When you check the official app store for Android and iOS, and search for VPN apps, you will find that there are hundreds of VPN apps available, and most of them are free. The number of free VPN apps is way bigger than the premium VPN apps, which makes the free VPN apps more popular among the average users. Since the average users use VPN only for entertainment, which is to access content that is restricted in their country or region, they don’t bother paying for their VPN service, because they think that it is not worth it for them. If you can get something for free, why pay for it?
Well, if that’s your way of thinking when choosing a virtual private network connection, then be prepared for a shock. This is because most of those free VPN services are different from their premium counterparts. Here are the 7 key differences between free VPN and premium VPN services:
1. Overall Performance
Free VPN: The overall performance of the free private network service is usually bad, with many problems that can happen at any time. For instance, the server might not function properly, and since they only provide bad quality servers and there are not many choices of servers for the users, the problems might persist for several hours or several days without being fixed.
Premium VPN: The overall performance of the premium private network service is always at the top, considering that they use best quality servers with lots of servers to choose from. The servers are always up and running, providing the best performance and the best user experience. Any problem with the server can be fixed quickly.
2. Security And Privacy
Free VPN: The free service will usually disregard the security and privacy of their users, and they don’t care about protecting their user’s data. What they give to the users is only the tool to bypass the government restrictions, but this tool doesn’t include any strong security and privacy features. In some cases, the free service might even steal their user’s data and sell it to the third party.
Premium VPN: The premium service takes care of the user’s privacy and security very seriously. They provide all the necessary security technology and encryption system for keeping the user’s identity and data secure and private while they enjoy their internet freedom.
3. Encryption System
Free VPN: The free private connection service doesn’t include any strong encryption system for the users, resulting in possible data leaks when the users use the service. They usually offer the lowest-grade security protocols for their users, which is very easy for hackers to break, with lots of security vulnerabilities.
Premium VPN: The premium private connection service will use top-of-the-line encryption system with the best-in-the-market security protocols, ensuring the private connection of their users secure all the time. The encryption is very difficult for hackers to break, and any security vulnerabilities will be patched on the server side immediately.
4. Speed And Bandwidth Limitation
Free VPN: You cannot go full speed when using the free private connection, and the bandwidth usage is usually limited to only 1-2 GB per month. There are lots of server slowdowns to keep up with the number of users that use the same server at the same time.
Premium VPN: You can always go full speed when using the premium private connection, resulting in smooth video buffering and quick web page loading. There is no bandwidth limit or data consumption limit per month, so you can stream all the content that you want with the private connection.
5. Malware And Adware
Free VPN: Many free VPN apps and software are reported to have malware and adware embedded in their source code. It means that the VPN company is usually monitoring their user’s data and internet activity, and many times, they will display random ads based on their user’s online activity.
Premium VPN: There is no malware or adware embedded in the source code. You can enjoy the private connection without any interruptions whatsoever, and the service provider doesn’t monitor your internet activity.
6. Available Servers
Free VPN: The free service usually has limited number servers, and most of the time, those servers are full of users, resulting in bad connection or bad overall performance. The servers usually have bad quality and the resources are limited.
Premium VPN: The premium service has lots of available servers to keep up with the user’s demands, so that each server has a balance in resource usage to preserve the best server performance. The servers have high quality hardware to ensure that they can handle all user’s requests at the same time.
7. Customer Support
Free VPN: The free private connection has no existing customer support, and lots of problems are not fixed properly.
Premium VPN: The premium private connection has excellent customer support, with the support department being responsive when the users report some problems with their servers.
Those are the 7 key differences between free VPN and premium VPN services. If you are a new VPN user that is still undecided about which service that you want to use, it is better for you to use the premium VPN service, since they are generally more reliable, and they offer lots of features that will ensure your online security and privacy, as well as providing you with the best user experience in each browsing session.