There is no shortage of top-tier VPN services. But a provider may have a great product for an iPhone or Mac, but come up short in other areas. With that in mind, we’re looking at some of the best VPNs for Windows. Not only have these all been put to the test in various reviews, but we also have average benchmark data from our fastest VPNs testing that we’re applying to our recommendations.
Windows support: Windows 7 or higherSimultaneous connections: 6Kill switch: YesPlatforms: Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Linux, Android TV, Chrome, FirefoxLogging: None, except billing dataCountries: 59Money-back guarantee: 30 day
NordVPN distinguished itself as one of the fastest VPNs, as well as the one that turned in the most consistent Windows performance results from testers across the world. That said, ping speeds were slow enough that I wouldn’t want to play a multiplayer first-person shooter game over the VPN. To be fair, this isn’t a weakness unique to NordVPN and most services have sub-par ping speeds. Further reading: Our NordVPN review NordVPN also has solid capabilities beyond basic VPN. Its P2P sharing functionality makes it an excellent VPN for torrenting. It also comes with options for a dedicated IP address, double VPN, and Onion over VPN. There are add-on services you can purchase, including a password manager and encrypted cloud storage. Fall sale: Get three free months with a two-year plan Beyond Windows, NordVPN supports all the most popular platforms, so it’s a good option for securing a variety of devices. With a 30-day money-back guarantee you can test it out yourself for a month and get a full refund if it doesn’t work for you. Also: How to set up and use NordVPN
Windows support: Windows 7 or higherSimultaneous connections: 5Kill switch: YesPlatforms: Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Linux, and many moreLogging: No browsing logs, some connection logsCountries: 94Money-back guarantee: 30 days
ExpressVPN has server locations in 94 countries, which is a considerably larger network than many of the other top VPN providers. In ZDNET’s aggregate speed tests, we found that ExpressVPN for Windows came in just after NordVPN in overall performance, but the performance was predictably consistent with servers located across the world. Further reading: Our ExpressVPN review ExpressVPN does not maintain logs of user browsing history or traffic. However, it logs the dates, server location, and the amount of data transferred. This is clearly outlined in ExpressVPN’s privacy policy, which you can read for yourself here. Exclusive offer: Get three extra months free.
Windows support: Windows 7 or higherSimultaneous connections: UnlimitedKill switch: YesPlatforms: Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Fire TV, Firefox, ChromeLogging: None, except billing dataMoney-back guarantee: 30 days
Surfshark users will like that, in addition to great VPN functionality, it offers an inexpensive add-on package ($1.49/mo) called Surfshark One. This bundle includes anti-virus software, a non-logging tracker-free search engine, and a data breach list scanner. This is in addition to standard features such as an ad blocker, kill switch, static IP, MultiHop, and split tunneling. Exclusive offer: Get three free months with a two-year subscription In our tests, we found no DNS leaks, and to protect against WebRTC leaks there are browser plugins for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge. While connected to Surfshark VPN our transfer speed was only reduced by about 28%, the same performance as NordVPN. Although download speeds were solid in our testing, we did notice that connection times were a bit slower. Further reading:
Surfshark VPN reviewExpressVPN vs. Surfshark vs. NordVPN: Which is best?NordVPN vs. Surfshark: Which VPN is best for you?
Best of all, a Surfshark VPN subscription won’t break the bank. ZDNET readers can grab an extra three months free on a two-year subscription. This brings the average monthly cost down to only $2.21.
Windows support: Windows 7 and up (with legacy version 3)Simultaneous connections: UnlimitedKill switch: YesPlatforms: Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Linux, Fire TV, Android TV, and KodiLogging: None, except billing dataLocations: 50Money-back guarantee: 30 days
IPVanish is a solid, highly-flexible product with a useful user interface and fast connection times. It’s compatible with Windows 7, 8, 10, and 11. However, the latest version of the app only supports Windows 10 and 11, so you’ll have to download the legacy app if you’re running Windows 7 or 8. Also: Our IPVanish review Windows users will appreciate how highly configurable IPVanish is. Its app makes choosing the optimal server for your VPN connection a breeze by providing ping times and server load information. While the connection times were excellent with IPVanish, the transfer speed lagged behind the other competitors. We also found the VPN connection to be secure, but we weren’t able to obscure the fact that we were connecting via a VPN.
Company’s logging policyNumber of Server locationsCostOther platforms supported by the serviceNumber of devices that can use the service at the same time
