Proton and TunnelBear are two of my top VPN picks for balancing privacy, ease of use, and overall experience. While Proton comes from a much larger company, TunnelBear holds its own impressively—and even outperforms Proton in a few important areas. Both earn their place among the best VPNs thanks to strong features, reasonable pricing, and a clear commitment to user privacy. Proton ultimately comes out ahead, but TunnelBear puts up a solid and respectable fight. Below, I break down how each service compares across value, performance, user experience, features, and streaming capabilities to help you decide which one is right for you.
Price: Proton Packs More Into Its Plans
TunnelBear provides a free plan with no limits on servers or features, so users get full access to the app. In contrast, Proton’s free tier is limited to only a small selection of servers. However, TunnelBear’s plan comes with a 2GB monthly data cap. While that’s fairly generous and earns both providers a place among the top free VPNs, it’s only enough for light, occasional browsing.
The competition stays tight when it comes to paid options, as both services offer similarly priced entry-level plans at $9.99 per month. These basic subscriptions focus on VPN access: TunnelBear allows unlimited simultaneous connections, while Proton limits users to 10 devices.
(Credit: TunnelBear)
TunnelBear doesn’t offer any additional tiers or extra security tools. I respect a service that focuses purely on delivering a solid, private VPN experience, which TunnelBear does well. However, in this comparison, that simplicity becomes a limitation. Proton, by contrast, has an Unlimited plan for $12.99 per month that includes a full suite of encrypted privacy tools. For just a few dollars more, you gain access to Proton Pass, a password manager, as well as Proton Mail, an encrypted email service. Proton Drive provides a fully encrypted cloud storage solution that keeps your files safe from AI data scraping. Additionally, Proton Docs and Sheets are newer, privacy-focused, cloud-based office apps.
(Credit: Proton)
Proton does win this category thanks to its higher cost-to-feature ratio when you factor in the Ultimate plan, but both VPNs are solid picks for the right user. Luckily, you can try both services out completely free to see which one is right for you before you buy.
Winner: Proton
App Design: TunnelBear’s Playful UI Steals the Show
Proton’s design is modern, with easy-to-use menus and a digital map front and center that makes it easy to see where you’re connected. The purple-and-black color scheme is eye-catching without being too busy or intense, making it suitable for both desktop and mobile platforms. Settings are well organized, with clear descriptions for each and links back to support articles for complete tutorials.
(Credit: Proton)
TunnelBear takes a unique, bear-centric approach with whimsical designs throughout the app of bears engaged in various tasks. Each time you connect, a bear will tunnel into a pipe and pop out in the country that you’re connecting to. I like a VPN with a distinct feel, and TunnelBear manages to have a fun design without sacrificing functionality or ease of use. It’s a well-organized app with clearly labeled settings and intuitive features.
(Credit: TunnelBear)
I’m giving the win here to TunnelBear. I’m impressed by the unique design choice and appreciate the effort the company has taken in making its apps beginner-friendly in both design and accessibility.
Winner: TunnelBear
Server Count and Locations: Proton Dominates in Scale and Coverage
Server counts can be nebulous, as these figures tend to change daily. At the time of writing, Proton has 18,602 servers operating in 129 countries. TunnelBear has a modest server network of approximately 8,000 in 45 countries.
Proton is the clear winner in both raw server numbers and country coverage. The smaller team at TunnelBear delivers impressive coverage given the infrastructure gap, but the win has to go to Proton.
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Winner: Proton
Speed and Performance: Proton Leads in Speed, TunnelBear in Latency
Proton reduced my download speeds by 20.11% and similarly reduced my upload speeds by 43.21%. However, I saw a significant impact on my latency score when connected to Proton’s network, with a 351.26% increase.
TunnelBear fared better in latency, with a 109.64% increase. It didn’t perform quite as well in download and upload speeds. Download speeds fell by 83.14%, and uploads were similarly impacted, with a 72.33% decrease.
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Neither VPN performed well enough to make my list of the fastest VPNs, so consider one of the options there if speed is your top priority. I test every VPN to see how it impacts my speed and latency, and you can view the full results in the chart below.
Proton beats TunnelBear in upload and download speeds, making it the winner of this category. Just keep in mind that your experience will vary based on your local connection, nearby server congestion, and other factors.
Winner: Proton
Streaming: Both VPNs Unlock Content Without a Hitch
I test whether or not a VPN can access Netflix’s library of content from five regions across the globe, including Australia, Canada, Japan, the UK, and the US. The full breakdown of my testing results can be found in the chart below:
Both services accessed all five catalogs without encountering any restrictions, so this category is a tie.
Winner: Tie
And The Winner Is…
While Proton and TunnelBear share many similarities—generous free plans, affordable premium tiers, and a strong commitment to privacy with yearly audits and clear policies—their differences ultimately set Proton apart as the overall winner. TunnelBear excels as a simple, standalone VPN with a modest server network, unlimited device connections, and a playful, intuitive design. Proton, however, goes further: It offers a much larger server network, superior performance, advanced options such as multi-hop connections, and a full suite of security and privacy tools—all for just a slightly higher monthly cost. For users seeking the most comprehensive VPN experience, Proton comes out on top.
