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- The Best Free VPN Extensions for Chrome
- Best VPN for Chrome: Free vs. Premium
Are you thinking about using a free VPN for Chrome? There are many Chrome VPN extensions to choose from, so you need to be sure you've picked the best VPN for your needs—and we've uncovered some of the best options.
The Best Free VPN Extensions for Chrome
There are heaps of Chrome VPN extensions, each offering the world and using the same marketing language. It doesn't make it easy to figure out which VPN actually protects your privacy over those that are security smoke and mirrors.
Here's our pick of the ten best free VPN Chrome extensions.
1. Browsec VPN
- Number of free servers: 4
- Server locations: UK, USA, Singapore, Netherlands
- Data cap: No limit
The big selling point of Browsec VPN is its connection speed. It offers up to 100 Mbps, which is far in excess of many other Chrome Store VPNs.
On the downside, Browsec is based in Russia. It's a country that's not known for its tolerant attitude to VPNs, and the company will give up your data if requested by the government. The service also only offers four locations: The Netherlands, Singapore, the US, and the UK.
In addition to the Browsec for Chrome extension, you can also use the VPN on Android and iOS.
Download: Browsec for Chrome (Free)
2. CyberGhost
- Number of free servers: 4
- Server locations: Romania, Germany, Netherlands, USA
- Data cap: No limit
CyberGhost's free Chrome VPN is incredibly easy to use. Once you've downloaded the extension, simply click on it in your Chrome extension bar, choose one of the four locations offered, hit the connect button, and you're all done!
This extension has unlimited browsing with no pesky monthly or weekly data caps. However, the free CyberGhost extension has a very limited selection of servers and doesn't offer any additional features, but it is a great choice for those who want quick, basic protection when using Chrome.
CyberGhost doesn't require you to create an account to use its Chrome extension, making things even more quick and convenient for you.
3. ZenMate for Chrome
- Number of free servers: 4
- Server locations: Germany, Singapore, Romania, USA
- Data cap: No limit
ZenMate Free will encrypt all your browser's traffic using AES-128 and allows you to spoof a virtual location. Free users also get access to the VPN "Smart Price" feature. It provides shopping recommendations based on the lowest prices for items you want.
ZenMate also has full-featured apps for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS.
Download: ZenMate for Chrome (Free)
4. Betternet Chrome
- Number of free servers: 1
- Server locations: USA
- Data cap: No limit
Betternet Chrome does not keep logs, and unlike many free Chrome VPNs, it is not ad-supported. But don't worry; you are not the product. Betternet makes its money by showing videos.
We think Betternet Chrome is a great option for people with little experience using VPNs. The Chrome extension's interface is a straightforward on/off toggle, though you may find the single server location very limiting.
Download: Betternet Chrome (Free)
5. VeePN
- Number of servers: 6
- Server locations: UK, USA, Netherlands, Singapore, France, Russia
- Data cap: No limit
VeePN's free Chrome extension is a well-rounded option that offers six different server locations and no data cap, meaning you can browse as much as you want while staying protected. VeePN uses AES-256 encryption to protect your browser traffic and boasts impressive speeds.
Download: VeePN (Free)
6. Hotspot Shield Chrome
- Number of free servers: 1
- Server locations: USA
- Data cap: 250MB per day
Hotspot Shield Chrome is another of the best free VPNs for Chrome that offers AES-256 encryption for your browser traffic. Like DotVPN, the VPN add-on offers unlimited bandwidth.
Hotspot Shield Chrome also regularly rolls out new features, including ad-blocking, tracker blocking, cookie blocking, and anti-malware protection.
Download: Hotspot Shield Chrome (Free)
7. TunnelBear VPN
- Number of free servers: 44
- Server locations: USA, UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, Greece, Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, Norway, Czech Republic, Ireland, Finland, Spain, Denmark, Moldova, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Belgium, Sweden, Serbia, Romania, Portugal, Argentina, Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Brazil, South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, The Philippines, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, Indonesia.
- Data cap: 2GB per month
TunnelBear already offers a great free VPN app, and its free Google Chrome VPN extension is similarly good. The TunnelBear Chrome extension provides users with an AES-256 encrypted proxy and offers 44 different server locations, though these are only countries, not cities.
Keep in mind, however, that TunnelBear's free VPN for Chrome will only encrypt your browsing traffic. It does not encrypt other traffic on your machine. For that, you need to upgrade to the paid version of the VPN. Note that you also need to create an account to use the TunnelBear Chrome extension.
Download: TunnelBear VPN (Free)
8. Hoxx VPN
- Number of free servers: 5
- Server locations: USA, UK, Netherlands, Japan, France
- Data cap: No data limit, but a 30-minute cap per server location connection for free users.
Hoxx VPN is another good free VPN Chrome extension, offering its users five different server locations from around the world. The caveat is that each server location has a 30-minute connection cap for each user instead of a data cap.
Download: Hoxx VPN (Free)
9. SetupVPN
- Number of free servers: 5
- Server locations: UK, USA, Sweden, Canada, Switzerland
- Data cap: no cap, but a 30-minute time limit connected to each server for free users.
The next VPN on Google Chrome worth considering is SetupVPN. The free version of the SetupVPN Chrome extension offers five server locations but only allows 30 minutes per server location for free users.
SetupVPN for Chrome will encrypt all your browser's traffic with RSA 4096-bit military-grade security.
Download: SetupVPN (Free)
10. Windscribe
- Number of free servers: 30
- Server locations: US East (New York, Chicago, Miami, Washington DC), Central US (Atlanta, Dallas), US West (LA, Seattle), Canada (Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver), UK (London), Germany (Frankfurt Castle, Frankfurt Wurstchen), France (Paris Seine, Paris Jardin), Norway (Oslo), Romania (Bucharest), Netherlands (Amsterdam Tulip, Amsterdam Canal, Amsterdam Red Light), Switzerland (Zurich Alphorn, Zurich Lindenhof), Turkey (Istanbul), Hong Kong.
- Data cap: 2GB without email verification, 10GB with email verification.
Windscribe has built its reputation as a fast, secure, and reliable paid VPN provider, but the company also offers one of the best VPN extensions for Chrome.
It will block ads and trackers and let you access blocked content. It also offers additional privacy features like WebRTC blocking, API spoofing, time zone spoofing, and notification blocking.
Free VPN servers are available in more than 30 countries. You can see the specific cities listed above. Any server locations with a star symbol next to them are reserved for premium users only.
Download: Windscribe (Free)
Best VPN for Chrome: Free vs. Premium
With all VPNs, you get what you pay for. So, how do free and paid VPNs generally differ?
Most free VPNs are not comparable to a premium VPN service in terms of quality, speed, or security. For example, many free VPN services only offer the PPTP protocol. PPTP is not as robust as other VPN protocols such as L2TP/IPSEC, OpenVPN, SSTP, or SSH—most of which are offered by the leading paid services.
You also need to consider browsing speed. VPN servers are expensive to run and manage. If you're on a free service, it's likely to be overloaded with other users. Premium providers reinvest in servers and bandwidth to improve services, connection speed, and more.
There are also other things to think about. Can you expect reliable support from a free provider? Is the uptime close to 100 percent? And most importantly, why is the service free? Remember the old adage: if you're not paying, you're the product.
Remember, the following VPNs are for Chrome. If you want a full VPN subscription for any device, check our guide to the best VPN services.
