All Locals Insider writers use VPNs regularly as frequent international travelers. To write this article, I asked each of our writers which VPNs they use and why, and I requested feedback about the pros and cons of using a VPN on the road.
Personally, I’ve been using NordVPN for the past three years and can’t recommend it enough. But at $3.39 per month, it’s not the cheapest option, so I wanted to see what else is out there.
With this in mind, this article presents seven of the best VPNs for travel in 2025, as tried and tested by Locals Insider writers.
If you want a brief overview without the finer details, here are my recommendations:
VPN | Price | Recommendation |
NordVPN | From $3.39 per month | The best all-rounder |
Proton VPN | Free (paid plans available) | The best free VPN for travel |
SurfShark | From $2.19 per month | The best budget VPN for travel |
ExpressVPN | From $4.99 per month | The best VPN for beginners |
CyberGhost | From $2.19 per month | The best VPN for speeds |
Ultra+ | From $3.99 per month | The best VPN + password manager |
Hide.me | From $2.69 per month | The best VPN for streaming |
1: NordVPN – The best all-rounder
- From $3.39 per month
Voted as the number one VPN in the world by review site TechRadar, it’s hard to argue with NordVPN’s offering. It consistently ranks as one of the most secure and advanced VPNs on the market, offering high connection speeds, numerous features, and connection options to servers in over 100 countries.
When you sign up for a NordVPN subscription, you can install the app on up to ten devices, offering protection for your phone, tablet, computer, and video game console. You can share your subscription with friends and family if you don’t have ten devices to connect.
I also love NordVPN’s dark web monitor, which scours the dark web and informs you via email if your details have been compromised – pretty cool. The current pricing for NordVPN is as follows:
- Basic: $3.39 per month
- Plus: $4.39 per month
- Complete: $5.39 per month
The basic package should be sufficient for most people, as it protects you on up to ten devices. Upgrade to one of the more expensive plans if you want advanced tools like the password manager, ad blockers, and cloud storage.
2: Proton VPN – The best free VPN
- Free (paid plans available)
Proton VPN offers free and paid subscriptions, but the free VPN should work just fine for you if you only want to connect one device (the free version’s limit).
The free Proton service also limits you to accessing servers in three countries: the USA, the Netherlands, and Japan. But this should be sufficient if you need to work “remotely” from the US while on your travels.
Though some users report occasional issues with latency when using the free version, I found it to be excellent in my testing and more than suitable if you want a free-to-download, no-frills VPN to use on the road without paying a subscription.
3: SurfShark – The best budget VPN for travel
- From $2.19 per month
If the NordVPN subscription is a little too expensive and you want more features than Proton’s free plan offers, SurfShark’s budget VPN is a viable option.
This is a swift VPN with unlimited device coverage. It lacks many of the advanced features of NordVPN, but SurfShark is a safe, no-frills option that offers instant protection on all your devices.
While the low cost is reflected in the fairly cumbersome app, this is still a top VPN to consider for travel in 2025. It is easy to use even if you have no experience with VPNs.
Please note that you must sign up for a 24-month SurfShark subscription to lock in the low $2.19 per month price.
4: ExpressVPN – The best VPN for beginners
- From $4.99 per month
While each of the VPNs already introduced here is relatively easy to use, ExpressVPN is super popular with beginner users thanks to its exceptionally designed app and its range of helpful articles showing users how to make the most of the technology.
It’s also extremely easy to adjust your preferred features on ExpressVPN, which allows you to block sites and ads while connecting to secure servers in 105 countries.
An ExpressVPN subscription will protect up to eight devices—two fewer than a NordVPN subscription—but it should be enough to protect most, if not all, of the devices you travel with.
If you pay for a 24-month ExpressVPN subscription up front, you can lock in the price of $4.99. Though more expensive than SurfShark, ExpressVPN does offer more features for the price.
5: CyberGhost – The best VPN for speeds
- Available from $2.19 per month
While CyberGhost may not offer the advanced features of NordVPN and ExpressVPN, it consistently ranks as one of the fastest VPNs for speed.
Therefore, if you want to download a VPN to protect yourself while playing online games or streaming live sports, this is the one to go for. It has extremely quick speeds on remote servers around the world.
What’s more, CyberGhost is available at the same price point as SurfShark, offering you unlimited security when you buy a 26-month subscription for just $2.19 per month.
6: Ultra+ – The best VPN + password manager
- Available from $3.99
Investing in a password manager is one of the best ways to bolster your online security. This way, you can create unique, random passwords for every site you log into on your phone or computer.
The password manager safely secures these passwords with your fingerprint or a master passcode, which only you can enter.
I love Ultra+ because it offers a secure VPN with over 100 servers and military-grade encryption as a password manager. You can also access global streaming options via Netflix, Disney+, and others to avoid geo-restrictions as you travel.
You can sign up for the Ultra+ bundle to save on the annual cost of Ultra’s VPN and password manager, which starts at $3.99 per person per month.
7: Hide.me – The best VPN for streaming
- Available from $2.69 per month
If your primary objective while traveling is to watch your favorite TV shows without worrying about geo-restrictions, Hide.me is one of the best options.
Hide.me hosts advanced streaming servers worldwide, enabling you to bypass geo-restrictions and watch your favorite content no matter where you are.
Its VPN is also fast and secure, ensuring you won’t have to worry about buffering or lags while watching movies on the go.
The best way to lock in the lowest Hide.me price is with a 26-month subscription, which gives you access to the full suite for just $2.69 monthly. Alternatively, you can sign up for one month of Hide.me for just $9.95 and cancel anytime.
The verdict: Which is the best VPN for travel in 2025?
If you’re looking for a good working, advanced VPN service and app with numerous security features and good speeds, look no further than NordVPN, the world’s leading virtual private network. It works! The only problem with it is that it cannot bring me the New Jersey that I need, but the NY location works pretty accurately as well. At $3.39 per month for protection on up to ten devices simultaneously, it’s not that expensive.
If you don’t want to spend that much, Proton is a decent free VPN that offers reasonable connection speeds and access to three secure servers. Failing that, SurfShark is a good, cheap, no-frills VPN, available for $2.19 per month and well suited to most travelers.
If you need an e-sim, view our comparison of the top esim options here.