Best VPNs for the USA in 2022

If you’re American, there are some good reasons to get yourself a VPN. For instance, when travelling abroad, you might notice that your streaming library has gone a lot smaller. US Netflix includes a lot of shows and movies that are simply not available in some other countries.

On top of that – the US is a part of the Five Eyes international digital information agreement, making it difficult for you to stay anonymous online in its member countries.

But there is a simple, elegant solution to solve both these problems at once – a VPN provider!

With a VPN, you can hide your activity, watch your favorite shows all across the world, and stay as safe and anonymous as you can be. Read on to find the best VPNs for the USA.

Top 5 best VPNs for the USA:

1. NordVPN - Best VPN for USA overall
2. Surfshark - VPN for your whole family
3. IPVanish - Cheap VPN for the US
4. Atlas VPN - Solid VPN for USA users
5. PureVPN - Newbie-friendly VPN for the US

The best VPNs for the USA - our detailed list:

You’ll need a handful of important features ticked off to get the most out of a VPN for the USA. Let’s have a look at each of these providers in detail and see how well they perform.

• Baseline testing speed: 300 Mbps download/300 Mbps upload

1. NordVPN - Best VPN for USA overall

Visit NordVPN

Reliable, fast, perfect for both privacy and high-definition streaming: NordVPN is our choice for the best VPN for the USA.

It has over 1970+ servers in 15 American cities and a total of around 5100 servers in 60 countries. But it’s not just quantity – there’s quality, too. NordVPN is an excellent streaming VPN, easily unblocking all the main US streaming content, like Netflix, DAZN, Youtube, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO Now, and Disney+.

And you’ll be able to stream all that in the highest quality possible, as NordLynx, its cutting-edge tunneling protocol, gets average download speeds of around 249mbps.

Useful features include SmartDNS, which unblocks streaming sites without even needing to connect the VPN. Split tunneling enables you to connect specific apps to the VPN and keep others on your regular connection.

NordVPN is based in Panama (a fantastic location for privacy), and its security features are first-rate. You can count on it to stay anonymous and safe, even if the Five Eyes come calling.

With such excellent service, you’d expect NordVPN to be expensive, but you can sign up for just $3.71 a month with a 30-day money-back guarantee included in the deal.

To find out more, check out our full NordVPN review.

2. Surfshark - VPN for your whole family

Visit Surfshark

If you’re looking for a VPN not only for yourself but for your family’s countless devices as well – Surfshark is an excellent choice. The reason is simple: this VPN has a killer feature, allowing unlimited simultaneous connections. You can share one subscription across as many devices as you want, giving you multiple options to connect to a USA VPN.

It’s well represented in the States, with 500 servers in various US cities, and over 3,000 total connections. Server speed is solid, too. With WireGuard, one of the best tunneling protocols available, Surfshark gets average download speeds of 263Mbps.

And that speed won’t go to waste. Surfshark can easily unblock Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Youtube, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO Now, and Disney+ without any error messages popping up.

The main VPN features are all there, from split-tunneling to SmartDNS, and excellent security on top with military-grade encryption.

Based in the Netherlands, your data will never be logged or revealed when you use Surfshark. For the cherry on top, Surfshark is also very affordable, with subscriptions starting as low as $2.30 a month with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

To find out more, take a look at our in-depth Surshark VPN review.

3. IPVanish - Cheap US VPN

Visit IPVanish

IPVanish nails all the USA VPN basics – it’s excellent for streaming, unblocking American Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+. It’s suitable for P2P connections, letting you download and share content through all of the server connections. And it’s also really fast – with the IKEv2 tunneling protocol helping to deliver speeds of around 261Mbps.

Features wise, you get split tunneling and a useful feature called On Demand, which you can use to automatically connect to the VPN in specific scenarios – like if you’re working in a cafe and need to use public wifi.

Even in that scenario, you don’t have to worry about the connection randomly dropping out and exposing your details thanks to IPVanish’s customizable kill switch. This VPN also has a strict no-logs policy to give you a bit of privacy comfort even in a member country of the Five Eyes.

IPVanish is also very cheap, and subscriptions start at just $3.75 a month. However, your price rate will increase after the first billing period, although this can span up to a year.

For more information, read our in-depth IPVanish review.

4. Atlas VPN - Good VPN for USA

Visit Atlas VPN

Atlas VPN is great at unblocking all the major streaming platforms - Netflix, Youtube, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO, and Disney+. You can pick a server located in the US or any other country - in total, the service offers 700 servers across 31 countries.

Some of the VPN’s features include SafeBrowse (a malicious website blocker), SafeSwap (IP address rotation), and data hack detection (which checks for data breaches).

One major downside of AtlasVPN is the lack of tunneling protocols: the tool supports only IPSec/IKEv2, so there’s no WireGuard or OpenVPN. Despite this, the VPN is able to reach some really good speeds.

If you need tech support when you're using Atlas VPN, you can get in touch with its team by email, and there’s an online knowledge base with tutorials and guides. Atlas VPN also doesn’t limit simultaneous connections - you can use it on as many devices as you want.

With low subscription rates starting at $1.39/month, AtlasVPN certainly makes a case as an attractive VPN option.

5. PureVPN - Newbie-friendly VPN for the US

Visit PureVPN

With over 1,420 servers in the US (in 13 different cities) and thousands more across the globe, PureVPN is perfect for unblocking the likes of Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Youtube, and DAZN.

Other positives include port forwarding, split tunneling, a kill switch, AES-256 encryption, and a generous allowance of 10 simultaneous connections. And if you need help, the PureVPN team is always on hand for support on 24/7 live chat.

When using the tool, you can choose from quite a wide range of tunneling protocols, including both variations of OpenVPN. However, keep in mind that the service doesn’t support WireGuard at the moment.

PureVPN is also easy on the wallet, costing just $1.33 a month. The provider also offers a 31-day money-back guarantee in case you change your mind.

6. ExpressVPN - Solid VPN for USA users

Visit ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is a highly versatile VPN, giving you excellent solutions for streaming, router setup, and online security. With servers in 14 different US cities, and a total of 3000+ server options in 91 countries around the world, it can unblock just about anything, anywhere: think Netflix, DAZN, BBC iPlayer, Youtube, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO Now, and Disney+.

It’s also one of the fastest VPNs available, especially when you connect with its Lightway tunneling protocol, which we used to get average download speeds of 226Mbps.

Another plus point for ExpressVPN is its router firmware. This makes the usually tricky router installation that much easier – so you can build your entire Internet connection to have a US IP and increase on the allowed five simultaneous connections.

Its MediaStreamer feature is essentially the same as SmartDNS and it supports split tunneling too.

You can rely on it to stay anonymous too. It has a no-logs policy that's been independently audited and it’s based in the British Virgin Islands.

On the downside, ExpressVPN is more expensive than other VPNs that offer a similar level of service. At $8.32 a month for a subscription, it’s certainly not cheap, but with a 30-day money-back guarantee, you can still try it out without major risk.

To find out more, read our in-depth ExpressVPN review.

7. VyprVPN - Cheap and private VPN for the US

Visit VyprVPN

VyprVPN ticks all the main boxes: it’s fast, unblocks streaming services, and keeps your data private. This is a seriously underrated VPN, offering a fantastic range of features at a super low price.

It doesn’t have as many servers as some of the bigger VPN names on this list, with 700+ servers in 70 countries and options for 8 US cities. But those servers work remarkably well, unblocking streaming platforms such as Netflix, DAZN, Youtube, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and HBO Now.

VyprVPN also offers the best-in-class tunneling protocol WireGuard, which helps it achieve impressive average download speeds of 242Mbps. You can also use the Chameleon 2.0 protocol if you’re in a country that prohibits VPN use.

Privacy and security are also top-tier. VyprVPN is based in Switzerland, another location that keeps your data completely safe from prying (five) eyes. With military-grade encryption and an instant kill switch, you’re being given full peace of mind.

Sure, VyprVPN is lacking some features – such as SmartDNS, but it makes up for it with its price. Easily the cheapest VPN on this list, a subscription to VyprVPN can cost as little as just $8.33 a month!

To find out more, take a look at our in-depth VyprVPN review.

8. TorGuard - solid VPN choice for advanced users

Visit TorGuard

TorGuard is a solid VPN option for tech-savvy users, adding interesting advanced features. With over 3000 worldwide servers and 11 available US cities, there are plenty of options to pick on either coast – as well as 12 simultaneous connections, and full router connection capabilities.

However, if streaming is your thing, look elsewhere as TorGuard is not suitable for unblocking content. That said, you do get SmartDNS, so if you can unblock your chosen streaming service without needing to connect to the VPN. Split tunneling is also available.

TorGuards apps and interfaces can be confusing to use if you’re not especially techy. They require a bit of tinkering to get the best experience, so if you’re a newbie, you should go for a simpler option.

Scripts is a feature that may appeal to advanced users. You can use it to customize your experience by writing ‘scripts’ that will issue different commands in different circumstances. For instance, open a specific website directly after connecting the VPN.

For a subscription to TorGuard, you’re looking at paying $4.00 a month. That also includes a 30-day money-back guarantee.

For more information, read our in-depth TorGuard review.

9. Mullvad - Most privacy-friendly VPN

Visit Mullvad

Mullvad is an open-source VPN offering 304 servers in 13 US cities and over 761 servers in 36 countries in total – not even close to the top providers on this list. The servers aren’t suitable for streaming either, with us managing to only unblock geo-restricted YouTube videos.

So, a natural question arises – why is Mullvad on this list?

That’s because it’s a perfect VPN if you’re looking for supreme privacy. Instead of promising to not log and share your information, it doesn’t ask for it. You don’t even need to supply an email address or set a password to sign up. You’re simply given a unique account number and that’s what you’ll use to sign in.

For payments, you can pay with cash – or use crypto (and get a discount) instead.

Additional interesting guides for tech-savvy users like ‘how to generate multihop WireGuard server configurations’ and ’how to be immune to quantum compute brute force attacks’ will help you make the best out of this security-focused solution.

Mullvad’s subscriptions are a flat rate of $6.00 a month – a small price to pay for privacy.

For more information, read our in-depth Mullvad review.

10. ProtonVPN - Swiss VPN for max security

Visit ProtonVPN

The Swiss Proton company is better known for ProtonMail – a super secure email solution. Their VPN follows the same mantra, offering an extra-secure service for all your US VPN needs.

ProtonVPN is a solid all-rounder. It has plenty of servers around the world, with 238 of those located in 13 US cities. We’ve tested it out on streaming platforms, and it got us into popular sites like Netflix US, BBC iPlayer, Youtube, and HBO Now without any issues. Speeds aren’t hugely impressive, but good enough to handle HD streams.

ProtonVPN’s split tunneling feature is one of the best we’ve used. You can encrypt certain apps, cut other ones out, or just cover your entire connection. It even works on specific IP addresses!

Security is another aspect where ProtonVPN, unsurprisingly, plays a good hand. There’s military-grade encryption, a reliable kill switch, and NetShield – a feature that filters out and blocks sites that are known for phishing, malware, and tracking.

Based in Switzerland, ProtonVPN keeps you anonymous at all times with a no-logs policy.

Its subscriptions come in different tiers, starting at around $5 a month for the Basic plan, $10 a month for the Plus plan, and $30 a month for the Visionary plan.

These may seem expensive, but ProtonVPN offers a free trial with one VPN connection, three servers, and no data cap included. Not bad, Proton. Not bad at all.

For more information, read our in-depth ProtonVPN review.

How we tested and selected the best US VPNs

• Security. For a VPN to do its job properly, it needs to offer robust security. That means features like a no-logs policy, strong encryption, and location in a country that favors privacy, like Panama. That way, your data will always remain safe.
• Speed. Fast speeds are essential for optimal streaming. You don’t want that crisp HD steam to start buffering. Our chosen VPNs all offer the use of cutting-edge tunneling protocols to maximize their speeds.
• Good for streaming. The more streaming sites you can access, the more excellent entertainment you have to watch. These top VPNs are proven to unblock the biggest streaming sites, so wherever you may be in the world, you can always watch the best US content.
• Customer support. We all need tech support from time to time. We’ve made a point of recommending VPNs that offer detailed guides and 24/7 live chat so you always have helpful resources at hand.
• Price. If the price isn’t right, the VPN isn’t either. The VPNs on this list all represent great value for money with regards to the features and level of service they offer.

How to choose the best USA VPN

When you’re looking for a VPN to use in the USA, it’s important to think about what you’ll need it for. Do you want to access geo-restricted streaming content? Are you trying to stay secure? Maybe you just want an extra layer of privacy?

The best VPNs will be able to do all of those, and more. Our top-rated VPNs all have many servers around the world (and in the US), so you know you’ll be getting a premium service.

If you want to dig deeper, look out for things like audits, location (privacy varies hugely from jurisdiction to jurisdiction), and privacy policies. Most VPNs publish their privacy policies on their websites, so you can easily find them and look out for anything that doesn't fit your needs.

It’s also a good idea to check out user testimonials and online reviews (we have in-depth reviews on all the VPNs on this list), as these will give you a greater insight into how people find the VPN.

All our recommended VPNs give you 30-days to change your mind. So you can try out their features, apps, and usability to see if they work for you. If not, you can simply claim a refund.

So do a bit of research, try out the ones you like, and ultimately, you’ll find the perfect VPN for you.

Why do I need a VPN in the United States?

Getting a VPN in the USA is the best way to guarantee yourself privacy from surveillance from governments and your internet service provider – giving you full peace of mind.

The United States is a member of the Five-Eyes alliance. This means that it shares intelligence and data with the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. So if either of these countries or an ISP requests your browsing data for any reason, it’ll be given up in a flash.

The USA also collects a lot of user data anyway, and this includes your web browsing info. American ISPs can also be a pain. Recently, they’ve been known to sell user data to advertisers, which then use the data for targeted advertising.

In many cases, users are locked in on a long-term plan, being unable to switch ISPs and avoiding such situations.

ISPs can also look down on common activities like P2P file sharing, and if you use too much bandwidth, they can throttle your service which means slower speeds.

A VPN solves all these problems. By hiding your IP address and connecting to a brand new server, you’re taking back your privacy. Your ISP won’t be able to see anything you’re doing, all your data will be protected, and the best VPNs never save your data thanks to their strict no-logs policies. So even if a Five-Eyes country does make a request, there simply won’t be anything to see.

Also, VPNs get you more entertainment. They can bypass geo-blocks, so you can access US streaming content all around the world – perfect if you’re away but don’t want to miss your favorite show.

Which VPN is fastest in the US?

Speed is a vital feature to look for in a VPN. If you’re watching HD content, you’re going to want a smooth stream that isn’t stopping every few minutes with buffer issues.

As we researched this guide, we tested out all our recommended VPNs based on their speed and found Surfshark, NordVPN, and VyprVPN (in this order) to be the fastest in the US.

These are the top five fastest VPNs for the USA:

VPN speeds can come down to a few factors, such as your location, your internet connection, and the tunneling protocols the VPN is using.

Are there any good US-based VPNs?

Several excellent VPNs are based in the US. We’ve included some in this list - Private Internet Access, IPVanish, and TorGuard. Another option that deserves an honorable mention is Hotspot Shield.

The worry with US-based VPNs is that your data is more susceptible to being collected by government and intelligence agencies.

However, since our recommended VPNs all have no-logs policies, if data requests did come in, there would be nothing to hand over as their servers are routinely wiped to ensure users receive anonymity when using their VPN services.

Can I use a free VPN in the USA?

Yes, you certainly can use a free VPN in the US, but they have plenty of issues – and so, there are plenty of reasons why you shouldn’t.

Free VPNs come in two forms, those that are completely free, or those that are free versions of paid VPNs (aka freemium versions).

Completely free VPNs are a risk. You may not have to pay anything to use them, but that means they’ll be generating income through other means, such as stuffing their apps with adverts and even selling your data to third parties. Aside from that, they're just not very good. Free VPNs lack features, good servers, speed, and practically everything else that makes a VPN worth paying for. In the worst-case scenario, they could even infect your devices with malware.

As for freemium VPNs, they’re not as much of a risk since they’ll usually come from a reputable VPN provider. But as a free version, they will likely come with limited services and restrictions on use, such as data caps. However, there are a few exceptions such as ProtonVPN, which doesn't have a data cap.

Overall, you absolutely can use a free VPN in the USA – but it’s going to be a less reliable and less safe solution. You can check out some of the best free and freemium VPN services that we recommend.

Conclusion

If you want to access all the USA’s best streaming content wherever you may be located, and also stay private and secure online, getting a VPN is the best course of action.

By hiding your IP address, it can unblock streaming sites, mask your activities from snooping ISPs, and make sure your data is never stored anywhere. Not only will you have loads more great entertainment to watch, but you’ll also be protected from content owners, your ISP, and Five Eyes countries. So even if you’re based in the US, there's no reason you can’t stay private online. Take your pick from the VPNs we’ve recommended – and you’ll be good to go.

FAQ

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Best VPNs for UK: access UK content from abroad
Best VPNs for Canada: unblock Canadian streaming content