With so many iPhone VPN apps available, it can be difficult to choose the right one. Based on our extensive research and hands-on testing of VPNs over the years, these are the factors to look out for when choosing the best VPN for iPhone:

Privacy

The most important factor to consider with any VPN is privacy. You should never use a VPN provider if you can’t trust that it’s taking your privacy seriously, even if you have nothing to hide. Every VPN worth its salt should provide AES 256-bit or ChaCha20 encryption, depending on the VPN protocol you’re using.

Your VPN should also have basic privacy features such as a kill switch, DNS leak protection and a solid no-logs policy that is regularly audited. We recommend checking any provider’s privacy policy and reading its audit reports closely, as it’ll give you a good understanding of whether a VPN provider is serious about your privacy. If you notice a mention of data collection or sharing practices in a VPN’s privacy policy that don’t sit well with you, then it’s best to trust your gut and look for a different provider.

If your privacy needs are critical, then you’ll need to look for a provider that goes above and beyond the standard privacy considerations. Your VPN should be based in a jurisdiction that has strong privacy laws that don’t mandate data retention or logging. Choosing a provider that offers obfuscation is also necessary if you’re in a region or network that restricts or bans VPN use outright because it can help hide the fact that you’re using a VPN in the first place.

Many of the best VPNs are also rolling out post-quantum protections that help protect against potential future threats from quantum computers, which is essential for privacy-critical users now and in the future. Finally, your provider should offer either a RAM-only server infrastructure or employ full-disk encryption on its hard drives, both of which can help ensure that your data remains secure. There are also some other privacy features that aren’t as vital but still useful, such as ad-blockers, Tor over VPN and multihop connections. 

Speed

Your VPN’s connection speeds can have a major influence on the quality of your streaming, downloading, video conferencing, gaming and general web-browsing activities. All VPNs slow down your internet somewhat, simply by nature of encrypting your traffic and routing it through one or more remote servers. To keep things running as smoothly as possible, you’ll want a VPN that will have as minimal an impact on your regular internet speeds as possible. Generally, we’ve found that the best VPNs for iPhone only drop your internet download speed by an average of 25% or less. In our testing, we’ve seen as low as an average 3% speed loss. For bandwidth-demanding applications like competitive gaming or video streaming, you’ll want a fast VPN.

Usability

A good VPN for iPhone should run smoothly and be easy to use, regardless of your technical expertise. It should have all of the features you need easily accessible with a tap of your finger. Many of the best iPhone VPN apps also include an easy way to get in touch with support directly from the device, which can be helpful if you need assistance on the go. Basically, your VPN app should be as easy for you to use as your iPhone itself. It should have a large network of servers around the world so you can connect easily and reliably from wherever you may be traveling and be able to help you access geo-restricted content from various regions. 

Server network

Think about the cities, states and countries you travel to the most, or want to make it look like you’re connecting from. Most of our top-rated VPNs feature thousands of servers in 100-plus countries. Large server networks benefit travel, since you can find a server near where you are for a fast, reliable connection — usually, the closer you are physically to a VPN server, the less speed loss you’ll experience. Additionally, a generous VPN server network is great for unblocking streaming content, since you’ve got a better chance of finding servers in countries you need to make it look like you’re in. Plus, more servers may help maintain better internet speeds, because servers overloaded with users may slow down.

Alongside the total number of servers and countries, think about specialty servers. Some VPN providers, including ExpressVPN, let you torrent on any servers, whereas other VPN providers, like NordVPN and Proton VPN, have P2P servers optimized for peer-to-peer file-sharing.

Certain VPN providers offer servers with beefed-up privacy. For instance, you might find a double VPN, or multihop, VPN servers that feature a second VPN connection to make it even more difficult to trace your web traffic back to you. Likewise, some VPN companies have Tor over VPN, or Onion over VPN servers, which tout similar benefits, with the main difference being that multihop relies on a pair of VPN connections, while onion VPN uses a combination of Tor and a VPN connection simultaneously.

Streaming content unblocking

Because VPNs route your web traffic through a remote VPN server and change your IP address, apps you use and websites you visit will register your connection as originating from a different location. For instance, if you’re in New York City but connected to a VPN server in the UK, apps like Netflix will think you’re across the pond. Many streaming services, like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max, BBC iPlayer and CBC Gem, rely on your IP address to load content. Depending on your IP address, which contains general geographical information, the content library might vary a lot or you may not be able to access anything at all. But with a VPN, you can bypass regional restrictions to unblock content on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and other services. Using a VPN for streaming could even help you save money.

Cost

Depending on your budget, you may want to take into account the cost and overall value of your iPhone VPN before making a purchase. VPN pricing can vary greatly from provider to provider but you can typically expect to spend about $5 to $15 per month for a monthly VPN subscription plan. If you want to save some money, you can choose an annual subscription, where prices can range from roughly $30 to $100 or more per year.

You’ll want to be careful with free VPNs because you may end up risking your privacy instead of protecting it. Many free VPNs have slow speeds or have unreliable connections that frequently drop because of overloaded servers. Some even actively degrade your privacy, logging any internet activity through the VPN for sale to third parties or injecting ads into your browsing sessions. Proton VPN is currently the only free VPN that CNET recommends.

Most premium VPNs offer a money-back guarantee anywhere from a week to 45 days. You can also get a seven-day free trial with many VPNs when you sign up through Apple’s App Store, so you have options to try various iPhone VPNs risk-free before you decide whether to fully invest in one. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to save money on your VPN subscription.

Device support

While you’ll want a VPN for iPhone that works well on iOS, you may have other devices that you want to run a VPN on. Many VPNs work on Windows, MacOS, Linux PCs and Android devices. While Android TV and Fire TV apps are common for use on streaming devices, Apple TV apps are still on the rise. Providers like NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Proton VPN, Surfshark, PIA and IPVanish offer Apple TV VPN apps. (Disclosure: IPVanish is owned by the same parent company as CNET, Ziff Davis.) Think about the devices you want to install a VPN app on and make sure your desired VPN provider supports those gadgets.