The internet, and all of its derivatives (aka, apps) are helping make life incredibly easy and a lot more entertaining. There are plenty of ways to scroll, browse, click, and do, on the world wide web, but not all of it is safe so you need to protect your habits when online.
A great tool to do so with is a VPN, which stands for virtual private network. Essentially, a VPN can help bounce signals from different locations or servers to help keep your connections anonymous from hackers or prying eyes. Choosing a VPN has never been easier, but here are some helpful tips to guide your choice anyways.
1. Data Limits
Just like finding a phone or ISP plan, you want to know how much bang you get for your buck. Data limits are unfortunately a thing for many VPNs, but great VPN services can offer unlimited data limits so you can protect your activity at all times. So if you wanted to ask the question of, Is NordVPN good, then you would definitely need to consider what data caps there might be. If you only need it for low-intensity uses, then a cap might not be a bad idea, but for downloading and streaming, you want no caps on your data.
2. Region Support
Not every VPN service can support each country, so you really need to do your due diligence and check what services are available where. Many countries (U.S, U.K, Canada, Germany, Australia, Japan, India, France, etc.) are covered because they are high traffic areas but it gets tricky after that. You wouldn’t want to sign up for one only to find out that it isn’t supported. There are many free options but they won’t cover many of the world’s regions for VPN service. Always check their sites list of where is and isn’t covered.
3. Subscription Cost
Nothing great is free, which isn’t always true, and even for VPNs it isn’t necessarily true either. A great VPN can be free or it can cost a monthly subscription. Be warned that using free VPNs usually lacks the features that a paid one would have. The biggest issue with free VPN accounts is that they lack unlimited data use, they can’t do everything you need from a VPN (torrenting), and they may be region locked. Most subscriptions cost under $10 a month, which can help you out for a relatively low cost anyways.
4. VPN Uses
What you are using your VPN for matters as well. Some people like to use it to simply protect themselves while browsing the internet or doing online banking on their networks. This is fine and a basic function of any good VPN, even free ones, but some people need more hardcore protection for more features. If you like torrenting (we won’t tattle) or need multiple connections at once, then you need a service that has no data cap and allows those services to work with their networks. Finding a good VPN should always include more than just the bare minimum.
5. Ease of Use
There is also a need for a good user interface when you sign up for a VPN service. For some of the hardcore computer nerds out there, there isn’t much of a need to care for the interface as long as it works but if you’re more of a person who needs it for work or mild activities, you might want to find one that is more suitable for your skill level. Thankfully, many of the VPN services out there offer really slick desktop application design as well as web services that are extremely easy to handle. This makes it more enjoyable all around for anyone who needs good security.
6. Compatibility Options
The final piece of the puzzle for your guide to finding the right VPN ends with the compatibility. This is another feature that may not be on your radar if you are only using a VPN in a fixed location (home or the office), but it may be important if you’re using multiple devices. Things like Android, iOS, Mac, Windows, etc. are the main operating systems of phones and computers, so you need a VPN that can work across multiple devices and offers mobile support for on-the-go protection for vulnerable public networks.
As you can see, it doesn’t take much to find a good VPN, but hammering down on these features or options are what you need to keep a close eye out when looking for a good service.
