS. And while they all have their pros and cons, it’s safe to say that every single VPN in this review is money well spent. Without further ado, we would like to give you our list of the best VPNs for Mac. ExpressVPN has been the leader of Virtual Private Networks for years now. It excels at providing high (and stable) connection speeds, keeping the hackers/government agencies at bay, and provides an impressive list of features.
Those include Split Tunneling (allows you to hand-pick which programs/apps should be protected by the VPN) and Kill Switch. Add AES 256-bit encryption, IP address masking and support of OpenVPN, and you’ll understand why ExpressVPN is always on top. Privacy And Security ExpressVPN never logs traffic data, DNS queries, or any other data that could potentially hurt the privacy of a user. They stick to the no-logs policy and even allow you to pay with Bitcoins.
Security has always been one of this provider’s strongest suits, and with the aforementioned 256-bit encryption, secure servers, and amazing browser extensions, it took online privacy to another level. The company’s HQ is located in the British Virgin Islands. You might’ve heard about the “barbaric” online privacy laws in the United States. Well, you won’t have to deal with any of that with ExpressVPN.
Again, they do not log your browsing history, traffic, IP address, or anything else that can be later used to pinpoint your location. Torrenting And Streaming The fact that this VPN service is very stable and almost always provides high connections speeds automatically makes it an excellent pick for the fans of torrenting and streaming. With 2000+ servers to choose from, you’ll find the fastest and most reliable one in just a couple of clicks. Plus, with ExpressVPN, you can unblock any restricted connect from across the globe Usability On Mac ExpressVPN is compatible with all devices that run on MacOS, from MacBook to Mac mini.
The dedicated Mac client is considered to be one of the best ones on the market. The installation of this VPN client is very straightforward and takes only a couple of minutes. Just go to the official website, choose the plan you like, use one of the available payment methods, and download the client.
The interface is equally stylish and professional. Everything is within reach, and you can see that the team took its time with the clients/apps. Pricing Plans Here are the available packages:. As you can see, ExpressVPN is far from being the cheapest VPN for Mac, but given its extraordinary level of security and download speed, it is well worth its price. There is no free trial, but you can (and should) take advantage of the 30-day MBG (Money-Back Guarantee). First of all, NordVPN has one of the largest collections of servers out there – 4900 servers in 62 countries around the globe. It was launched in 2012, and over the years the company managed to turn it into one of the most commercially successful Networks.
Best Free Vpn For Mac
Compared to ExpressVPN NordVPN is more reliable and you’ll rarely (if ever) experience any drops in speed and performance. Privacy And Security If you are wondering whether this VPN is secure, then you should know that they utilize the latest IKEv2/IPSec protocols (along with OpenVPN, of course). So, rest assured that your MacBook will be well protected from cybercriminals and intelligence agencies. The Kill Switch feature will also make sure that your privacy is never in danger.
The provider follows the no-logs policy, just like ExpressVPN, plus, they also have a massive number of servers with the Double VPN feature. They put the user’s traffic through not one but two servers thus making the connection literally impenetrable. The NordVPN HQ is located in Panama, a country that is very open when it comes to online privacy.
They keep absolutely no logs, and that includes time stamps, traffic logs, bandwidth, etc. Again: there’s no government surveillance in Panama, and that’s exactly why we called NordVPN the most secure and reliable Network. Torrenting And Streaming Stability is this Network’s second name. It might not be the fastest offer on the market, but, again, if you put reliability and durability first, then you won’t be disappointed with its performance. Furthermore, specific servers give the users unique IP addresses. Good news for users from China with its Great Firewall, North Korea, and other authoritarian governments where Internet traffic is heavily regulated: NordVPN offers a solution called the obfuscation servers which entangle the traffic making it impossible to trace. And, thanks to SmartPlay, you’ll be able to enjoy your favorite streaming services and websites (Netflix, Amazon Prime, and other restricted online services) with just a single click of the mouse.
Usability On Mac The team responsible for the clients and the apps did a fantastic job, and we are happy to say that the Mac version works like a clock. It’s fast, intuitive, straightforward, and won’t take much time to get used to. Performance is on par with the best apps on the market. Just like any other modern-day VPN, Nord is incredibly easy to download, install, and use. The interface is very friendly, and you’ll make sense of it all within minutes. Pricing Plans Here are the available packages:. Yes, there are more than enough plans to choose from, and the yearly plans are pretty generous.
Plus, along with the 30-day MBG, NordVPN also comes with a 3-day free trial. Remember we said that NordVPN is not particularly fast, but it’s reliable? Well, if fast is what you’re looking for, then CyberGhost might be #1 on your list. CyberGhost is a VPN provider based in Romania. By the way, this country is perfect for the provision of VPN software for Mac due to its official stance on intelligence gathering by the transnational spying agencies, particularly the notorious 14 Eyes.
With this VPN, you can protect up to 5 devices, take advantage of 1250+ servers, enjoy amazing 24/7 customer support, and the fancy Mac client. And, it’s incredibly fast.
Privacy And Security The Constitutional Court of Romania has deemed unconstitutional the EU legislation concerning online security (which involved the covert data gathering). This decision puts the country out of 14 Eye’s hands reach, and it means that CyberGhost will not share any information about their customers and their online activities with any international law enforcement agencies. Moreover, they fully comply with their strict no-logging policy, so you can surf the Internet without leaving any traces whatsoever. Security-wise, CyberGhost features 256-bit encryption and all the latest protocols (including OpenVPN). We already learned that CyberGhost’s HQ is in Romania, they keep no logs, and they put the privacy of their customers first.
So, even if the Romanian government would suddenly change its online privacy laws, the company would still have nothing to show them, just because there would not be any logs to show in the first place. Torrenting And Streaming As for the technical features of CyberGhost, it offers an enormous number of servers, which amount to 2800+, and good streaming capacities.
You can choose from the variety of servers which are located in 64 countries, depending on your browsing needs. However, we would recommend using European servers since they offer better downloading and streaming speed. Plus, this VPN service is great for passing different access restrictions, mainly Netflix. Usability On Mac While the Mac systems are the new normal today, they used to lag behind the Win systems, and to this day, the Microsoft OS is still getting more top-of-the-line clients than any of its rivals. Thankfully, that’s not the case with CyberGhost. The dedicated Mac client is equally stylish, smooth, and user-friendly. All you have to do is choose a plan, download it, and click install – the program will do the rest.
The interface is quite fancy and comes with clear images. Scrolling through the list of available servers, configuring the VPN, and watching your favorite streaming service is easy and fun. Pricing Plans Here are the available packages:. It is not the cheapest option, but it is one of the finest in terms of security and user-friendliness. And, the 1-year-plan is more affordable compared to ExpressVPN. The affordable plans are this VPNs biggest selling point, but we’ll talk about that a bit later.
Compared to ExpressVPN, Nord, and CyberGhost, it may not be as feature-packed, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be protected 24/7. Kill Switch would’ve been a nice addition, and sometimes, you may feel a lack in servers, but, again, nothing critical.
The quick and friendly live customer support is a huge plus; the same goes for the nimble Chrome extension. Privacy And Security AES 256-bit encryption, support of all the modern-day protocols, and the no-logging policy turn Goose VPN is a solid pick for privacy and security. Sadly, there’s no Double Encryption, for that, you’ll be better off with ExpressVPN. But if you’re looking for some basic protection at an affordable price, then don’t count this Network out just yet. The HQ is located in the Netherlands (Rotterdam, to be exact). This country is known as a liberal, open-minded state.
Plus, the company follows the Zero-logs policy, and just like all the other VPNs we reviewed today, doesn’t keep any logs on the users (which is confirmed by many third-party organizations). Torrenting And Streaming Both torrenting and streaming are available on select servers. But we have to say that accessing geo-restricted content won’t always be easy. You might already know that streaming services are always “fighting” with VPNs and finding ways to block them. Right now, GooseVPN isn’t a perfect choice for unblocking US and UK websites/services. Usability On Mac Goose VPN is great for Mac users.
It is very easy to install and use thanks to its intuitive interface. Navigation is also straightforward: all functional elements are right there in front of you. Although Goose VPN is not the best VPN for Mac from the standpoint of speed and the number of servers, it is an excellent example of a VPN that offers a very user-friendly client.
Don’t worry even if you have never used VPN before; Goose VPN will automatically set up the basic configuration allowing you to engage in secure browsing in a matter of minutes. At first, the interface might not seem like much, but give it some time: soon, you’ll find yourself making good use of all the available features. As mentioned, it’s not the most feature-packed Virtual Private Network, but for the average user, it’s great. Pricing Plans Here are the available packages:. It is not the cheapest option, but it is one of the finest in terms of security and user-friendliness. SaferVPN is perhaps one of the most budget-friendly VPNs for Mac.
But its strongest suit is the incredibly simple and user-friendly interface. We’re not saying that all the other VPNs we reviewed today are hard to understand and use, but if you’ve never had to deal with one, we suggest you go with SaferVPN. Plus, it’s rather fast and reliable, which is a huge plus. Finally, it’s unexpectedly fast.
Privacy And Security DNS and IPv6 leak protection, Kill Switch, and 256-bit encryption turn this VPN into a brick wall. As far as privacy goes, even though the company follows the no-logs policy, it’s not as private as ExpresVPN or NordVPN. Every time you use the service, they log the session start/end dates, the amount of data you transmit during that time, the servers you connect to, and from which country you do that. Some privacy, huh? The HQ is located in New York, and we all know that the online privacy laws in the United States aren’t exactly user-friendly. Plus, as we just mentioned, the privacy policy leaves a lot to be desired, and that’s one of the biggest reasons why this VPN isn’t very popular, even though it is fast, reliable, and affordable.
Torrenting And Streaming One of the things that make SaferVPN stand out is its download speed. The average download speed of the European servers of SaferVPN is 79 Mbps; with the US servers, it may drop to 57 Mbps. With that kind of speed, streaming will be very enjoyable. However, P2P transfers (used for torrenting) are pretty bad.
The team is working on improving the experience, but for now, it’s disappointing. Usability On Mac The Mac client is just as great as all the other ones. Everything is fast and ease here, just like it should be in a modern VPN.
Recently, the company updated all of its clients and apps, and now they look and work even better. There are also some fantastic add-ons that turn SaferVPN into one of the best Networks on the market. SaferVPN is one of the best VPNs for Mac in terms of the easiness of installation and the interface intuitiveness. SaferVPN doesn’t require system reloading after installation; therefore, it has a super-fast installation time. The entire process of registering, paying for the plan, and installation will take no longer than 3 minutes.
Pricing Plans Here are the available packages:. Not all users are willing (or capable) to purchase the plans of the best VPNs listed above. For those of you who are not engaged in active streaming or downloading, we present TunnelBear, the best free VPN for Mac. TunnelBear has all characteristics of the top VPNs, including AES-256 encryption and decent speed. But the best part is that TunnelBear offers a free plan that includes 500MB of data every month. It’s not much, but if you plan on using VPN, for example, only to protect your bank account, these 500 megabytes will be more than enough.
If it’s not the case, and you need your vpn to be a more versatile tool, we have prepared another for you. Just bear in mind that none of them is as good at protecting your privacy and security as TunnelBear. Privacy And Security AES-256 will make sure you’re safe and sound. The company doesn’t keep any logs, as they always put the privacy of their customers first.
There’s even a Kill Switch feature built-in (here, it’s called VigilantBear). The company’s HQ is located in Canada (Toronto, to be exact). And while the US is out of linebad when it comes to online privacy laws, Canada is not nearly as strict. Besides, as we just learned, they keep no logs.
Torrenting And Streaming Sadly, torrenting is not an option with this VPN right now. It used to work great, but in 2018, TunnelBear has been having all kinds of problems with it. The same goes for streaming. If you want a VPN for watching Netflix/other streaming services, TunnelBear is one of the worst choices. Even SaferVPN is better. Usability On Mac The Mac client is friendly and intuitive. It is fast, never breaks down, and everything is right there in front of you.
These days, the downloading/installation process of a VPN is always extremely smooth and fast. Just follow the on-screen instruction, and you’re all set. The interface might look a bit “cartoony,” but in reality, it’s actually pretty well-constructed and you’ll get used to it in no time. Pricing Plans Here are the available packages:. Bottom Line As you can see, there are enough offers on the market to choose from. Use the information you learned today the next time you find yourself looking for a new Virtual Private Network. ExpressVPN is the “king of kings,” but for most modern-day users, all those additional features aren’t crucial.
Thus, you can go with something more affordable, like NordVPN or Goose VPN. A free VPN is also a good choice, but only if you’re planning to use it on special occasions (otherwise, you’ll go over the traffic limit). One final thing: while choosing a Network, always think about the things that matter to you the most: if it’s privacy, then go with TunnelBear or CyberGhost. If security is #1 on your list, pick a VPN with the best encryption, like ExpressVPN or NordVPN.
Best Vpn For Mac Os
Apple Macs are beloved by so many in no small part thanks to their increased resistance to viruses and hackers – but a VPN for one is still essential. Gone are the days when Mac users were consigned to underwhelming Mac-only options for their essential software: the vast majority of big-name VPN providers now offer bespoke Mac clients for their most popular products. The best VPNs for Mac will provide you with a slick MacOS user experience that effortlessly prevents advertisers and your ISP from spying on you, all while guaranteeing the fastest speeds in dozens of locations all around the world. ExpressVPN is our our highest-scoring VPN, and nothing changes when you use it on a Mac. Its biggest strength is reliability – no other VPN offers such consistently fast speeds across its entire network, even on distant connections, nor do many match its uninterrupted access to Netflix and other big streaming services.
The Mac app is user-friendly and easy-to-use and the list of supported other devices is long. The three connection limit could be more generous, but that will still be enough for most. It’s not the cheapest option but you can bring the monthly fee right down to $6.67 on a 15-month plan, which is superb value for such an all-round performer. Cyberghost is our top budget VPN pick for Mac. It may be cheap, but it competes with its more premium rivals on almost every front – especially streaming and privacy. Access to Netflix, Hulu, and other streaming services is rock solid thanks to dedicated streaming servers. Torrenting and Kodi performance is equally good, although P2P traffic is banned on US and Australia servers.
Download speeds on local connections are typically over 153Mbps (with some locations much faster than that) and while they drop off on international servers, it’s always enough for HD streaming. A recent update to the MacOS app has made it as sleek and user-friendly as the rest of the clients, which is a huge improvement on the older, more garish version. Makes our shortlist for Mac users as it’s the VPN service with most server locations, bar none. It’s also great for streaming thanks to download (and upload) speeds that few rivals can match, optimized servers and reliable access to both Netflix and BBC iPlayer. The apps are great – arguably the best-designed and most easy-to-use available. P2P users note that HMA! Has some privacy issues, though, as it’s based in privacy-unfriendly UK and keeps detailed logs of connection metadata for up to three months.
Our top picks for Mac have the fastest results in our speed tests both on local and international server connections. They also deliver the most consistent access to popular streaming services, such as Netflix. We favor transparent, minimal logging policies along with advanced privacy features to make sure you’re always protected. We spend hours testing every VPN on all available platforms, including MacOS, to make sure that you’re recommended the best experience possible. Our highest-scoring VPNs are in a state of constant testing and retesting, too, so our recommendations are always up to date.
The Best Worst Vpns For Mac Download
If you’re not too tech-savvy then you can breathe a sigh of relief: installing a VPN on MacOS is just as simple as installing it on Windows, with no special extra steps required. So long as your chosen VPN has a Mac-specific program it will usually be as simple as running the install file. You can often decide to install your VPN at router level so that every device on your home network is covered at once – this is a little more technical, but it can be a great workaround for VPNs that aren’t available on Mac. Once you’re connected, the VPN will continue to run in the background and you can carry on using your Mac as normal.
For more information, hints and tips, check out our guide. The sheer amount of VPN jargon can be overwhelming, which is why we make sure to spell out when a product is the real deal and when it’s talking nonsense. Do look out for OpenVPN though, as this connection protocol offers the best overall blend of speed and security. Ignore talk of military or bank-grade encryption and just look for AES-256, as that’s the gold standard. A VPN kill switch is the most vital extra feature as it will protect you from exposing your real IP address should your connection drop unexpectedly. What is its logging policy? Most VPNs will claim to be ‘zero logs’ – but the reality is a little more complex.
In order to deliver consistent performance across a vast server network, the majority of providers will need to monitor at least some connection details of their users. There’s good ways to do this, and very, very bad ways – we’ve seen equal measures of both. The Logging Policy section of our reviews saves you having to read through reams of small print, as we tell you all the information in plain English. Finally, check the price and money-back guarantee.