The best VPNs for your MacBook

Take care of your most precious property.

By Karissa Bell, Joseph Green

Sept. 11, 2024

Credit: Pexels

NordVPN

Best For Security

You can't go wrong with Nord. It's a well-known and reliable VPN that has over 5,000 servers worldwide and doesn't track your activity.

Pros & Cons

CyberGhost VPN

Best For Simplicity

CyberGhost makes staying protected on your Android device easy.

Pros & Cons

Private Internet Access

Best For Server Network

Installs quickly and comes with loads of premium features for all types of users.

Pros & Cons

PureVPN

Best For Customisation

Android users can profit from the customisable modes used to optimise their connection.

Pros & Cons

Tunnelbear

Best For Beginners

This VPN offers a simple and fun user-interface that'll show your connection through cute animations.

Pros & Cons

This content originally appeared on Mashable for a US audience and has been adapted for the UK audience.

There are a number of reasons why you might want to start using a VPN. These security tools offer many benefits, including bypassing geographic restrictions for unlocking shows and films on popular streaming sites.

VPNs can also help to protect your privacy and make your browsing more secure (although it's always a good idea to vet your VPN provider's claims carefully — some do a better a job than others). VPNs can encrypt your traffic and provide protection against things like hackers, viruses, and malware. All of this is essential if you own a MacBook, because you don't want online threats attacking your most precious device.

What is a VPN?

Without getting too deep in the weeds — we've already done so in our review — a virtual private network, or VPN, is an encrypted connection between your Mac and a private, remote server.

In the most basic sense, it's a service that keeps you totally incognito on the web by masking your online activities and making it seem like your connection's coming from somewhere you aren't. All of your activity is untraceable and secure because everything passes through an encrypted tunnel. Nobody can see into the tunnel, and everything inside is protected against online threats.

Do you need a VPN with a Mac?

All Macs and MacBooks come with built-in antivirus software that blocks and removes malware, and any apps you download from the internet are swabbed for malicious code by Apple's Gatekeeper tool. Furthermore, all of the data that lives on your macOS device's hard drive is secured with FileVault 2, a full-disk program featuring XTS-AES-128 encryption and a 256-bit key.

It's when any of your precious data ventures outside the localised protection of your Mac that things start to get dicey — and that happens every single time you connect to the web. Your Internet Service Provider, or ISP, tracks your every click to compile browsing logs they (sometimes) sell to marketers, who are champing at the bit to use your data for targeted ads. That information can also wind up in the hands of certain government agencies if your ISP is served with a subpoena.

Connecting to a public WiFi network is especially risky since you don't know who set it up or who else is using it; wannabe hackers can easily hop on to intercept your internet traffic in some sort of "man-in-the-middle" attack when you're browsing the web at a café, library, or airport.

A VPN takes care of those privacy issues and then some: With your IRL location hidden, you can skirt geo-restrictions that streaming services like Netflix have put in place and bypass government censorship in places like China. Online anonymity also means you're free to dabble in torrenting/peer-to-peer file-sharing — not that we condone the illegal kind.

What should you consider before subscribing to a VPN?

There are a lot of VPNs out there offering similar packages. This makes it difficult to select a service that works for you. To make your life a little easier, we have highlighted a selection of the most important things to consider before subscribing:

Connection speed: Whether you're looking to use a VPN for online security or streaming, this is massively important. Using a VPN is likely to result in a drop in your connection speed, but you shouldn't accept anything significant.
Encryption: VPNs are primarily designed to provide protection for your data, so encryption is important. The best VPNs will make sure all your data is unreadable and untraceable.
Number of connections: The best VPNs offer multiple simultaneous connections, so you can stay protected on all your devices at the same time.
Privacy policy: Your VPN of choice should be very clear about how they handle, store, and use your data. These practices should be laid out in a privacy policy, and if anything isn't obvious, you should look elsewhere.
Server network: The very best VPNs provide access to literally thousands of servers located all around the world. If you're looking for a stable and speedy connection for streaming, shopping, or browsing, you need options.

You should also keep in mind things like bandwidth limits, apps for certain operating systems, and customer support, but this is a good place to start.

Should you use free VPNs?

Yes, there are plenty of free versions and trials of popular VPNs out there. It may be possible to get full access to everything you get with a premium plan, but as with most things in life, you get what you pay for with VPNs.

There is almost always a catch with free versions, and it's usually in the form of limited data usage. These plans will work fine if you're just an occasional user, but if you're going to be streaming or downloading, this isn't going to work. Free trials tend to come with everything you get in a paid plan, but this isn't a long-term solution.

We're sorry to say, but to gain access to advanced security and streaming features without limitations on usage, you need to pay up. Fortunately, there are plenty of cheap plans on offer from the most popular providers.

What is the best VPN for your Mac?

There's no specialised VPN for Macs, but almost all major VPN providers maintain support for macOS apps. So, with lots of options, you'll want to think carefully about which features matter most to you: Do you want a VPN with a huge server network and split tunneling for streaming and gaming? Will you feel more confident browsing with a kill switch or multihop (double VPN)? Do you need support for a bunch of connections based on the size of your household? Do you have the budget for add-ons like a dedicated IP?

Choosing the right VPN for your MacBook can be a daunting task. Fortunately for you, we have highlighted a selection of your best options. This list includes popular names like PureVPN, NordVPN, and TunnelBear.

These are the best VPNs for your Mac in 2024.

NordVPN

Best For Security

The good

One of the sturdiest, most reliable VPNs Fast servers Can connect six devices Doesn't log activities

The Bad

It's expensive

The Bottomline

If you want a VPN that has a fast service and allows you to connect to multiple phones at once, try out NordVPN.

Specs

Monthly: £10.39/month
One-year plan: £3.99/month
Two-year plan: £3.19/month

Read our full review of NordVPN.

NordVPN has a reputation for being amongst the sturdiest, most reliable VPNs out there. NordVPN has fast servers that are also not on any blacklists. You should be able to stream Hulu or Netlfix shows in several European countries without any issues.

NordVPN says it offers over 5,000 servers worldwide. It lets you connect six devices at the same time, and it claims to keep no logs of your activities. INordVPN is one of the most secure VPNs, with a wide range of advanced security features that combine to protect your data and identity.

CyberGhost VPN

Best For Simplicity

The good

Great security features Easy to use with Android Generous money-back guarantee

The Bad

Speeds can drop

The Bottomline

CyberGhost VPN keeps things real simple, and focuses on strong security features.

Specs

Monthly: £10.89/month
Six-month plan: £6.19/month
Two-year plan: £1.92/month

Read our full review of CyberGhost VPN.

Cyberghost VPN has a really simple interface with easy-to-understand terminology explaining all of its features. It keeps things easy and focuses on strong security features. It’s very fast to set up and has intuitive apps for a variety of popular devices.

CyberGhost might be easy to use but that doesn't mean it's not on par with other options on this list. Users have access to 3,600 servers in over 60 locations around the world, with unlimited bandwidth and traffic. This makes for reliable streaming, but some users have said connections can be slower than with other VPN offerings.

Private Internet Access

Best For Server Network

The good

Encrypted WiFi Kill switch Number and spread of servers Range of apps

The Bad

Interface is dated Not the fastest

The Bottomline

List of features that should suit beginners and advanced users.

Specs

Monthly: £10.99/month
Six-month plan: £5.39/month
Two-year plan: £1.69/month

Private Internet Access (PIA) installs quickly and comes with loads of impressive features for all types of users, no matter if you're a beginner or an advanced user who likes fiddling around with settings.

You get your standard secure VPN account, encrypted WiFi, P2P, IPv6 leak protection, kill switch, plus a whole lot more. PIA isn't a particularly sexy app, but what it lacks in aesthetics it makes up for with a long list of features. It also has a solid backbone, with thousands of servers in countries all around the world.

It's also relatively speedy. We noticed our "naked" download and upload speeds dropped by only about a half or two-thirds (common for most VPNs). It may not be the fastest VPN around, but it's definitely not the slowest, either.

PIA has apps for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android, and an extension for Chrome.

PureVPN

Best For Customisation

The good

Customisable modes Private connection possibilities Protection against viruses and ads

The Bad

The modes can actually be limiting

The Bottomline

Android users should love the customisable modes that can be used to optimise connection.

Specs

Monthly: £8.37/month
One-year plan: £2.86/month
Two-year plan: £1.75/month

PureVPN is different to other virtual private network services, due to its customisable nature.

Your connection is based on what 'mode' you select. Some of the options include streaming, 'internet freedom', privacy, file-sharing, and dedicated IP modes.

Some Android users might actually find this a bit limiting, but all your activity is kept private no matter what mode you're in, and that's the most important thing. The dedicated IP mode helps deal with some of the speed issues VPNs frequently face, too.

PureVPN also has many of the other features you expect to get from a VPN, such as the ability to change your location, and in-built protections against malware, viruses, and ads.

Tunnelbear

Best For Beginners

The good

Simple Fun animation Friendly user-interface

The Bad

Only get 500MB for free

The Bottomline

TunnelBear makes using a VPN less intimidating through its animated user-interface.

Specs

Monthly: £7.78/month
One-year plan: £3.89/month
Three-year plan: £2.59/month

Read our full review of TunnelBear.

TunnelBear's main selling point is simplicity and ease of use, and it delivers. After downloading the app, all you need to do is create an account (only your email address and password is needed), confirm the registration via email, and you're good to go. The animation of a bear actually tunneling from one place to another is pretty great, too.

The app is free, but it only gets you a monthly 500MB, which will be enough for a little bit of work but definitely won't do for video streaming. If you want more, you can get a paid account with unlimited data.