VPN Showdown: The 6 Heavyweights Dominating Digital Privacy in 2025
Privacy isn’t dead—it’s just hiding behind these market-leading VPNs. Here’s who’s winning the arms race against surveillance capitalism (and yes, we see you, BlackRock-backed ’anonymous’ providers).
The Speed Demon: NordVPN slashes latency by 67% with its proprietary NordLynx protocol—streaming 8K without buffering just got real.
The Censorship Killer: ExpressVPN bypasses China’s Great Firewall so reliably, local regulators are allegedly buying subscriptions to study it.
The Crypto Favorite: Mullvad now accepts Monero payments—because nothing says ’privacy’ like untraceable cryptocurrency (take notes, CBDC architects).
The Budget Powerhouse: Surfshark undercuts rivals at $2.49/month while maintaining zero-log audits—proving privacy doesn’t require VC funding at 100x multiples.
The Open-Source Purist: ProtonVPN’s audited codebase attracts Snowden-endorsed paranoiacs and actual cybersecurity experts (not just TikTok influencers).
The Dark Horse: IVPN’s radical transparency reports show exactly how many government data requests they’ve ignored—spoiler: it’s all of them.
Choose your fighter. Just remember: in 2025, your VPN selection says more about your threat model than your Netflix queue.
1. NordVPN
NordVPN is one of the most popular VPN options out there. The platform has more than 7300 servers and deploys a privacy-focused approach in a user-friendly interface. NordVPN has a Threat Protection Pro feature that ensures security and blocks any malware downloads, along with a private DNS that helps with IP address leakage. The online traffic is encrypted with 256-bit AES or ChaCha20, depending on the protocol used.
It also has an effective kill switch along with a double VPN option, and it does not slow down the connection. Users can easily unblock streaming platforms for a smooth viewing experience. NordVPN offers 2 fast and reliable VPN protocols, namely, OpenVPN and NordLynx. While OpenVPN has a robust encryption that can be useful for privacy-sensitive tasks, NordLynx is more lightweight and faster than the others, but it doesn’t fail to maintain a strong security protocol.
2. ExpressVPN
ExpressVPN is another fan favorite with over 3000 servers in 106 countries. It is one of the most user-friendly platforms with an easy one-touch interface. Its focus on user accessibility makes it one of the most straightforward and sought-after options, especially for people who are not tech-savvy.
Apart from the standard split tunneling and Network Lock, it also has additional privacy features, which are bundled together on the long-term packages. These include a password manager, an ad tracker and malware blocker, personal data leak monitoring, ID theft insurance, and data broker removal.
3. Proton VPN
Proton VPN is one of the best open-sourced free VPNs on the market. The platform provides a private and secure connection without any data or speed limits. It also has a no-logs policy, a kill switch, and offers access to websites that are blocked in your region. On the free version, users can connect to servers in 5 different countries that are randomly selected on any 1 device of their choice at a time.
The platform does have a paid version that offers premium features such as access to over 12000 VPN servers in more than 110 countries, faster upload speeds, priority support, and live chat. Additionally, the premium version also provides access to all Proton products such as Proton Mail, Proton Calendar, Proton Pass, and Proton Drive.
4. Surfshark
Surfshark offers one of the best bundles in the market with not only a VPN but also one of the best antivirus software. The Surfshark One bundle also has a feature called Incogni, which is a data removal service to keep your information off search sites.
The platform has a network of 3200 servers across 100 different countries, and one of the most distinguishing features is a dynamic multihop, which lets users tunnel through any 2 server locations for an added LAYER of privacy and security. It also has a Rotating IP feature that switches your IP address every few minutes, making it harder to be tracked online.
5. PrivadoVPN
PrivadoVPN is another option in the space that can be useful for those who are looking for a VPN without having to pay a heavy price. Users can easily download the VPN apps to the device of their choice and sign up to get 10 GB of free data usage every 30 days. They get access to 13 global servers along with one of the strongest VPN protocols available.
Users can manually select the server of their choice in the free version, and it does not impose any speed limits on browsing. PrivadoVPN also has zero-log activity, meaning that it never logs the activity of its users, along with a 256-bit AES encryption for maximum security.
6. Hotspot Shield
Another free VPN option in the space is Hotspot Shield. The free version is great for desktop users with unlimited data and speeds. The server limit is set to 3 countries (US, UK, and Singapore) on the free version. The free version on mobile has a maximum speed of 1 Mbps, and users can add more time to their private browsing by watching ads.
Hotspot Shield only allows users to connect one device at a time to their VPN, but offers a lightweight, performance-enhanced protocol called Hydra. This protocol is especially useful when trying to get around VPN blockers deployed by streaming services.
VPNs reinforce the idea of privacy and security of data in times of growing online surveillance and data breaches. With the rise in remote work and public Wi-Fi usage, it is important to choose the right VPN for your browsing experience.
Disclaimer. Readers are encouraged to do their own research. Ambcrypto is not liable for any outcomes related to the use of information, products, or services mentioned. This content may include affiliate or partner links.
