Planet VPN is a free VPN from a Romanian company that launched in 2017 under the name RUSVPN. Its free plan needs no registration, email or credit card, has no data cap, and runs on short ads. When we installed it, the app connected with a single tap and no account at all.
People switch for two main reasons. The free plan reaches only 5 countries, and every free user shares the servers in those countries. Planet VPN also promises not to keep logs, but it has never published an independent audit to back that up. We compared eight alternatives against Planet VPN on privacy, speed, streaming and price, and ranked them by their HTS review scores.
Planet VPN vs the Best Alternatives at a Glance
Here are the eight picks side by side, with CyberGhost and IPVanish as "also consider" options. Planet VPN sits in the last row as the baseline. Starting prices are long-term rates unless noted.
| Alternative | Buy | Best for | Free plan | Starting price | Audited no-logs | Kill switch | Simultaneous devices |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Check price → | Best overall | No | ~$3.09-$3.49/mo (2 yr) | Yes (Deloitte, 2025) | Yes | 10 |
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Check price | Best free | Yes: no data cap, 10 countries | $2.99/mo (2 yr) | Yes (Securitum, annual) | Yes, free plan too | 10 (1 on free) |
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Check price | Ease of use and streaming | No | ~$2.79-$2.99/mo (2 yr) | Yes (KPMG, 2025) | Yes (Network Lock) | 10 to 14 by tier |
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Check price | Budget, unlimited devices | No | $2.49/mo (2 yr) | Yes (Deloitte, 2023 and 2025) | Yes | Unlimited |
 |
Check price | Account-free sign-up | No | $5.60/mo flat | Infrastructure audits (Cure53, 2024) | Yes (built in) | 5 |
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Check price | Free tier with more locations | Yes: 10GB/month, 10 countries | $5.75/mo (1 yr) | No (security audits only) | Yes (Firewall, desktop) | Unlimited |
 |
Check price | Customization and port forwarding | No | ~$1.89/mo (3 yr) | Yes (Deloitte, 2025) | Yes | Unlimited |
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Check price | Fast free browsing | Yes: 1 US location, 500 MB/day | $7.99/mo (1 yr) | Unclear (no auditor named) | Yes | 5 or 10 by plan |
 |
Also consider: streaming servers | No | ~$1.99-$2.19/mo (2 yr) | Yes (Deloitte, 2026) | Yes | 7 | |
 |
Also consider: unlimited devices | No | $2.19/mo (2 yr) | Yes (Schellman, 2025) | Yes | Unlimited | |
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Baseline | Yes: 5 countries, no data cap, ads | $1.99/mo (4 yr) | No | Premium only | 10 (Premium) |
Hotspot Shield scores 6.5 just like Planet VPN, so treat it as a sideways move with one specific strength rather than an upgrade on every front.
Why Look for a Planet VPN Alternative?
Planet VPN is not a bad starting point, but its limits show quickly once you rely on it every day. Our Planet VPN review covers the full test results, and our guide to whether Planet VPN is safe goes deeper on logging and ownership. Here is the short version.
What Planet VPN Does Well
Setup is quick. There is no account to create, and the one-tap connect button gets you online in seconds. Paid plans are cheap, at $1.99 a month on the 48-month term, $3.99 a month on the yearly plan, or $9.99 month to month. Premium covers 10 devices.
Speeds on nearby servers were better than we expected. On a 468 Mbps UK line, the proprietary StarGuard protocol held 400+ Mbps on a UK server and roughly 270 to 335 Mbps across Europe and New York. That is about twice what IKEv2 managed on the same routes. Our IP, DNS and WebRTC leak tests also came back clean, and the connection uses AES 256-bit encryption.
Where Planet VPN Falls Short
The biggest gap is proof. Planet VPN's no-logs policy says you can confirm it "through independent audit," but the page names no auditor and links no report. Its privacy policy also lists analytics tools and six advertising SDK partners. That mix fits a free service funded by ads.
Daily use was less steady than the speed numbers suggest. Connections dropped mid-session, including during streaming, and some servers took over 30 seconds to connect or never connected at all. Long-haul routes fell off sharply, and StarGuard dropped to about 70 Mbps on an Australian server. On the free mobile apps, ads appeared several times a day, and an ad timer sometimes held up the connection.
Streaming is another weak spot. The free servers did not unblock Netflix, Hulu, Disney+ or BBC iPlayer. Even on Premium, BBC iPlayer stayed blocked after we switched UK servers and protocols. The network is also small, at 1,260+ servers in about 60 countries. Planet VPN advertises 100+ locations because it counts them differently.
Planet VPN's no-logs promise has no published audit behind it. Seven of the eight picks below have either an independent no-logs audit or real-world evidence that they hold no user data, such as a police search or court case. Hotspot Shield is the exception, and we flag it in its review.
The Best Planet VPN Alternatives
We list the eight picks in order of their HTS review scores, with the reasons each one beats Planet VPN.
1. NordVPN - Best Overall Planet VPN Alternative
NordVPN fixes the two things that push most people away from Planet VPN: the missing audit and the shaky connections. NordVPN's 2025 no-logs assurance report was its sixth engagement with Deloitte. The company is based in Panama.
Speed was where the gap felt biggest in our testing. On a nearby server we lost only about 4% of our download speed and 7% of our upload speed. A 4K stream played with no buffering, and Netflix, Hulu, BBC iPlayer and Prime Video all unblocked reliably. The BBC iPlayer result matters, since that service never worked for us on Planet VPN.
NordVPN has no free plan. Monthly billing costs $14.99, and the two-year Basic plan runs about $3.09 to $3.49 a month, a rate that moves with promotions and renews much higher. It covers 10 devices and has a 30-day money-back guarantee. Its features include NordLynx, OpenVPN, Double VPN, obfuscated servers and Threat Protection Pro. Read our NordVPN review for the full results.
Pick NordVPN if you want the safest all-round upgrade and can pay for it.
Pros
- RAM-only servers and post-quantum encryption
- Apps for Linux, TVs and routers
- Split tunneling on Windows, Android and Android TV
Cons
- Double VPN cuts speed by around 80%
- Live chat starts with a chatbot before a human takes over
2. Proton VPN - Best Free Planet VPN Alternative
Where NordVPN asks you to pay, Proton VPN gives Planet VPN's free users a better free plan. It has no data limit and no ads, and it reaches servers in 10 countries, twice Planet VPN's free count. The free plan covers only 1 device, and Proton assigns the server for you rather than letting you pick a country.
On the free plan, our connection ran at medium speed, which was fine for browsing and email. After upgrading, nearby servers kept about 90% or more of our baseline download speed, and distant servers averaged around three-quarters. The US Netflix library loaded without any server hopping. Our DNS, IPv6 and WebRTC leak tests stayed clean across dozens of countries.
Proton AG is based in Switzerland, and Securitum has now run Proton's independent no-logs audit for five consecutive years. VPN Plus costs $9.99 a month or $2.99 a month on the two-year plan, with 10 devices and 20,000+ servers in 140+ countries. Unlike Planet VPN, Proton includes a kill switch on the free plan. Our Proton VPN review has more detail.
Pick Proton VPN if you want a free plan with no data cap and no ads.
Pros
- Open-source apps and Stealth protocol on the free plan
- Secure Core multi-hop and NetShield blocker on paid plans
- 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- Upload speeds trail NordVPN
- Live chat is not 24/7, and email replies can take two days or more
3. ExpressVPN - Best for Ease of Use and Streaming
If Planet VPN's failed streams were the deal-breaker, ExpressVPN is a more dependable choice than Proton VPN. In our testing it opened Netflix libraries in several countries, plus ESPN+ and Hulu, without issues. When a server timed out mid-session, its Network Lock kill switch cut traffic exactly as it should. Network Lock also fired correctly when we changed networks.
The apps are the most polished of the group, so this is the easiest pick for anyone new to VPNs. That polish costs some speed. Downloads fell roughly 37 to 39% on nearby servers, more than with NordVPN or Proton VPN.
ExpressVPN has servers in 113 countries and is based in the British Virgin Islands. ExpressVPN's security audit record includes a third KPMG privacy audit in June 2025. Basic costs $12.99 a month, or about $2.79 to $2.99 a month on the two-year plan depending on the promotion. It renews at $99.95 a year. Devices run from 10 on Basic to 14 on Pro. See our ExpressVPN review for the speed data.
Pick ExpressVPN if you want streaming that simply works and an app you never need to tune.
Pros
- Lightway protocol with post-quantum protection
- RAM-only TrustedServer network
- Automatic obfuscation on restrictive networks
Cons
- Costs more than NordVPN and Surfshark on comparable terms
- Email support can take close to two days
4. Surfshark - Best Budget Pick for Unlimited Devices
ExpressVPN caps you at 14 devices on its top tier, while Surfshark sets no limit on any plan. That makes it the cheapest way to cover a whole household, at $2.49 a month on the two-year plan.
We ran Surfshark on a transatlantic server from macOS, and downloads slowed by only about 10%. The Windows app showed bigger slowdowns and the occasional ping spike. Its kill switch held when we cut the connection, and we saw no IPv4, IPv6, DNS or WebRTC leaks. Surfshark unblocked more than 15 regional Netflix libraries, along with Max, Disney+, Hulu and BBC iPlayer.
Surfshark runs 4,500+ servers in 100 countries and is based in the Netherlands. Surfshark's Deloitte no-logs audit dates from 2023, and Deloitte checked the policy again in 2025. There is a 30-day money-back guarantee. The monthly plan costs roughly $15 to $16 depending on region and tax, so the value is in the longer term. Our Surfshark review has the rest.
Pick Surfshark if you want one cheap subscription for every phone, laptop and TV.
Pros
- CleanWeb blocks ads, trackers and malware
- Camouflage obfuscation and RAM-only servers
- Native Android TV, Apple TV and Fire TV apps
Cons
- MultiHop slows connections significantly
- Month-to-month plan is among the priciest in the category
5. Mullvad VPN - Best for Account-Free Sign-Up
Planet VPN's free plan skips the account, and Mullvad brings the same approach to a paid service. Sign-up took us seconds. The app generated a random 16-digit account number, and that number was our only login, with no email, username or password.
Mullvad also has the strongest real-world privacy record here. When Swedish police searched its office in April 2023, they left with no customer data because none was stored. Mullvad's published audit reports include a 2024 Cure53 infrastructure audit and several app and payment audits.
In our testing, local speed loss was only around 6%, while distant servers slowed downloads noticeably. Streaming was hit or miss, since Netflix worked on some servers and detected the VPN on others. Mullvad costs a flat EUR 5 a month, shown as about $5.60, on any term. It covers 5 devices, uses WireGuard only and has a 14-day refund. Our Mullvad VPN review goes further.
Pick Mullvad if you want to pay without giving your name or email.
Pros
- Cash and crypto payments accepted
- Open-source apps with DAITA and multihop
- Same price every month, with no renewal jump
Cons
- Only 5 devices
- Email-only support, with replies in hours rather than minutes
6. Windscribe - Best Free Tier with More Locations
Mullvad has no free plan, but Windscribe doubles Planet VPN's free country count. Confirm your email and you get 10GB of data a month, with servers in 10 countries and no device limit.
On WireGuard, a nearby US server barely dented our speed, which dropped from 94.6 to 91.8 Mbps. A Singapore server still held about 68 Mbps. The free tier was less steady, with speeds dipping by up to 90% roughly twice every three hours. When we stopped the VPN process, the desktop Firewall blocked all traffic instead of exposing our real IP. We found no IP, DNS or WebRTC leaks across dozens of free and Pro servers.
Windscribe is based in Canada, a Five Eyes country. Its no-logs policy has no dedicated audit, but an Athens court dismissed a case against its CEO on April 11, 2025, because there were no user logs to hand over. Pro costs $9.00 monthly or $5.75 a month on the yearly plan, and Build A Plan starts at $1 per location with a $3 minimum. Refunds are strict: 7 business days, under 10 GB used. Our Windscribe review has more.
Pick Windscribe if you want a free plan with more locations and are fine with a monthly data cap.
Pros
- Port forwarding and the R.O.B.E.R.T. blocker
- Apps for Linux, TVs, routers and browsers
- Unlimited devices on free and Pro
Cons
- Human support replies took about 18 hours, with no human live chat
- Small desktop window with tiny text
7. Private Internet Access - Best for Customization and Port Forwarding
Windscribe hides some settings on its website, while Private Internet Access puts nearly everything in the app. You can choose AES-128 or AES-256 encryption, switch between WireGuard and OpenVPN, and turn on port forwarding, which Planet VPN lacks entirely.
The long settings list overwhelmed us at first, but it became easy to manage once we had tuned it. Speed loss was small, at about 4% on local servers and 18% internationally. Torrenting with port forwarding cost very little speed, although the forwarded port changed on every reconnect. Streaming was the weak point: US and UK Netflix did not unblock, and Disney+ and Hulu detected the VPN.
PIA is based in the United States and owned by Kape Technologies. Deloitte completed its third no-logs assurance review of PIA in December 2025. It covers unlimited devices and has servers in all 50 US states. Monthly billing costs $11.95, and the long-term plan runs about $1.89 a month, though PIA rotates that deal often. Auto-renewal is on by default. Our PIA review has more.
Pick PIA if you torrent and want control over every setting.
Pros
- Open-source apps and RAM-only servers
- Port forwarding on all non-US servers
- 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- Weak for streaming services
- Refunds need a manual support request
8. Hotspot Shield - Best for Fast Free Browsing
Hotspot Shield earns its place for one reason: Premium speed on nearby US servers. There, Premium cut our download speed by only around 3%, with best runs of roughly 150 to 270 Mbps.
Uploads were the weak spot. A transfer that took 10 minutes unprotected took about 35 minutes through the VPN. Distant servers in the UK and Australia also dropped off steeply.
The "free browsing" part needs a caveat. The free plan allows 1 device, 1 US location, speeds up to 2 Mbps and 500 MB of data a day. Free servers ran at least twice as slow as Premium, streams buffered constantly, and the mobile app played video ads when we connected. Premium costs $12.99 a month or about $7.99 a month billed yearly, though the checkout page rotates introductory offers. Direct purchases get a 45-day money-back guarantee.
Privacy is murkier than with the picks above. Hotspot Shield uses its proprietary Hydra protocol rather than OpenVPN, and its audit page names no auditor or scope. In 2017, the Center for Democracy and Technology filed an FTC complaint about its free app, and the company denied the allegations. It is now owned by Point Wild in the United States. Our Hotspot Shield review has the full picture.
Pick Hotspot Shield only if you want fast US browsing on Premium and do not need audited privacy.
Pros
- Premium opened Netflix, Max, Prime Video and BBC iPlayer
- No IPv6, DNS or WebRTC leaks across 60 server locations
- Premium live chat connected in under a minute
Cons
- Free plan capped at 500 MB a day and 2 Mbps
- No RAM-only servers and no published no-logs audit
CyberGhost and IPVanish just missed the list. CyberGhost (8.4) has Deloitte audits and streaming servers that loaded Netflix US, BBC iPlayer, Disney+ and Prime Video on the first try. Its 7-device cap, though, fills quickly in a busy home. It is also based in Romania, like Planet VPN. IPVanish (8.0) offers unlimited devices for $2.19 a month on two years, with a Schellman no-logs audit from February 2025.
Best Free Planet VPN Alternatives
Three of the eight picks have a free plan, and each one trades away something different from Planet VPN's. Here is how they line up against Planet VPN's free tier on the limits that matter day to day.
- Data: Planet VPN and Proton VPN set no data cap. Windscribe gives you 10GB a month, and Hotspot Shield stops at 500 MB a day.
- Devices: Windscribe allows unlimited devices on its free plan, while Proton VPN and Hotspot Shield allow 1. Planet VPN's own pages disagree on whether free users share Premium's 10-device allowance.
- Country choice: Windscribe lets you pick from 10 countries. Proton VPN also spans 10 countries but assigns the server for you, and Hotspot Shield offers a single US location.
- Ads: Proton VPN shows none. Planet VPN runs short ads, and Hotspot Shield's mobile app plays video ads when you connect.
- Kill switch: Proton VPN includes one on the free plan, while Planet VPN reserves its kill switch for Premium.
Proton VPN remains our free pick because it is the only one here with no data cap and no ads. Windscribe suits people who split light browsing across several devices, and Hotspot Shield's free tier is too tight for more than a quick check of a site.
For more options beyond this list, see our roundup of the best free VPN alternatives and our ranking of the best free VPN services.
Planet VPN Alternatives for Business and Remote Teams
All eight picks are consumer services, and so is Planet VPN, which provides no team management. Remote teams need a business product instead. NordLayer, from the makers of NordVPN, starts at $8 per user per month on yearly billing, with a 5-user minimum and a 14-day money-back guarantee. Its Core and Premium tiers need a dedicated-IP server at an extra $40 a month. Proton VPN for Business adds dedicated servers and a private gateway. Proton has renamed and repriced its tiers, though, so per-user prices differ between listings.
How to Choose a Planet VPN Alternative
Planet VPN's gaps make a useful checklist. Here is what to weigh before you switch.
No-Logs Policy, Audits and Jurisdiction
A no-logs promise only matters if someone has checked it. Look for a published report from a named auditor such as Deloitte, Securitum or KPMG. Real-world tests count too, like Mullvad's 2023 police search or Windscribe's 2025 court case. Jurisdiction matters less than proof, but it tells you which laws apply to the company.
A no-logs promise without a named auditor or a published report is only a promise. Seven of our eight picks offer more than that.
Kill Switch, Encryption and Leak Protection
A kill switch stops traffic if the VPN drops, so your real IP never leaks. Check that it exists in every app you use, not just on desktop, and that it is on by default. Look for AES-256, which vendors market as military-grade encryption, or a modern protocol such as WireGuard or OpenVPN. Run a DNS and WebRTC leak test after you install any new VPN.
Server Network and Speeds
A bigger network spreads users out, which keeps speeds steady at busy times. Planet VPN held fast speeds nearby but fell to about 70 Mbps on long routes. If you often connect to far-away countries, look at Proton VPN, which kept around three-quarters of its speed on distant servers in our testing.
Free Plan Limits, Pricing and Devices
Free plans always trade something away: data, devices, locations or speed. Decide which limit you can live with. For paid plans, compare the renewal price, not just the intro rate. Long plans give the best value, but check the refund window first. It runs from 7 business days at Windscribe to 45 days at Hotspot Shield.
Streaming and Unblocking
If streaming content matters, choose a VPN that unblocks the services you use. NordVPN and Surfshark handled Netflix, Hulu and BBC iPlayer reliably for us, and ExpressVPN opened Netflix and Hulu without issues. PIA and Mullvad were inconsistent, so skip them if streaming is your main goal.
Which Planet VPN Alternative Is Right for You?
The reviews above cover each pick's main audience, so this list handles the situations that fall between them.
- You want to keep Planet VPN's low price but gain an audit: Private Internet Access, at about $1.89 a month on its long plan against Planet VPN's $1.99.
- You want to stay free on several devices at once: Windscribe, the only free plan here with no device limit.
- You stream on a small household's devices: CyberGhost, if 7 devices is enough. Its streaming servers loaded Netflix US and BBC iPlayer on the first try.
- You want unlimited devices with a no-logs audit, but not Surfshark: IPVanish at $2.19 a month on two years.
- You manage a remote team: NordLayer, not a consumer VPN.
- You only need quick US browsing and want a long trial: Hotspot Shield Premium, with its 45-day money-back window.
How to Switch from Planet VPN
Once you have chosen a replacement, cancel any Planet VPN Premium plan before you uninstall the app. Planet VPN refunds within 14 days of purchase, but support troubleshoots first and asks for a reason. Crypto payments are generally not refunded. Cancelling can also involve friction, so check your billing statement afterwards to confirm the charges have stopped.
Next, remove the app. On Windows, open Settings → Apps and uninstall Planet VPN. On Android, open the app info page and tap Uninstall. On iPhone, delete the app, then open Settings → General → VPN & Device Management and remove the Planet VPN profile. Restart the device, install your new VPN, and run a leak test before you trust the connection.
Uninstall Planet VPN fully before you install the replacement. Two VPN clients on one device can conflict with each other and cause connection failures.
How We Picked These Alternatives
We started with Planet VPN's weak points and looked for VPNs that fix them. We favoured candidates with either an independent no-logs audit or strong real-world evidence that they keep no user data, and seven of the eight picks clear that bar. Hotspot Shield made the list on Premium speed alone, and its review says so plainly. We then compared kill switch behaviour, leak test results, speeds on nearby and distant servers, streaming access, free plan limits, pricing and refund terms.
The final order follows each VPN's HTS review score, from NordVPN and Proton VPN at 9.0 down to Hotspot Shield at 6.5. We excluded VPNs that have shut down, along with business-only tools that are not built for personal use.
