Best VPN for iPhone: Unlock content with these recommended services

NordVPN, one of the most popular names in the VPN market, is a great all-round service with lots of servers around the world. It’s adept at unblocking popular video streaming services such as Netflix and Disney+ and will unblock websites that you can’t otherwise access.

NordVPN can be installed on just about anything: it’s got native apps for iPhone, Mac, and iPad, as well as Windows and Android and Apple TV. You can use it on six devices at once. Nord’s iPhone app looks great and is simple to use, if you do run into any issues the help chat is available 24/7.

Like all VPNs you can expect some speed loss, but Nord offers super-fast speeds thanks to its NordLynx protocol (based on WireGuard). Two protocols are offered: NordLynx and OpenVPN.

Nord’s servers are in 59 different countries across the globe. You can have a list of your favorite servers for even faster connection, and configure the app so it connects to the VPN when your phone joins an unknown Wi-Fi network.

Malware protection is included on all plans, scanning downloaded files and warning you of any potentially unsafe sites. You can disable ads and trackers on all devices (Safari does this too). There’s a kill switch on both iOS and macOS (and Android and Windows)–which will keep your data and location hidden even if the VPN stops unexpectedly). The only missing feature is split tunnelling, so you can’t set it up so that only specific apps use the VPN. (Nord does offer this in its Windows and Android apps, but not on iOS.)

NordVPN is based in Panama, which has stringent privacy laws. Plus it doesn’t collect or store any information about how or when you use the service, so it would have no data to hand over even if authorities were to request it, which they won’t. These claims are audited.

NordVPN is a fantastic service for just about anyone, it’s the ease of use that makes it so easy to recommend. And while there are cheaper options out there, Nord has a sensible price tag starting at $3.09/£2.89 a month for two years + 3 free months. After that time you could be paying $12.99/£10.39 a month. Note that prices change all the time.

See all prices and plans at NordVPN.com.

Sometimes you get what you pay for, but that adage can’t be applied to VPN services… especially Surfshark. You might think it isn’t as good because it’s so inexpensive, but you’d be wrong.

There’s a lot to like. The iOS app has a slick, simple interface which makes it easy to pick from one of the 3,200-plus servers on offer spread across 100 countries, making its network one of the widest and most varied of any VPN.

Surfshark has excellent apps across just about any operating system – including Apple TV. It doesn’t put any limits on the number of devices you can use simultaneously.

It will unblock streaming services, just like NordVPN, and has a few other handy features such as multi-hop which lets you route the connection through two VPN servers in different countries for another layer of privacy. Bear in mind, however, that it doesn’t support IPv6. This means it will block all IPv6 traffic and force your devices to use IPv4.

We found that Surfshark matched NordVPN’s speeds when using WireGuard. It was slower than NordVPN when using OpenVPN, but OpenVPN brings extended compatibility.

Surfshark is based in the Netherlands, which is privacy-friendly. It has a no-logs policy that’s regularly audited.

There are three tiers of features on offer at varying price points. The basic Starter plan offers VPN functionality, an ad blocker and the option to generate a proxy email address. Best adds email and payment detail breach alerts, plus personal data security reports, antivirus and other malware protection. The One+ plan adds data removal from company databases and people search sites.

Prices start at $2.19/£1.69 a month for two years + 3 free months on the Starter plan. After that time they will rise to $15.45/£12.29 a month. Note that prices change all the time.

You can see the low price on Surfshark’s website.

We also recommend reading our full Surfshark review for more details.

As one of the longest-running and best-known VPN services, CyberGhost is another top choice for the iPhone, as well as for other devices. It offers tremendous ease of use, and great connection speeds thanks to WireGuard.

The service is particularly good for unblocking video streaming services. Cyberghost was able to unblock every streaming service we tried including Netflix, Disney+, as well as U.K. based BBC iPlayer and ITV X–in the past we problems connecting to these U.K-specific on-demand, but issues with both disappeared when we used a server specifically optimised for ITV. (You get a phenomenal amount of choice here. There are at least 7,100 servers available to connect to 91 different countries.

The service is headquartered in Romania, which is good for privacy as it is outside the 14-eyes group of countries that share intelligence, and the company has a policy of not keeping logs of online activity, a claim that has been audited by Deloitte.

Prices currently start at $2.19/£1.92 a month for two years + two free months. Usually /$12.99/£10.89 a month. Prices change all the time.

See all prices and plans on Cyberghost’s website.

Private Internet Access (PIA) is a great value and feature-packed VPN service. It’s not the fastest or cheapest out there, but it does have a heck of a lot of servers in 84 counties and is highly configurable.

It is based in the U.S. which isn’t usually ideal if you want to protect your privacy, but it now has the reassuring Deloitte audit which makes its US location a non-issue. It’s thousands of servers are set up well for privacy. You can even pay anonymously using cryptocurrency or gift cards.

It will unblock Netflix and more, but when we tried it didn’t unblock BBC iPlayer so it isn’t our first choice for unblocking streaming services, but it may unblock everything you need it to.

Like Surfshark, it allows you to have an unlimited number of devices connected at the same time.

See all prices and plans on Private Internet Access’s website.

ProtonVPN has a free tier, that has restrictions on the number of servers you can choose, and the speeds on offer. Those who pay for ProtonVPN get access to excellent speeds, loads of options and can also use the Secure Core servers, which route your connection through multiple servers for increased privacy.

NetShield is included, which uses DNS filtering to protect users from website-hosted malware, ads and trackers.

ProtonVPN is good at unblocking streaming services, but the privacy credentials are really what you are paying for here.

The firm is based in Switzerland, which is ideal for privacy and a third party has audited Proton VPN and verified its privacy credentials.

See all prices and plans on ProtonVPN’s website.

ExpressVPN is another excellent choice for your iPhone. As well as offering excellent security and privacy, it also unblocks more streaming services than its rivals, and there’s friendly tech support available round the clock.

As with the other services here, there are also apps for other popular devices, and you can use it on five of them at the same time, so it should cover the whole family. (In fact, since you can connect your router direct to the VPN, and all devices connected to that router count as only one device, it’s easy to get around the limit.)

It’s worth noting, for those who plan to use this VPN on their non-iPhone devices as well, that the login process can sometimes be confusingly inconsistent between the various apps. Once you’re logged in, however, the apps all look and feel the same, and work in the same way.

ExpressVPN is based in the British Virgin Islands for privacy reasons and, like Nord and others here, doesn’t store any data about your use of its service.

It isn’t cheap, though, costing considerably more than rivals.

See all prices and plans on ExpressVPN’s website.

PureVPN is notable not just because it offers more than 6,500 servers, but because those servers cover a whopping 141 countries. You’re unlikely to need to pretend to be in most of them, but it could be a bonus if you do need to access something that’s not in one of the commonly covered regions, or live in one of those countries and prefer a local server for the best speeds.

The iPhone app, just like all PureVPN apps, was given a total makeover in 2021 and now looks bright and smart. More importantly, it’s quick and easy to connect to your favorite locations, and it unblocks the stuff you want to watch. That includes iPlayer, ITV Hub and other U.K. services that some VPNs struggle with, and U.S. Netflix and Amazon Prime.

Unfortunately PureVPN lacks many of the features offered by the competition, and even with WireGuard the speeds weren’t particularly impressive–you will notice a loss in performance if you are used to full fibre. That said, it is fast enough for streaming video. Our only notable reservation is that split tunnelling is limited to Windows and Android, and isn’t available on either iPhone or Mac. Another annoyance was the fact that PureVPN caused many websites to force us to answer one of those annoying verification quizzes to prove we were human.

PureVPN is now based in the British Virgin Islands, which is more privacy friendly than Hong Kong, where it used to operate. KPMG has audited and confirmed that PureVPN sticks by its no-logs policy.

Install the app on your iPhone and you can get a seven-day trial just by entering your email address. If you like it, you’ll be pleased to hear that subscriptions are very reasonably priced. 

VyprVPN is unusual in that it owns and operates all of its servers and network hardware. Most VPNs rent their servers, install custom software and manage it remotely, but not Vypr.

This is why VyprVPN is a great choice for privacy, and it also offers good speeds thanks to the introduction of WireGuard. It’s also why there are fewer servers, but they’re distributed among a good number of countries, including the ones which most people want.

It’s speedy, thanks to WireGuard, and lets you have five devices connected at the same time. 

Like its rivals, Vypr operates a strict no-logs policy and offers deep discounts on the regular monthly price if you’re willing to subscribe for a couple of years.

Ivacy isn’t a free VPN service, but it’s so cheap–not to mention impressively effective–that we’d strongly recommend this over a free alternative. With options like this available, there’s really no point in struggling along with the limitations of a free service.

It can’t match the very best services here for unblocking loads of video services–it wouldn’t unblock Netflix Japan when we tested it–but it did work with the U.S. library from the U.K.

Click the link above and you’ll see a five-year subscription deal. While that length of time might put you off, the up-front cost is about the same as many of the two-year deals here. So you’re paying the same money (or less), but getting access for five years. If that’s not convenient, we don’t know what is.

As well as working on your iPhone, Ivacy has plenty of other apps, and you can use up to five devices at the same time with the service.

It doesn’t have the largest number of servers and you’re not going to get the absolute top speeds, but the appeal here is value: It’s a great service with only minor niggles.