Best VPN UK Services of 2022 [Tested for Speed, Privacy & Reliability]

A VPN is very important in the UK to combat the recent proposals for regulation and censorship in the country like the Online Harms White Paper and the Snoopers’ Charter that has put free speech in the country under the thumb of the government.

The UK government has an extensive history of steering unlawful mass surveillance operations against its citizens. The most effective way to counter censorship, surveillance and protect your privacy while gaining access to various geo-blocked content is to use the best VPN UK service.

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) would spoof your location and also let you unblock streaming like Netflix US, Hulu, Amazon US, Disney + US, and more from the UK without getting you blocked.

However, not every VPN is alike and finding the best VPN can be difficult as all providers claim to offer the best features. So, after testing 150+ VPN services available online, we bring you the 7 best services for British citizens in the UK and abroad.

What is a VPN?

VPN is a tool that encrypts your data. When you connect to a VPN, it reroutes all your traffic and passes it through an encrypted tunnel. During the process, it masks your IP address and assigns you a new IP. With a VPN, no one can see what you are doing online, and the websites you visit cannot see who made the request, offering online anonymity and privacy.

How to Choose the Best VPN for you in the UK

Here are a few must-have features of a good VPN service for users in the UK:

1. Protocols & Encryption

VPN protocols are the most important aspect of any VPN service. After all, they are responsible for keeping your privacy intact. Some of the must-have VPN protocols are WireGuard, OpenVPN, L2TP/IPsec, PPTP, and a few others.

Along with the advanced protocols, we recommend using the VPNs that offer AES 256-bit encryption. This is the same level that is used by government and military agencies to secure classified data.

2. Server Network 

We tested most UK and global servers of the VPNs above to check out their speeds.

Our focus was also on the number of servers these best VPN services offers, thereby listing down the services that offer over a thousand effective servers in the world and the UK.

3. Simultaneous connections

Simultaneous connections are an absolute favourite feature of users when it comes to a VPN. Therefore,  VPNs above offer multiple simultaneous connections to users.

For example, ExpressVPN offers five multi-logins to users on a single account. Part of the reason why it is the best VPN for multiple devices.

Usually, the best VPN services allow you to connect up to five devices with a single account. Any service that offers fewer connections is outside the mainstream.

Remember that you’ll need to connect every device you wish to protect to the VPN services.

4. Zero-logs policy 

All premium VPNs offer a strict no-logs policy that ensures that the VPN service would not store any user data or activity in the UK.

In addition, we thoroughly the privacy policies of all the VPNs in this guide, ensuring that they do not collect any user logs.

5. Ability to access geo-blocked websites 

Most video streaming services and other websites are blocked to certain regions. A good VPN should be able to get around geo-restrictions and let you access any website you want from the UK. We tested the VPNs on various popular streaming services like Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, HBO Max, and others to check if you can access them from the UK and abroad. During testing, ExpressVPN stood out as it was the fastest when it came to bypassing geo-restrictions.

6. Kill switch:

Yet another significant feature is a kill switch. As mentioned above, it syncs great with torrenting as it disconnects you off the internet connection if there is a drop in the VPN connection.

So, if you’re torrenting any file using a VPN in the UK and your VPN connection drops, then you don’t need to worry at all.

2022’s Best VPN UK Services [In-Depth Analysis]

We tested 150+ Virtual Private Networks (VPN) against elements like servers, protocols, simultaneous connections, zero-logging, internet kill switch, and servers on Android, iOS, PC, and other mainstream operating systems.

The test disclosed ExpressVPN as the best VPN. The following UK VPNs are some of the best VPN services that are highly competent in maintaining user privacy and can unblock geo-restrictions in seconds:

1. ExpressVPN – The best VPN for UK

ExpressVPN is the best Virtual Private Network for the UK that offers 3000+ number of servers in 94 countries. Among these servers, four are present in the UK, located in Docklands, East London, Wembley, and London. With its average speed of 86 Mbps on a 100 Mbps connection, you easily access anything you like within the UK.

If you’re vacationing outside the UK and miss your favourite streaming channels and shows, then you can always use this VPN server to access UK services outside the country like Youtube TV UK, UKTV Play, Channel 4, Sky Go, BT Sport, etc.

Speaking of which, this best UK VPN offers some great speeds on its United kingdom servers. We conducted speed tests for all its servers to check out its speeds:

And it’s not just the UK. ExpressVPN also offers a speedy VPN server globally. Our ExpressVPN speed tests can confirm this. You can use its 3000+no servers worldwide and enjoy any streaming service you like, including Netflix US, Disney Plus, Amazon, etc. in HD from the UK.

While you’re accessing some geo-restricted content, ExpressVPN protects you over the internet by offering 256-bit encryption and OpenVPN protocols, among other protocols. It also offers some top-notch security characteristics like a kill switch that disconnects you from the internet once your VPN connection drops and a strict no-logs policy ensuring that it won’t collect any user’s logs.

An added advantage is ExpressVPN’s MediaStreamer feature that can unblock almost all streaming sites without encrypting your online internet traffic and without burdening your connection with encryption.

ExpressVPN’s fantastic service comes at a price of $6.67/mo (Save 49% and get 3 extra months FREE with 12-month plan) only. If you’re into testing its service first, then you can get its 30-day money-back guarantee.

It’s also the only VPN service where a single subscription works on unlimited devices, making this a truly outstanding deal. You can always cancel your ExpressVPN subscription if you believe the service isn’t for you, which won’t be the case as it’s undoubtedly the best.

Overall, ExpressVPN is the best VPN you can get in the UK. It is worth the money if you’re serious about strengthening your privacy and attaining better internet accessibility, as noted in our ExpressVPN review.

2. Surfshark – Fastest VPN for UK

Surfshark is one of the fastest VPNs for the UK, with 3200+ servers globally, including 3 in the UK. These servers are located in London, Manchester, and Glasgow. Overall, the server network is strong enough to unblock websites both within and outside the UK.

Using Surfshark, you can unblock some popular UK streaming platforms like  Channel 4, BT Sport, Sky Go, etc., and enjoy some exclusive movies and TV shows on them.

While ExpressVPN’s speeds cannot be matched, Surfshark still offers some great speeds. You can check out its speeds on the servers below:

If you live within the UK, then you can use Surfshark to access any geo-restricted service you like across the world. These include Amazon, Hulu, NBC, YouTube TV, and Peacock TV in HD.

You can enjoy these services on any device you like, as Surfshark offers unlimited simultaneous connections to users along with compatibility with all major devices, including iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, Fire Stick, and more.

While using Surfshark, you won’t have to worry about your browsing activity being monitored at all as this VPN comes with tons of characteristics like  MultiHop, AES-256 encryption, and CleanWeb to keep you safe and sound.

Not only that, Surfshark is headquartered in the British Virgin Islands and this VPN doesn’t keep any logs. Surfshark’s cheapest plan only costs $2.49/mo (81% Off on 2 Years Plan) along with a 30-day money-back guarantee. 

Surfshark’s cheap prices and unlimited multi-logins make it one of the reliable VPN services in the UK. In addition, you can share your Surfshark account with your friends and family so they can enjoy its services too. You can learn more about this service in our detailed Surfshark review.

3. NordVPN – Secure VPN for UK

NordVPN is the most secure VPN for UK. This VPN offers 60+ number of servers globally, with 645+ in the UK. However, all these servers are located in London.

NordVPN offers an average speed of 62 Mbps on a 100 Mbps connection that may be less than the VPNs above but are still good enough to stream content in HD quality in the UK.

With NordVPN’s servers, you can enjoy Sky Sports, BT Sport, Sky Go, and Channel 4 outside the country.

Let’s give you an overview of the NordVPN speed tests unblocking a geo-blocked service.

You can also check out the speeds of its worldwide servers in our NordVPN speed tests guide.

NordVPN’s global servers are great for accessing worldwide geo-restricted streaming platforms like Hulu, NBC, DAZN, Vudu, and Disney Plus and enjoy it in the UK.

NordVPN offers six simultaneous connections along with some effective security features to stay protected while bypassing geo-restrictions.

It also offers great privacy features like a Nordlynx, Double VPN, and IP leak protection combined with a super easy-to-use interface.

NordVPN also doesn’t log customer data, and since they operate from Panama, they’re free from most data retention laws. Therefore, you can also torrent with NordVPN without worrying about your activities being logged.

Other than that, NordVPN is super affordable as well, costing $3.71/mo (Save 68% on 2 Years Plan).

You can also avail of its 30-day money-back guarantee before subscribing to any of its actual plans. You can check out the pros and cons of this VPN in our NordVPN review.

4. IPVanish – Best VPN for Streaming in UK

IPVanish is a reliable VPN for streaming in the UK with 1900+ number of servers in the world. This VPN offers 108 servers in the UK, to be exact, located in Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow, London, and Maidenhead.

With these UK servers, you can enjoy unblocking Channel 4, BBC iPlayer, and BT Sport outside the UK using IPVanish.

Similarly, its worldwide servers offer great VPN services in unblocking streaming platforms like Disney Plus, Netflix US, Amazon, Hulu, and more in HD within the UK.

IPVanish’s servers are specifically optimized for streaming purposes, making it the best one if focused solely on streaming. Let’s check out IPVanish’s speeds on its  servers:

IPVanish offers features like a kill switch, split tunneling, DNS and IPv6 leak protection, full P2P support, and a whole slew of other privacy-oriented features. Coupled with its no-logging policy, IPVanish is a good choice to bypass geo-restrictions in the UK.

IPVanish is available at a price of $3.96/mo which is a super-reasonable price with the features it offers. You can learn more about this service in our detailed IPVanish review.

5. CyberGhost – Optimized VPN for UK

Cyberghost is a highly optimized VPN for the UK and offers 641 Berkshire, London, and Manchester servers.

On the whole, CyberGhost has a network of 7000+ server locations in 90 countries. Suffice it to say, getting over restrictions in British cyberspace is no problem with this VPN.

Using CyberGhost’s servers, you can access the UK streaming services you like, including Channel 4, BT Sports, Sky Sports, and more. You can expect to receive the following speeds while streaming any of the services above:

Using CyberGhost’s global server locations, you can access all services worldwide like Amazon Prime, Disney+ Hotstar, in HD. With CyberGhost, you can also stream Hulu in the UK.

In terms of security features, CyberGhost comes packed with features like OpenVPN, DNS leak protection, location spoofing, and a kill switch, with all subscription plans.

The VPN provider also doesn’t log data as they operate from the data retention-free jurisdiction of Romania. This makes it beneficial for British users that want to evade the spying antics of their government.

CyberGhost is currently available for $2.17/mo . Users get a 45-day money-back guarantee with this plan in addition to 7 simultaneous connections. Learn more about this VPN in our CyberGhost review.

6. PIA – Best Torrenting VPN for UK

Private internet access VPN is the best torrenting VPN for the UK. This VPN provider offers a torrent-friendly server network of 35500+ server locations. Out of these, 1878 server locations in the UK are located in London, Manchester, and Southampton.

Expatriates can easily gain access to geo-restricted UK streaming services using these servers. These include BT Sport, Channel 4,  BBC iPlayer, Sky Sports, and many more.

Private internet access is known to offer reasonable speeds on its servers. Below are the test results:

With its extensive global server network, you can access any geo-restricted service worldwide like American Netflix, Disney Plus, Hulu, and NBC in HD within the UK. Many of the servers offered by Private internet access are torrent-friendly and are optimized for streaming.

The provider offers fast and stable connections that are particularly important to enable seamless streaming. In addition, advanced features such as DNS secure, automatic kill switch, and IPv6 and WebRTC leak protection keep your identity hidden from UK government agencies.

You can get Private internet access for $2.08/mo with a 30-day money-back guarantee and 10 simultaneous connections.

There are a few VPNs as valuable as Private internet access. This is one of the reasons that makes PIA highly rated among reviewers. Learn more about this VPN in our PIA review.

7. VyprVPN – Encrypted VPN for UK

VyprVPN is another popular VPN for British residents. This Switzerland-based VPN is great at bypassing censorship and unblocking geo-restricted content. VyprVPN operates a network of 700+ servers located in 70+ countries, a rather small network as compared to its competitors.

VyprVPN is the most encrypted VPN offering high-end-to-end data security for users. The company owns and manages its data centres, so there is no involvement of third parties. It secures your internet traffic with 256-bit encryption, along with 2048-bit RSA keys, SHA256 authentication, and kill switch.

VyprVPN also offers OpenVPN protocol, along with an additional security feature called Chameleon protocol. This feature obfuscates your traffic, allowing you to bypass restrictions and censorship. All your metadata is scrambled allowing you to bypass deep packet inspection as well.

VyprVPN is a great option for streaming Netflix, BBC iPlayer, and other platforms. You can expect good connection speeds on its servers.

VyprVPN is one of the few VPNs that allow P2P traffic and has no problem of IP or DNS leaks. So, if you download torrents, VyprVPN is a good choice because not many VPNs allow P2P traffic on their servers.

There are dedicated apps for various devices and platforms such as Windows, iOS, Android, and macOS. There is a Chrome browser extension as well.

You can get this VPN for $1.67/mo, and t comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee with support of up to 5 simultaneous connections.

Can I use a free VPN in the UK?

When you search for VPNs online, you will see a lot of VPNs advertised as the best free VPN UK services. You can use a free VPN in the UK, but a free VPN service doesn’t grant the same performance and security as a paid VPN does.

Free VPNs offer weak encryption, falling short on security and privacy. That is an issue especially if you are using public Wi-Fi. Aside from security risks, free VPNs lack performance as well. They come with limited data that you will run out of after streaming a video or two. Additionally, most free VPNs offer a few servers only, with extremely slow speeds.

You should avoid such VPNs as most apps contain malware and trackers. Free VPNs monetize by selling your logs and browser history. There’s no such thing as a free lunch. You are paying for these VPNs with your privacy.

Our recommendation is to use a premium VPN instead. You can use ExpressVPN risk-free for 30 days as it offers a ‘no-questions-asked 30-day refund policy.’

⚠ Free VPNs that are not safe to use in the UK

While free VPNs are known to offer unreliable VPN services overall, a few VPNs for the UK are not safe to use in the UK at all. These are:

1. HolaVPN:

This Israel VPN lets users connect and use each other’s bandwidth connection as a part of a large P2P network.

Unfortunately, this enables unethical activities to take place using each other’s bandwidth. HolaVPN is also known to collect all data and internet traffic and sell it to third parties, which is scary to think about.

2. Betternet:

Yet another VPN known for collecting users’ data, collecting their cookies, and selling all of it to third parties is Betternet. It also targets you with personalized advertisements after collecting your data while you enjoy its VPN service.

Now if you are someone who would choose to use a Free VPN rather than going for a Paid VPN you should check out our list of best Free VPN here.

Five reasons why you should use a VPN in the UK

The UK government has been giving several reasons for British citizens to gravitate towards the best VPN services. VPN is a great tool to prevent your internet service provider, government agencies, and websites from tracking your online activities. Here are five reasons why you need a VPN in the UK:

1. Privacy and Anonymity

As I said earlier, the UK is now no longer a safe place for internet users. However, it is far from anything but safe.

Ever since the United Kingdom passed the Investigatory Powers Act 2016, the Snoopers Charter, investigative agencies have been pounding down on unsuspecting internet users.

How?

Well, unlike a routine investigation that requires a warrant, Snooper’s charter allows unprecedented access to all sorts of confidential data, all without the need for a warrant.

If you’re wondering about what information can the government track, then buckle up. I’m going to give you a rundown of just a few:

• Online Chats
• Emails
• Browsing history
• Social media
• Online transactions

I don’t know about you guys, but this seriously freaks me out every time I’m in the UK. And that’s not all. I have barely scratched the surface.

This is the biggest reason why we never travel without a VPN. Because who knows, who might be watching you right now?

2. Safe Torrenting

The UK has strict anti-piracy laws, and many of these websites remain banned in the country. VPNs can help you gain access to multiple torrent websites.

More importantly, VPNs can enhance your security and ensure that your identity remains hidden from authorities that might be snooping in on your online activities.

Using VPNs has become even more important considering the increasing penalties for piracy in the UK, as those found guilty may be jailed in the worst-case scenario.

Therefore, British citizens should use VPNs as an insurance policy against the possibility of running into legal troubles.

Disclaimer: We do not encourage nor condone the use of VPNs for illegal activities, including copyright infringement.

3. Unblocking websites and services

Even though the UK doesn’t block websites as aggressively as some middle eastern countries, quite a few websites and services are blocked in the United Kingdom.

All major ISPs like BT Group, EE, Sky Broadband, Talk Talk, and Virgin Media constantly block websites, especially those associated with torrenting.

With a UK VPN, you can easily unblock multiple geo-restricted streaming services worldwide, including Netflix US, Hulu, YouTube TV, and more in the UK.

Speaking of which, using any of the servers of the VPNs above, you can unblock local streaming channels of the UK like BBC iPlayer, Sky Go, Bt Sport, etc., from abroad.

4. Usage of public Wi-Fi

Using public Wi-Fi poses multiple threats to users who use them without a VPN. First, this Wi-Fi is a vulnerable connection that can hack or snoop into devices to steal clients’ data.

Therefore, a VPN is much needed on these networks. VPNs create an encrypted tunnel between a user and a website so no one can snoop in and track your data.

5. Preventing cyberattacks

Cyberattacks have become extremely common in the UK. According to IT Governance UK, during the year 2020, 1120 data breach attacks were reported in the United Kingdom. While these cyberattacks don’t look too alarming, they leaked over 20.1 billion records of organizations.

That’s not it. Even though the number of leaked records looks quite petrifying, they doubled in the 2nd half of the year with a 50% rise in cyberattacks.

Therefore, you need to protect yourself from all data breaches in the UK, and a VPN is one effective way to do so.

FAQs – Best VPN UK

Wrapping Up!

If you want to avoid the UK’s rather authoritarian and intrusive online policies, then a reliable VPN is an absolute must. ExpressVPN is the best VPN for the UK as it protects users from spying agencies with its no-logging policy and strong encryption protocols.

It’s also great for bypassing geo-restrictions without being monitored over the internet. In short, well-equipped to deal with increasing surveillance in the UK.