Torrenting in itself isn’t illegal. It’s just a form of technology that facilitates file sharing. However, most torrent websites host pirated content, which makes those sites illegal. This has led to many governments and ISPs to block most torrent websites, with some ISPs even blocking P2P traffic altogether. Thankfully, VPNs are there for us to use. With the best free VPN for torrenting 2018, you can unblock all torrent websites and download any content.

Privacy & Security while Torrenting

The blockage of torrent websites by governments and ISPs isn’t the only reason why you need to look for the best VPN for torrenting. Streaming of pirated content is illegal and can put you on the wrong side of the authorities. Depending on your region, you can end up receiving a DMCA notice. Your ISP can also decide to throttle your internet as they can always see what you are doing on the internet. Thankfully, all these concerns can be averted by the use of a private and secure VPN.

Free VPNs & Torrenting

Ever heard of the phrase, “There’s nothing like a free lunch?” Well, even if you haven’t, it’s good to know that you always get what you pay for. And if you don’t pay anything, then you are the product!

Hosting and running a VPN is quite expensive, and nobody would do it for charity. The so-called ‘free VPNs’ are therefore not entirely free, as they use adverts and various restrictions to continue offering you service. Some even sell your data to third parties for analysis and marketing! If you don’t like restrictions & ads, check out these Paid VPNs. That said, there are still some decent free VPNs that just limit what you can do. Here are some of comprises you’ll have to do with:

Server Locations

Unlike with a Premium VPN, you will always face server restrictions with a free VPN. Most free VPNs restrict users to a few servers in about 4 countries. With such servers, you can expect to be clogged with other users in the same server. This will bring down your speeds, making it hard to download large files.

Bandwidth Limits

To preserve resources, all reputable free VPNs for torrenting impose bandwidth caps. Most free VPNs cap your data at about 2 GB a month. This isn’t enough to download content for the whole month, which is quite inconveniencing. Your speeds will also be limited, regardless of how fast your connection is.

Privacy & Security

With torrents, you need a VPN that is not going to expose your identity by keeping logs. Unfortunately, most free VPNs can’t promise you that, as they need the logs to control your usage. Most of them also use security standards that aren’t secure, in order to remain within the budget.

If you would rather pay for a VPN to be free of restrictions and ads, checkout these premium VPN.

Top 2 Free VPNs for Torrenting

If the above restrictions don’t bother you, here is a list of the best free VPNs for torrenting. These free VPNs allow torrents and are somewhat private and secure.

1. Windscribe VPN

Windscribe VPNWindscribe is one of the best free VPN for torrenting. The VPN only started in 2016, but it’s now one of the most popular free as well as paid VPNs. Unfortunately, the VPN is based in Canada, which is one of the FVEY countries. Nevertheless, they still promise not to log your activities.

Windscribe free plan is quite fast for a free VPN, and it offers speeds of up to 30 Mbps. Your data transfer is limited to 2 GB, but with a confirmed email address, you get up to 10 GB a month. Your server options are also limited to 10 countries: US, Canada, UK, France, Hong Kong, Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, Romania, and Norway.

Free Plan Limitations:

  • 10 servers
  • 10 GB Data transfer
  • Speed: Up to 30Mb/s

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2. Hide.me VPN

Hideme VPNHide.me VPN is a pretty decent free and paid VPN based in Malaysia, which is a good location for a VPN. This helps the VPN keep Zero logs, and they also promise this to the free users. The free version of Hide.me VPN allows you to torrent anonymously. However, you are usually limited to only three servers: Netherlands, Canada, and Singapore.

This kind of limitation normally has a negative impact on the speeds you get. Your data transfer will also be limited to only 2GB a month, which means you can’t really download a lot of stuff. You can’t use SoftEther or OpenVPN (the standard VPN protocol) with a free subscription, but the provided IKEv2 is pretty secure.

Free Plan Limitations:

  • 3 server locations
  • 2 GB Data transfer
  • 1 simultaneous connection

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Top 2 Premium VPNs for Torrenting (No limitations)

If you are on a budget, you can still enjoy premium VPN without a real cost. This is thanks to a no-questions-asked money back guarantee offered by some top VPNs. You can enjoy up to 30 days of free premium VPN with the top two VPNs for torrenting listed below.

1. ExpressVPN

ExpressVPNThis is the best VPN for torrenting, as well as the overall best VPN in 2018. The VPN is based in the British Virgin Islands, which is not under the jurisdiction of the invasive UK privacy laws. This helps the VPN keep its promise of a strict zero logs policy.

ExpressVPN has an impressive server network of 2000+ servers in 94 countries spread across 148 VPN locations. Its huge number of servers helps you get torrenting servers in most of the countries that don’t have strict data retention policies. With ExpressVPN, you’ll enjoy features like split tunneling, automatic killswitch, multiple protocols, and DNS & IPv6 Leak protection.  We’ve managed to get an exclusive 49% of ExpressVPN.

Highlights:

  • Super Speeds
  • Unlimited Data usage (Bandwidth)
  • 2,000+ VPN servers in 94 countries
  • P2P / BitTorrent allowed
  • 3 simultaneous connections on multiple devices
  • No-questions-asked 30-day money-back guarantee
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2. NordVPN

NordVPN logoNordVPN is the other top choice for the best VPN for torrenting. The VPN is registered in Panama, a country that is very friendly to the privacy of internet users. NordVPN therefore confidently promises to offer you a zero log service.

NordVPN has the biggest server network among all VPNs. The VPN boasts 5100+ servers spread across 62 countries. This big number of servers ensures that you can always get very high and stable torrenting speeds. With NordVPN, you can choose torrenting servers from a category of special servers. You will also be able to enjoy other features like automatic killswitch, Onion over Tor, double VPN, multiple protocols, and DNS & IPv6 Leak Protection.

Highlights:

  • Very high speeds
  • Biggest server network
  • 24/7 Customer Care
  • 6 simultaneous connections
  • Hassle-free 30-day money back guarantee
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Wrap Up

With a VPN, you can circumvent all ISP restrictions placed on torrenting, as well as remain private and secure while downloading torrents. However, for the latter, you’ll need a VPN with a Kill switch, a feature that you won’t get for free. Without that, your identity will be exposed in case of a disconnection. While you can torrent to some extent with some of the best free VPNs for torrenting, getting one of the premium VPNs above will prove worth every cent. You can even take advantage of their 30-day money-back guarantee and torrent free!