We test VPNs to destruction, then publish every number.
4,218 speed tests across 312 servers. 40 forced disconnects per provider to see whose kill switch actually holds. No provider pays for placement, and every figure here ships with the server, the hour and the baseline it was measured against.
Three VPNs came out ahead this cycle
Out of 47 providers in rotation, these three scored highest on the weighted average of speed, security, streaming, privacy, support and value. Full breakdowns and the other seven are on the rankings page.
Proton VPN
Open-source clients, Swiss jurisdiction, and the speed to match
NordVPN
The quickest short-hop tunnel we measured this cycle
CyberGhost
Streaming-optimised servers that hold up under testing
What every provider goes through
A review does not go live until all six suites are complete and a second tester has reproduced the speed numbers on an independent line.
Speed, four ways
Every provider gets 90+ iperf3 runs across nearby, mid-range and long-haul servers, plus a separate 5G mobile pass. We report medians, never best-case peaks.
Leak and kill-switch audit
DNS, IPv6 and WebRTC leak checks on three operating systems, then 40 forced network drops per provider to see whether the kill switch actually holds.
Streaming, 36 servers deep
Six platforms, six servers each, three minutes of real playback per test. Anything that needs a "streaming optimised" server to work is recorded as a fail.
Privacy paperwork review
We read the audits — the full reports, not the summary pages — plus the logging policy, the jurisdiction, and who ultimately owns the company.
Torrent and P2P load
Sustained multi-hour transfers to check for throttling, plus port-forwarding verification and a SOCKS5 fallback test where one is offered.
Censorship simulation
Four restrictive network scenarios built in the lab — DPI filtering, port blocking, SNI inspection and a captive portal — run against every obfuscation mode.
The test that actually separates them
Short hops cluster — eight of our top ten held above 75% of baseline nearby, which makes that test nearly useless for ranking. Push the tunnel from Frankfurt to Sydney and the field spreads out immediately.
Frankfurt → Sydney · 16,500 km
baseline 942median of 5 runs per server · WireGuard
Streaming results, July 2026
Six platforms, 36 servers per provider, three minutes of real playback each. A pass means full resolution with no proxy error on a normal server — not just the ones the app labels "streaming optimised".
| VPN | Netflix | Disney+ | BBC iPlayer | Prime Video | Hulu | DAZN | Passed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PRProton VPN | 5/6 | ||||||
| NVNordVPN | 6/6 | ||||||
| CGCyberGhost | 6/6 | ||||||
| SSSurfshark | 5/6 | ||||||
| HMhide.me VPN | 4/6 | ||||||
| EVExpressVPN | 6/6 | ||||||
| PVPrivateVPN | 5/6 | ||||||
| IPIPVanish | 3/6 | ||||||
| IAPrivate Internet Access | 3/6 | ||||||
| MVMullvad | 0/6 |
Latest research
NordVPN vs Proton VPN: we tested both for 120 hours — here is which one to buy
One is faster on a short hop. The other is faster across the world and easier to verify. After 120 combined lab hours, here is the honest split.
We ran 4,218 VPN speed tests in 30 days. Here is what actually slows you down.
Protocol choice matters less than you think. Server load matters far more. We broke down every variable in our July test cycle to find out where the megabits actually go.
How this site works
Affiliate commissions. When a reader buys through one of our links, the provider pays us a percentage. The important part is the order of operations: scores are calculated from the test spreadsheet before anyone on the team looks at commission rates, and the two highest-paying programmes in our list currently sit at rank 7 and rank 9.
Get the results before the rankings update
One email per cycle with the raw findings, what changed since last time, and which provider quietly got worse. No affiliate links in the newsletter.