10 Best VPNs Privacy & Anonymous Internet Access in 2023

With more of our lives being conducted online, it’s more important than ever to ensure our privacy is protected. 

But how do you do that? 

One of the most effective ways is to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN). I’ve done a lot of research into which VPNs are the best for ensuring your online security and privacy. 

In this article, I’ll be taking a look at the top VPN services to assess which ones provide the best privacy protections. 

We’ll be looking at the features that make a VPN secure and private, then assessing which VPNs have the most robust privacy features and the highest levels of security. 

We’ll also look at privacy-enhancing features such as the ability to block ads and provide anonymous web browsing. 

By the end of this article, you’ll have a clear idea of which VPNs provide the best protection for your online privacy. 

So let’s get started and take a closer look.

Here is a quick summary of the best VPNs.

1. NordVPN

NordVPN is a VPN company based in Panama that enables you to access the internet privately and anonymously as it does not keep logs of your internet activities.

Because it does not keep logs, there are no logs on their servers that could actually be used to identify you or trace back certain activities on their servers to you, like torrenting activities.

Here is a detailed NordVPN review.

It currently has a collection of more than 5,200 servers that are based in 59 different countries which means that you’ll have a ton of options when choosing a server to connect to in the apps.

In addition to that, internet access with NordVPN is completely secure as it uses the best military-grade encryption technologies and VPN connection protocols that ensure that your personal information can never get into the wrong hands.

That being said, NordVPN is also a budget friendly vpn as their cheapest plan is the three year plan that goes for $ 3.49/month billable upfront.

If you are not sure of your purchase, you’ll also get a 30 day money back guarantee with every plan that you choose… that means you have 30 days to try it and see if you want to keep the vpn or not.

But if you don’t want to spend any money in order to try NordVPN, you can get a completely free trial if you sign up through the Play Store or App Store.

2. ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is a VPN service provider based in the British Virgin Islands that enables you to access the internet securely and anonymously.

It is also one of the best VPNs for privacy online because it does not keep logs that can be used to identify you or tie you to certain activities on their servers.

Check out my detailed review of ExpressVPN.

In fact, a recent independent audit of ExpressVPN servers, software and staff proved that this VPN does not have any logs on their servers that could be used to identify any particular individual.

Apart from being one of the top vpns for privacy, you’ll also get a variety of options when choosing the servers to connect to.

They currently have more than 3,000 servers that are spread over 94 different countries in different continents.

Just like NordVPN, it also uses the best military grade AES encryption technology to ensure that your personal information is secure while being transmitted over the internet.

However, even though it provides you with great privacy, ExpressVPN is not your typical cheap, budget friendly vpn.

Its best plan, which is the 1 year plan, costs $ 8.32/month – billable upfront.

That being said, you’ll get 30 days to try out the vpn and if you don’t like it, you can ask for a refund within the 30 days of making your purchase.

3. IPVanish

IPVanish is a VPN company based in the United States that enables you to access the internet privately and anonymously.

That might come as a surprise because this VPN company has cooperated with the authorities before and handed over user logs that were used to identify one of their users.

Here is a detailed IPVanish review.

But that was before they updated their privacy policy to make it clear that they do not keep logs anymore.

Currently, IPVanish is one of the best VPNs for privacy because they don’t keep any kind of logs that could be used to identify you. They also have around 1,300 VPN servers that are spread over 75 different countries that you can choose from when connecting to a server.

It also supports AES 256-bit encryption together with OpenVPN, L2TP, SSTP and PPTP vpn connection protocols.

So your internet access is pretty secure as these are the best technologies out there for securing internet access.

When it comes to their pricing, IPVanish is not a very budget friendly vpn because their best plan is the 1 year plan that costs $ 6.49/month.

In addition to that, unlike other VPNs that give you more time to try them out, IPVanish only gives you a 7 days money-back guarantee.

So you have 7 days from the time you make your purchase to evaluate it and make sure that you like it or ask for your money back and get a full refund.

However, it does not offer a free trial.

So the only way to know if it will work for you is to make a purchase and have a test drive within the first 7 days of making your purchase.

4. PureVPN

PureVPN is a VPN company based in Hong Kong that enables you to access the internet privately and anonymously using their VPN servers.

It has 2,000 servers at the time of writing this review of the best VPNs for privacy in 2021 and these servers are spread across 140 different countries.

Here is a detailed review of PureVPN.

As you can see, it has their servers widely spread out to ensure that you’ll be able to find a server in almost any country that you’d like to connect to.

Even though they have also cooperated with the authorities before, this VPN revamped their privacy policy and now they are able to provide private internet access.

An independent audit was even carried out on their servers and it proved that they do not keep any user-identifying logs.

In addition to that, PureVPN uses bulletproof AES 256-bit encryption protocol together with secure protocols like OpenVPN to ensure that your internet access is secure.

It is now listed among the best vpns for privacy in most updated reviews that you’ll find online.

Apart from that, it is also a truly budget friendly vpn because their cheapest plan, which is the 2 year plan, goes for $ 3.33/month.

You’ll also get 31 days to try it out or ask for a complete refund if you don’t like the services that they’ll provide you. In addition to that, you can also get a 3 day trial for only $ 2.50 if you don’t want to risk more money upfront.

5. CyberGhost

CyberGhost is a VPN company based in the British Virgin Islands that provides you with complete privacy and anonymous internet access.

It is based in one of the best places for a VPN company because the BVI does not have any mandatory data retention laws that obligate VPN companies to keep logs.

Here is a complete CyberGhost review.

In addition to that, this country is not a member of the 14 eyes countries surveillance alliance that spy on their citizens and then share their personal information.

At the time of writing this best vpns for privacy review, CyberGhost has a collection of 8,000 servers that are located in 89 different countries.

This huge collection of servers and wide geographical coverage means you’ll have a ton of options when choosing a server to connect to.

Also, it uses 256-bit encryption in combination with OpenVPN and IKEv2 connection protocols to secure your internet access.

Their cheapest plan is the 3 years plan that goes for $ 2.75/month.

As you can see, CyberGhost is a very budget-friendly VPN service that will not punch a hole in your pocket just to provide you private internet access.

In addition to that, you also get up to 45 days money-back guarantee to test out their platform before you decide to keep your VPN subscription.

6. PrivateVPN

PrivateVPN is a vpn company based in Sweden that also enables you to access the internet privately.

It is also one of the best VPNs for privacy because it will make your internet activities invisible to your ISP while also not keeping any logs of your internet activities that could be used to identify you.

Click here for a detailed PrivateVPN review.

So it makes it impossible to trace back certain activities on their servers to you.

PrivateVPN does not have a great server collection as they only have 150 servers based in 60 different countries at the time of writing this best VPNs for privacy review in 2021.

Their vpn apps support both 128-bit and 256-bit encryption technologies to encrypt and secure your data. That is in addition to vpn protocols like OpenVPN, L2TP, IPSec, PPTP and IKEv2 protocols.

I would also say that it is a budget-friendly VPN service because their cheapest 2-year plan costs $ 3.82/month… which is pretty cheap compared to what other VPNs like ExpressVPN and IPVanish charge you.

You’ll also get a 30 days money back guarantee with your subscription just in case you don’t like their services after buying.

That being said, if you want to be able to try PrivateVPN without committing yourself with any money upfront, then you an make of their 7 day completely free trial. In fact, no credit card details are required… only your email address and password.

7. VyprVPN

VyprVPN is another one of the best vpns for privacy in 2021.

It is a vpn service provider owned by GoldenFrog and based in Switzerland that enables you to access the internet privately and securely.

Here is the link to an in depth review of VyprVPN.

Armed with a tamper-proof 256-bit encryption, your data is particular secure online even if malicious hackers hijack your internet traffic… they’ll never be able to decrypt and see the actual information.

Currently, VyprVPN has a collection of 700 servers that are based in 70 different countries.

Even though this VPN company used to keep logs of your IP address before, they responded to user complaints and now it is a true zero-logs VPN company.

Some of the vpn protocols that they support include OpenVPN, L2TP/IPSec and Chameleon protocols.

It a cheap and therefore a budget-friendly VPN as their cheapest plan is the 2 years plan that costs $ 2.71/month.

In addition to that, you also get a 30 days money back guarantee with every purchase.

So you have 30 days from the time you buy to evaluate and decide if you want to keep the VPN or ask for your money back.

Unfortunately, VyprVPN does not have any free trials at this time.

8. TorGuard

TorGuard is a VPN service provider based in the United States that enables you to access the internet privately and securely.

I have also included it as one of the best VPNs for privacy because they do not keep logs of your internet activities, according to their privacy policy.

Here is an indepth TorGuard review.

TorGuard currently has a collection of 3,000 servers that are based in 50 different countries.

In addition to that, it supports both 128-bit and 256-bit encryption protocols when encrypting your data. The vpn connection protocols that it supports include OpenVPN, OpenConnect, L2TP/IPSec and IPSec.

It, however, does not fit the bracket of cheap VPNs because their cheapest plan, which is the 1-year plan, costs $ 59.99/year… which is approximately $ 5/month.

In addition to that, you also only get a 7 days money back guarantee.

So you have to test their services and decide within 7 days from purchase if you want to keep your purchase or ask for your money back.

However, if you want to try their services for free before buying, it offers a 7 day free trial on their website.

9. Private Internet Access

Private Internet Access, also known as PIA, is another great vpn for privacy online.

I listed it as one of the best VPNs for privacy because it states in their privacy policy that they do not keep logs of your internet activities.

Find a detailed Private Internet Access review here.

PIA has 3,340 servers based in 32 different countries at the time of writing this best VPNs for privacy review in 2021.

If you are looking for a vpn for private internet access that also guarantees the security of your personal information then PIA is a great option.

This is because, apart from using a strong 128-bit encryption technology, you also get secure protocols like OpenVPN, L2TP, IPSec and PPTP.

Even though PPTP is less secure than the others, it could be useful when you want to bypass content censorship in countries like China.

That being said, PIA is also a cheap VPN as their 1-year plan only costs $ 3.33/month, which is pretty much cheap compared to other VPNs I have mentioned in this list.

In addition to the cheap price, you also get a 30 days money back guarantee with your purchase.

So if 30 days after buying and using PIA you decide you don’t like it, just email support and you’ll get your money back.

At this time PIA does not offer any free trials.

10. Surfshark

Surfshark is another of the best vpns for privacy in 2021.

It is a VPN company based in the British Virgin Islands, just like ExpressVPN, and provides your private and secure internet access.

Check out my detailed Surfshark review.

Surfshark has more than 1,040 servers that are spread over 61 different countries at the time of writing this review of the best VPNs for privacy.

The reason Surfshark is a great VPN for privacy is because according to their privacy policy, they do not keep logs of your IP address, connection timestamps or even bandwidth usage.

It also secures your internet access using an AES 256-bit encryption technology together with OpenVPN, IKEv2 and Shadowsocks protocols.

In addition to that, Surfshark is also a cheap VPN for a budget buyer as their cheapest plan is the 2-year plan that costs $ 1.99/month.

In fact, it is the cheapest vpn for privacy in this entire list. You also get a 30 day money back guarantee with your purchase.

For those who want to test this service for free before purchasing, they also offer a 7-day free trial but you’ll be required to provide working credit card details in order to activate it.

In Conclusion

Choosing the right VPN for privacy is a balancing act. 

Different VPNs offer varying levels of privacy, and it’s important to understand what you’re getting out of each one. 

I’ve evaluated a number of popular VPNs to find the best ones for privacy. The VPNs I considered offer features such as trusted networks, strong encryption, and no-log policy. 

They also have a variety of security protocols to choose from. With a combination of these features, you can be sure that your data is well-protected. 

In conclusion, choosing the right VPN to protect your privacy is a decision that requires careful consideration. 

Fortunately, with the list I’ve presented you can be rest assured that you’ll be able to find a VPN that meets your needs.

Have you used any of the VPNs that I listed in this list before? Please share your experience in the comments below.