PureVPN has been within the VPN enterprise since 2007, so it is no shock that the corporate has constructed up a prolonged checklist of options.
The service covers many of the technical fundamentals: robust encryption through OpenVPN and IKEv2 (WireGuard is in beta), DNS and IPv6 leak safety, torrent help, break up tunneling to regulate which apps use the VPN, and a sensible kill change to guard you if the VPN drops.
Platform help is a spotlight, with devoted apps for Home windows, Mac, iOS, Android and Linux, extensions for Chrome and Firefox, and more downloads and tutorials that will help you set it up on routers, Kodi, Android TV, Amazon's Fireplace TV Stick and more.
PureVPN has 1000's of servers the world over (Picture credit score: PureVPN)You need to use the service on as much as 10 units concurrently, and in an uncommon bonus, PureVPN lets you share these 10 slots with your loved ones. In case you've 4 folks with telephones, say, they will every set up and use PureVPN with their very own login, and you will nonetheless be capable to join six different units at dwelling.PureVPN has diminished its community protection lately. At the start of 2021 it claimed to have 6,500 servers throughout 180+ places and 140+ nations; as we write, it is nonetheless 6,500 servers, however you now get 86 places and 78 nations.
This restructuring apparently concerned eradicating slower digital servers, although, which is not essentially a nasty thought. And even PureVPN's diminished location depend is far more than many opponents (StrongVPN has 46 places in 35 nations, for example, and Mozilla VPN has 40 places in 30 nations).
Current enhancements to the service embody upgrading more servers from 10Gbps connections to 20Gbps. A blog post introduced the improve for servers in London, Manchester and Washington DC, and PureVPN says more places will 'go stay by the tip of this yr.'
Elsewhere, the corporate has relocated from Hong Kong to the British Virgin Islands. Maybe better of all, it is had a brand new no logging audit (more on that under).
PureVPN accepts funds from PayPal, bank cards and Bitcoin (through CoinGate) (Picture credit score: PureVPN)
PureVPN pricing
Pricing begins fractionally greater than common at $10.95 billed monthly.
The annual plan appears good worth at $3.74 a month, particularly as that is overlaying as much as 10 members of the family. However that is partly attributable to a one-off low cost, and it renews at $5.83.
A particular two-year plan is priced at $2.91 a month. Appears to be like good to us, but it surely additionally renews on the common $5.83 a month annual plan.
The purchasing cart provided us loads of extras, together with devoted IPs, port forwarding and DDOS safety. We clicked the Purchase choice for every, and containers opened asking us to decide on a rustic. These did not show any nation checklist, although, so we could not buy something. We tried Chrome and Edge, common and incognito home windows to rule out browser points, however the website did not work wherever.
Annoying, but additionally likelihood to check help. We opened a chat window, an agent appeared in below a minute, and we defined that we weren't capable of purchase and even view any choices. The minutes ticked by. This should imply the agent was checking what we stated, proper?
5 minutes later we received this response: 'Please subscribe to your required plan by accessing the link under and luxuriate in full web freedom: https://www.purevpn.com/order.'
Nope; no signal they'd understood something we stated.
If PureVPN's web site is definitely working if you go to, devoted IPs are literally very low cost at $2.99 a month for IPs within the US, UK, Singapore, Canada, Germany, Malta and Australia. Personal Web Entry, NordVPN, Astrill and others cost $5 or more.
In case you want DDoS, that is an additional $3.99 a month.
You possibly can check PureVPN out for 7 days for simply $1 (Picture credit score: PureVPN)
In case you're intrigued, there is a 7-day trial – nicely, type of. The catch is you will need to hand over $1, however the trial provides you loads of time to see if the service does what you want, and when you cancel your account earlier than the week is up, you get that greenback again.
In case you join a full plan and also you're sad, there is a 31-day money-back assure, with no doubtful clauses within the small print to catch you out. In case you're sad, simply ship an e mail and ask for a refund.
PureVPN appears good on the privateness entrance on the entire, however there are caveats (Picture credit score: PureVPN)
Privateness and logging
PureVPN's Privacy Policy will get off to begin, with a prolonged checklist of all the info the service does not log: 'We DO NOT hold any document of your searching actions, connection logs, data of the VPN IPs assigned to you, your authentic IPs, your connection time, the historical past of your searching, the websites you visited, your outgoing visitors, the content material or information you accessed, or the DNS queries generated by you.'
Sounds nice! However it's a bit oversimplified. The corporate says on the prime of the web page that it does not preserve connection logs, for example, however scroll down and there is a part titled 'Info Included in VPN Connection Logs' the place it lists the small print it does gather. Specifically the day you linked to a selected location, your ISP, the connection size, what number of connections you make, and the general complete of bandwidth you utilize (not per connection, apparently).
There is not any logging of origin IP, vacation spot IP, the precise time you linked or your actions afterwards, so this restricted information is impossible to compromise your privateness. However we predict it is a unhealthy thought to say 'we do not document your connection logs' on the prime of the web page, then, just a bit additional down, checklist the ways in which connections are logged.
The coverage additionally states that PureVPN employs 'just a few instruments' in its apps to 'conduct VPN diagnostics and monitor crash studies.' However then it goes on to checklist Google Analytics, iTunes, Crashlytics, Apptentive, Firebase, New Relic, MixPanel and Fb Pixel, which can be greater than you anticipated.
This sort of crash reporting is not unusual, however we anticipate it to be non-compulsory, and that is not the case here. There is not any 'Ship crash information?' choice in Settings – PureVPN sends it regardless (and when you do not learn the privateness coverage, you'd by no means even know this was occurring).
PureVPN has handed a no logging audit performed by KPMG (Picture credit score: PureVPN)
No logging audit
In 2020 PureVPN introduced it had handed a no logging audit by KPMG, which concluded that the service does not log a consumer's origin IP tackle, a consumer's assigned VPN IP, the precise time when a consumer connects to a VPN server, or log a consumer's actions by its VPN connection.
PureVPN additionally says it opted for an 'always-on' audit coverage, which suggests KPMG can 'provoke a non-scheduled privateness audit at any time of the yr, with none prior discover.' Certain sufficient, in August 2021, the corporate reported it had handed a second no logging audit.
These checks seem like thorough, with PureVPN saying they contain 'the inspection of our advanced infrastructure, server configurations, codebase, technical information logs, and world servers', together with 'interviews of our personnel who're concerned in server upkeep and database dealing with.'
The studies have not been made public, so you possibly can't take a look at the small print for your self. And so they're solely trying to confirm the primary no logging coverage – they do not search for privateness points generally.
Nonetheless, we're not complaining: even with these limitations, there's vastly more reassurance here than you will get with most VPNs. Hopefully PureVPN will proceed with common audits, and make the complete studies out there, not only a sentence or two.
Apps
Signing up with PureVPN is straightforward sufficient, and we had been glad to see the corporate has restored its choice to pay by Bitcoin (through CoinGate), in addition to bank card and PayPal.
After parting with our money, the web site pointed us to obtain link for Home windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, the browser extensions and more. We grabbed the Home windows shopper, and because it was downloading, a welcome e mail arrived with login particulars.
The Home windows shopper incorporates a plain and easy interface (Picture credit score: PureVPN)
The app interface is obvious and quite simple, in truth principally simply white house. A standing panel shows the beneficial location, and tapping on the placement checklist shows more. There is a large On/Off button to attach and disconnect, and a few tiny sidebar icons for different app areas (Settings, Assist, Account).
The placement picker is healthier than most, with a Current Areas checklist, a Favorites system, and a searchable checklist of nations with ping instances that will help you spot the quickest.
Clicking an arrow to the proper of a rustic expands it to checklist any cities. That is a well-known thought, however most VPN apps solely show that sort of 'increase me' indicator when a rustic has a number of places. PureVPN does it for all nations, so we often expanded a listing to search out it included just one metropolis.
There's one other concern in selecting a most popular P2P location. 'Choose one with a P2P icon', says the PureVPN web site. Nice, besides throughout our evaluation, the Home windows app did not show the P2P label. This was solely seen on the cell apps.
Connection instances had been quick at round three seconds for IKEv2, 4 to 5 seconds for OpenVPN (we have had different apps hold us ready 10 to twenty seconds with OpenVPN). Desktop notifications provide you with a warning if you're linked.
The Home windows app has few settings (Picture credit score: PureVPN)
The app has comparatively few settings. A kill change blocks your web connection if the VPN drops, plus there is a alternative of IKEv2 and OpenVPN TCP/UDP protocols, and break up tunneling lets you select which apps use the VPN, and which do not.
There are a handful of different customary choices – mechanically launch when Home windows begins, flip notifications on/off – however the IPv6 leak safety and multi-port choices we noticed final time have gone.
A Assist button features a restricted and poorly introduced FAQ. This has solely 9 gadgets, solutions are extraordinarily primary, and a number of the solutions scroll off the underside of the web page and cannot be considered (there is not any scroll bar).
You possibly can not less than submit a ticket from throughout the app, or open a stay chat window, however this additionally is not supreme. After we clicked the Chat button, it opened a browser tab at a link just like https://direct.lc.chat/109xxx87, which wasn't even branded PureVPN. It is in all probability staffed solely by PureVPN workers, and it is all solely secure. However it could nonetheless be reassuring if the stay chat window opened on the PureVPN website, quite than some third-party service that almost all customers will not acknowledge.
PureVPN's Android app appears very a lot the identical because the Home windows shopper (Picture credit score: PureVPN)
Cell apps
We took a take a look at PureVPN's Android app, and it was a lot the identical story because the Home windows model. It has an nearly similar interface, the identical alternative of protocols (OpenVPN or IKEv2) and a break up tunneling system.
The web site proudly claims that 'PureVPN is likely one of the few greatest VPN suppliers which affords an Android Kill Swap that seamlessly integrates and works flawlessly', however we did not see any kill change within the settings. There aren't any computerized launch or join choices, both.
The iOS app has a barely completely different interface, with a sidebar to the left of the placement checklist and Join display screen, however primarily works in the identical manner.
The characteristic set is a bit completely different. The iOS model good points the power to mechanically join if you entry explicit web sites (however not if you entry untrusted networks), and to mechanically reconnect if the connection drops. However it does not have Android's break up tunneling system.
It is good to see these options out there someplace within the vary, however when you use apps on a number of platforms, these variations are more likely to be annoying.
Put all of it collectively and PureVPN's apps cowl the fundamentals nicely sufficient. Simply having a Favorites system and Current Location checklist makes it simpler to reconnect, and places the apps forward of many opponents. However as we have seen, there are points here, too, and the apps look a bit underpowered in comparison with the higher cell apps from rival VPNs on the market.
The Home windows app has restricted protocol choices (Picture credit score: PureVPN)
Home windows app testing
We have discovered numerous nasty technical points with PureVPN's Home windows app in earlier critiques, however would the newest model be any higher?
IKEv2 connections at the moment are arrange with the very best safety. They require encryption, do not save your credentials domestically, and IPv6 is disabled by default.
The odd protocol dealing with we seen final time (select OpenVPN UDP, the app connects through IKEv2) has been fastened. Select a most popular protocol and that is the one the app will use. (Though, conveniently, it may possibly additionally change to a different protocol if the primary one fails.)
Lastly, we checked out the app kill change. In principle this could block web entry if the VPN drops, making certain your information will not be transmitted over another unencrypted connection. However it did not at all times fairly work out this manner.
We ran a device which repeatedly checked and displayed our exterior IP tackle, then tried varied methods of forcibly closing the connection. Usually, we noticed our common IP tackle seem as soon as the VPN dropped, which suggests a request had efficiently travelled (unprotected) by our common connection. That is unhealthy news, however the app did not less than reconnect in a short time, and our IKEv2 connections had been sometimes uncovered for not more than eight seconds.
We used a number of velocity testing websites to find out PureVPN's efficiency (Picture credit score: Speedtest.web)
Efficiency
We measured PureVPN speeds from US and UK places, utilizing a number of efficiency testing websites and providers (SpeedTest's web site and command line app, TestMy.web, Netflix's Fast.com and more). We test the obtain speeds not less than 5 instances from every website, then test once more utilizing one other protocol, earlier than repeating this another time in a night session.
UK OpenVPN speeds had been 270Mbps, putting PureVPN within the higher mid-range of our latest outcomes. The corporate cannot match Conceal.me (390Mbps) or ProtonVPN (400-460Mbps), but it surely nonetheless outperforms some large names (IPVanish reached 140-150Mbps, CyberGhost hit 170-210Mbps).
UK IKEv2 speeds had been poor, although, at 100-110Mbps. That is similar to the 125Mbps we noticed in our final evaluation, suggesting this is not only a blip.
A testing concern (our fault, not PureVPN's) meant we do not have US IKEv2 figures, however OpenVPN downloads had been a bit down at 210-220Mbps.
There's sufficient velocity here for a lot of conditions, however PureVPN's peak efficiency lags nicely behind the competitors. Most VPNs with WireGuard help attain 400Mbps in testing, and CyberGhost, IPVanish, Mozilla, NordVPN and some others have hit 750Mbps and more.
Needless to say though we take greater than 100 velocity measurements of every VPN, you may even see very completely different outcomes relying in your location and setup, so it is value taking the 7-trial and operating just a few velocity assessments of your personal.
PureVPN was capable of give us entry to US Netflix in our assessments (Picture credit score: Netflix)
Netflix and streaming
Most VPNs declare they allow you to entry geoblocked content material from wherever on the earth, and PureVPN isn't any exception. 'Motion pictures, TV exhibits or sporting occasions; PureVPN permits you prompt and unrestricted entry to your favourite content material', the web site claims.
The apps do not have specialist streaming places, so that you're left to decide on a server within the nation you want, join, and see in case your streaming service is accessible.
That labored simply positive with BBC iPlayer, the place PureVPN received us full entry from all three of our check connections.
It was the identical story with US Netflix, the place we efficiently streamed content material with all three of our check places.
The corporate did not get us into Amazon Prime Video, sadly, however our testing ended on a constructive observe with PureVPN efficiently unblocking Disney Plus, once more from all three check places, an honest efficiency general.
If unblocking is a prime precedence, although, suppliers resembling CyberGhost, ExpressVPN, Conceal.me, Personal Web Entry, ProtonVPN and Surfshark all received us into each certainly one of our check websites.
PureVPN has setup guides for 15 completely different platforms (Picture credit score: PureVPN)
Help
Accessing PureVPN's support pages proved tougher than we anticipated, as Chrome gave us a 'this website cannot be reached' error after we clicked the link.
We seen the Help link was incorrect, pointing to help.www.purevpn.com quite than help.purevpn.com. We stripped out the additional 'www' and received in. Not an excessive amount of trouble, but it surely does not create impression if customers would possibly want help to even entry the Help website.
Get previous the preliminary hassles and PureVPN has a big help website with an enormous variety of tutorials and troubleshooting guides. The opening web page factors you to classes like Setup Guides, Troubleshoot, FAQ and Account and Billing, for example, and most of those sections embody more content material than you'd anticipate.
The Setup Information has subsections for 15 platforms, for example (sure, actually), and even a few of these particular person sections have more content material than all the help website of lesser VPNs.
There's lots of data here, and a few uncommon and welcome touches. You do not have to bookmark a selected tutorial to view it later in your browser, for example – in lots of circumstances you possibly can obtain a PDF for more handy offline studying.
Articles aren't at all times totally updated, although, and a few include data on options within the outdated apps with out making it clear that they are not included within the newest releases of the software program.
The search operate proved lower than helpful (Picture credit score: PureVPN)
A Search field lets you search articles for explicit key phrases. Or, not less than, that is what we anticipated. In actuality, no matter key phrase we entered, PureVPN simply displayed an 'Error 404 - Web page Not Discovered' message.
A couple of articles are so insufficient that they are nearly harmful. The OpenVPN Manual Setup Guide contains tips that could establishing OpenVPN on most platforms, for example. Click a link titled 'OpenVPN for Home windows 10' and also you would possibly anticipate you'd get directions on easy methods to safe your visitors with OpenVPN, however no. The link really factors you to a basic 'how to set up a VPN on Windows 10' article with Home windows 10's built-in VPN shopper, and utilizing PPTP, such an insecure protocol that almost all VPNs dropped it years in the past.
Now, skilled customers will rapidly spot the error, however newbies would possibly simply think about that 'PPTP' was some a part of this OpenVPN factor they have been beneficial, then set it up as described and suppose they're secure.
If the web site can not help, you are capable of increase a help ticket from throughout the shopper. Our check query received a primary however just-good-enough reply in round half-hour.
Alternatively, you need to use stay chat on the web site. As we talked about above, responses could be very primary, even with easy queries. PureVPN could not get near the extent of help we might obtained from prime opponents like ExpressVPN, then, however response instances are good, and most replies had been sufficient to unravel our fast points.
PureVPN evaluation: Remaining verdict
PureVPN provides you lots of performance and is nice worth, particularly when you've a number of members of the family to cowl. However under common speeds, unimpressive help and various app points stop this service from competing with one of the best VPN gamers.
Here is our full checklist of one of the best VPN providers
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