10 Best VPN for iPhone 2024 (updated in December 2024) — Top Picks

My job as a full time content creator and travel YouTuber has taken me many places around the world. One of the things I've quickly learned is that using a VPN on your iPhone comes with tons of perks — you can access your favorite streaming content when traveling, you get to secure your data and privacy, and you can prevent bandwidth throttling. 

However, I unfortunately found that not many VPNs work well on iPhones. I found that a lot of providers just don’t have native apps for iOS, so you need to perform inconvenient manual setups to use their services on your iPhone. And out of the VPNs that come with iOS apps, a lot of them are not good for streaming or have slow speeds. 

I’ve been using VPNs for the past 10+ years while traveling, so I decided to put my experience to good use. I put together this list of the best iPhone VPNs on the market at the moment. All of my top picks come with user-friendly iPhone apps that are easy to use, good for streaming, and fast (though, ExpressVPN is my #1 pick). 

🥇 1. ExpressVPN — Best VPN Service for iPhone in 2024 ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is the best iPhone VPN on the market in my opinion — it comes with an extremely intuitive and feature-rich iOS VPN app, it provides excellent streaming support, and it has the fastest VPN speeds on the market. 

The VPN provider has a beginner-friendly iOS app — it takes less than 2 minutes to install and configure it, it comes with a quick-connect tool that automatically connects you to the fastest server, and the interface is really intuitive, so it’s extremely simple to find all the settings and features you need. 

And I also love how ExpressVPN’s iOS app comes with great security tools. It provides access to Advanced Protection, which is a tool that blocks ads, protects you from shady sites, and even optionally blacklists adult sites, providing some level of parental controls. What’s more, the app comes with ExpressVPN Keys, which is a built-in password manager that secures your logins and helps you generate strong passwords. 

The app also provides access to Lightway, which is ExpressVPN’s proprietary protocol. Lightway is designed to provide excellent security and ultra-fast speeds. In addition, it’s also open-source (anyone can inspect the code) and audited. Plus, it also provides obfuscation to hide your VPN traffic, allowing you to circumvent VPN blocks in restrictive countries — for example, I can confirm the VPN works without issues in China. 

In addition, the VPN provider also has other advanced security features. It has a strict no-logs policy that has passed several independent audits, and has also been proven true in a server seizure. What’s more, ExpressVPN has RAM-only servers (every reset wipes all data), full protection against IPv6, DNS, and WebRTC leaks, and perfect forward secrecy, which changes the encryption key for each VPN session. 

And the provider has servers in 100+ countries and superfast speeds. In my tests, I always maintained blazing-fast speeds for browsing, streaming, and online gaming on both nearby and distant servers. 

Also, ExpressVPN works with 100+ streaming platforms, so it’s excellent for streaming. The list of services it’s compatible with includes popular platforms like Netflix (it’s actually the best Netflix VPN out there), BBC iPlayer, Disney+, and YouTube TV. 

ExpressVPN is affordable, with prices starting at $5.49/month It might seem a bit pricey, sure, but it’s 100% worth the money, as the VPN provider offers excellent value. Plus, it backs all purchases with a risk-free 30-day money-back guarantee.

🥈 2. Proton VPN — Best Free VPN Plan for iOS Proton VPN

Proton VPN has the best free VPN plan for iOS users (it’s also the best free VPN on the market). The free version allows unlimited bandwidth, which means you can use the free VPN plan to browse as much content as you want (most free VPNs limit you to 2–10 GB per month).

Also, the free plan has strong security and privacy features. It comes with advanced features like full leak protection, perfect forward secrecy, and full-disk encryption (ensures all data on a server is secure even if the server is compromised). And the VPN also has an audited no-logs policy, and all of its apps are open-source, which means anyone can inspect the code for security issues — plus, the apps are also audited.

And I also like how user-friendly Proton VPN’s iOS app is. It’s very easy to navigate the interface, all settings come with helpful explanations, and I really like how you can use a Home Screen widget to quickly access Proton VPN.

Still, the provider’s free plan has some limitations — you can only use servers in 5 countries, you can only connect 1 device, you don’t get streaming support, and you can’t choose which server you connect to (the VPN automatically connects you to the fastest server).

Upgrading to the paid version is 100% worth it. You get access to more features on the iOS app, including NetShield (a very good ad blocker), Secure Core servers that send your data through 2 VPN servers instead of just 1 server to provide more security, and VPN Accelerator, which boosts speeds on distant servers. What’s more, the paid version also adds support for 10 connections, 6000+ servers in 110+ countries, and compatibility with 40+ streaming services. 

Proton VPN’s paid plans start at $3.59/month, which is pretty affordable. All plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee, but keep in mind it’s prorated.

Read my full Proton VPN review

🥉 3. Surfshark — Beginner-Friendly VPN With Feature-Rich iOS App Surfshark

Surfshark has an extremely intuitive app for iOS devices. It comes with a quick-connect feature, it only takes up to 4–5 seconds to manually find and connect to a server, and there are helpful explanations for all features, so you never feel lost using the VPN. Plus, I really like how the provider allows unlimited simultaneous connections, as this makes it an excellent pick for large families. 

I also like how feature-rich the provider’s iPhone VPN app is. For starters, the app includes access to CleanWeb, which is a really good ad blocker. You also get access to Dynamic MultiHop, which allows you to set up customized double VPN connections. And there’s also IP Rotator, which regularly changes your VPN IP address to provide extra privacy. 

Surfshark also comes with a huge server network and fast speeds. The VPN provides access to a whopping 3,200+ servers in 95+ countries, so it’s super easy to connect to nearby servers to get the fastest speeds. And speaking of speeds, I generally maintained fast connections on both nearby and distant servers, and only experienced some minor slowdowns while streaming on really distant servers. 

And this is one of the best VPN providers for streaming, as it works with 100+ streaming services (just like ExpressVPN). I talked with 10+ of the provider’s reps, and they all confirmed that Surfshark is compatible with top services, like Netflix, Max, and BBC iPlayer. 

Surfshark is super affordable, with prices starting as low as $2.19/month. So it’s also a good pick if you’re on a tight budget. On top of that, the VPN also comes with a risk-free 30-day money-back guarantee.

Read my full Surfshark review

4. NordVPN — Excellent iPhone VPN for Security NordVPN

NordVPN is an iOS VPN with excellent security features. For starters, the VPN has advanced features, including full leak protection, RAM-only servers, and perfect forward secrecy. Also, it has a strict no-logs policy that has passed several independent security audits. 

The iOS app comes with Threat Protection and Dark Web Monitor. Threat Protection protects you from malicious and phishing domains, and it also blocks some ads (though not all, like ExpressVPN or Proton VPN). And Dark Web Monitor is a data breach scanner that alerts you if your NordVPN login details are compromised on the dark web. 

And you also get access to other cool security tools on iOS. For example, the mobile app has obfuscated servers that hide your VPN traffic — though they’re only good for added privacy, as NordVPN doesn’t guarantee access in restrictive countries. In addition, you also get double VPN servers that provide extra security by sending your data through 2 VPN servers instead of just 1 VPN server.

I also like how good NordVPN is for streaming. While it doesn’t say how many streaming platforms it works with, it’s compatible with the most popular ones — this includes Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+. 

Finally, the provider’s iOS app is also really user-friendly. It’s simple to find and connect to servers, there’s also a quick-connect tool, and you can even use a digital map to connect to servers, which is really convenient. Also, all settings and features come with helpful explanations. 

NordVPN has tier-based subscriptions with prices that start at $3.99/month, which is pretty affordable. The VPN service also comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Read my full NordVPN review

5. CyberGhost VPN — Great iPhone VPN for Streaming CyberGhost VPN

CyberGhost VPN is among the best iPhone VPNs for streaming, as it works with 50+ streaming platforms. This is thanks to its 100+ streaming servers, which are optimized to refresh their IPs very fast, so that streaming services won’t detect and block them. What’s more, the VPN is compatible with streaming services from 20+ countries, so you get very good variety. Plus, it’s also an excellent VPN, as it works with 15+ Netflix libraries, including Netflix US and Netflix UK. 

And the provider also comes with a huge server network of 10,000+ servers in 95+ countries. Thanks to this, it also provides very good speeds — whenever I use this VPN while traveling, I always have very good browsing and streaming speeds, and barely experience any slowdowns (even on distant servers). 

I also like how secure the provider’s iOS app is. It has advanced tools like RAM-only servers, perfect forward secrecy, strong leak protection, and an audited no-logs policy. That said, I think it’s a shame the app is missing additional security features like ExpressVPN and Proton VPN have, such as a tool that blocks ads and malicious sites.

And this is also a user-friendly VPN for iPhone users. There’s a quick-connect feature, it’s extremely simple to find and change different settings and features, and it also doesn’t take more than a few seconds to manually find and connect to your desired server location. 

CyberGhost VPN is budget-friendly, with plans starting at only $2.19/month. Also, the provider backs all long-term plans with a 45-day money-back guarantee. And it has a 14-day money-back guarantee for its shortest plan. 

Read my full CyberGhost VPN review

6. Private Internet Access — Good for iPhone Users Looking for Privacy and Fast Speeds Private Internet Access

Private Internet Access (PIA) is a very good privacy-focused VPN for iPhone. It provides access to a strict no-logs policy that has been independently audited, and which has also been proven true in several court documents. On top of that, the provider’s iPhone app (and all of its other apps) is fully open-source. 

In addition, I also like how secure this VPN is. It protects your internet traffic with advanced tools, such as RAM-only servers and perfect forward secrecy. What’s more, it has full leak protection — I actually ran 10+ leak tests while connected to several of its servers, and never experienced any leaks. 

And PIA comes with servers in 90+ countries, and it provides very smooth speeds. Pretty much any user will be able to connect to a nearby server to get fast VPN speeds. And in my tests, I never experienced any noticeable slowdowns while streaming, gaming, and browsing the web while connected to this VPN. 

My only complaint is that the provider’s iPhone app is not feature-rich. For example, it doesn’t include a tool that blocks ads and malicious sites, or a feature like obfuscation — like ExpressVPN and NordVPN do, for example.

On the plus side, PIA also works with 20+ streaming services and has a very user-friendly iPhone app. It’s very simple to navigate the app’s interface, and I like how there are helpful explanations for all settings and features. Plus, the provider allows unlimited simultaneous connections.

Private Internet Access is one of the most affordable VPN providers out there, with prices starting at just $2.19/month. On top of that, it also backs all purchases with a no-questions-asked 30-day money-back guarantee, so you basically buy with no risk.

Read my full Private Internet Access VPN review

7. PureVPN — Good iPhone VPN for Security and Streaming PureVPN

PureVPN provides access to a really secure iOS app. The provider comes with advanced security features, such as full leak protection, RAM-only servers, and perfect forward secrecy, and an independently audited no-logs policy. What’s more, you get access to Quantum-Resistant servers, which future-proof your data against potential quantum threats in the future.

In addition, the VPN comes with obfuscation on its iOS app. On top of getting additional privacy, this feature also helps you freely access the web in restrictive countries like China and Russia. 

You also get good streaming support since the VPN works with 10+ streaming services, such as Netflix and Disney+. Also, you get the Shortcuts feature on iOS, which lets you set up customized VPN connections for specific streaming platforms. 

The VPN also has 6,000+ servers in 65+ countries, and it provides good speeds for all online activities. That said, if you think the server network is too small, try ExpressVPN instead since it has servers in 100+ countries. 

PureVPN has several tier-based subscriptions that start at $2.14/month. Also, it provides a no-questions-asked 31-day money-back guarantee for all of its plans.

Read my full PureVPN review

8. PrivateVPN — Good Streaming VPN With a Minimalistic iPhone App PrivateVPN

PrivateVPN is one of the most beginner-friendly iPhone VPNs thanks to its minimalistic design. You get a very intuitive interface, which makes it really simple to find and connect to VPN servers. Also, the provider has one of the most minimalistic iOS VPN apps since it lacks many extra features that other top VPNs have — that might be a drawback, but it can also be helpful for people new to VPNs, as they won’t feel overwhelmed while using the VPN. 

PrivateVPN is also pretty good for streaming, as it works with top services, including Netflix, Max, YouTube TV, and Disney+. That’s great, but I think it’s a shame the VPN doesn’t say how many streaming platforms it works with — ExpressVPN, for example, works with 100+ streaming services.

The VPN has 200+ servers in 60+ countries, and it also provides good speeds. When I tested it, it always maintained really fast speeds on nearby servers. On distant servers, I still had smooth connections, but I sometimes experienced slowdowns while watching 4K videos.

PrivateVPN is super affordable, with plans starting as low as $2.00/month. On top of that, the provider also backs all purchases with a 30-day money-back guarantee. 

Read my full PrivateVPN review

9. IPVanish — Easy-to-Use iOS VPN With Good Speeds IPVanish

IPVanish provides access to a really intuitive iOS app. I like how there’s a quick-connect feature and a search field (to instantly find your desired server). In addition, most settings and features come with quick, helpful explanations. Also, the provider allows unlimited connections, so you can use it on as many iPhone devices as you want.

The VPN also has 2,400+ servers in 50+ countries, and it provides fast speeds. In my tests, I was always able to maintain smooth browsing and streaming speeds on most nearby and distant servers. 

Plus, the provider’s iOS app is also secure and feature-rich. It comes with a kill switch, and it also provides access to a feature that blocks ads, trackers, and shady websites. And it’s one of the few iOS VPNs out there that supports split-tunneling.

IPVanish is pretty affordable, with plans starting at $2.19/month. It also has a 30-day money-back guarantee, but it unfortunately only covers its long-term plans (there’s no refund policy for its shortest plan). 

Read my full IPVanish review

10. Astrill VPN — Decent iOS VPN for Users in Restrictive Countries Astrill VPN

Astrill VPN is good for iOS users who are living in or traveling through restrictive countries. The provider’s iOS app comes with OpenWeb, which is Astrill VPN’s proprietary protocol that’s designed to work in restrictive countries — and I can confirm it works without issues, as it always allowed me to freely surf the web in China. 

The VPN is also pretty good for streaming, as it works with top services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. In addition, it has servers in 55+ countries, and it provides pretty fast speeds across all of its servers. 

That said, I don’t like how Astrill VPN’s iOS app doesn’t have a kill switch, as this means it can’t protect you from traffic leaks if the VPN connection drops. Top competitors like ExpressVPN and Proton VPN have iPhone VPN apps that come with a kill switch. 

Astrill VPN’s plans start at $12.50/month, which is pretty expensive — especially when compared to other top competitors (some of which also provide better value). I also think it’s a shame that the provider is missing a refund policy.

Read my full Astrill VPN review

Quick Comparison of My Top Picks

	Starting Price	Server Network	Number of Streaming Services	Number of Devices	Free Plan	Money-Back Guarantee
🥇1. ExpressVPN	$5.49/month	Servers in 100+ countries	100+	Up to 8		30 days
🥈 2. Proton VPN	$3.59/month	6000+ servers in 110+ countries	40+	10		30 days (prorated)
🥉 3. Surfshark	$2.19/month	3,200+ servers in 95+ countries	100+	Unlimited		30 days
4. NordVPN	$3.99/month	6,000+ servers in 110+ countries	Unknown	10		30 days
5. CyberGhost VPN	$2.19/month	10,000+ servers in 95+ countries	50+	7		45 days (long-term plans) 14 days (shortest plan)
6. Private Internet Access	$2.19/month	Servers in 90+ countries	20+	Unlimited		30 days
7. PureVPN	$2.14/month	6,000+ servers in 65+ countries	10+	10		31 days
8. PrivateVPN	$2.00/month	200+ servers in 60+ countries	Unknown	10		30 days
9. IPVanish	$2.19/month	2,400+ servers in50+ countries	Unknown	Unlimited		30 days (long-term plans only)
10. Astrill VPN	$12.50/month	Servers in 55+ countries	Unknown	5

How I Chose the VPNs on This List

• I only picked VPNs that have a native iOS VPN app. I only recommend choosing a VPN that has an iOS app you can download from the iTunes app store. You shouldn’t have to manually download the app from third-party platforms or performa inconvenient manual setups to use the VPN on iOS. All the VPNs on my list meet this requirement.
• I only ranked VPNs that have a user-friendly iPhone VPN app. You should only pick a provider that has a really intuitive iPhone VPN app. The interface needs to be easy to navigate, there should be helpful explanations for all settings and features, and it shouldn’t take you more than 5 seconds to find and connect to a server. 
• I only added secure iOS VPNs to my list. It’s important to pick an iPhone VPN that comes with all (if not, almost all) essential VPN security features, such as military-grade encryption, a no-logs policy, a kill switch to prevent data leaks, or DNS leak protection.
• I only included VPNs with good streaming support in my article. I strongly recommend going for a provider that works with most top streaming services, such as Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and more. ExpressVPN, which is the best iPhone VPN out there in my opinion, works with 100+ streaming platforms. 
• I made sure to only tank fast iOS VPNs. When you use a VPN, your original internet speeds will always suffer some level of slowdown. This is mostly due to the added VPN encryption, and to the distance between your iOS devices and the VPN servers. But the best iPhone VPNs optimize their server infrastructure and VPN service to minimize the speed loss, so that it’s barely noticeable. 
• I only chose VPNs that provide good value. I recommend only picking VPN providers that come with affordable plans, provide access to extra features (such as an ad blocker), and come with a free plan or a generous money-back guarantee.

Why Use a VPN on Your iOS Device?

• Secure your online data — A VPN creates an encrypted VPN tunnel that routes data between your device and the VPN server. This way, your web traffic is 100% unreadable, so nobody can spy on it to see what sites you’re browsing.
• Protect your privacy — VPNs stop anyone from seeing your location, as they hide your IP address. If someone were to check your connection, they’d only be able to see the IP of the server you’re connected to.
• Access geo-restricted content — Because VPNs hide your IP address, they stop streaming services from detecting your real location. This would help you access TV shows, movies, or sites that are only available in your country when you travel abroad, for example. 
• Stop bandwidth throttling — VPNs encrypt your traffic, so they stop anyone (including your ISP) from monitoring your traffic. And since your ISP can’t see what you’re doing online, they won’t be able to selectively slow down your online speeds. 
• Improve your gaming experience — Using a VPN might lower your ping while playing online games. Basically, if you connect to a server in the same country as the gaming server you’re playing on, your traffic might take a more direct route to the gaming server. Also, VPNs protect you from Distributed-Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks by hiding your IP address.

How to Install and Use a VPN on Your iOS Device

1. Get a VPN with a good iOS app. I personally recommend ExpressVPN since it has an extremely intuitive iOS app, it works with 100+ streaming platforms, and it provides the fastest speeds on the market. 
2. Download the provider’s app. Head to Apple’s app store, find the VPN provider’s app, and download it. 
3. Wait for the installation to finish. The process is automatic and shouldn’t take more than 2 minutes.
4. Open the app. Find the app on your iPhone, and tap on it to run it. 
5. Log into your account. Type in your username/email and password to log into your VPN account. 
6. Go through the setup process. Follow the on-screen instructions to finish setting up the VPN on your device. 
7. Connect to a server. Browse through the list of server locations, and tap on your preferred one to connect to the server. Congrats — you can now securely surf the web on your iPhone.

Best VPNs for iPhone in 2024 — Final Thoughts: Final Thoughts