X-VPN Review 2021
Although X-VPN sounds good on paper but is it really all that good? Should you get it over its competitors in 2021? Check out the review of X-VPN where I'll look over all of its pros and cons in detail.
- Updated: May 2, 2021
- 0 User Reviews
- Abdul Rehman
X-VPN – haven’t heard of them? Well, I didn’t even know it existed before writing this review. However, its bold claims really pinched me to write a review about it. After all, it claims to offer both paid and free versions, 8,000+ servers, 256-bit encryption, decently fast speeds, and both Netflix and torrenting compatibility.
In terms of performance, I found X-VPN to be rather good. At the time of writing this X-VPN review, I found it to offer a pretty stable connection. All of its apps worked great too, and I didn’t notice any crashing or lagging issues. However, it still feels underpowered when putting it next to some other VPNs like ExpressVPN.
For instance, it used no standard protocols and didn’t manage to unblock Chinese sites like Bilibili really disappointed me. Also, X-VPN keeps some user logs and is relatively pricy than other VPNs, and I don’t think it offers the best value for money. So after weighing in all the pros and cons, I’ve given X-VPN a 3.2 stars rating in this review.
My Rating Criteria
To thoroughly test X-VPN for pros and cons, I used my 9 step rating criteria:
- Jurisdiction – Where is X-VPN located?
- Security – Does X-VPN keep logs?
- Leaks – Does X-VPN leak IP, DNS, WebRTC?
- Servers – Is X-VPN P2P compatible?
- Speed – How fast is X-VPN?
- Streaming – Does X-VPN work with Netflix?
- Compatibility – Which devices can I use X-VPN with?
- Pricing – How much does X-VPN cost?
- Trustworthiness – Is X-VPN trustworthy?
Jurisdiction – Where is X-VPN located?
X-VPN operates from Hong Kong, a safe country in terms of online privacy, and does not fall under 5, 9, or 14 eyes countries. Right from the start, this is something any privacy-conscious user can appreciate. Operating from Hong Kong means that X-VPN is not legally obligated to collect user logs. That’s something we see from more well-known VPNs like ExpressVPN. Overall, really impressed by X-VPN so far.
Security – Does X-VPN keep logs?
As I mentioned earlier, X-VPN stores some logs. More specifically, they collect connection logs. But the good thing is, they don’t collect usage logs. If you go through their privacy policy, you’ll see that they don’t log how you use their service.
We do not store your original IP address which means we can not share it to anyone no matter what happened.
Even if the government asks the company to share users’ information, they will have nothing to give them. But as I said, they do collect connection logs. Here’s all the information that they collect:
- Registration date
- Email Address
- Server you connected
- Connection time stamps
- Network type
- Data usage
- Geographics (only city-level)
- IP Address (deleted after 5 minutes)
The last one is a bit critical and is exactly why I think some other VPNs offer better anonymity than X-VPN. Even if they claim to delete all collected IPs after 5 minutes, it is still a concerning issue from a privacy standpoint.
Encryption & Other Features
As for encryption, X-VPN uses 256-bit encryption, which is the highest encryption level in the VPN industry. It is the same algorithm adopted by the US government to secure their data. So, it would be impossible for anyone to decrypt your internet traffic when this encryption is turned on.
While I was impressed that they use 256-bit encryption, their choice protocols really confused me. Although they claim to use 9 protocols, they don’t use any standard protocols widely used and trusted. Instead, their list of offered protocols is just hidden behind random letters.
But in their defense, X-VPN claims that their proprietary protocol is highly effective in unblocking heavily restricted/censored networks. However, we’ll look into that in a bit.
Application Control
Application control is basically a split tunneling feature offered by X-VPN. While it’s great that they offer this kind of advanced feature, it doesn’t actually work. Not only did I notice frequent pop-up warnings showing up, but I also encountered connection issues.
Even worse was that their Application control feature didn’t even work on my secondary testing computer. It just prompted me to an error message stating, Application control doesn’t work on this device.
X-VPN Kill Switch
Aside from split tunneling, X-VPN also offers a Kill Switch. However, it’s only available on Android and iOS apps. At the moment, there is no VPN kill switch feature for desktop apps. Again disappointing. But in functionality, it works as you would expect, so nothing worthwhile there.
Leaks – Does X-VPN leak IP, DNS, WebRTC?
Although X-VPN came short on features, it performed exceptionally well in my leak test. I connected X-VPN’s Finland server and tested for leaks, and it passed without any issues. Here are the test results:
IP Leak Test:
First, I tested for IP leaks while connected to the Finland server of X-VPN. As you can see from the screenshot below, only an IP address from Finland is displayed, and my original IP address is nowhere to be seen.
DNS Leak Test:
Next, I checked for DNS leaks while still connected to the same Finland server location. Again, it managed to show no sign of DNS leaks whatsoever. Just check out the screenshot below.
WebRTC Leak Test:
I also checked for WebRTC leaks, and X-VPN passed the test without any issues at all. Even after conducting multiple tests, X-VPN proved to be legitimately leakproof.
Virus Test:
Last but not least, I scanned the X-VPN Windows file from Virus Total to see if it contained anything malicious. Sadly, the file I tested contained 3 Trojan viruses that could clearly damage your computer. Here are the test results:
As soon as you download this file, it could start collecting your data, monitor your activities, and whatnot. I would definitely advise avoiding their windows app to be safe.
Servers – Is X-VPN P2P compatible?
Yes, Torrenting works with X-VPN. After all, X-VPN does offer 8,000+ servers around the globe. You can connect to its dedicated torrenting servers for the best performance. I found the Netherlands server to work the best for torrenting.
That being said, while X-VPN allows torrenting and P2P, it follows DMCA guidelines and condones illegal downloading of the copyrighted material. X-VPN also openly makes it clear in its DMCA policy that it will comply with copyright owners in any infringement cases. So, if you want to torrent with X-VPN, make sure you download or share any copyrighted material.
Does X-VPN work in China?
Well, no. Despite offering so many servers, it still doesn’t work in China. I tried unblocking several Chinese websites like Bilibili, and none of them worked. Despite changing several of X-VPN’s proprietary protocols, I still didn’t manage to bypass the Great Firewall. So, if you want to access Chinese content, I highly suggest checking out ExpressVPN, which offers actual servers in Beijing and Shanghai.
Speed – How fast is X-VPN?
As for speeds, X-VPN is actually pretty decent. I played around with many of its servers and was quite impressed by the overall speeds to deliver on my 35 Mbps test connection. First, here’s a screenshot of my default internet speeds without X-VPN connected:
Canada Server:
When connected to X-VPN’s Canadian server, I received around 25.4 Mbps downloading speed. So far, really impressed by its speeds.
US Server:
With the US server of X-VPN, I managed to get slightly reduced speeds. On average, the US servers managed to put out around 22 Mbps download speed which was still quite decent.
UK Server:
Lastly, I also checked the speeds with the UK servers, and again, the results were quite impressive. On average, the UK server managed to output around 24.9 Mbps download speed. Overall, X-VPN certainly impressed me with its speeds.
Streaming – Does X-VPN work with Netflix?
Yes, X-VPN does unblocks US Netflix. This is seriously impressive, considering that most VPNs nowadays don’t really work with Netflix. So, it’s more than impressive to it working with Netflix US. As for performance, I tried streaming many shows on American Netflix and didn’t encounter any issues whatsoever.
Other Streaming Services that work with X-VPN
Aside from Netflix, X-VPN also surprisingly managed to unblock Hulu with the US server. Although the streaming quality was not all that great, I managed to stream shows on Hulu without any issues at all.
Compatibility – Which devices can I use X-VPN with?
As far as compatibility is concerned, X-VPN is pretty good. In fact, X-VPN is compatible with the following devices:
- Android
- iOS
- Windows
- Mac
- Chrome
- Amazon Fire TV
- Linux
- Router
As for gaming consoles and smart TVs, Since X-VPN is compatible with Routers, it can be configured to work with gaming consoles and even streaming devices such as PS4, Xbox, and Apple TV.
X-VPN for Windows & Mac
As for user experience, its Windows app interface looks great and is also quite easy to use. You can easily scroll through and select whichever server you like with just a single click. All of its options like split tunneling and protocols are in plain sight, which I think any newbie VPN user can appreciate.
In addition to the Windows app, X-VPN also offers a stand-alone app for Macs as well. It is also similarly designed and quite modern looking. The Mac app also boasts the same features and options that you can find in its Windows counterpart. Overall, both their Windows and Mac OS apps are a real pleasure to use.
X-VPN for iOS & Android
The iOS app of X-VPN looks quite minimalistic. I love how easy it is to use their apps. The one-click connectivity and server selection make it super easy to use their iOS app. You’re also definitely going to love all the built-in options. As for the iTunes rating, X-VPN has a 4.7-star rating.
As for their mobile Android app, it looks very minimalistic. Yet in terms of features, it is very well equipped. Not only do you get an option to choose protocols, but you also get an option to enable or disable the built-in Kill Switch. I also love the fact that the Android app also comes with a built-in speed testing tool which is always a handy thing. As for the Playstore rating, X-VPN has a 4.5-star rating.
Pricing – How much does X-VPN cost?
As for pricing, X-VPN is way too expensive. I also didn’t quite like X-VPN because it only offered two pricing plans, and both of them are considerably more expensive than other VPNs. Don’t believe me, check out the pricing plans below:
As you can see, the prices are way too high. For way cheaper, you can get even better features if you go for ExpressVPN. But the good thing is that it offers free trials. For iOS and Android devices, you can try it out for a week. On Windows & Mac, you get 500 MB of free data.
One thing to keep in mind is that X-VPN only offers a 7-day money-back guarantee. Again, this is something ExpressVPN do way better. As for payment methods, you can purchase X-VPN through either of the following:
- PayPal
- VISA, MasterCard, OneCard
- Gift Cards
- Advcash (Epese, Payeer, EPAY)
- CoinPayments (Bitcoin etc.)
Trustworthiness – Is X-VPN trustworthy?
Yes, X-VPN is pretty trustworthy. Even though X-VPN stores connection logs, but the fact that it doesn’t store usage logs, makes it quite trustworthy. As for its Trustpilot rating, X-VPN has a solid 4.4/5.0 rating. As for reviews, 68% of users have rated the service as Excellent, and only 16% of users have rated the service as Bad.
Customer Support
As for customer support, X-VPN is again pretty good. It offers a 24/7 live chat feature and a FAQ section to help you quickly resolve any issues. Although not the fastest, but their live chat feature is still pretty useful.
You can also contact their email address at [email protected]. However, it is not a good option compared to live chat support. Overall, X-VPN has a pretty decent customers support system.
Comparison between X-VPN and ExpressVPN
Although X-VPN is a pretty decent service, it still lacks a bit in features and performance. So, if you’re looking for an alternative option, here’s the table with a quick comparison between ExpressVPN and X-VPN.
| Features | ExpressVPN | X-VPN |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $6.67/mo | $5.99/mo |
| Servers | 3,000+ in 94 Countries | 8,000+ in 50+ Locations |
| Compatibility | All Devices | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, & Routers |
| Jurisdiction | The British Virgin Islands | Hong Kong |
| Logging Policy | Zero Log | No Logs |
| Customer Support | Live Chat & Email Support | Live Chat & Email |
| Trustpilot Score | 4.6 | 4.0 |
| Website | ExpressVPN | X-VPN |
Alternatives to X-VPN
To check out VPNs other than X-VPN, you might like our list of X-VPN alternatives.
- Surfshark Review 2021
- Avast VPN Review 2021
- ExpressVPN Review 2021
- Private Internet Access Review 2021
- PureVPN Review 2021
- Windscribe Review 2021
- AVG VPN Review 2021
- Turbo VPN Review 2021
Do I Recommend X-VPN?
Yes, I do recommend X-VPN. X-VPN is one of those VPNs that are very underrated despite offering decent features. I like that it offers 8,000+ servers, decent apps, and powerful encryption. I also love the fact that it works with streaming services like Netflix and even torrenting. Overall, it’s a pretty decent service. However, not completely flawless to deserve a 5-star rating.
The fact that it costs a lot, it doesn’t work in China, and offers some features that either don’t work or are confusing is exactly why I think it doesn’t offer the best bang for your buck. Sure it’s a good VPN service. However, there are other options out there that offer more features and still cost way less. While I do recommend using X-VPN, I’ve given it a 3.2-star rating in this X-VPN review. So, if you want to go for X-VPN, that’s well and good, but if you want to try something else, check out our unbiased VPN reviews.
