Country brief · Updated August 13, 2026
Using a VPN in Saudi Arabia
A VPN is not itself banned, but anti-cybercrime legislation penalises using one in the course of accessing prohibited material or services.
Legal, with restrictions on use
What actually matters here
A provider incorporated outside the region with no local licensing obligation.
Most country pages on the web recycle the same global ranking with a place name attached. This one filters on the capability that the situation in Saudi Arabia actually calls for, which is why 7 of our 11 providers qualify rather than all of them.
Highest-scoring provider that meets it: Proton VPN, 90.0/100.
Visit Proton VPNWe earn a commission if you subscribe through this link. It does not change Proton VPN’s score.
The legal position
Cybercrime legislation covers unauthorised access and circumvention in the commission of an offence. As in the UAE, legality turns on use rather than on the tool.
This is a summary of publicly reported regulation, not legal advice. Rules in this area change without much notice and enforcement varies. If the consequences of getting it wrong are serious for you, check the current position locally.
What the network does
Centralised filtering covers a defined category list. VPN protocols are generally reachable, and provider websites are sometimes blocked.
Retention and logging
Licensed operators are subject to regulatory access requirements.
Providers that meet the requirement
| # | Provider | Based in | Protocols | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proton VPN | Switzerland | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2, Stealth | 90.0 |
| 2 | NordVPN | Panama | NordLynx (WireGuard), OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 84.0 |
| 3 | IVPN Unpaid | Gibraltar | WireGuard, OpenVPN | 82.5 |
| 4 | ExpressVPN Unpaid | British Virgin Islands | Lightway, OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 74.0 |
| 5 | CyberGhost Unpaid | Romania | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 70.0 |
| 6 | PureVPN | British Virgin Islands | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 69.0 |
| 7 | FastestVPN | Cayman Islands | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IKEv2 | 48.0 |
Sources
Questions
- Is using a VPN legal in Saudi Arabia?
- Legal, with restrictions on use. Cybercrime legislation covers unauthorised access and circumvention in the commission of an offence. As in the UAE, legality turns on use rather than on the tool.
- Which VPN works best in Saudi Arabia?
- Proton VPN on the requirement that matters here: a provider incorporated outside the region with no local licensing obligation. 7 of 11 providers in our dataset meet it.
- Does the network block VPN traffic in Saudi Arabia?
- Centralised filtering covers a defined category list. VPN protocols are generally reachable, and provider websites are sometimes blocked.
- Are there logging or retention rules that affect me in Saudi Arabia?
- Licensed operators are subject to regulatory access requirements.