How many providers qualify for this list?

1 of the 4 providers we cover. NordVPN and PureVPN and FastestVPN do not, and the specific requirement they miss is stated rather than quietly dropped.

What does this ranking deliberately ignore?

This shortlist ignores server locations available on the free tier, which change often. Everything it does weigh is stated in the rule above the table, so you can tell whether the filter matches your own requirement.

How is the order on this page decided?

Only providers with a free tier and at least one published audit. Ordered by audit and transparency scores. The overall score shown alongside is the weighted total from our published rubric, which is a separate calculation covering all seven criteria.

1 of 4 qualify · Updated August 13, 2026

Free VPN tiers worth using

Is there a free VPN that is not selling my traffic?

Proton VPN, and it is the only one of the four we cover with a free tier at all. It has no data cap, is funded by paying subscribers rather than advertising, and runs on infrastructure covered by the same five consecutive Securitum audits as the paid plans.

Most free VPNs are funded by the thing you are trying to avoid: advertising, data sale, or an unclear third party. A free tier is only worth listing when the company has a paying business that funds it and a published audit covering the same infrastructure. That leaves exactly one provider here, and this page lists one rather than padding the count.

The rule for this page. Only providers with a free tier and at least one published audit. Ordered by audit and transparency scores.

Providers that qualify, ordered by the rule above
#	Provider	Deciding fact	Independent audit	Overall
1	Proton VPN	Free tier with no data cap, funded by paid subscriptions	10/10	90.0

Top of this list

Proton VPN

Free tier with no data cap, funded by paid subscriptions. The best-documented security stack of the four, and the only one you can test properly without paying.

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Why these, in this order

1. Proton VPN

90.0

Free tier with no data cap, funded by paid subscriptions. The best-documented security stack of the four, and the only one you can test properly without paying.

Against it: Refunds are prorated against usage, not returned in full.

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What did not qualify, and why

Excluded providers are named rather than omitted. If one of them is the VPN you already pay for, this tells you exactly which requirement it misses.

Provider	Why it is not on this list
NordVPN	No free tier.
PureVPN	No free tier.
FastestVPN	No free tier.

Questions

Is there a free VPN that is not selling my traffic?: Proton VPN, and it is the only one of the four we cover with a free tier at all. It has no data cap, is funded by paying subscribers rather than advertising, and runs on infrastructure covered by the same five consecutive Securitum audits as the paid plans.
How many providers qualify for this list?: 1 of the 4 providers we cover. NordVPN and PureVPN and FastestVPN do not, and the specific requirement they miss is stated rather than quietly dropped.
What does this ranking deliberately ignore?: This shortlist ignores server locations available on the free tier, which change often. Everything it does weigh is stated in the rule above the table, so you can tell whether the filter matches your own requirement.
How is the order on this page decided?: Only providers with a free tier and at least one published audit. Ordered by audit and transparency scores. The overall score shown alongside is the weighted total from our published rubric, which is a separate calculation covering all seven criteria.

Before you pick from this list

A shortlist answers one requirement. These cover the decisions that come before it, and the things a VPN will not do for you whichever one you choose.