PAGE MENU

Advertiser Disclosure

This website is an informative comparison site that aims to offer its users find helpful information regarding the products and offers that will be suitable for their needs. We are able to maintain a free, high-quality service by receiving advertising fees from the brands and service providers we review on this website. These advertising fees, combined with our criteria and methodology, such as the conversion rates, our team of reviewer's finding and subjective experience and product popularity, impact the placement and position of the brands within the comparison table. In the event rating or scoring are assigned by us, they are based on the position in the comparison table, or according to other formula in the event specifically detailed by us. See our How we Rate page and Terms of Use for information. The reviews, rating and scoring are provided “as-is” without guaranties or warranties regarding the information contained in our website, which shall not be considered as endorsement. We make the best efforts to keep the information up-to-date, however, an offer’s terms might change at any time. We do not compare or include all service providers, brands and offers available in the market.

NordVPN

On a month to month basis, NordVPN costs a reasonably standard $11.95. However, if you elect for a long-term subscription,  this VPN provider is one of the cheapest out there. The yearly and 2-year plans offer excellent discounts.

Remember, this list is not just about the cheapest VPN. We are looking for one that provides value for the cost, and a long-term relationship with NordVPN does that and more. For the yearly plan, this Panama-based VPN charges the equivalent of $5.75 (which is a 51% discount!), and you can save up to 72% of the monthly value if you choose the 2-year plan, under which you would pay the prorated sum of $3.29 every 30 days. With NordVPN, users have several payment methods at their disposal: it accepts all relevant credit cards, PayPal, and several cryptocurrencies.

When it comes to encryption and features, few VPN services can surpass NordVPN. Since it is in Panama, it doesn’t have to answer to any law enforcement agencies, so it doesn’t keep any users logs.

NordVPN has a very convenient 30-day money back guarantee, so if you are not satisfied with its offerings, you can get your money back with no hassles. On top of that, this choice has over 3000 servers worldwide, located strategically in 60 countries.

It is highly customizable, user-friendly, and perfect for online streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, and BBC iPlayer. Torrenting is also permitted. NordVPN’s encryption is robust: it implements the 256-bit AES protocol encryption standard by default coupled with 2,048-bit SSL keys. It also has enabled DNS leak protection, it is highly compatible with multiple devices, and users can configure the VPN protection for six simultaneous devices.

Read NordVPN review »

PureVPN

PureVPN takes second place on this list, but with its features, offerings, and overall pricing, it makes a strong argument for the top spot. You can get the monthly plan, which is $10.95, but you’re better off going for a long-term plan in order to enjoy greater savings.

Most PureVPN users take advantage of the three-year plan, a fantastic deal that lowers the equivalent monthly price to $1.91! Quick math calculations show this is an 82% discount for customers. There also substantial savings with the six-month plan — 27%, to be exact — which is billed at a fixed monthly price of $7.95.

There are also numerous payment methods that you can use with PureVPN: credit cards, PayPal, Alipay, Cashu, PaymentWall, and coin payments with more than a dozen cryptocurrencies allowed.

PureVPN is a reliable option, with fast speeds and the ability to connect users with streaming content and websites from 141 nations. More than half of the world will be within your reach if you choose this cheap VPN!

PureVPN uses multiple security protocols: PPTP, L2TP, SSTP, IKEv2, OpenVPN and the revolutionary stealth protocol, and it lets users connect to five different devices at the same time. Other features include secure Wi-Fi, IP leakage protection, more than 88,000+ IPs for complete anonymity, an internet kill switch, and unlimited server switching and data transfer.

You can solve your issues 24/7 with a live chat feature, and you can enjoy safe and fast torrenting activity thanks to the allowance of P2P transfers. PureVPN is highly flexible when it comes to operating systems and devices: it can run on SmartTV, Apple TV, Android and iOS devices, XBOX, and even Blackberry.

Read PureVPN review »

CyberGhost

At $11.95, perhaps you would look at CyberGhost’s monthly cost and think it is quite expensive. And maybe you are right. However, as it happens with most providers, they offer deals and discounts for longer commitments; for example, the yearly plan checks in at a monthly cost of $5.99.

The best deal, and what makes CyberGhost one of the preferred cheap VPNs, is the two-year plan. Users will have to pay upfront for the 24 months, but they will do it at an equivalent monthly price of just $3.50. If you need a VPN for the long term, considering this option as the best move you can make. You can pay by credit card, PayPal, BitPay, and other methods.

CyberGhost is full of exciting features, too. Known for providing fast and stable connection speeds, this VPN provider also prioritizes privacy and robust encryption using the military-grade AES 256 bit encryption. The client and app are straightforward to use, and the customer support includes email communication and a live chat feature.

It has unlimited bandwidth and traffic and an anti-fingerprinting system, in addition to the ability to connect users with content from 50 nations thanks to more than 1250 servers located around the globe.  The company is based in Romania, which means that they don’t have to comply with any European data retention laws or agencies. All of the mentioned offerings come with a handy 30-day money-back guarantee, a number that trumps the week-long trials that most VPN have nowadays.

Read CyberGhost review »

ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN would probably be higher on our list if the only criterion were quality. However, we are examining the best combination of price and efficiency, so while this option is arguably in the top 3 when it comes to overall quality, it gets a small bump down the list because of its high (for VPN standards) monthly price, which is $12.95.

The real strength of ExpressVPN, as usually is the case with VPN providers, is in its discounts. For the six month plan, the standard price goes down to $9.99 (in total, the system will bill you $59.95 biannually) and for the 15-month plan, the fee goes all the way down to $6.67, charged as $99.95 after a year and three months. The payment methods offered by ExpressVPN are all the major credit cards, PayPal, Bitcoin, AliPay, GiroPay, Sofort, and more.

ExpressVPN has a 24/7 customer support powered by an excellent live chat feature, super fast servers in 94 countries, compatibility with iOS, Windows, Android, and Linux with specialized apps for each, unlimited bandwidth and server switches, and a 30-day money back guarantee.

People who choose ExpressVPN as their VPN provider will protect themselves from hacking and surveillance with 256-bit AES encryption, DNS/IPv6 leak protection, a kill switch feature and split tunneling. Also, the client is compatible with some of the most popular devices of the moment, including Apple TV, Fire TV, Smart TV, PlayStation, Android TV box, and many more.

ExpressVPN has a built-in speed test feature so that you can select the fastest VPN server location for your particular network. In total, there are 148 locations available for connection via the VPN encryption.

Read ExpressVPN review »

Cheap VPN Providers

If you are looking for a robust, efficient VPN service at good prices you are in the right place. As VPNs are online software whose marketing strategy is based on volume – that is, attracting as many customers as they can. And since their primary desire is to get long-term customer subscriptions, they often offer deals and discounts to attract more people.

How to find great VPN deals

Similar to many products, VPNs tend to offer their services at a discounted rate during holidays or to celebrate certain events throughout the year. For example, they usually provide amazing deals on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving that is known for deep discounts in retail and online stores.

In addition, Cyber Monday also provides customers with an excellent opportunity to take advantage of VPN deals. For instance, PureVPN offered 1% off of their VPN plans for the Chinese New Year back in February.

You can generally get a VPN at a discount on the following holidays:

  • Black Friday
  • Cyber Monday
  • Christmas
  • New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day
  • Chinese New Year

So, if you’re in the market for a VPN, check the prices for deals on these days.

Cheap vs Free VPNs

Thanks to the boom in Virtual Private Networks, there are now dozens of VPN options. We can now discuss and compare which are the cheapest, the best, the worst, the ones with the most features, which ones are easy to configure and use, and which ones allow you to watch and stream content in more countries.

VPNs use encryption technologies to protect users’ privacy and keep them anonymous when online. They do this by rerouting all user details – including all of its traffic and IP address – and sending all this information through remote servers, where it is hidden from prying eyes, hackers, and all external agents.

Even what we consider “expensive” VPN services are still very cheap! If you take into account a more expensive subscription package of $10 and $15 per month, the reality is that these prices are still very good when taking into account that your privacy, security, and anonymity are on the line. The consequences of data loss, identity theft, and your Internet Service Provider (ISP) reporting on your torrent activity far outweigh the costs of a cheap VPN plan.

Is there a difference between cheap and free VPNs?

Yes, there is a difference, between a cheap VPN and free VPN. Of course, not having to pay for a service is everyone’s dream – getting stuff for free is great! While this represents an advantage itself, remember what your grandma used to tell you growing up: you always get what you pay for. It’s true that free VPN services can provide help in an emergency. They can offer encryption services, albeit not very good ones, at no cost. So what’s the downside, you may ask?

Limits of Free VPNs

For starters, a free VPN will most likely have limitations when it comes to bandwidth speed or the amount of data that users can send. On top of that, some may force the customer to watch ads to enjoy services and features, and it’s possible that some ads could lead to security hazards.

Remember that no matter what VPN provider you choose, the free services also have to pay to keep their servers and site up and running. If they are not charging users, they need to make money somehow. Some ways that free VPNs fund their activities are with paid advertisements or by selling customers’ traffic and logs  – mostly to online companies looking to build advertising profiles.

Another disadvantage when using a free VPN includes data mining and ad networks installing tracking/cookies on your device. Further potential limitations to free VPNs include data throttling, reduced time before cut-off, monthly MB limits e.g 500 MB per month and more.

There really is minimal value in using a free VPN compared to the advantages gained from cheap VPN providers.

With this in mind, we suggest some excellent premium options that you may want to consider before even thinking about using a free VPN. Among them are PureVPN, NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Buffered VPN, CyberGhost, ZenMate, Avira, bVPN, Hide My Ass, Hide Me, Hotspot Shield, Norton, SpyOff VPN, Private VPN, SurfEasy, and TunnelBear.

FAQs: Cheap VPNs

Are cheap VPNs safe to use?

The cheap VPN providers listed in this article are as safe as any VPN option. They all offer robust security, protocols, and encryption methods. In fact, most of them use the military-grade AES 256 bit encryption, protecting users’ data from leaks and prying eyes on the internet.

Cheap VPNs are safe because they will encrypt your traffic while hiding your IP address. The details of your activity will remain unknown to anyone that wants to spy on you. Whereas free VPNs keep logs of your traffic, most cheap VPNs don’t, so you can rest easy and enjoy enhanced privacy and encryption.

Are cheap VPNs secure?

Yes, cheap VPNs are secure. The lower prices of some VPNs does not mean that privacy and safety are compromised. With VPN encryption, you will be protected from hackers, governmental agencies doing surveillance, and even from your Internet Service Provider.

Numerous cheap VPN options have exciting features that help protect your online security: a kill switch to shut down your internet in case your VPN accidentally logs out, DNS leak protection, split tunneling, and robust encryption. Don’t leave your online safety to free VPNs, as they will most likely sell your logging activity, defeating one of the main goals of using a VPN in the first place. Many VPNs are cheap, and you should definitely make room for one in your budget.

Are cheap VPN providers reliable and trustworthy?

There are notable exceptions, but in a general view of things, yes: VPNs are reliable and trustworthy. Most of them are transparent about their approaches in their privacy policies. Just make sure, as a customer, to take the time to read them carefully. If you have any doubts about whether a VPN service is keeping logs of your activity, you can contact the support team of the option you choose to find out more details. Some VPNs even have live chat features which makes getting information about a service really easy.

If you are going to subscribe a cheap VPN service and want reliability and trustworthiness, make sure to choose one with AES 256 encryption, the most widely used protocols (OpenVPN, L2TP, SSL, and PPTP), and with a transparent no logging policy.

Can you torrent with a cheap VPN?

Yes, you can torrent with a cheap VPN. While most free VPNs don’t allow P2P activity or don’t provide a secure environment for torrent sharing, the majority of cheap VPNs listed on this article have the capability of letting you access the most popular torrenting sites.

With the VPN services named in this piece, you will enjoy endless hours of concerts, music, videos, movies, and your favorite TV series thanks to their ability to allow torrenting activity.

Can you access Netflix with cheap VPN providers?

Ever since Netflix started playing cat and mouse with VPN providers who let users spoof their locations to access specific geographic regions, it became clear that it would be harder than ever for VPN users to enjoy Netflix’s streaming services. That doesn’t mean that cheap VPNs won’t work with Netflix, however, since many of them are on the ball about making use of IP addresses that Netflix hasn’t blocked yet.

Do cheap VPNs work with Kodi add-ons?

Yes, Kodi is an open source multimedia platform that allows users to enjoy the best series, movies, and productions for free. It works with add-ons, which usually lets you check out specific channels or programs for unrestricted use. Some of these add-ons are official and verified by the community, while others are unofficial.

The world is full of Kodi add-ons, and some of them are produced in foreign countries. While free VPNs most likely won’t offer you the chance to access these international, geographically limited add-ons, a cheap VPN from this list will do the trick. You just need to connect to a server from the nation of your add-on, and it will become available to you, so long as that country is included on the server list of the VPN provider you select.

Conclusion

VPNs are necessary tools these days. In a world filled with hackers, viruses, malware, prying eyes looking to spy on your traffic, and more, it is essential to be protected. Generally,  free VPNs won’t offer the encryption strength needed to guarantee the safety of your online activities, since free services have no incentive to offer anything other than very limited tools.

However, you don’t have to worry about feeling unsafe. Paid VPNs are cheap! Although some brands may be more expensive than other, the fact is that nearly all of them are affordable enough to fit in your monthly or yearly budget.

Better yet, there are plenty of discounts and deals to be had with cheap VPN providers, as they tend to lower their prices during specific seasons and dates, particularly when signing on for longer subscription commitments.

VPNs can offer privacy, security, and anonymity since they can hide your traffic and your IP address. No one will know it’s you that is using the internet, what sites you are visiting, when, or from where you are doing it.

If you want to make sure your online assets, passwords, and credit card numbers are protected no matter where you are or what you do, then sign up for a package with NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Buffered VPN, PureVPN or CyberGhost, our best ranked cheap VPN services.

Written by: Graeme Messina

Graeme is an IT professional with a special interest in computer forensics, security, and software. When not building networks and researching the latest software trends, he enjoys writing technical articles and blog posts.

arrow