Privacy-First Swiss VPN Service
ProtonVPN Free Trial (2026)
ProtonVPN is the world's most trusted privacy-first VPN service, built by the same team behind ProtonMail, the world's largest encrypted email service, and headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. ProtonVPN offers a genuinely unlimited free plan with no data caps, no speed throttling on free servers, and no ad injection, making it unique among major VPN providers. ProtonVPN Plus upgrades your free account with high-speed servers in 117 countries, streaming access, Tor over VPN, and NetShield ad blocker, all backed by fully open-source, independently audited apps.
Free plan available · No credit card required
What Is ProtonVPN?
ProtonVPN is a virtual private network service developed by Proton AG, a Swiss technology company founded in 2014 by scientists who met at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research. Proton's flagship product, ProtonMail, became the world's largest encrypted email service by building a reputation for uncompromising privacy standards and transparency. ProtonVPN was launched in 2017 as a natural extension of this mission, applying the same privacy-first philosophy to secure internet connectivity.
What sets ProtonVPN apart from competitors is its combination of institutional credibility and technical transparency. ProtonVPN's apps are fully open-source, meaning any security researcher in the world can inspect the source code to verify that the software does exactly what it claims. Independent security audits have been conducted by SEC Consult, Cure53, and other respected firms. ProtonVPN is headquartered in Switzerland, which has some of the world's strongest privacy laws and is outside the jurisdiction of the EU's data retention directives, US government surveillance programs, and the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing network. The free plan, which imposes no data limits and requires no payment information, reflects ProtonVPN's mission-driven approach, the company accepts that free users fund their subscriptions through the paid tier rather than through data monetization.
How ProtonVPN Free and Plus Work
Create a Free Proton Account
Click the free trial button on this page to go to the ProtonVPN signup. Create a free Proton account using your email address, no credit card or payment information is required. Your ProtonVPN free account is activated immediately and includes access to free servers in 5 countries.
Download the ProtonVPN App
Download the open-source ProtonVPN app for your device, available for Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Linux. Log in with your Proton account credentials. The app is independently audited and all source code is publicly available on GitHub for verification.
Connect to a Free or Plus Server
On the free plan, connect to servers in the United States, Netherlands, or Romania. Free servers are specifically designated and maintained separately from Plus servers to ensure quality. If you upgrade to Plus, you gain access to high-speed servers in 117 countries, streaming-optimized servers, and Secure Core servers for extreme privacy.
Upgrade to Plus if Needed
Use the free plan for as long as you want. If you need faster speeds, access to streaming services like Netflix, or servers in more countries, upgrade to ProtonVPN Plus. Upgrading requires no new account, your existing Proton account simply gains Plus access. You can downgrade back to free at any time.
What's Included with ProtonVPN
ProtonVPN's free plan is genuinely capable. Here is what you get on the free plan and what upgrades with Plus:
ProtonVPN Pricing Plans
ProtonVPN offers a free plan with no time limit and no payment required. Plus plans unlock the full server network, streaming access, and advanced features. Proton also offers a bundle that includes ProtonMail Plus.
Free
$0/month
Unlimited data with no credit card required. Access to servers in 3 countries (US, Netherlands, Romania). 1 simultaneous connection. No streaming servers. No ads, Proton does not monetize free users through data or advertising.
Plus
$9.99/month
High-speed servers in 117 countries, streaming server access, Secure Core, NetShield, Tor over VPN, up to 10 simultaneous connections, and P2P support. Billed monthly. Annual plan reduces cost to $4.99/month.
Proton Unlimited
$12.99/month
Everything in ProtonVPN Plus plus ProtonMail Plus, ProtonCalendar, ProtonDrive (200GB), and ProtonPass password manager. The best value bundle for users who want the full Proton privacy ecosystem.
ProtonVPN Plus billed annually costs $4.99/month ($59.88/year), reducing the monthly price by 50% compared to monthly billing. A 30-day money-back guarantee applies to paid plans. The free plan has no time limit and no payment requirement.
ProtonVPN Pros and Cons
Pros
- The only major VPN with a genuinely unlimited free plan, no data caps, no ads, no payment required
- Fully open-source apps, source code publicly available and independently audited by multiple firms
- Swiss jurisdiction provides some of the strongest legal privacy protections globally
- Secure Core architecture routes traffic through RAM-only servers in Switzerland, Iceland, and Sweden
- Built by the same team as ProtonMail, institutional credibility and a proven privacy track record
- NetShield blocks ads, trackers, and malware at the DNS level, functional even on slower connections
- 30-day money-back guarantee on paid plans with no reason required
Cons
- Free plan limits you to 1 simultaneous connection and servers in only 3 countries
- Connection speeds on free servers can be slower during peak hours due to shared load
- Streaming server access requires a Plus subscription, Netflix is not accessible on the free plan
- Plus pricing at $9.99/month (monthly billing) is higher than NordVPN and CyberGhost
- Linux app is functional but has fewer features than the Windows and macOS versions
ProtonVPN Alternatives to Consider
ProtonVPN is the top choice for privacy-first users and free VPN seekers. Here are the best alternatives depending on your needs:
| Tool | Free Trial | Starting Price | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| NordVPN | 30-day money-back | $3.99/month | Fastest speeds and most advanced feature set |
| Mullvad | No trial (30-day refund) | €5/month | Anonymous payment and extreme privacy focus |
| Windscribe | Free plan (10GB/month) | $9/month | Generous free plan with streaming server access |
NordVPN delivers the fastest speeds through its NordLynx protocol and offers the most comprehensive feature set, Threat Protection, Double VPN, and Meshnet, at a lower annual price than ProtonVPN Plus. Mullvad is a Swedish VPN that accepts cash and cryptocurrency payments, generates random account numbers instead of requiring email registration, and has an even more extreme privacy focus than ProtonVPN, ideal for users who want maximum anonymity. Windscribe offers a free plan with 10GB of monthly data and includes streaming server access on the free tier, making it a compelling alternative if streaming is important to you and ProtonVPN's free plan is too limited. ProtonVPN is the best choice when open-source transparency, Swiss legal jurisdiction, and a genuinely unlimited free plan are the top priorities.
How to Start Using ProtonVPN
Getting ProtonVPN set up takes less than 3 minutes. Follow these steps to create your account and connect securely for free:
Create Your Free Proton Account
Use the button on this page to go to the ProtonVPN signup. Enter your email address and create a password, no credit card or payment information is required. Your free Proton account works across all Proton services including ProtonVPN, ProtonMail, and ProtonDrive.
Download ProtonVPN for Your Device
After creating your account, download the ProtonVPN app for your primary device from the ProtonVPN website or your device's app store. Apps are available for Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Linux. All apps are open-source and available on GitHub.
Connect to a Free Server
Open ProtonVPN and click Quick Connect to automatically connect to the fastest available free server. Alternatively, select a specific country from the server list, free plan users can choose from servers in the United States, Netherlands, and Romania. Your connection is encrypted and your IP address is hidden immediately.
Enable the Kill Switch
In ProtonVPN settings, enable the kill switch feature. This automatically blocks all internet traffic if the VPN connection drops unexpectedly, preventing your real IP address from being exposed. The kill switch is available on all plans including the free tier.
Explore the Proton Ecosystem
Your Proton account gives you access to the entire Proton ecosystem, sign into ProtonMail at mail.proton.me for end-to-end encrypted email, ProtonDrive for encrypted cloud storage, and ProtonPass for a password manager. All services are accessible with your single Proton account and reinforce each other's privacy protections.
Consider Upgrading to ProtonVPN Plus
If you need faster servers, streaming access, or servers in more countries, upgrade to ProtonVPN Plus from your account settings. Annual Plus costs $4.99/month, significantly cheaper than monthly billing. Upgrading activates instantly with no data migration required, and you can downgrade back to the free plan at the end of your billing period.
No credit card required · Unlimited free plan · Upgrade anytime
Start Using ProtonVPN Free Today
ProtonVPN is the only major VPN service with a truly unlimited free plan that imposes no data caps and requires no payment information. Built by the ProtonMail team in Switzerland with fully open-source apps and multiple independent security audits, ProtonVPN delivers more transparency and institutional privacy credibility than any competitor. Whether you start with the free plan or go straight to Plus for streaming and high-speed servers, ProtonVPN gives you the most trustworthy VPN foundation available.
Get Your Free TrialFree plan · No credit card · No data limits · Upgrade anytime