Proton VPN Reviews 912

Been on the verge of subscribing to a proper VPN for quite a while, and since i've been using Proton's Email for years I thought i'd give them a try.
They're quite clever to price their service so that you sign up for a year, offering a so called discount which seems to be nothing more than a sales technique.
They also have the very dirty automatic renewal (which is very common among VPNs) whether you like it or not, and the renewal price being much higher than the original 'offer' price. So why wouldn't you unsubscribe and then buy again with an offer price?
Anyway..... The speeds are very disappointing and massively compromise my broadband (which is by no means the fastest available) under all conditions. Also the server locations and choice is surprisingly poor considering their boasting.
The difference between the free service and paid service is not great enough to justify the price.
I may just cut them loose (with 11 months left) and try someone else.

Subscribed for a month, in november 2024, cancelled it, somehow it reactivated by itself and continue charging me for almost a year without notifiying me at all, when asked about it, they did not answer my question on why i did not receive any notifications and tell me it was my fault, just stay away and use any other vpn.

Edit: reading from some other reviews, other people also faced the same thing, thats just it, they're just scamming people. They will re subscribe your account, charge you for as long as until you notice you are being charged. Even if you dont use it.
STAY CLEAR OF THIS VPN.

I first purchased the monthly plan and it worked well. Then I paid for the yearly subscription — terrible! Pages don’t load at all. Total scammers and frauds. Stay away!

Not shocked they have like 2 stars. Yay encrypted email but the rest is a total train wreck and I am so mad I wasted money on this crap. Customer service is completely useless - like, language barriers aside, they reply with the same copy and paste answers. Most of the time their crap doesn't work. Not sure they work.

This app runs smoothly on legacy Windows setups, which is a rare and valuable trait these days. It’s up to us to decide what “vulnerable” means in context — and for my setup, it’s stable and efficient. I’m docking one star only because support is limited and a few features don’t work as expected, but that’s understandable given the app’s age and target system.

Honestly, I’m surprised by the negative reviews. It connects reliably for me, delivers faster speeds than Nord and ExpressVPN, and even works seamlessly with the Supermium browser. For an older app, it holds its ground impressively.

Does not work on Chromebooks or fire tablets. Wasted hours trying yo get this thing to work. Instructions are confusing and dense .Just as well I tried the free version first before the paid one. Way too complex unless you have a degree in IT.

They are showing spam slashes to VPN users who paid them for the service. This product looks and feels like malware, not a VPN that is supposed to provide privacy and security.

REPLY ON 2025-09-18: When I created the account, I disabled all notifications, messages and other spam. Apparently you had added a new setting and put it on by default. You should not do that. If you add a new option, you should either ask my permission to turn it on or turn it off by default. Not cool. I cancelled my subscription. Quit spamming unless you want to lose more customers.

Experience in the Netherlands with fibre optic internet and Windows 11 fully updated.
Proton receives top reviews on all the well-known English-language review sites.
However, after installing Proton Unlimited on my Windows 11 PC, I encountered lots of problems.
The Windows app blocks the browser extension. In my case, the Chrome extension.
Moreover, these two apps have different settings which isn't logical at all.
Eg. It's not possible to add excluded websites to the split tunneling function of the Windows app. Only apps and IP addresses can be added. But in the browser app, excluded websites can be added. However, if the Windows app is turned on, these excluded websites can't be opened. The Windows app needs to be turned off to open these excluded websites.
Why does Proton have an app for Windows and a browser extension with different functions, and why does the Windows app block the excluded websites in the browser extension?
Moreover, what's the use of the browser app? Shouldn't it be logical that the Windows app secures the PC, including the browser?
So, I suppose, when users only install the Windows app but not the browser extension, all browser traffic isn't secured by Proton VPN.
But the Windows app needs to be switched off to open excluded websites in the browser extension.
A completely illogical and unsafe workaround to open excluded websites. It means that if you want to open excluded websites your pc isn't protected because you need to switch off the Windows app.
Lots of common safe websites block VPN servers including lots of popular shopping sites such as the Dutch bolcom. These sites can be added as excluded sites to the VPN app. However, there are two problems with this:
1. You keep adding sites as excluded sites because tens of thousands (perhaps hundreds of thousands) websites block VPN servers.
2. By registering these websites as excluded websites your connection to these websites isn't hidden by a VPN.
A good option is to connect to your VPN by a dedicated server.
All top-reviewed VPN companies have this option, including Proton. But for some strange reason Proton is the only VPN which has this option only for business users. Why???
Perhaps Proton doesn't have enough dedicated servers???
I also installed Proton Unlimited on my Samsung S22 Ultra with Android 15.
Proton VPN works perfectly because there's no separate browser extension. Hence, just one app secures my phone and browser.
But, of course, also on a phone a dedicated server is needed to open all websites without having them to be registered as excluded websites.
In short, my experience with Proton Unlimited on Windows 11 is terrible because a Windows app and browser extension are needed which block each other; however, with Android 15 it works perfectly.
This issue of excluded websites blocked by the Windows app is not described on the Proton website. I'm pretty sure many users have this problem but don't know that the culprit is the Windows app.
The design of the Windows app is also not logical.
Eg, how to open a default Secure Core connection at startup of your Windows pc isn't logical. This is a hidden feature. But why is it hidden if the Secure Core feature is a unique feature which only Proton VPN has?
The normal default connection at startup of your Windows pc is clear but how to startup with a default Secure Code is something you have to find with trial and error.
Reviews on Trustpilot clearly mark a negative red line.
Hence, if so many users face lots of problems, something is clearly wrong with this software or VPN.
Please read the very positive reviews of Nord VPN, Surfshark and Express VPN and draw your own conclusions!

The comment below clearly describes the problem of the Proton Windows app and browser extension: "... the browser extension is not required. The extension is designed for split tunneling by website, which works independently of the desktop app. The Windows app currently supports split tunneling by apps and IPs, not domains."
In other words, the browser extension is for split tunneling websites and the Windows app for split tunneling apps and IPs, not websites.
Hence, the browser extension is useless, because if you add excluded websites to this extension they still can't be opened unless you switch off the Windows app.
But the Proton Windows app is always required. Only installing the Proton browser extension without the Windows app doesn't hide your IP.
Whoever designed the Proton Windows app and browser extension should go back to college!

Using their free vpn for 2,3 years. No issues.

This is a completely trustworthy company.

Maybe things have changed recently because I am shocked at the low score and bad reviews at the time of writing this.

To get the best deal, I signed up for the 2 year service, installing their excellent looking software which has a great USP and is the reason I chose Proton - if the port changes it provides a Windows notification and the number can be copied and pasted. It's one of the few VPNs that provide both port forwarding and split tunnelling and PIA would do well to learn how to make a great piece of software like this.

Sadly, the software didn't work on my system though, I tried all the settings and servers and websites continually failed to load, throwing up DNS errors. It is entirely possible it is my own system that is at fault, as mine is still Windows 10 after all, so don't be put off by this. I'm sure it works for 99% of people. Their 30 day money back guarantee is real and quick if it doesn't work out for you, so you have nothing to lose, I promise you.

Proton were understanding and offered to help, even providing me with 2 additional months free.
I did try every single option and spent hours trying to get it to stabilise because I really wanted to keep it, but it wasn't going to happen so I informed support.

Within 3 days they provided a full refund to my credit card.

I signed on for Proton in 2022 and cancelled it within a week as it didn't solve my viewing problem. I had no question that it was cancelled properly, uninstalled it from my computer and didn't think of it again. In August 2025 I was sent an email reminding me of my auto renewal which was bout to happen in September. I emailed tham and they said I still have an account with them that was never cancelled and they have been charging me since 2023 for services that I have never used. Repeated communications with them were useless as they keep citing me their refund policy. I have now asked for a copy of their auto renewal policies and their usual practice around informing customers about auto renewals. I have had not one email from them since 2022, no ads, no renewals, nothing. They are refusing to refund my last 2 years of payments despite seeing that I have never once logged in and used the service. The customer service has been poor and I would not recommend Proton VPN.

I subscribed by accident to Proton VPN on 20 August 2025 and cancelled on the very minutes. Despite cancelling immediately, I have not received my refund. Their support has been unhelpful and it feels like they are deliberately delaying or avoiding payment.

This experience shows a complete lack of transparency and integrity. Instead of providing a secure and trustworthy service, they have caused unnecessary stress and wasted my time.

Please also note their so called 30-day money-back guarantee is nothing but a sheer lie

I strongly advise others to stay away from Proton VPN. Based on my experience, they do not operate in good faith and may try to keep your money even when you’re entitled to a refund. There are far more reliable VPN providers out there and don’t risk your money here.

Not working in Turkey. Site is not loading... Shame!

Protonvpn has really good options in the app which i have on my phone and my tv.
I am still using the free option, but will go pro now. Buying a "trial" to see if any if these bad reviews are true. Be safe .

Edit:
Is not possible to send message to support from the tv, funcion panel on left side is not accessible on my google tv? Besides that it has good speed and seems as good protection.

I’ve been using the free version of Proton VPN for about 1 or 2 years and the experience has been really disappointing. Most of the time, it doesn’t connect properly, and even when it says it’s connected, the connection doesn’t work at all. On the rare occasions it does connect, the speed is extremely slow and unstable, making it basically unusable. Constant disconnections and failed connections make the whole app frustrating to use.

only wanted a free vpn so i could watch something on american servers but despite it specifically saying theres 5 options on the free plan, including US, it would only let me collect to the netherlands which is useless.

Since I installed, I often can’t get certain access to sites and receive an unbelievably amount of junk mail
I most definitely do NOT RECOMMEND

It's like 5-7 days since Proton down. No connection both PC and Android, home and mobile networks. I know, it is not so easy while you are banned by government, but Windscribe is still OK.

It is pity, because Proton's speed is high, even on a free tier. Hope they will fix connection problem.

Downloaded to fire tv which gave a code to enter into my account which I created online. Signed in & there was no option anywhere to enter a code. Verified by email, signed out & back in, still no where to enter the code. Read the instructions on how to activate app on fire tv about 3 times to see if I was missing something. Clearly says on there to enter the code but couldn’t find anywhere to enter it!!!
Waste of time 😤

There is a reason this non-working scam app has a rate of 2. Do not download it; use an alternative instead. Free or premium version, neither works. Do not worth a single penny. Worst vpn app