VPN, or virtual private network, is a crucial tool in the tech arsenal of anyone serious about their online privacy and security. It not only provides reasonable anonymity while browsing the web, but also helps keep your web traffic private when connecting to public or unknown Wi-Fi networks. Moreover, a VPN can keep your web history hidden from your internet service provider (ISP) and help you bypass any potential ISP throttling or geo-restrictions.
VPNs work by encrypting your online traffic, sending it through a secure tunnel to a server, and then sending it to the open web. The incoming traffic is routed similarly. So, neither your ISP nor anyone else snooping on your data connection can see what you are browsing. Most importantly, VPNs work on all computing devices and platforms, including iPhones. So, if you own an iPhone, you can seamlessly use a VPN and safeguard your online traffic and privacy.
There are plenty of excellent paid VPNs on the market, and you should consider paying for one. However, if you prefer a free option because you are on a limited budget, here are two of the best options for iPhone users. Remember, while iPhone’s built-in VPN-like feature, the iCloud Private Relay, offered as part of the iCloud+ and Apple One subscriptions, is a decent privacy tool, it’s not a replacement for a full-fledged VPN, as it has limited coverage and doesn’t give control in terms of server location or advanced options.
Proton VPN Free
Proton AG, the company behind Proton Mail and Proton Pass, has built its business around offering privacy-focused online services. While the privacy-related protections offered by Proton aren’t absolute, the company has a reasonably good track record, thanks to Switzerland’s strong privacy laws, where it’s based. Besides the excellent email service and password manager, Proton offers a VPN, which is often recommended as a solid choice for anyone looking for a VPN with a good free tier.
Proton VPN’s free plan gives you unlimited access on one device at a time, which can be your iPhone, and is ad-free. The company also claims to have a no-logs policy, even for the free tier, meaning it won’t log your activity while using the VPN, which is a good thing because while your ISP or connection snoopers may not know what you are doing while using a VPN, the VPN provider can log everything.
The free tier also doesn’t have speed throttling, so you should get reasonable browsing speeds, and it includes a built-in kill switch to block the internet traffic in case of VPN connection failure. However, you’re limited to servers in a few random countries. Still, it’s an excellent VPN for casual use.
Windscribe Free
Windscribe is another popular VPN provider with a generous free plan you can use on your iPhone. Unlike Proton, Windscribe is a VPN-only company based in Canada. While its HQ location is a bit of a no-no among hardcore VPN users because it’s in one of the Five Eyes countries – an alliance of countries that share intelligence with each other – it’s not a big concern for casual users, who don’t have nation-states coming after them. The company also says that it being headquartered in Canada doesn’t impact its VPN privacy.
Windscribe’s free plan gives you access to servers in 10 countries, unlimited simultaneous connections, and a host of additional features, including a kill switch, split tunneling, and an ad-blocking tool. The app’s features are the same for both free and paid users. Unfortunately, you only get 2GB of data bandwidth per month. However, if you’re willing to share your email ID with Windscribe, you can increase your data allocation to 10GB, which is reasonable.
The data speeds available with the Windscribe free plan are reasonable, if not particularly fast, and will be suitable for everyday browsing. Moreover, Windscribe keeps no logs of your activity.
