PureVPN Review 2024: Can You Trust This Low Cost VPN? (2024)

PureVPN is a highly-rated and affordable VPN, but its had its share of controversies. A past incident involving the FBI caused significant damage to its reputation. So, has it done enough to improve its policies since then?

To find out, I did a deep dive into its privacy policy and everything else it offers. I also tested its speeds, thoroughly explored its server network, examined its security features, and more.

After all my tests, I can recommend PureVPN, but not to everyone. On the plus side, its privacy policy is now one of the best around, especially due to its always-on audits. It’s also super secure. However, there are still a few areas where PureVPN needs to improve (namely its speeds and support). Until it does this, check out this list of the best VPNs available.

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PureVPN worked well on all the platforms my global team and I tested from our respective countries. The only minor issues we encountered were some brief load times.

While you can hypothetically use PureVPN to access platforms that aren’t available where you live, please be aware that this probably goes against their terms of service and breaks copyright laws.

Important. My team and I do not condone any form of copyright infringement. PureVPN states that it will never monitor your online activities. This means you’re responsible for how you choose to use it. We recommend you always adhere to the terms of service of any app, website, or service you engage with.

Works With: Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Max, and BBC iPlayer

My team of international testers and I could watch Netflix in several countries. Some VPNs restrict you to a limited version of Netflix with only the content it owns. So, I was impressed that PureVPN always let us stream our complete libraries.

Testers in the UK, Australia, Germany, and Canada could also enjoy their full libraries

Some testers did encounter longer load times (up to 12 seconds). However, I was impressed that videos loaded nearly instantly when I watched Disney+ from the US.

Even when I skipped around, I was never interrupted by any instances of buffering

Disney+ is great at detecting VPNs, which can stop you from streaming the library you pay to watch. So, I appreciate that PureVPN works with it so seamlessly, and I had similar luck with Hulu while testing it from the US.

The video only took a few seconds to resolve into full HD quality

I also had no issues streaming Amazon Prime Video and Max libraries from the US. The former HBO Max played perfectly, but I did have to wait about 10 seconds to load The Tomorrow War on Prime.

My colleague in the UK could also watch her BBC iPlayer account while connected to PureVPN’s Manchester server. Her video froze at first, but everything worked great once she reloaded it.

In addition, our global testers could stream 9Now, 10 Play, ITV, Channel 4, DAZN, Hotstar, YouTube TV, and Sling from their respective countries. Overall, PureVPN is still one of the best VPNs for streaming. I hate going online without a VPN, so it’s great that PureVPN can keep me safe without interfering with my streaming quality.

At any distance, PureVPN reduced our speeds much more than the top VPNs do.

Our UK expert records all our speed results from the same internet connection in the same location, so it’s easier to compare the different providers. She also performs at least 10 tests for every server to get accurate averages. All of her tests below were done with the WireGuard protocol since it was the fastest.

We lost 44% on average with nearby servers and 32% with distant ones

I know that PureVPN has undergone an update to improve its server speeds. This made it much faster in our last round of tests. Overcrowding can be a factor in reducing speeds. Unfortunately, PureVPN doesn’t give you access to this information.

It was also strange that many distant servers gave us faster speeds than nearby ones. For example, most VPNs reduce your speed by 10-20% on close servers, but PureVPN performed significantly worse.

A 29% speed reduction on the closest server is a pretty bad result

The top VPNs rarely lower our speeds by more than 50% on distant servers too. On the contrary, we lost 78% of our speed with a PureVPN server that was only 3,000 km away (in Estonia). Sadly, PureVPN isn’t as fast as it once was. To maintain the maximum speed while staying safe online, check out our list of the fastest VPNs available today.

I wasn’t able to enjoy online gaming while connected to PureVPN. The most important factor while you’re playing online is your ping results. This determines how quickly your system can respond to inputs. When it’s too high, your character can’t instantly comply with your button presses.

The game continually froze, and it felt like I was walking through mud

In our speed results, you could see that the closest server gave our tester a ping rate of 247ms. You want your ping to be under 85ms for smooth gameplay. These high ratings made it take longer than a full second for any of my inputs to be acknowledged during the game. Obviously, this made it impossible to enjoy.

While all VPNs make it tough to play online with distant servers, there are some that let you play without issues on nearby locations. You can find one of the best VPNs for gaming without lag in this list.

PureVPN offers a sizable network of 6,500 servers across 78 countries. While this is impressive, there are a few VPNs that outmatch it. For example, ExpressVPN and CyberGhost give you access to more countries. However, the servers are well-distributed around the world with locations on every major continent including Oceania and Africa.

Europe gets the most servers with 3,000+. The Americas are right behind it with over 2,200 servers. I also appreciate that you have the option to connect to a city-level location in just about every country it offers.

I also appreciate how transparent PureVPN is about its use of virtual servers. 24 of its locations are virtual, and they’re easy to spot within the app. These don’t pose a security risk, but they can affect your speed if they’re farther away than you expected.

The VPN reduced its virtual servers significantly after customers’ requested more physical locations

Its network has several additional features too. Domain Fronting theoretically lets you access more content by connecting you to alternate domain addresses that aren’t blocked. The same goes for its streaming shortcuts, which connect you to the servers it’s optimized for different platforms. Once again, we recommend only accessing what’s offered legally in your location.

You can also access dedicated IPs for an additional fee. These are great for hosting a website, allowlisting your IP, or setting up remote access to your device.

Along with all its other features, I’m very impressed that PureVPN owns all of its servers. This cuts out a middleman that could possibly create a privacy issue. All in all, PureVPN has one of the more substantial server networks available, and it’s tough to find a VPN that tops them overall in this category.

PureVPN keeps you safe with all the security features a top VPN should have. Most important is its AES-256 bit encryption level. This is the same encryption standard used by militaries and banks around the world because it’s nearly impossible to break.

It also protects you from WebRTC, IPv6, and DNS leaks as soon as you connect

PureVPN comes with a kill switch and access to the top protocols. Split tunneling lets you choose which apps and websites are routed through the VPN tunnel. This is useful if you want to access a banking app, while the rest of your connection remains encrypted. Unfortunately, this is only offered with the Windows, Android, and Mac apps for now.

Some features are only available as add-ons, particularly DDoS protection and its PureKeep password manager. DDoS protection is important to look into if you’re an avid gamer, and it can block illegitimate traffic on e-commerce stores, or for your business.

PureDome is its business VPN that offers some alternative features. For example, there’s an admin dashboard where you can control access to dedicated IPs that up to 30 team members can use. It also offers remote access, and the admin can adjust authentication options to verify identities.

PureEncrypt lets you store and distribute your files safely. In addition to adding encryption to your files, it lets you set up passwords so only the parties you approve of can access them. It’s currently only available for Mac and Windows devices.

The only major features it’s missing are an ad-blocker and double VPN. However, the latter isn’t really necessary with the level of encryption PureVPN offers.

Protocols

There are 3 main protocols you can access, while others are available through manual set-ups:

• WireGuard. This is generally the fastest protocol, and it’s also super secure. It’s one of the most popular, and thankfully, it’s now available with every native app. The one drawback is PureVPN doesn’t allow you to use split tunneling while connected to this protocol.
• OpenVPN. This is the gold standard for security because it’s open source. That means it’s being tested for vulnerabilities by cybersecurity enthusiasts around the world at all times. You can opt for the UDP version for faster speeds, or TCP for added security. You can also connect to this protocol to access PureVPN’s obfuscation feature, which hides your VPN use.
• IKEv2. This is an older protocol known for its versatility. It’s lightweight, so it can be effective for mobile devices, which continually connect and disconnect from different networks. It’s also slightly faster than OpenVPN, but slower than WireGuard.

The protocol is set to automatic by default. This will choose a protocol for you based on the situation. The manual protocols include PPTP, SSTP, IPSEC, and L2TP.

Quantum-Resistant Encryption Keys

This new feature should be able to protect you from cyber criminals when they get access to quantum technology. It’s now available in 20+ servers, and its compatibility continues to grow. However, be aware that the protocol must be set to automatic for it to work.

I’m very happy PureVPN has implemented this technology. Hackers are always looking for new ways to access your data, and I’m confident this technology will be extremely useful for keeping you safe in the near future.

Kill Switch

Last but not least, the kill switch can make sure you never go online without encryption. This is a necessary feature that every VPN needs to have. It blocks your internet connection if the VPN suddenly disconnects.

There have been controversies in the past, but PureVPN has done a ton to become an extremely privacy-friendly service. Specifically, in 2017, the company came under fire after it cooperated with an FBI investigation. The VPN traced 2 of the criminal’s email accounts through its logs, and connected them to a common IP address.

But, it listened to its customers and revamped its policies. It now keeps zero identifiable logs, and it has gone through extensive independent audits. The service also keeps its headquarters in an ideal location. If its past still troubles you, I understand. However, I’m now quite confident it won’t compromise your privacy.

Does PureVPN Keep Logs? No

PureVPN stores a little more than I’d prefer, but it’s all anonymized information that can’t be linked to you. It does keep track of the bandwidth you use, the day you connect, the server location and city, and for how long you’re connected.

It claims to only collect this anonymized data so that it can maintain its services

The most important thing is that it doesn't store your IP address or online activities. I also like that it doesn’t record session timestamps, the VPN servers’ IP, or DNS requests. Like nearly every VPN, it does require an email address, name, and payment method at sign up.

Was PureVPN Audited? Yes

PureVPN has been audited by 2 high profile auditing companies. Its systems were analyzed by Altius IT, which stated that there’s no way PureVPN can identify specific customers.

What’s most impressive is that PureVPN has an always-on contract with KPMG (one of the largest auditing firms). This means the company can audit PureVPN at any time. Every time KPMG has explored its policies, it's found that PureVPN strictly follows them. I also like that the VPN releases semi-annual transparency reports.

The only small issue is I wish the full audits were made publicly available. Many VPNs allow you to read through complete reports, but this is a minor quibble.

Based in British Virgin Islands

While PureVPN used to be located in Hong Kong, it moved its headquarters to the BVI in 2021. Neither location is within the 5/9/14-Eyes Alliance.

The 5/9/14 Eyes Alliance is an agreement between countries to share their citizens' data. I always prefer it when a VPN keeps its headquarters out of their reach because they can potentially demand a company change its policies.

Does PureVPN Work in China? Yes

The company claims that you can use PureVPN in China.

It recommends using OpenVPN UDP or the WireGuard protocol within the country

The Chinese government has banned several VPNs. However, it’s not common for it to go after VPN users. Still, I recommend you read up on the laws and regulations before you decide to use a VPN in the country. My team and I don’t condone any illegal activities.

PureVPN officially allows you to torrent with 35+ optimized servers. However, I was also able to torrent with undesignated servers as well. Both gave me solid speeds.

I was impressed that I could torrent faster while connected to PureVPN than I could with no VPN connection. Downloading a 700MB file with my base connection would have taken about 25 minutes at the time of my tests. With an optimized German server, it would have taken only 16 minutes. I could also complete it in 23 minutes with the non-optimized Houston server.

PureVPN also supports port forwarding for faster speeds, but only as a paid add-on. That could be a little disappointing because many VPNs offer this for free, but PureVPN’s torrenting rates are great, so it doesn’t bother me.

While torrenting is legal in most countries, downloading copyrighted files isn’t. We recommend that you only access files in the public domain.