Choosing the Best VPN for Torrenting

Table of Contents

• So, Why a VPN for Torrenting?
• The Essentials
• Recommended VPNs for Torrenting
  • ExpressVPN
  • NordVPN
  • PrivateVPN
  • IPVanish
  • Private Internet Access
• Conclusion

With so many VPN services available on the market today, it might be difficult to find the right one for safe torrenting on your device. There’s plenty of great (and not-so-great) options out there. They may appear to be similar, but the reality is that not all VPNs are created equal. Find out what separates the best from the rest in the sections below.

So, Why a VPN for Torrenting?

The two biggest reasons to get a VPN for torrenting are to: a) prevent other users on the P2P network from seeing your IP address, and b) hide your internet activities from your ISP.

Anyone familiar with torrents has probably observed that whenever you start downloading or uploading a file on the P2P network, your IP address becomes clearly visible on the peer list. You wouldn’t hand out information like where you live to strangers, so why expose your internet address to the same risk?

Also, depending on where you live, some ISPs may not be very keen on letting you access P2P services. These networks are difficult to regulate, and some ISPs simply block access to them entirely. They may also report users who use P2P networks to the appropriate authorities. A VPN lets you get around those hurdles by encrypting your internet sessions so that your ISP would have no idea what you’re up to.

The Essentials

The following criteria should serve as your checklist of essential features when selecting the best VPN for torrenting. These are must-haves that any VPN worth your money should have.

1. P2P Capable: Some VPN providers don’t openly support P2P protocols while using their servers. If you’re looking for a VPN, make sure their service allows for torrenting and other file-sharing activities.
2. Top Speeds: When it comes to downloading and uploading torrents, the ability to maintain high speeds is one of the most important things to look for in a VPN. This might sound obvious, but don’t forget that using a VPN will almost always have a negative effect on your internet speeds. You want to find a service that minimizes such performance loss.
3. Unlimited Bandwidth: Typically, you’d want a VPN that doesn’t impose any restricting data caps on your internet traffic. This is especially true for torrent-heavy users since software files and HD multimedia can contain many megabytes (or gigabytes) of data.
4. Strong Security: Any VPN worth considering should be protected by top-grade security and encryption. If you’d like to keep you data streams safe from prying eyes, find a VPN that makes use of nothing less than the industry standard AES 256-bit encryption.
5. No Logging: Look for a VPN that adopt a zero logs policy. This is an essential feature which signifies that no records of your internet activities are stored on their servers. It also means that authorities can’t get their hands on such information as it simply isn’t there.

Recommended VPNs for Torrenting

Indicated below is the roundup of the best VPNs available for torrenting. Keep in mind that all of the services listed here are P2P-ready and have no bandwidth restrictions. Additionally, they all feature top-of-the-line security and have excellent stances on personal privacy. Since they have similar offerings, it’s up to you to consider what other factors are important to you and see how each VPN fares against the rest – whether it’s price, speed, or other features offered.

ExpressVPN – A Truly Premium VPN

With top-of-the-line performance, reliability, and a powerful set of security features, ExpressVPN is easily one of the best names in the industry. You’d be hard-pressed to find anything better out there. The one caveat? It’s expensive, but the service really does demonstrate that you get what you pay for.

ExpressVPN is secured with AES 256-bit encryption. It also has a built-in kill switch and IPv6 and DNS leak protection. Topped off with a zero logs policy, you can bet that your data and activities remain safe and private.

Also, with a worldwide network comprised of 2000+ servers spread across 90+ countries, you’re assured of easily finding optimal servers for your torrenting needs. Internet speeds with ExpressVPN also consistently rate very favorably – with minimal loss in bandwidth and fast download speeds.

Read the full ExpressVPN review here.

NordVPN – An Undeniably Excellent VPN

Offering equally impressive performance and security features, NordVPN is another terrific option for a torrent-friendly VPN. This service, too, comes with a premium price tag. But thankfully, their longer-duration plans are much more economical.

Boasting an even larger server network of 4000+, NordVPN is one of the biggest VPNs on the market. A healthy amount of geo-diversity is also present – with locations in over 60 countries. With such a large selection, users will have no problem selecting a suitable P2P server from their list to ensure the best torrenting experience.

Another great thing about NordVPN is that helpful step-by-step guides can be found on their official website. These guides demonstrate how to configure some of the more popular torrent clients to work optimally with their VPN.

Read the full NordVPN review here.

PrivateVPN – The Best Value VPN

Priced very competitively, PrivateVPN offers a full suite of security tools without compromising on any of the essentials. Complete security and zero logging on their networks make torrenting safe to enjoy without fear of being tracked.

For what it features, PrivateVPN offers undeniable value. Users are protected by the same industry-standard encryption protocols as other premium VPNs. Their privacy is similarly protected by a strict zero logs policy. And with attractive and intuitive software, PrivateVPN takes all the hassle out of setting up your VPN. It’s a complete package at a very accessible price.

The downside of PrivateVPN is their VPN infrastructure. With a humble server list of just over 100, it’s by far one of the smaller VPNs out there. This means that users have a limited selection when choosing an optimal server to tunnel their traffic through, and as a result, less than stellar download speeds can be observed.

Read the full PrivateVPN review here.

IPVanish – A VPN Worth Checking Out

IPVanish delivers fantastic performance along with high amounts of protection. It’s among the more expensive options available, but what you get is an overall very capable VPN to meet your privacy and security needs.

With 1000+ servers in over 50 countries to choose from, IPVanish boasts a respectably-sized network for its users. You can easily find a suitable server to safely torrent at high speeds.

As usual, industry standard AES 256-bit encryption is implemented so you can be assured that your internet sessions can’t be spied on by outside entities. And with a zero logs policy, there’s no trace of your online activities to be found on their servers.

IPVanish is an excellent VPN provider for what it can do. As for the things it can’t do – like unblock certain geo-restricted services – you’ll have to consider your own needs and see if the overall package is what you’re looking for.

Read the full IPVanish review here.

Private Internet Access – A No-Frills VPN Service

As one of the oldest players in the industry, Private Internet Access delivers excellent performance for torrent junkies. It’s got the same high level of security and privacy you’d expect from other big names, and is able to provide some of the fastest download test results for a VPN. While it may not have some of the functionality of its competitors, Private Internet Access is just as good for torrenting as any of the ones listed above. The best part? It’s also the cheapest service on the list.

Having over 3000+ servers makes Private Internet Access one of the largest VPN providers available today. And with users reporting consistently high download speeds while on their servers, you can torrent to your heart’s content without any imposed restrictions.

However, it’s not the most ergonomically designed VPN software out there. It may function flawlessly, but with looks that only a mother could love, some users may get put off from subscribing to their service. Also, like the previous name mentioned, Private Internet Access isn’t able to unblock some geo-restricted content. So take that into account when looking for the right VPN for your torrent needs.

Read the full Private Internet Access Review here.

Conclusion

So there you have it, five completely viable VPN options to satisfy your torrent needs. ExpressVPN and NordVPN are both excellent all-around choices that have full functionality, but come with premium price tags. If you’ve got the cash to spend, you really can’t go wrong with these two.

PrivateVPN, IPVanish, and Private Internet Access, on the other hand, are also great options. However, each one has their own set of tradeoffs. But if you can overlook these flaws and consider the overall package of each one, you’d still have a very capable VPN that gets the job done.