The Best VPN for Kill Switch in 2021

Despite coming packed with powerful encryption, ever wondered what could happen if your VPN connection dropped unexpectedly? To give it to you straight, this can result in your true identity getting exposed to malicious entities, law enforcement agencies, and even online snoopers. That’s where the best VPN for kill switch comes in.

What is kill switch VPN, you asked? – Many VPN providers offer a feature called VPN Kill Switch which immediately secures your identity and privacy if your VPN connection abruptly drops.

Sounds handy, right?

So in this guide, I will show you how an internet kill switch works, what benefits it offers, and recommend some of the best VPNs with Kill Switch.

Best VPNs that offer kill switch feature

Undoubtedly, finding the best VPNs with the kill switch feature is a daunting task. You will have to go through different providers in detail to check network lock benefits. I have compiled a list of VPN services that deliver VPN with a kill switch attribute by default for your ease.

Here is the list of VPN services with a Kill Switch feature in 2021:

1. ExpressVPN – Best VPN for Kill switch

The British Virgin Island service has a global presence because it offers 3000+ servers in 90+ countries. Above all, the ExpressVPN kill switch feature can be found out by the name of “Network Lock” once you have found the ‘General’ option from your app.

This way, thanks to the ExpressVPN kill switch, you can secure your traffic even when the VPN app stops working unexpectedly.

Read our exclusive ExpressVPN kill switch guide for more details.

Set up ExpressVPN’s Kill Switch on Windows:

Best Kill Switch VPN: ExpressVPN is the fastest kill switch VPN with lightning fast 3,000 servers in 94 countries, unmatched unblocking capabilities and performance, 5 device simultaneous connection, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.

2. Surfshark – Affordable Kill Switch VPN

What makes Surfshark different from other VPN services is the availability of an impressive kill switch benefit. Moreover, this relatively new privacy brand has 3200+ servers in 65+ countries that allow you to safeguard your digital whereabouts straightaway.

When it comes to preventing yourself from IP leaks issues that arise from VPN disconnections, you should rely on Surfshark. It’s also one of the fastest VPN services in the industry.

Read our exclusive Surfshark review for more details.

Affordable Kill Switch VPN: Surfshark is the affordable kill switch VPN with 3,200 servers in 65 countries, 16 different Netflix libraries access, unlimited device simultaneous connections, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.

3. NordVPN – Secure VPN with Kill Switch

NordVPN is currently offering 5,400+ servers in more than 59 countries worldwide. This is how you can secure your privacy from any part of the world trouble-free. Above all, it offers an eye-catching automatic kill switch feature that improves your online anonymity to the next level. NordVPN Kill switch on windows allows you to allocate specific apps that will be completely shut down in the state of VPN disconnection.

You can check our detailed NordVPN kill switch guide for more information.

Furthermore, you can avail of such attributes on your preferred devices like Windows, Linux, Mac, Android, and iOS.

To learn more about how NordVPN works, view our detailed NordVPN review.

Check out how NordVPN Kill Switch works:

Secure VPN with Kill Switch: NordVPN is the most secure VPN with the kill switch. A server network of 5,400+ servers in 59 countries, state-of-the-art security and privacy tools, 6 device simultaneous connections, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.

4. PureVPN – Balanced Kill Switch VPN

PureVPN is one of the leading VPN providers in the industry right now. This best VPN for kill switch offers over 6,500 servers located worldwide and protects your privacy with military-grade encryption and OpenVPN protocol. PureVPN bakes its VPN kill switch feature in apps for Windows, Mac, and Android. View our guide on Android VPN as well.

Overall, PureVPN has good reviews of its internet kill switch feature. It has also resolved certain issues on its Android version, as the latest builds have a new and improved kill switch feature.

To learn more about PureVPN, view our detailed PureVPN review.

Balanced Kill Switch VPN: PureVPN is a balanced kill switch VPN with 6,500+ servers in 140+ countries, various streaming and security tools operating together to achieve perfect balance, 10 device simultaneous connection, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.

5. CyberGhost – Popular Kill Switch VPN

CyberGhost is another privacy brand delivering its services through 7,000+ servers in 91 countries all around the world. The famous Romania-based provider offers an exclusive VPN with kill switch benefits to its users. It is also among the best VPN for Iranian people with Iranian IP addresses, so you can understand how much depth its server network has in it. 

You can explore the said feature by the name of “The Ultimate Kill switch” through the app settings.

You can learn about the salient attributes of the service through our CyberGhost review.

Popular Kill Switch VPN: CyberGhost is a popular kill switch VPN with 7,000+ servers in 91 countries, several modes customized for streaming, torrenting, and gaming, along with a 10 device simultaneous connection and a 45-day money-back guarantee.

6. Private Internet Access – Powerful Kill Switch VPN

Private Internet Access is a super-secure VPN service that also comes with a built-in kill switch. In terms of network coverage, PIA currently offers over 35,000+ servers in over 77 countries worldwide. Not only that, but PIA also offers a lot of security features like powerful encryption and top-notch protocols to keep you totally safe and secure.

In terms of compatibility, you can use PIA with Windows, Linux, Mac, Android, iOS, routers, and with a ton of other devices as well.

We also have an alternate for you that works almost equally as PIA. Yes, we refer to the IPVanish kill switch feature, which works almost the same but may cost you a bit more than PIA.

To learn more about how PIA, view our detailed PIA review.

Powerful Kill Switch VPN: PIA is a powerful kill switch VPN with one of the largest VPN server networks comprising 35,000+ servers in 77 countries, 10 devices simultaneous connection, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Let’s Compare Some of the Best Kill Switch VPNs

Here is a quick comparison of the top 6 VPN providers in 2021:

VPNs
Jurisdiction	The British Virgin Islands	The British Virgin Islands	Panama	HongKong	Romania	USA
Security	AES 256 Bit	AES 256 Bit	AES 256 Bit	AES 256 Bit	AES 256-bit	AES 256-bit
Leaks	No IP, DNS & WebRTC	No IP, DNS & WebRTC	No IP, DNS & WebRTC	No IP, DNS & WebRTC	No IP, DNS & WebRTC	No IP, DNS & WebRTC
Servers	3,000+ in 94 Countries	3,200+ in 63+ Countries	5,500+ in 59 Countries	6,500+ in 140+ Countries	6,600+ in 90 Countries	23,000+ in 77+ Locations
Speed	27.17 Mbps average	27.91 Mbps average	20.15 Mbps average	26.01 Mbps average	17.10 Mbps average	18.71 Mbps average
Streaming	Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, and More	Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, and More	Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, and More	Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, and More	Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, and More	Netflix, BBC iPlayer,  and More
Compatibility	Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, routers	Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, routers	Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, routers	Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, routers	Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, routers	Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, routers
Pricing	$6.67/month	$2.49/month	$3.71/month	$3.33/month	$2.25/month	$2.69/month
Trustpilot	4.8/5 – Reviews 9,986	4.3/5 – Reviews 4,712	4.4/5 – Reviews 4,029	4.7/5 – Reviews 5,148	4.8/5 – Reviews 10,134	4.7/5 – Reviews 819
Best For	Overall Best VPN	Fastest VPN Service	Best for Geo-Unblocking	Best for General Purposes	Best for Private Browsing	Best for Torrenting
More Info	ExpressVPN Review	Surfshark Review	NordVPN Review	PureVPN Review	CyberGhost Review	PIA Review
	Visit Site	Visit Site	Visit Site	Visit Site	Visit Site	Visit Site

What is a VPN Kill Switch & How Does it Work?

A VPN kill switch, also known as an internet kill switch, is like a fail-safe device that deploys if your VPN connection drops. What it does is that it instantly stops you from connecting to the internet when you disconnect from the VPN. This prevents third parties or any outsider from identifying your true IP address and location.

Once your VPN service is back up and running, it automatically reconnects your device to the internet. So, how does an internet kill switch work?

A VPN with an internet kill switch constantly monitors your internet connection. It looks for any signs of change, such as a drop-in connection or changing the IP address. A kill switch instantly kicks in when it detects such change and halts your internet connection.

Primary causes for frequent disconnections

Unfortunately, frequent VPN disconnections may spoil your fun a great if you cannot access your desired geo-restricted content. Therefore, you should perform some tweaks to overcome VPN disconnection issues timely.

Here is the list of major reasons that do not allow your VPN services to work properly:

• VPN protocol selection
• Network congestion/ poor signal strength
• Firewall or router settings

VPN protocol selection

Surprisingly, connections seamlessly perform when the network uses the TCP protocol compared to the default UDP protocol. If your connection is unstable, there is no harm in switching the protocol.

Network congestion / poor signal strength

When numerous people use the same Wi-Fi connection to access the internet, the strength of Wi-Fi connections may decrease to a certain degree. The same goes for VPNs as well. This is because the strength of Wi-Fi connections also influences the performance of VPN services a great deal.

This is the reason VPN connections are disconnected quite often.

Firewall or router settings

At times, firewall or antivirus software may hamper the VPN connection speeds considerably. Therefore, you should disable these features to check the performance of your VPN service. If your VPN connections become stable once you have disabled the security features, you should not apply these settings on your VPN services.

What is the purpose of a VPN kill switch?

The first and foremost objective of using a network lock feature is to deliver a next-level additional layer of security to users. When you browse the internet through a VPN, the role of the above said benefits becomes crucial.

You can easily filter all VPNs that provide kill switch features by visiting the VPN reviews guide. In addition, you can go through this VPN comparison chart that explains which VPNs offer a kill switch feature.

Types of network lock or kill switch?

Surprisingly, the network lock or kill switch has two types. You may consider these types like active kill switch and passive kill switch. An active kill switch does not send your traffic to unsafe networks. When your VPN provider suddenly stops working, you have disconnected from the internet automatically.

What makes a passive kill switch more effective than its counterpart is its next-level security feature. It means a VPN app does not send your internet traffic as soon as it stops receiving a signal from the VPN server.

How do I know if my VPN has a built-in kill switch?

At times, it becomes difficult for newbies to explore network lock features in their VPN software. This is because every VPN service has mentioned kill switch by its own name. Upon digging deep, you can find the said privacy advantage appropriately.

You might be wondering how you can find an internet kill switch hassle-free. In case you are using PureVPN, you can click on advanced options. To find advanced options, you will need to press the menu tab first. Here is the snapshot of the feature:

This way, you can find out your desired privacy benefit accordingly. If you are using VPN services other than PureVPN, you may read the FAQs section provided on official sites.

How can I enable a VPN kill switch?

The task of enabling a kill switch is simple and does not any rocket science. Here is how you can do:

• Launch NordVPN Windows app and go to settings>general
• Explore internet kill switch or app kill switch benefit and select your preferred option
• When you select internet kill switch, you can use the internet while connected to VPN only
• In case you opt app kill switch, you will not be able to use the internet when the VPN connection drops

This is how you can activate NordVPN kill switch feature on your Windows devices stress-free.

Are kill switches activated by default?

It depends on your VPN service, as different services do not activate the feature by default. You will need to use the app settings first. Once you have opened the app settings, you can enable the privacy advantage accordingly.

The above screenshot demonstrates that Surfshark users will have to activate kill switch benefits from the app settings first. This way, they can secure their internet traffic hassle-free.

Third-party Kill switches

Interestingly, you are free to use other third-party resources like VPNetMon and VPN watcher. VPNetMon allows you to secure your internet connection when your VPN provider suddenly stops working. The said protection tool does not turn off the internet completely.

In fact, it just shuts down the pre-selected program that may expose your IP addresses while using an insecure internet connection. As for VPN watcher, we will describe it in the next heading.

Still using a VPN service with no network lock?

If you are still unaware of network lock or VPN kill switch impacts, you should subscribe to a VPN service that provides a kill switch advantage. By doing so, you can secure your digital whereabouts even when your VPN connection is not working.

Reddit opinions about Internet Kill Switch VPNs

Reddit is one of the most sought communities that offer unbiased and updated information about numerous niches instantly.

Here we can see Reddit user “skeleton_tree” responding to a question sharing their own experience with NordVPN Kill Switch. The reddit user confirms that he has been using NordVPN for several years now, and the kill switch feature seems to work fine. He further adds that users using a windows operating system can use the NordVPN’s kill switch on windows feature called “app kill switch feature,” – which will shut down the torrent client app in case of any VPN disconnection. This feature easily adds an extra layer of security and precaution.

In the following Reddit comment, we can see Reddit users “iarehman” and “FunRoof” confirming that the Kill Switch feature comes built-in with Surfshark and PureVPN both. Reddit user “FunRoof” further goes on and confirms that Surfshark Kill Switch works.

We also happen to saw a question posted by Reddit user “michaeljc70” regarding a torrent client that wouldn’t upload/download if the VPN isn’t enabled?. One possible solution could be using a BT client and binding it to a specific network interface. If you bind to the IP number of OpenVPN’s TUN0 device, then all the BT client traffic will only pass through that interface. Since the IP is not static, you’d have to keep updating the client settings again and again.

FAQs

So now that you know all about kill switch and VPN providers offer this feature, let’s go through some of the most frequently asked questions about VPN kill-switch.

Final Words

An Internet kill switch is an integral feature that you should look for when selecting a VPN. It adds an extra layer of security and provides a safety net in case your VPN stops functioning. In this post, we have listed the best VPN for kill switch. Each of them has good reviews and has a kill switch feature built-in to their apps.

Likewise, a kill switch has various other applications and can be beneficial if you are a privacy-conscious user. Whether it is torrenting, surfing the web, conducting financial transactions, or any other task, a kill switch will prevent IP leakage and preserve your privacy at all times.

So what are you waiting for? Grab yourself a premium VPN service today!