IVPN's privacy and security record is strong on openness and mixed on currency
61 out of 100, built from two weighted parts
App store ratings, part of the score
4.063.44
Researched Oct 3, 2026Claims checked: 30Separate source groups: 9Scores updated Oct 8, 2026
IVPN is built for privacy purists — anonymous signup, open-source apps, and Cure53 audits. But limited device connections and no streaming optimization make it a niche choice.
How the 61 is built
Points per criterionSee the evidenceClaims checked: 30Separate source groups: 9
30-day money-back guarantee
10of 15 ptsSolid EverydaySpeeds
Ranked #11 of 22 VPNs for speed in our Speed Lab.
IVPN ranked #11 of 22 providers in our speed rankings, built from published third-party test results.
5of 10 ptsA CapableServer Network
700+ servers across 41 countries.
IVPN operates 700+ servers across 41 countries, providing solid global coverage.
41 countries · 2-7 simultaneous devices · P2P & streaming servers
12of 15 ptsSolid CoreSecurity
Solid security, with a caveat or two.
Strong scores in Protocol (WireGuard). Room to improve in Security (Partial Audit).
IVPN is purpose-built for privacy-first users. Its apps are open-source and Cure53 has published security audits of them. The service accepts anonymous signup with no email required, and payments via cryptocurrency or cash.
5of 10 ptsReliable forMost Platforms
Streaming is hit and miss.
Streaming support is limited compared to top competitors.
IVPN is explicitly not optimized for streaming. The provider does not advertise Netflix access, SmartDNS, or dedicated streaming servers. Users who primarily want to access geo-restricted content should choose a streaming-focused provider instead.
8of 20 ptsStraightforwardto Use
Usable, not effortless.
Room to improve in Devices (2-7), Connections (2 (Standard)).
IVPN's apps are clean and functional, leaning toward simplicity without sacrificing the controls that privacy-focused users need. The interface is more minimal than consumer-oriented VPNs.
21of 30 ptsA SolidTrack Record
Good value, with some trust caveats.
Strong scores in Money-Back (30 days), Support (Email/Chat). Room to improve in Value (1-year $5.00/mo · monthly $6.00).
IVPN uses a transparent flat-rate pricing model with no multi-year lock-in discounts. The annual plan saves approximately 17% compared to monthly billing. Accepts crypto and cash for anonymous payment.
Same plan, same features. The only difference is the renewal term. Pay for 1 years up front and the rate drops from $6.00 to about $5.00 a month: 17% off, roughly $12 saved over the term.
All plans and add-ons
Pick a billing period and compare every tier side by side.
Best for Privacy-focused solo users who need essential VPN on 2 devices
Best for Users who want multi-hop routing, port forwarding, and more devices
A plain-language breakdown of everything in the plans above: what each feature is, who it helps, and whether it is worth paying for.
All plans include:
IVPN is a privacy tool first and a VPN second. Anonymous signup requires no email, no name, no identifying data. Payment options include Monero, Bitcoin, and physical cash. Every architectural choice favors user anonymity over mass-market appeal.
The company operates from Gibraltar, outside the Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, and Fourteen Eyes surveillance alliances. All client apps are fully open source. Cure53 has audited the infrastructure. These are not marketing bullet points. They represent a fundamentally different product philosophy from VPN providers chasing subscriber volume.
That philosophy comes with real tradeoffs. The Standard plan allows only 2 simultaneous device connections. No long-term pricing discounts exist. Streaming optimization is absent by design. IVPN targets a specific audience and makes no effort to pretend otherwise.
The 520 Mbps SpeedLab result places IVPN at number 14 out of 22 ranked providers. The 45 ms latency sits in a reasonable range for everyday use. Neither number will impress speed chasers, but both numbers serve IVPN’s core audience well enough.
WireGuard is the default protocol on all platforms. It delivers the best speed results and lowest overhead. OpenVPN remains available for users who need it on specific networks or want TCP fallback for restrictive firewalls. IPSec/IKEv2 is also supported on iOS.
Multi-hop routing on the Pro plan adds a measurable speed penalty. Routing traffic through two servers in separate countries introduces extra latency and reduces throughput. Expect a 20-40% speed drop compared to single-hop WireGuard connections. For users who need multi-hop, the privacy gain justifies the cost. For general browsing and file downloads, single-hop WireGuard keeps things fast.
Video calls, gaming, and large downloads all perform adequately on nearby servers. The 700-server network across 45 countries is small compared to providers with thousands of servers. Users in regions with sparse server coverage may notice higher latency. Connecting from South America or Africa to the nearest IVPN server could push latency above 100 ms.
IVPN is operated by IVPN Limited, registered in Gibraltar. Gibraltar’s 2006 communications regulations require authorised communications providers to retain Internet-access traffic data for 12 months, and we could not establish whether IVPN is such a provider, so the jurisdiction does not guarantee the absence of a retention duty. IVPN’s transparency report lists three valid legal requests (2019, 2021 and 2024) and shows data provided in no year.
The logging policy is clear. IVPN says it stores no connection logs, no traffic logs, no timestamps, and no bandwidth data. The anonymous signup process means there is nothing to link activity to an identity even if servers were seized. Cure53 audited the no-logs claim once, in March 2019, covering the gateways and authentication servers only, and found IVPN’s privacy statements true within that scope; it has not been repeated. Cure53 has also published annual security audits of the apps and infrastructure since 2019, including two Critical findings in 2021 that IVPN reports it fixed. In August 2026 IVPN disclosed that its self-hosted BTCPay payment server was exploited and 0.6168 BTC of its own funds were taken; IVPN says no customer data or VPN infrastructure was involved.
Encryption defaults are strong. WireGuard uses ChaCha20 for symmetric encryption and Curve25519 for key exchange. OpenVPN connections use AES-256-GCM. The built-in kill switch blocks all traffic if the VPN connection drops. It works at the firewall level, preventing leaks even during app crashes.
AntiTracker is IVPN’s DNS-level ad and tracker blocker. It operates on IVPN’s DNS servers and blocks known tracking domains before requests leave the tunnel. A “Hardcore Mode” option also blocks Google and Facebook tracking domains specifically. This feature runs without installing browser extensions or third-party software.
The Pro plan’s multi-hop routing sends traffic through two VPN servers in different countries. Entry and exit servers are user-selectable. This architecture makes traffic correlation attacks meaningfully harder. An adversary monitoring one server cannot easily match incoming and outgoing traffic without controlling both nodes. For journalists, activists, and whistleblowers, multi-hop is not a luxury feature.
IVPN also supports port forwarding on the Pro plan, which benefits users running services behind the VPN. The implementation is straightforward and does not compromise the no-logs policy.
IVPN does not optimize for streaming and does not claim to access specific platforms. Netflix, Disney+, BBC iPlayer, and other geo-restricted services may work on some servers sometimes. Reliable, consistent access is not guaranteed.
This is a deliberate product decision. IVPN’s engineering resources go toward privacy infrastructure, not playing cat-and-mouse with streaming platform VPN detection. No SmartDNS feature exists. No specialty streaming servers exist. No “optimized for Netflix” labels appear in the app.
Users who occasionally access a streaming service through IVPN may have success on certain servers. Users who need dependable streaming accessing should choose a different provider. IVPN is transparent about this limitation, which is more honest than providers that advertise streaming access they cannot consistently deliver.
IVPN offers native apps for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android. All apps are open source and available on GitHub. The Linux client includes both GUI and command-line options, which is uncommon and valuable for technical users.
The Standard plan supports 2 simultaneous connections. The Pro plan raises that limit to 7. Both numbers fall below industry averages, where 5-10 simultaneous connections is typical and some providers offer unlimited devices. A household with multiple users and devices will hit the Pro plan ceiling quickly.
Router-level installation is possible using WireGuard or OpenVPN configurations. Running IVPN on a router counts as 1 connection and covers all devices on the network. This is the practical workaround for the device limit, though it requires manual configuration and a compatible router.
No browser extensions exist. No smart TV apps exist. No Fire TV Stick app exists. IVPN focuses on core platforms and does them well rather than spreading thin across every device category.
App quality is high across platforms. The interface is clean and minimal. Server selection, protocol switching, multi-hop configuration, and AntiTracker toggles are all accessible within 2-3 taps. Automatic connection rules let users set the VPN to activate on untrusted Wi-Fi networks. The apps feel purpose-built rather than templated.
IVPN is built for users who prioritize verified, auditable privacy above convenience, server count, and streaming access. The ideal user understands threat models and wants a VPN provider that minimizes the data it can hand over, even under legal compulsion.
Journalists working with sensitive sources benefit from anonymous signup and multi-hop routing. Activists in restrictive environments benefit from the open-source codebase that anyone can inspect. Security researchers and privacy advocates benefit from a provider that submits to independent audits and publishes results.
IVPN also works well for technical users who want a no-nonsense VPN without bundled password managers, cloud storage, or other feature bloat. The product does one thing and does it with rigor.
Users who need more than 7 device connections should look elsewhere. Users who want reliable streaming accessing should look elsewhere. Users who want the lowest possible price on a 2-year plan should look elsewhere. IVPN’s 61/100 trust score reflects these practical limitations, not a deficiency in its core mission.
The honest summary: IVPN is a strong choice for privacy-first users and a poor fit for everyone else. That narrow focus is a feature, not a flaw.
Charts and reference images from our research, free to view and share.
Yes. IVPN requires no email address, name, or identifying information to create an account. Payment can be made with Bitcoin, Monero, or physical cash, severing any link between billing and identity. Combined with a no-logs policy that Cure53 audited in 2019 (gateways and authentication servers only), there’s effectively nothing tying an account to a real person.
Gibraltar sits outside the Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, and Fourteen Eyes surveillance alliances. Its 2006 communications regulations require authorised communications providers to retain Internet-access traffic data for 12 months, and we could not establish whether IVPN is one, so a retention duty cannot be ruled out. IVPN’s transparency report lists three valid legal requests (2019, 2021 and 2024), with data provided in no year.
Partly. IVPN’s client apps are fully open-source and published on GitHub, and Cure53 has published annual security audits of the apps and infrastructure. Its only dedicated no-logs audit was Cure53’s in March 2019 (gateways and authentication servers), and it has not been repeated. IVPN says it stores no connection logs, traffic logs, timestamps, or bandwidth data, and anonymous signup means there’s no identity to link to that data even under legal pressure.
Multi-hop, available on the Pro plan, routes traffic through two VPN servers in different countries with user-selectable entry and exit points, making traffic correlation attacks meaningfully harder for anyone monitoring a single server. It costs roughly 20-40% of your speed versus single-hop WireGuard. Journalists, activists, and whistleblowers gain real protection from it; casual browsers generally don’t need it.
WireGuard is the default protocol on all platforms, using ChaCha20 for symmetric encryption and Curve25519 for key exchange. OpenVPN is also available with AES-256-GCM for networks that need TCP fallback, and IKEv2 is supported on iOS. A firewall-level kill switch blocks all traffic if the connection drops, even during an app crash.
IVPN ranks #14 of 22 in our Speed Lab, aggregated from published third-party tests. WireGuard is the default protocol and delivers IVPN’s best throughput, while OpenVPN remains available as a fallback. Its 700+ server network across 45 countries is smaller than mainstream providers, so users far from a server, such as in South America or Africa, may notice higher latency.
No, IVPN doesn’t optimize for streaming and makes no claims about specific platforms. There’s no SmartDNS feature and no dedicated streaming servers, so access to Netflix, Disney+, or BBC iPlayer may work on some servers and not others. IVPN is transparent that its engineering focus is privacy infrastructure, not evading streaming platforms’ VPN detection.
It depends on the plan. The Standard plan covers 2 simultaneous devices, while the Pro plan raises that to 7, both below the industry-typical range. Multi-device households can install IVPN directly on a compatible router using WireGuard or OpenVPN configuration files, which counts as a single connection but protects every device on that network.
IVPN starts from $5.00/month on its longest-term plan, and uses flat-rate pricing with no multi-year lock-in tiers. The annual plan saves roughly 17% versus paying monthly. The Pro plan, which adds multi-hop, port forwarding, and 7 device connections, costs more, but there’s no 2-year or 3-year plan to chase a cheaper rate.
IVPN backs every plan with a 30-day money-back guarantee, giving you a full month to test the apps, server network, and multi-hop routing before committing. Since IVPN accepts anonymous payment via Bitcoin, Monero, or cash, confirm the refund process with support ahead of time if maintaining anonymity throughout the transaction matters to you.
Skip the email field entirely: IVPN’s signup process requires no name, email, or personal information. Pay with Bitcoin, Monero, or physical cash to avoid a billing trail tied to your identity. From there, install the open-source app for your platform, published on GitHub for independent verification, and connect using WireGuard by default.
Install IVPN directly on a compatible router instead of individual devices. A router-level WireGuard or OpenVPN configuration counts as a single connection under the account limit but covers every device on that network, sidestepping the Standard plan’s 2-device and Pro plan’s 7-device ceilings. It requires manual setup, but it’s a practical workaround for larger households.
That’s expected behavior, not a malfunction. Routing traffic through two VPN servers in different countries for multi-hop, available on the Pro plan, adds real latency and cuts throughput by roughly 20-40% versus single-hop WireGuard. If you don’t need the added correlation-attack resistance, switch back to single-hop WireGuard for everyday browsing, downloads, and video calls.
Cure53 audited the VPN gateways and authentication servers of IVPN in March 2019 (three auditors, seven days) and found the privacy statements of IVPN true within the defined scope, raising one Low issue, DNS response caching, which IVPN fixed during the audit. The audit is a snapshot from March 2019 that covered gateways and authentication servers only, and the full report is public on cure53.de.
all of the IVPN’s privacy statements could be verified as truthful within the defined scope.A total of 3 auditors spent 7 days performing the audit during March 2019.Cure53 has published reports on penetration tests of IVPN for 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024, each commissioned by IVPN. The 2019 test found 3 High issues and the 2021 test of the new desktop and mobile apps found 2 Critical issues (both root privilege escalation in the daemon); the 2022 test found 1 High and no Critical, the 2023 test of the gateway servers found no Critical or High, and the 2024 test of the website and API found only Low and informational items. Cure53 notes it verified the fix for most findings in the 2019 to 2022 reports.
The presence of nine issues on the IVPN scope cannot be taken lightlyA total of 9 issues (3 high, 2 medium, 3 low, 1 info) were discovered, all of which were either immediately resolved or have since been resolved.parses commands originating there for execution, this Critical problem can be used to escalate privileges to root.A total of 4 vulnerabilities (2 critical, 2 medium) were discovered, all in the new unreleased desktop app and which were immediately resolved.with one sole High-rated exception unearthed during the IVPN daemon assessmentWe’re pleased to announce that an independent security audit of the IVPN apps conducted by Cure53 has concluded.We’re pleased to announce that an independent security audit of the new IVPN gateway infrastructure has concluded.We’re pleased to announce that a sixth annual independent security audit has concluded.Cure53 concludes that the inspected IVPN aspects and components appear to already be in a quite solid state of security.the testing team detected minimal security concerns during this engagement, attesting to a framework that is effectively capable of resisting the vast majority of breach and threat circumstances.The apps and the website of IVPN are open source (GitHub organisation ivpn); Privacy Guides notes the apps have been open source since February 2020, and Cure53 tested the apps in 2021 and 2022.
This website and the IVPN app for all platforms are open-source for additional transparency and security.As of February 2020 IVPN applications are now open source.Published speed results and expert reviews for every major VPN.
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