Best VPN Service Report 2019

With so many different VPNs on the market – all promising to keep you secure and anonymous – how can you find the best VPN service for your unique needs? Sorting through all the noise is increasingly difficult with so many new VPNs coming online and dozens of “best VPN” websites recommending dubious providers.

In testing and researching hundreds VPN services over the past four years, I’ve found that most VPNs fail when put to the test. Here are three common problems:

VPNs that leak IP addresses and/or DNS requests. IPv6 leaks and DNS leaks affect many popular VPNs and this can expose your identity, location, and/or browsing history to third parties.

VPNs with broken features. While most VPNs offer a kill switch or some form of leak protection, I’ve found that often these features fail under certain test cases, such as when switching network interfaces or reconnecting with the VPN server.

VPNs that share data with third parties. This is mostly a problem with free VPN services that collect data and sell it to third parties, thereby monetizing the user (never use a free VPN).

The goal of this best VPN report is to filter through all the noise and identify the most secure VPNs that passed all tests and meet the following criteria:

Located in a good privacy jurisdiction (outside of 5/9/14 Eyes countries) to keep user data safe

Passed all tests with no leaks found whatsoever (no IP address leaks or DNS leaks)

Good performance throughout the server network (speed and reliability)

High-quality VPN apps with all features working correctly

Supports the OpenVPN protocol and strong encryption standards

Offers a money-back guarantee (between 7 and 30 days)

Trustworthy and well-established VPN provider with a good track record

If a VPN did not fulfill all the criteria listed above, it was not featured in this best VPN report. And when you apply this standard to all the VPNs on the market, there are very few that make the cut.

Which VPN service is best?

While there is no “one-size-fits-all” best VPN service that will be perfect for everyone, the VPN that performed the best in all categories of testing is ExpressVPN.

That being said, any of the VPNs in this report may be the best for your unique situation – it all depends on the needs of the user.

Testing criteria: Each VPN service in this guide was tested for IP address leaks, DNS leaks, connection issues, reliability, speed, and whether the features work correctly. Additionally, I also examined company policies, jurisdiction, logging practices, as well as the history of each VPN provider. The rankings of this list were based on a combination of all these factors.

Here are the 2 best VPN services for 2019:

1. ExpressVPN – Great all-around VPN with excellent performance ($6.67/mo)

In an overcrowded VPN market, ExpressVPN continues to stand out from the rest and remains the top recommendation at Restore Privacy. It is based in the British Virgin Islands and offers secure, user-friendly apps for all devices. Extensive testing for the ExpressVPN review found it to be very secure, with exceptional speeds and reliability throughout the server network.

ExpressVPN is among the best VPN services for privacy and security. Their no logs policies have been verified through real-world tests with a server seizure in Turkey (all customer data remained secure). ExpressVPN’s apps utilize strong AES 256-bit encryption and the highest standards for leak protection – the “network lock” feature.

ExpressVPN is also one of the best VPNs for streaming. Whether you are using a VPN with Kodi or streaming Netflix with a VPN, ExpressVPN offers great apps for streaming devices and high-capacity bandwidth for HD videos and downloads. Their customer service is also top-notch, with 24/7 live chat support and a 30 day money-back guarantee with all subscription plans.

2. Perfect Privacy – Premium VPN with advanced privacy features ($10.50/mo)

Perfect Privacy is a powerful VPN that gives you advanced online anonymity features and an unlimited number of device connections. It is a well-regarded VPN provider based in Switzerland that has earned high praise from the tech community.

Perfect Privacy is a 100% no logs and enforces no limits of any kind – unlimited devices and unlimited bandwidth. Their network is composed entirely of dedicated, bare-metal servers that offer fast speeds, high security, and lots of bandwidth (see real-time server bandwidth here). Like ExpressVPN, Perfect Privacy has also passed real-world tests that verified their no logging claims when one of their servers was seized in Rotterdam (customer data remained safe).

For features, they offer multi-hop VPN cascades, advanced firewall configuration options (DNS and IP leak protection), port forwarding, NeuroRouting, Socks5 and Squid proxies, obfuscation features to defeat VPN blocking (Stealth VPN), and a customizable TrackStop feature to block tracking, malware, and advertising. Perfect Privacy is one of the few VPNs offering full IPv6 support (you get both an IPv4 and IPv6 address).

The main drawback with Perfect Privacy is the Swiss price tag at about €8.95 ($10.50) per month. Additionally, these advanced features may be overkill for some users, especially if you are new to VPNs. But for those seeking the highest levels of online anonymity and security, Perfect Privacy may be worth the price.