PrivateVPN vs HMA Comparison

PureVPN vs HMA: Speed, Streaming & Torrenting Comparison in 2021

Are you trying to compare PureVPN and Hidemyass?

These two vpns involved themselves in some shady privacy policy practices a few years ago that tainted their reputation online.

But what has changed over the years?

In this PureVPN vs HMA comparison, we are going to compare these two vpn services to see which one is a better vpn overall.

We’ll compare PureVPN with HMA in terms of their connection speeds, torrenting support, streaming capabilities as well as their privacy policies.

I hope that by the end of this PureVPN vs Hidemyass comparison you’ll be able to choose between these two vpns.

So let’s get started.

Here is a quick summary.

PureVPNHidemyass
Websitepurevpn.comhidemyass.com
Servers2,0001,000
JurisdictionHong KongUnited Kingdom
StreamingNetflix, Hulu, Amazon, iPlayerNetflix US, iPlayer
Speed3.8/53.9/5
TorrentingP2P serversP2P servers
Kill SwitchYESYES
Works in China?YESYES
Devices105
Pricing$ 3.33/month$ 3.99/month

About

PureVPN is a VPN company based in Hong Kong that provides secure internet access and the ability to flawlessly access internet in restricted countries like China.

Here is a detailed review of PureVPN.

Hidemyass, on the other hand, is a VPN company based in the United Kingdom that enables you to access the internet securely using some of the best encryption technologies and connection protocols.

Here is a more detailed HMA review.

Server Collection

How many servers do both PureVPN and HMA have?

Usually, the vpn with more servers will provide you with more options when it comes to choosing a server to connect to.

Since a large server load also means that the loads are evenly spread out, it may also improve the performance of each server… which leads to a better experience.

PureVPN has more than 2,000 vpn servers that are based in 140 countries that are located in different continents.

Hidemyass, on the other hand, only has a total of 1,000 vpn servers that are based in 190 countries.

It is therefore clear that HMA, while having less servers in general, covers a larger geographical region than PureVPN.

If you are looking for a vpn company that has servers in more countries then I recommend HMA.

Streaming

Which one between PureVPN and HMA will enable you to unblock more streaming platforms and watch your favorite tv shows?

Since streaming is the number one activity among vpn users, most vpns will try to at least be able to unblock one of the most popular streaming platforms like Netflix.

PureVPN does a great job at unblocking streaming platforms.

It is able to unblock Netflix libraries for various countries using their servers that are based in these countries.

All you need to do is connect to a server based in that particular country and access Netflix… some of the countries that it can unblock include the US, UK and Canada.

In addition to Netflix, PureVPN is also able to unblock content on the platforms like Hulu, Amazon Prime and BBC iPlayer.

HMA, on the other hand is also able to unblock various Netflix libraries in various countries.

You’ll also be able to stream video content on BBC iPlayer using their servers based in the United Kingdom.

Overall, PureVPN seems to be able to unblock more streaming platforms than HMA.

If you are looking for a vpn that is great for streaming then I recommend PureVPN.

Speed

How does PureVPN vs HMA speeds compare?

Let’s now compare PureVPN with HMA speeds to establish which is the faster vpn than the other.

In order to test their connection speeds, I connected to their servers based in the US, UK and Hong Kong.

I then used speedtest.net by Ookla to test for before and after download and upload speeds and the results were interesting.

PureVPN has an average download speed that was 76% of my original download speeds.

Hidemyass, on the flip side, registered download speeds that were 78% of my download speeds before connecting to the server.

It is therefore clear that HMA is slightly faster than PureVPN.

However, since both vpns fell short of the 80% mark which I consider the minimum for a vpn with great connection speeds, then I consider both PureVPN and HMA to be vpns with average connection speeds.

If you are looking for a vpn fast internet speeds than the other then I recommend PureVPN.

Torrenting

Downloading torrent files safely starts by first hiding your real IP address.

In order to successfully do this, you need to use an anonymous vpn service or proxy server.

How does HMA vs PureVPN torrenting support compare?

We’ll compare Hidemyass with PureVPN in terms of whether they allow torrenting on their servers and then check out the one that will enable you to torrent anonymously.

PureVPN will let you download torrent files when connected to some of its torrenting specific servers.

These are its P2P optimized servers that will ensure that enjoy better connection speeds and not have your torrent traffic throttled.

In order located these torrenting optimized servers, head over to the servers list and you’ll find the torrenting servers labelled.

Hidemyass also has special servers that are dedicated to torrenting.

Before you start torrenting, head over to the server list by clicking on the torrenting tab in the app menu then selecting the particular torrenting server that you’d like to connect to.

Once connected you’ll be able to enjoy smooth torrenting on any of these vpns.

However, since HMA keeps logs of your IP address, it is not a great vpn if you want to be able to torrent anonymously and stay safe.

If you are looking for a vpn that is safer for torrenting between PureVPN and HMA, then I recommend PureVPN.

Privacy Policy

How private is your internet browsing when you are connected to either PureVPN or HMA servers?

Since true privacy online is a rare commodity to come by these days, you need to take your time and read a vpn privacy policy to establish whether they keep identifiable information about you.

Let’s now compare PureVPN vs HMA in terms of their privacy policies.

PureVPN being based in Hong Kong, is pretty much located in a privacy friendly location to begin with.

This is because this country, even though very close to China, does not have mandatory data retention policies that obligate vp companies to keep logs of their users.

In addition to that, PureVPN states in their privacy policy that they do not keep logs of your IP address or DNS queries.

However, they also note that they do keep logs of your vpn server location, bandwidth usage as well as your internet service provider.

HMA, on the other hand, is located in the UK which is not a privacy friendly place for a vpn company to base.

It forms part of the 14 eyes surveillance countries alliance that spy on their citizens and then share their personal information.

As if that is not enough, HMA keeps logs of your IP subnet mask, connection timestamps, the vpn server that you connect to and the total data transmitted.

It is therefore clear that HMA collects too much information about you than you might like.

If you are looking for a vpn that collects less identifiable information about you then I recommend PureVPN.

Encryption and Data Protection

In order for both PureVPN and HMA to ensure that your data is secure online, they employ the use of powerful encryption technologies.

These technologies ensure that your personal information is impossible to decrypt even if it landed in the wrong hands.

The only device that will be able to decrypt and see your actual data is the device for which the packets were intended for.

Which encryption technology does PureVPN and HMA use?

At the time of writing this PureVPN vs HMA review, both of them use AES 256-bit encryption technology to encrypt your data.

It is a bulletproof encryption technology that is impossible to crack and guarantees the security of your information.

In addition to that, these vpns also use connection protocols to ensure secure transmission of your data.

PureVPN supports OpenVPN, IKEv2, L2TP/IPSec, SSTP and PPTP protocols.

HMA, on the other hand, only supports OpenVPN, PPTP and L2TP vpn connection protocols.

Even though both PureVPN and HMA still support PPTP protocol, it is very insecure and should never be used unless you know what you are doing… like trying to bypass the great firewall of China.

If you are looking for a vpn that will guarantee the security of you data then either PureVPN or HMA is a great option.

Ad Blocker

How does PureVPN and HMA compare in terms of their ad blocking capabilities?

You’ll need an ad blocker if you want to be able to browse the internet without ads.

Aggressive advertising on most websites can become intrusive and annoying pretty fast if you are visit a well trafficked website.

PureVPN has an ad blocker in its apps that when turned on will enable you to enjoy an ad free browsing experience in most websites that you visit.

In addition to that, you’ll also get protection from malware using their malware blocker whenever you visit a malware infected website.

Hidemyass, however, does not have an ad or malware blocker in any of their applications.

If you are looking for a vpn with an ad and malware blocker then I recommend PureVPN.

Dedicated IPs

If you want an IP to use to securely access a service or network remotely then you need a vpn dedicated IP.

Most vpns will assign you a shared IP address that will change whenever you connect to a different server.

While this is great for your anonymity online, it is not great for accessing security sensitive applications remotely… like your home security camera feed.

PureVPN has a dedicated IP address feature that will provide you a dedicated IP that you can whitelist in your applications.

This dedicated IP is a premium addon and so you’ll have to purchase it separately.

HMA, unfortunately does not support any dedicated IPs.

So you won’t get an IP to whitelist in your network when using Hidemyass.

If you are looking for the best vpn for a dedicated IP then I recommend PureVPN over HMA.

Kill Switch

If you always want to stay secure online, then you need an automatic internet kill switch.

A kill switch will cut off internet access for your entire device whenever your vpn app disconnects from the servers.

It could disconnect when your are switching servers or when your internet connection drops.

If you don’t want your real IP to be exposed during these few seconds then you need a vpn with an automatic internet kill switch.

PureVPN and HMA, luckily, have inbuilt automatic kill switches in their applications that will ensure that you only access internet through your vpn tunnel.

Once activated, the kill switch will ensure that all your traffic is encrypted and channelled through your vpn tunnel so that your IP never gets revealed.

If you are looking for a vpn with a kill switch then either PureVPN or HMA will do.

Split Tunnelling

Sometimes you need to be able to exempt certain applications from your vpn tunnel.

They could be applications that have a problem functioning properly with the different IPs that your vpn assigns you every time.

Or it could even be applications whose operations you don’t want slowed down by the speed drops caused by a vpn.

PureVPN and HMA both have a split tunnelling feature that enables you to whitelist certain applications.

Once whitelisted, these applications will have their traffic routed normally through your ISP and not through your vpn as usual.

Remember that traffic through these whitelisted apps is transparent to your ISP and does not have the additional encryption and security that your vpn provides.

If you are looking for vpn that has split tunnel then I recommend either PureVPN or HMA.

Works in China?

Let’s now compare PureVPN vs HMA in terms of their abilities to bypass China’s firewall.

In order for any vpn to be able to bypass the great firewall of China, it needs to be able to make its traffic look like normal https traffic.

This enables it to be able to bypass the deep packet inspection technology of the great firewall of China without being detected.

China has a firewall is very good at detecting and blocking vpn traffic.

PureVPN and HMA, luckily, have the technology that obfuscates their traffic thereby making it undetectable by China’s firewall.

So you’ll be able to use PureVPN and HMA comfortably in China to access censored content, at the time of writing this HMA vs PureVPN comparison.

PureVPN even has physical servers in Beijing and Shanghai that you can connect to if you want to access Chinese restricted content.

If you are looking for a vpn that you can carry with you to China then I recommend either HMA or PureVPN.

Pricing

As we near the end of this PureVPN vs Hidemyass comparison, let’s compare their pricing plans to establish the cheaper vpn.

In order to get the best discount with either PureVPN or HMA, you need to choose their longest subscription plan.

PureVPN has a 2 years plan that costs $ 3.33/month while HMA has a 3 year plan that costs $ 3.99/month.

It therefore appears that PureVPN is slightly cheaper in the long term than HMA.

If you are looking for a vpn that will save you a couple bucks then I recommend PureVPN over HMA.

Payment Options

Let’s finish this HMA vs PureVPN comparison in 2021 by looking at the payment methods that each supports.

I am particularly interested in anonymous payments like Bitcoins because they do not require me to provide my billing address which can be used to identify me.

PureVPN and HMA currently supports payments through all major credit cards and platforms like PayPal.

In addition to that PureVPN supports crypto payments through Bitcoins.

If you are looking for a vpn that supports anonymous Bitcoin payments then I recommend PureVPN.

In Conclusion

I hope this PureVPN vs HMA comparison has helped you learn about the pros and cons of these two vpns.

Are you now ready to make your choice between PureVPN and HMA?

If you are looking for a vpn with the largest geographical coverage, unblocks Netflix, works in China and can bear with average speeds then I recommend HMA.

However, if you are looking for a vpn with more servers, unblocks more streaming platforms and does not collection your IP address then I recommend PureVPN.

Have you used either PureVPN or HMA before?

Please share your experience in the comments below.

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