Top VPNs of 2025: Your Definitive Guide
Today, having a trustworthy Virtual Private Network (VPN) is essential, not just for privacy, but for unfettered access to the internet. The VPN services that dominate in 2025 combine near-unbreakable encryption, fast connection speeds, and simple, attractive interfaces. This guide to the top VPNs in 2025, and what makes them each a contender, is divided into two parts: first, an overview of how we got to these selections; and second, a deeper dive into individual product features and their performance against the five key pillars of our evaluation framework.
How We Evaluated the Best VPNs
Your mileage may vary, of course, but the following five core pillars have been employed as an evaluation frame to arrive at our selections:
1. Security & Privacy
Encryption standards
- : AES-256 versus ChaCha20
No logs policy
- : Is it truly verifiable?
Feature set
- : Kill switches, leak protection, multi-hop circuits, etc.
2. Speed & Reliability
Download/upload speeds
- : across global servers
Redundancy
- : server distribution and uplink reliability
Target uptime > 99. 9%
3. Streaming & Bypassing Geo‑Restrictions
Access to
- : Netflix, Disney+, the BBC, etc.
Smart DNS
- : for regional intelligence
Consistent availability
- : no blackouts
4. User Experience
Support across platforms
- (Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, routers)
Configuration
- and clarity of interface
Customer support
- (live chat, 24/7 availability, knowledge base)
The VPNs were tested over a month using a preordained set of tools and metrics. Here are the top five of 2025 based on those results.
1. NordVPN: The Overall Best
NordVPN has made a name for itself over the years as a top-tier VPN. What it brings to the table is no secret: high-speed servers, tight security, and better-than-average unblocking capability. For starters, it offers extremely fast speeds through its unique NordLynx protocol, which is based on the WireGuard codebase. (Unblocking means being able to get around firewalls and content restrictions.) The
Camouflage Mode
conceals the fact that a VPN is being used from Internet Service Providers. TheWhitelister
option allows users to connect certain applications to the Internet without going through the VPN, which is good for activities that require low latency, such as gaming. In terms of security, Surfshark uses AES-256 for encryption along with some other strong security measures, which I'll get into shortly. They do not keep any logs at all, which is good, and they allow you to use the service on an unlimited number of devices. Speed-wise, Surfshark is not the fastest VPN in the world, but it is more than fast enough for streaming. Speaking of streaming, Surfshark can unblock pretty much any service you throw at it. Pricing is certainly on the low end of the scale. You can get Surfshark for a little over $2 a month if you're willing to buy a two-year plan. Proton VPN is an excellent choice for anyone primarily concerned with privacy. This service is built on the same scientific principles that underpin ProtonMail and has an extraordinarily open and transparent structure. Its "Secure Core" architecture bashfully sends your traffic through several tiered servers: first to a "Core Server" (hence "Secure Core"), which could be in privacy-friendly countries such as Switzerland and Iceland, and then to your destination server (i.e., the server hosting the website you're trying to visit).How secure is it? Proton VPN utilizes AES with 256-bit keys, has a kill switch, and offers OpenVPN—one of the best and most secure protocols currently available. You can also use IKEv2/IPSec without fearing that you're getting less security. What kind of speeds can Proton VPN get? Proton VPN doesn't have the best speeds on the market, but it can still get you 90 Mbps at peak bandwidth, which is mostly fast enough for most users. Proton VPN is extremely reliable for streamers. It works seamlessly with most of the major streaming platforms and can occasionally have issues with regionally blocked content. A two-year plan costs $19 per month. You can connect up to 10 devices simultaneously, and there's a 30-day money-back guarantee. The best part of this VPN is that it's incredibly configurable. If you want to tweak a setting and really get under the hood, this service gives you the option to do that.
Yet NordVPN's real strength is in its potential use cases. Because it's such a well-rounded service, Nord can pretty much do anything you ask of it. And what makes it different is that it has specialized servers that can do certain jobs even better.
If you want to use a VPN for streaming, binge-watching, or other video consumption, chances are that NordVPN will still work for you. But you might get even better results with Surfshark, our secondary recommendation for this use case. Surfshark can unblock pretty much any service you throw at it, and because it allows an unlimited number of devices to connect simultaneously, that's a good option for many people.
For more detailed VPN insights and trusted comparisons, explore these resources:
Choosing the VPN that is "best" for you in 2025 can depend on many different variables. Most people are likely to settle on a balance of security, speed, and an ability to access streaming services. You have to consider if you need it just for a couple of devices or if you want to use it on many devices at the same time. Most people need to take price into consideration. And, if we want to be generous, we have to also consider, at least in passing, the user experience. That means the app has to work, has to make sense, and has to feel good, in addition to providing all of the above. In that context, here are five VPNs that are (mostly) worth your time.