The Best VPNs for Russia in 2024 (2024)

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has brought a new information war to Europe. Within Russia, media and humanitarian groups have reported increased propaganda, free speech restrictions, and punitive measures for protestors. Although it's not a solution to an authoritarian regime, a VPN can help protect the privacy of Russian residents and potentially allow them to access unfiltered information. Clearly, VPNs are seen as helpful tools for use in Russia. In early March 2022, VPN use surged by over 1,200% nationwide. The question is, which VPNs should people in Russia use? We can help with that decision.

Note that we organized this list by the VPN services with the most servers in (or appearing to be within) Russia. To bypass censorship, you must connect to VPN servers outside the country, as we explain below our top picks. We ordered the list this way to prioritize access to local services.

Deeper Dive: Our Top Tested Picks

Buying Guide: The Best VPNs for Russia in 2024

An Important Disclaimer

We at PCMag are not legal experts in the simplest of circ*mstances, and certainly not when it comes to foreign law in an authoritarian state in the middle of a chaotic, grinding crisis. Even if we had all the information, which we do not, the situation changes daily.

Given the recent crackdown on free speech in Russia, the risk to individuals' safety is real. While we stand by our work, we urge readers in Russia to think carefully and weigh the risks of using these services.

Readers should also bear in mind that a VPN can only do so much. Other tools can help in other ways: Multi-factor authentication protects your accounts from takeovers, and antivirus software can root out malicious tools before they can affect your privacy. Encrypted communication apps, like Signal and WhatsApp, ensure conversations stay private.

Why Do You Need a VPN in Russia?

"The war on the information front is a major aspect of what is happening on the ground," Bill Budington, the senior staff technologist at the non-profit EFF, told PCMag when we first published this story in March of 2022. The way to win that fight, he said, is with reliable information. "The more information Russians get from outside the country, the better."

One of the problems with this information war, Budington explained, is the fragmentation of the internet. What was once the world wide web is now anything but global. He pointed to a 2019 law that gives the Russian government broad control over how its people access the internet. "That allows them to cut off all non-Russian internet from Russian citizens," Budington said.

A VPN can help with that. VPNs use an encrypted connection to route all your internet traffic to a server controlled by the VPN company. This ensures that an internet service provider or someone monitoring your connection wouldn't be able to see your online activities. It also hides your IP address and makes it harder to attribute what you do online back to you.

Connecting to a VPN server within Russia will get you those privacy benefits and let you use sites and services that may not be available or would be difficult to use outside of Russia. It's also likely that using a Russia-based VPN server from within Russia will yield better and more reliable performance. With that in mind, we selected the services listed above because they have a server presence within Russia.

You will still be subject to censorship and other restrictions while connected to a Russian VPN server, however. To get around those hurdles and connect to the free, uncensored internet from within Russia, you have to use your VPN to Spoof your location by connecting to a server outside of Russia.

Can You Evade Censorship in Russia With a VPN?

Connecting to a VPN server outside of Russia may be the easiest way to get around government censorship. The VPN's encrypted connection shuttles your data outside of Russia and into another country—wherever the VPN server is. In that way, the VPN lets you view the web as it appears from that other country.

Given that VPNs generally perform better the closer they are physically to the individual using them, a person in Russia should look for a non-Russian server that's not too far away, geographically speaking, and that doesn't censor the web. For example, someone in the western part of the country might choose a server in Estonia, Latvia, or Finland.

VPNs can be effective tools for getting past censorship, but they can sometimes be blocked for the exact same reason. That hadn't been the case in Russia, Budington said in March 2022.

Many VPN services include features that disguise VPN traffic as standard HTTPS traffic. Some VPN providers give this tactic a branded name. TunnelBear VPN calls it Ghost Bear and Proton VPN calls it Stealth. Notably, both of these services provide obfuscation to free users. Look around your app's settings to see what's available.

All the VPNs listed above have VPN servers outside of Russia as well. We discuss some additional considerations for choosing a VPN below.

Are VPNs Allowed in Russia?

The Russian government has paid special attention to VPNs recently, making it harder for many to operate within the country. One recent challenge is that the international isolation of Russia has meant that official app stores may not always be accessible within Russia. Google Play, for example, still allows downloads of some apps but payment through the app store has been suspended. A huge uptick in VPN usage suggests people are making it work, though. Here are a few things users might try to get access to blocked VPNs.

First, you can manually configure a VPN using configuration settings provided by the VPN company. Generally, you'll just have to open your computer or mobile device's OS network settings and use the information from the VPN company to manually create a connection. It's not hard, but nor is it an intuitive process. It also requires you to update the configuration whenever there are any changes on the VPN's end. You may be better off manually configuring a VPN connection once and then using it to download a VPN client.

Second, many VPN companies provide direct downloads to their client applications from their websites. Getting a VPN on your mobile device is a bit trickier. There's no easy way to sideload apps (that is, manually install without using an official app store) onto an iPhone, and doing so with an Android device can open you up to installing malware. No matter how you get your VPN configurations or apps, make sure they're from a source you trust. A malicious app could harm your device or, worse, make it possible for you to be tracked online.

It may be useful to reach out to the VPN company directly for assistance in obtaining VPN client software. For example, Proton VPN's website was blocked within Iran but the company used word-of-mouth and its customer support system to distribute its application.

Are VPNs Safe to Use in Russia?

VPNs can also present some risks in themselves. "Not all VPNs are created equal," said Budington. "You can have a VPN that sucks up all your information and monitors your browsing habits [or] you can have a VPN that has a reputation for integrity and not keeping logs."

In our reviews of VPNs, we look at the privacy policy of each service. One thing to look for is third-party audits that verify that companies are sticking to their promises of protecting customer privacy. Having an audit by a trusted third party means you don't have to take the VPN provider at its word.

Budington suggested looking for VPNs that can resist financial pressure and won't be shut down by Russian authorities. In every review we write of a VPN service, we note its country of origin. None of the VPNs listed here are based in Russia. "Using popular VPNs that have a good reputation is a good call," said Budington. "A small VPN that's very activist-based could be a red flag within Russia." Budington suggested looking at the EFF's Surveillance Self-Defense guide for more information on how to communicate safely in dangerous situations.

It's difficult to say to what degree the Russian government is monitoring VPN usage. Bear in mind that intelligence agencies and law enforcement have many tactics and tools for surveilling people. Budington said to watch for suspicious warnings in browsers when visiting HTTPS sites. These warnings usually say something about certificate authorities or falsified certificate authorities. "That's a big red flag," said Budington.

Certificate authorities are part of the system used with HTTPS sites to ensure you're securely connected to the correct website. Warnings about certificate authorities do happen for mundane reasons, but they are rare. Budington explained that the EFF has seen certificate authorities popping up in Russia, creating pressure for everyday Russians to approve these new certificate authorities in their browsers, especially since some certificates are required for accessing government services.

"As the state clamps down on the free flow of information, you're going to see more pressure to install these certificate authorities that have the capability of intercepting and modifying information that Russian citizens are accessing and sending," said Budington.

What About Kaspersky?

Kaspersky Secure Connection VPN is an affordable VPN service that does, indeed, offer VPN servers within Russia. Security company Kaspersky was a mainstay of our antivirus roundups for years, but we were forced to re-evaluate our position on endorsing the company's products after a March 27, 2022, declaration from the Federal Communication Commission that named the company a national security risk.

Kaspersky faced numerous accusations of being connected to the Russian government over the years, but we at PCMag were never presented with clear evidence of wrongdoing. Since we focus on our hands-on analysis of products, we noted the controversies but based our evaluations on our testing results. We stand by our analysis of Kaspersky products, but we feel that these recent events demand a different response.

Do note that Kasperksy announced plans to halt new VPN subscriptions from within Russia starting in December 2022. There's no word as to the future of its VPN server presence in Russia. At the time of writing, the company's website still listed Russia as an available VPN location.

How Do We Choose the Best VPNs for Russia?

To compile this list, we identified companies that maintain servers in Russia. We weren't always able to determine how many servers are available in Russia, however. To the extent that it's possible, we ordered the list to put services with the largest collection of Russian-based servers at the top and otherwise ordered the list according to the VPN service's score based on our hands-on testing and analysis. We also limited the list to services we've reviewed within the last two years.

Again, connecting to a Russian VPN server from within Russia will protect your traffic and help hide your identity, all while still being able to access local sites and services. You will still be subject to Russian censorship, however. To get around that censorship, you have to connect to servers outside Russia. All the VPNs listed above, as well as the best VPNs we've reviewed, have a plethora of non-Russian servers available. Unfortunately, it's not feasible for us to test whether a VPN can successfully and safely tunnel out from Russia.

When updating this list in December, 2022, we found a few of the services that previously offered VPN servers in (or appear to be in) Russia had since removed that support. In the interest of providing as many options as possible, we went through our list of nearly 40 products to confirm that they still offer servers in Russia.

We found that HideIPVPN, Trust.Zone VPN, and ZenVPN also offer servers in Russia. PCMag has not evaluated these services in some time, and can no longer speak to their quality.

What Are the Best VPNs for Russia?

We've reviewed dozens of VPNs, and as such have several Editors' Choice winners. Many of these do not have servers in Russia and therefore were not included in this list. However, they are excellent services and would be useful for anyone trying to connect to servers outside of Russia.

Two that we want to highlight are Mullvad VPN and IVPN. Both of these services are low-cost, and both use unique account systems for maximum privacy protection. They also accept payment in cash sent directly to their respective headquarters for even more anonymity. These two VPNs are also dedicated to transparency and privacy, making them strong choices.

Finally, it's worth noting that with economic pressure for sanctions and limited options for international payments, the cost of a VPN for anyone in Russia is a major consideration. Four of the VPNs listed above provide free subscription tiers, but half will place some restriction on how much data free users can consume and all of them restrict what servers are available for free users. Proton VPN is our top choice for free users, and it boasts no data restrictions. However, it's important to note that its free tier does not include Russian servers. If money is tight, our lists of free VPNs and cheap VPNs can help you find a service that fits your budget.

(Editors’ Note: While they may not appear in this story, IPVanish and StrongVPN are owned by Ziff Davis, PCMag's parent company.)