The 5 Best Free VPNs for Android in 2024 (20+ Tested!) (2024)

The Android operating system powers close to 70% of all mobile devices, making it by and large the industry leader. Major manufacturers, including Samsung, OPPO, Xiaomi, and vivo all use Android for their devices.

If you have an Android device, installing a VPN on it is a great way to stay safe online and unblock region-restricted content, like your favorite shows and films. While there are many free VPNs for Android devices on Google Play, not all are worth installing. Some can even be dangerous.

We tested 20+ free VPNs for Android devices and found the ones that really deliver. Here’s our definitive list of the five best free VPNs for Android devices.

Top 5 Best Free Android VPNs

Before we dive into more details, here’s a brief comparison showing our top five free Android VPNs and the features they offer.

1. Proton VPN: Best free Android VPN with unlimited data

Features:

• Unlimited free data
• No intrusive ads in the app
• Choice of OpenVPN, WireGuard, and IKEv2 protocols
• Uses a customized anti-censoring protocol
• Servers are often slow

Proton VPN tops our list of the best free VPNs for Android because it’s the only truly free VPN app that provides unlimited data. This means you can use it as much as you like to stay safe as you browse the net on your Android device.

However, the browsing performance isn’t as fast as some would like. The Proton website openly advertises the speed of their free VPN as “medium,” while all their paid subscriptions have “high speeds.”

Compared to other free VPN services, there’s also a generous choice of servers: you can choose from nine servers in the United States, three in Japan, and eleven in The Netherlands.

The Android app also supports split tunneling, so you can choose which apps pass through the VPN tunnel and which ones use your standard, unprotected connection. There’s also a kill switch that automatically terminates your connection in case it disconnects.

You’ll also be able to access other services offered by Proton AG, including:

• Proton Mail: one of the best secure email providers
• Proton Calendar: personal calendar with encryption
• Proton Drive: one of the best cloud storage providers (1 GB free)

The premium version of Proton VPN also offers high speeds and over 1700 servers in 64 countries. These include specialized servers for torrenting and streaming.

If you’re still on the fence, check out our full review of Proton VPN to know all the features that it offers.

2. Atlas VPN: Reliable free VPN with extra features

Features:

• 5GB free data per month
• IPSec/IKEv2 and WireGuard protocols
• Split-tunneling
• Supports torrenting
• Technical issues prevent consistent connectivity

Atlas VPN is a decent Android VPN that gives you 5 GB of free data in a month and a decent choice of VPN protocols. It also includes nice-to-have features such as split tunneling with the free version.

Free users can access three locations in two countries, namely The Netherlands, Los Angeles, and New York, and our tests show no speed throttling on any of them.

In terms of security, your data is protected with AES 256-bit encryption and the highly secure WireGuard protocol as well as IPSec/IKEv2.

The free version also offers a kill switch, which you can enable from the settings menu. Other features include a nifty tracker blocker and a data breach monitor.

You can also use Atlas VPN on as many devices as you want with a single account. However, the free version does have its limitations: it can’t unblock Netflix or other streaming services.

If you’d like to know more about Atlas VPN’s features and get an in-depth speed comparison, you can check out our review of the full version of Atlas VPN.

3. PrivadoVPN: Best free VPN for streaming

Features:

• 10GB free data per month
• Unblocks Netflix
• Allows torrenting
• Certified no-logs VPN
• Connection speeds are often slow

Most free VPN services on Android are slightly limited as they don’t let you unblock streaming platforms. But PrivadoVPN works with Netflix and other streaming services.

Since it’s a free VPN, speeds are a bit slow, and you only get 10 GB of free data, which runs out pretty quickly if you stream in high quality. But, even after you run out, you can still use PrivadoVPN, though it’s capped at 1Mbit.

It has a good amount of servers compared to other free VPNs — you can choose to connect to Frankfurt, Zurich, Paris, London, Amsterdam, New York, Chicago, Washington, Miami, Los Angeles, Montreal, Mexico City, or Buenos Aires.

If you need a simple, free VPN that offers features such as IP masking and end-to-end encryption, PrivadoVPN is a great choice all around.

You can read more in our PrivadoVPN review to find out what our experts think about this VPN service if you decide to upgrade.

4. hide.me: Easy to use free Android VPN with customer support

Features:

• 10GB free data per month
• OpenVPN and IKEv2 protocols
• No speed throttling
• No WireGuard protocol
• Most features are paywalled

The free version of hide.me gives you access to eight servers around the globe, which is quite generous. And, like others on this list, it does not retain any logs about your online activities.

Torrenting is allowed, though you only get 10 GB per month. While there’s no throttling, you’ll still notice a stark difference in speeds when compared with their performance-optimized servers, which are available to paying users.

The best thing about hide.me is that you don’t even need to create an account to use it. Just download the app and you’re good to go! Unfortunately, the free version of hide.me does not offer the WireGuard protocol. It also doesn’t unblock streaming services like Netflix.

If you’d like to know more about the full premium version, check out our hide.me review.

5. Windscribe: Best free Android VPN for unlimited simultaneous connections

Features:

• 10GB free data per month
• OpenVPN, IKEv2, WireGuard, and Stealth protocols
• Free servers in 10 countries
• GPS spoofing and split tunneling
• Sharp speed drop

The free version of Windscribe offers 10 servers spread across several European and North American countries.

The speeds are decent and you can enjoy 10 GB of free data per month if you provide your email address. If you don’t, you’ll still get 2 GB data free per month.

Windscribe’s Android app also provides a free ad blocker. The VPN also prevents DNS leaks and encrypts your data so you’re always secure, even on public Wi-Fi.

What sets it apart is that you can use the free service to enjoy a safe internet connection on as many devices as you want simultaneously.

If you’d like to learn more about the different features, here’s our full Windscribe review.

How We Picked the Best Free VPNs for Android

There are tons of free VPNs out there but you need to be cautious about which you use. Some services may contain malware, and may log your browsing data, resulting in a serious privacy breach.

Others often share personal information to fund their operations, which is a strict no-no. That’s why we adhere to stringent criteria when testing free VPNs:

• They are genuinely free and do not have any hidden subscription costs. None of these VPNs will automatically switch to a paid plan.
• They do not collect, share, or sell user data to third parties.
• They offer a nominal data limit without any speed caps.
• They offer multiple VPN servers with adequate security like encryption and secure protocols.

Limitations of Free VPNs on Android

While a free VPN for Android devices is great, there are certain limitations that you should know about:

• Data caps: you only have a fixed monthly limit, which runs out faster than you might realize as you scroll
• No optimized streaming servers: you’ll need a paid VPN to unblock Netflix or other streaming services on Android
• Limited protocol choices: paid VPNs often offer a greater choice, including UDP, TCP, and more
• Restricted features: you’ll notice many features are restricted within the Android VPN app until you upgrade

As you can tell, free VPNs only give you half of the experience. Many of the key benefits that you’d expect from a VPN, such as the ability to unblock streaming services or letting you browse the internet without data caps, are not available.

Instead, to really enjoy all of the benefits, you may want to consider going for a premium VPN. A premium VPN offers the very best in terms of security, helps you unblock all major streaming providers, and even gives you more choice in terms of VPN protocols.

More importantly, you don’t have to worry about constant connection breaks or speed drops, as you’ll be connecting to optimized servers around the globe.

Go for a premium VPN trial: NordVPN

If you really want the best Android VPN, we recommend giving NordVPN a try. It’s not technically free, but you can take advantage of NordVPN’s free 30-day trial, which lets you access all the features without any restrictions.

The NordVPN Android app is incredibly simple, letting you connect to an optimized server close to your location with a single tap. With more than 5,600 servers across 59 countries, there’s no shortage of choice either.

For instance, the proprietary Threat Protection Lite technology protects you from malicious sites and protects your Android device from harmful botnet attacks.

NordVPN’s Android app also offers split tunneling. And, even with the free trial, you can connect to specialized streaming servers to unblock different Netflix libraries.

It can unblock virtually any streaming service such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and more. None of the features are limited in the free trial, so you’ll experience the best that it has to offer.

Thanks to the 30-day money-back guarantee, you can cancel within that period and get a full refund. You can use it on multiple Android devices if you want, and companion apps are also available for other platforms.

You can read more in our full NordVPN review.

Free Android VPNs to Avoid

Not all free VPNs for Android work as you might expect. Certain VPN software can actually do more harm than good on your Android device.

Here’s our list of free Android VPNs that you should avoid and why you should avoid them.

Final Thoughts: Browse Safely With Free VPNs for Android

To conclude, our choice of free VPNs for Android are as follows:

1. Proton VPN: Unlimited free data
2. Atlas VPN: A fast, free VPN with handy extra features
3. PrivadoVPN: Free VPN that unblocks Netflix
4. hide.me: An easy-to-use Android VPN.with great customer support
5. Windscribe: Free VPN with unlimited simultaneous connections

All of these offer great security and help you browse the web anonymously. There’s an abundance of other free VPN providers out there, but you should be careful about which you pick because there are many risky and scam services.

Regardless of your choice, most free VPNs will come with some limitations such as slow speeds or a lack of advanced features. To overcome this, it’s wise to invest in a paid VPN that gives unlimited data and many useful features at a nominal monthly fee. Our top recommendation is NordVPN.

Looking for different VPNs? Many people use a VPN on both their phone and their computer. You might even want to use yours on your smart TV or router, too! Our top 5 list of best VPNs for multiple devices might help you out!

You may also be interested in our other articles about free VPNs:

• Best Free VPNs for Netflix (Tried and Tested!)
• Top 5 Free VPNs for PC: Best No-Cost Options for Windows
• The Best Free VPN for Mac: 7 Truly Free Mac VPNs

Mehak SiddiquiAuthor

VPN Expert

Mehak has been writing for over a decade and is passionate about helping people have safer, healthier relationships with all things tech. She has a master’s degree in communication and is interested in the impact of technology and the internet on global communities.

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