VPN Speed Tests: Who Has The Fastest VPN?

Speed is one of the foremost concerns users have when signing up for a Virtual Private Network (VPN) service. It dictates so much about the whole VPN experience that choosing the wrong VPN partner can lead to years of regret.

Realizing the seriousness of VPN performance evaluation, HideandSeek set up an Automated Speed Test System. This system evaluates various VPN service speed performance regularly. It allows us to offer more holistic results than a single set of test data.

Also check out our Best VPN Selections for Different Scenarios.

NordVPN Speed Tests

For NordVPN pricing and other details, read NordVPN review here.

SurfShark Speed Tests

* Note: We are having technical difficulties with SurfShark speed tests in our UK and US servers.

For more details about SurfShark features and pricing, read our Surfshark review.

ExpressVPN Speed Test

For more info, read our ExpressVPN review.

CyberGhost Speed Tests

More details on CyberGhost pricing and plan details, read CyberGhost review.

IPVanish Speed Test

Learn more about IPVanish in our review.

How Our Automated VPN Speed Test Works

Much of the variation when it comes to speed tests lies in your distance to the VPN server. To offset this, we’ve chosen three strategic locations from which to run speed tests; Singapore, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

From there, we use the algorithms native to each VPN service in selecting the fastest server it supports at the time of connection. The connection protocol chosen will also be the best supported on each service, primarily WireGuard or OpenVPN.

With those factors, the speed test will be run and recorded at regular intervals. HideandSeek tests each VPN service 15 times each month, with three servers tested each time.

Why We Test Continuously

Internet connection speeds can vary depending on multiple factors. Aside from distance to server, quality of connection, Internet backbone issues, or even overload of servers can impact performance. 

Because of this, a single test isn’t likely to be conclusive. If you see the excellent speed for a VPN in one review, it likely means that the service was having a good day. That isn’t necessarily always the case.

That’s why we spend a lot of money maintaining test servers and for bandwidth; to ensure that the results we’re showing you reflect the true quality of VPN service providers over time.