OVPN review 2024: Fast, but too expensive?

OVPN has been around since 2014 and has built a pretty decent reputation, so we decided to put its privacy credentials to the test in this in-depth review. Check it out below.

What impressed us:

• OpenVPN and WireGuard protocols
• Self-owned network of diskless servers in 32+ locations
• Doesn’t require an email address to sign up
• Accepts Bitcoin payments
• Based in Sweden
• Built-in ad-block and malware filtering
• Port forwarding makes this VPN excellent for torrenting

What it could improve:

• Server network extends to just 20 countries
• Apps are quite basic
• Doesn’t work with all streaming services, so test it with yours
• Browser extension doesn’t let you proxy your IP address
• Kill switch available in desktop apps only
• Split tunneling is available for Windows only

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Editor’s opinion: 

I am a UK resident, but tested OVPN while visiting Canada. Unfortunately, when I connected to the UK server, I was unable to access ITVX – which ruined my chances of watching a Women’s World Cup match. On the plus side, the VPN worked to watch BBC iPlayer. It also worked with Netflix US and Netflix UK – so it isn’t too bad for streaming.

The speed that OVPN achieves when using the WireGuard protocol is impressive. I could stream, play games, and torrent experiencing no noticeable reduction in performance, which is great news. The split tunneling feature worked without a hitch on Windows, but I was sad to see that it wasn't available on other platforms.

Overall, I found the VPN to offer excellent speeds and to work for everything that the average user needs a VPN for. However, I would probably find it hard to recommend this VPN to friends and family, because it's still a touch pricey. It also still seems a bit underdeveloped on most platforms, which makes it better for Windows users. Plenty of competing services offer feature-packed apps for all platforms. 

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OVPN – Overview

OVPN has been around since 2014. During that time, this Swedish provider has built a VPN that runs on a self-owned network of servers designed to provide users with reliable online privacy. The VPN struggles to compete with other market-leading services – many of which have networks that extend to 60+ countries.

Apps are available for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and Linux. Users hoping for a Firestick app or browser extensions will need to shop elsewhere. OVPN has guides for setting up the VPN on various routers and NAS drives, which is pretty cool.

Sweden doesn't have mandatory data retention directives that apply to VPNs. OVPN can legally enforce a robust no-logs policy. It runs on diskless servers, allowing it to erase stored data in an emergency.

The most impressive thing about OVPN is the level of technical information and transparency it provides on its website. The VPN explains exactly what server equipment it uses and how it boots servers securely. It publishes specifications about its encryption. We love this kind of technical information and found this to be something other VPNs could learn from.

OVPN supports port forwarding for both the OpenVPN and WireGuard protocols, which makes it a decent option for users who want to torrent. You don’t get extras such as obfuscation or Smart DNS. The kill switch is for Windows and Mac users only, which makes this VPN better for desktop machines than mobile devices.

Overall, there is nothing wrong with OVPN, and it is secure for privacy purposes. It is a touch expensive compared to competitors like Surfshark and CyberGhost. That said, if you want a solid VPN for torrenting, it is definitely worth taking OVPN for a test run using its 30-day money-back guarantee.

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OVPN – Highlights

• Works with Netflix, iPlayer, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max, and Peacock
• Reliable AES-256 and ChaCha20 encryption
• Offers dedicated static IPs for an extra $4 per month
• Average global download speeds of 220 Mbps
• Has a risk-free 30-day money-back guarantee to test its service
• Based in Sweden and has a no-logs policy
• Port forwarding and split tunneling feature 
• Self-owned network of diskless servers that run exclusively in RAM

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OVPN Review

In this section, you can read our comprehensive review of OVPN. We carried our tests out over a two-week period, by using the VPN on a variety of different devices and on a dedicated test machine based in Ohio. We rigorously examined the VPN across seven important categories to ensure seamless functionality. We made our conclusions based on Features, Pricing, Streaming, Speeds, Privacy, Security, and Customer Service.

OVPN features

OVPN is one of the most secure and reliable VPNs on the market. It has everything you need to use the internet securely whether at home, at work, or on public WiFi. However, it is pretty basic and you won't find many of the features you get with leading competitors like NordVPN, Surfshark, ProtonVPN, and Mullvad. Below, you can see exactly what you will get with an OVPN subscription:

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Apps for all platforms

OVPN has apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. It even has proper GUI apps for Linux (Ubuntu, Fedora, and openSUSE). 

If you prefer to set up the VPN manually on any of these platforms, then you can use either a third-party OpenVPN client or the official WireGuard client. OVPN posts detailed guides for setting up the VPN manually using CLI in various Linux distros (Ubuntu, Fedora, openSUSE, Linux Mint, Debian, Manjaro, FreeBSD, and CentOS). It also has guides for setting it up on various routers (AsusWrt, DD-WRT, OpenWrt, OPNsense, Tomato, pfSense, Vilfo, and GL-iNet) and NAS drives (Asustor, FreeNAS, Synology NAS, and QNAP).

If you want to connect to the VPN inside of your browser, you are sadly out of luck. The VPN does have browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Vivaldi (with another one being developed for Opera), but the extensions do not spoof your IP address or encrypt your connection. Instead, they are limited to blocking WebRTC to ensure that you do not suffer from leaks. This caught our attention and made us wonder: Does OVPN have a problem with WebRTC leaks?

During our leak tests, we did not suffer from any WebRTC leaks, so the answer seems to be no. However, we spoke to an agent who told us that WebRTC leaks can be an issue “mostly on mobile browser” but that “WebRTC is rarely a problem even then, as the IP that is leaked is the private IP on the VPN local network, not the real public IP of the user.”

With this in mind, we would probably recommend installing the extension to be sure that WebRTC is being blocked. This will give you peace of mind when using the VPN, thanks to the extension's capacity to block all WebRTC requests.

If you want a VPN that comes with a browser-based proxy (to spoof your IP on a work machine that doesn’t give the privileges necessary to install a full VPN client, for example) we would recommend shopping elsewhere.

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Global server network

OVPN has just over 100 servers in 20+ countries around the world. This includes servers in eight different US cities, which gives you options on both the East and West coasts and makes the VPN reliable for bypassing blackout game restrictions, watching regional TV, or circumventing state-level gambling blocks.

The provider’s servers are self-owned and run on completely diskless, RAM-only servers. This ensures no third parties are involved in its network, which improves security. The VPN can quickly erase all the data on a server in an emergency (if a data center is raided by government authorities, for example).

OVPN primarily caters to users in North America and the EU. You will not find any servers in North Africa or the Middle East, and the only locations available in Asia are Japan and Singapore. In addition, you will not find any servers in Latin America. This definitely rules out the VPN for many users around the world.

Here’s how OVPN’s server network compares to other providers:

Overall, the OVPN server network is pretty small when compared to leading competitors like NordVPN, which has over 5,000 servers in 59+ countries, and Surfshark, which has over 3,000 servers in 100+ countries.

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Kill switch

A VPN kill switch is an important feature that protects you from accidentally exposing your web browsing habits and online activities to your local network, ISP, and government agencies. Should your VPN connection be disrupted, it cuts off your internet connection to prevent exposure of your real IP address to websites, services, or the direct peers you connect with. 

OVPN’s system-wide kill switch shuts off your internet completely until you have reconnected to the VPN. I tested the kill switch on my Windows laptop and I am happy to report that it never leaked my IP address, even when disconnecting and reconnecting to many server locations (and forcing the app to crash using my task manager). 

The bad news is that this feature is only available on Windows and Mac. You will need to monitor your connection yourself on mobile devices.

If the VPN connection drops out, then you could leak your browsing habits to your ISP or the local network. This makes OVPN less than ideal for mobile users, and people who need a VPN for data privacy and security when working on public WiFi. If this is you, we would have to recommend shopping elsewhere.

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Bandwidth allowance and data use

Whether you pick a one-month, yearly, or three-year plan, you will always get unlimited VPN use. OVPN enforces no download limits or bandwidth restrictions of any kind on any of its servers. You can keep your VPN connected to ensure you have watertight online privacy at all times. 

Throughout our review process, OVPN consistently maintained fantastic performance levels, with no bandwidth throttling on any of the servers we used. This ensured a smooth experience when playing games like PUBG and CoD. We could download torrents and stream in HD without any buffering.

Unlimited bandwidth makes OVPN a decent option for making private VoIP calls in countries where WhatsApp, Skype, and other VoIP apps are banned – such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

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Split tunneling

OVPN recently introduced split tunneling into its Windows app. This allows you to pick apps that you want to exclude from the VPN tunnel. This is perfect if you want to use the VPN for torrenting securely, but want to stream TV in your browser using your home IP address at the same time, for example. 

The main caveat is that this feature is only available in Windows. You do not get split tunneling for Mac, Android, or iOS. This is not standard fare, because there are plenty of VPNs on the market that offer split tunneling for Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. Hopefully, OVPN will roll split tunneling out on other platforms in the future.

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Simultaneous connections

An annual subscription with OVPN will allow you to connect up to five devices simultaneously. A one-month account allows just four devices. 

You will be allowed to connect an additional device for each year that you subscribe to OVPN. The longer you subscribe to the service, the more connections you will be allowed! For example, if you subscribe for three years, you will be allowed to connect seven devices.

This is usually enough connections for the average home user. A few competing VPNs let you connect an unlimited number of devices. So, if you want to be able to share your VPN with friends and family, you may prefer an alternate provider such as Surfshark, IPVanish, or AtlasVPN.

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Other features:

Unfortunately, this VPN does not offer some of the extra features you get with market-leading VPNs. This makes the service a touch limited, but also better for specific tasks (such as torrenting) and users.

Firstly, you don’t get any advanced form of obfuscation. If you live in a country where VPN use is banned or frowned upon, you may prefer to subscribe to a different service. You can connect using OpenVPN TCP over port 443, but this doesn’t effectively prevent DPI from detecting that a VPN is being used to conceal your activities – so bear this in mind if you intend to bypass blocks that could get you in trouble with the authorities.

OVPN does not provide Tor over VPN, you cannot configure the protocols or change the encryption settings, and you do not get a Smart DNS feature like the ones you get with NordVPN, Surfshark, and ExpressVPN. 

MultiHop connections are available as an optional extra if you get a one-month sub. This will cost you an additional $5. However, all 12-month and 36-month contracts come with MultiHop as standard, so as long as you commit for longer, you will get this useful extra feature.

OVPN does not have an auto-connect feature designed to connect you to the VPN when you join an unknown or unprotected public WiFi network. This is a useful feature that can help prevent you from falling victim to an “Evil Twin” hotspot while roaming. Hackers often set them up with no password, meaning that you can connect without realizing.

With that out of the way, we have included all the extras we could find in its apps below:

• Change MTU size: The MTU size is set to the default value for each protocol (1500 for OpenVPN and 1420 for WireGuard). This is usually the best way to leave the VPN set up. However, you can change the MTU manually in the app if necessary to help to connect on stubborn networks. If you are having connection problems, you could try lowering the MTU by increments of 20 to see if you can find an MTU size that works.
• TCP over port 443: When connecting using the OpenVPN protocol you will use OpenVPN UDP over port 1194 (which is standard). If you have any connection issues or simply want to make use of basic obfuscation, you can change to OpenVPN TCP over port 443 in the app. This will make your OpenVPN traffic appear to be regular HTTPS traffic, which makes it harder to block.
• Custom DNS: OVPN’s own servers resolve DNS queries by default. This is generally the most secure and private way for a VPN to resolve your DNS queries. If you prefer to use a third-party DNS resolver such as OpenDNS, CloudFlare, or Quad9, you can enter the address for the nameserver you want to use in the VPN app.
• Fastest server: The VPN can connect you automatically to the fastest server available for your location. The feature tests each server available and then connects to the one with the best ping. This will usually be a server in your own country (if the VPN has one) or a server that is geographically close to you.
• Compression for OpenVPN: Adds compression to the OpenVPN protocol if necessary (can improve your speeds in some specific circumstances). Generally speaking, compression is not recommended due to underlying security concerns raised by the OpenVPN project, so leave this switched off.
• Dedicated IPs: If you want a dedicated static IP that’s exclusive to you, then it is available as an optional add-on. You can choose from static IPs in every country where OVPN has servers, which is pretty rare (most VPNs have around five locations to pick from). This will cost you an additional $4 per month, which is a normal asking price for this kind of IP.
• MultiHp: Available with all 12 and 36-month subscriptions. Lets you connect to two servers in sequence for added privacy.

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Subscriptions & Pricing 

When searching for the perfect VPN, cost is going to be a deciding factor for most people. The important thing to remember is that the cost of a VPN is not always an indicator of quality.

In today's VPN market, some providers offer top-notch, reliable, and secure services at reasonable prices. By contrast, there are plenty of over-priced VPNs that do not represent good value for money. So, how does OVPN fit into this landscape?

OVPN has three different plans to pick from. You can subscribe for a single month for $12 per month. This is pretty average when compared to competing one-month plans. You can easily take out a short subscription to go on vacation or if you need a VPN when traveling for work.

The cost of a subscription reduces considerably when you decide to commit for a year. You will save 71% and pay just $4.99 per month. This is pretty reasonable, and comparable with services like NordVPN ($4.99 per month) and cheaper than some options, such as ExpressVPN ($8.32 per month).

The most affordable subscription plan starts at $4.22 per month, which represents a mere 4% discount, despite committing for an additional two years. In comparison, competing VPNs like Surfshark offer a two-year plan for just $2.39 per month, and PrivateVPN's three-year plan comes in at an even lower $2 per month. This makes the VPN a touch expensive for the average home internet user.

Payment options

OVPN gives you a number of options to pay for an account. You can pay using a credit or debit card, PayPal, or cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Monero. 

Alternatively, you can also sign up anonymously by sending cash through the post. This is perfect if you want to subscribe to the VPN without linking your account to any electronic payment processor.

You can subscribe to OVPN without providing a real name or email address, which, along with a cryptocurrency or cash payment, makes it one of the most anonymous VPNs currently available on the market. This may be the biggest selling point for users who demand the highest possible levels of privacy, such as activists and political dissidents who rely on a VPN to shield their identity from government snoops.

Money-back guarantee

OVPN doesn't offer a free plan or a free trial. It offers a 30-day money-back guarantee on all its plans, including the one-month subscription. If you're not satisfied, you can always request a refund within the first 30 days.

Cash payments are not eligible for refunds. If you choose to pay in cash and later decide to cancel, you won't be able to get your money back.

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Speeds

We carried out speed tests on OVPN using a dedicated test machine in Ohio with a 5 Gigabit internet connection. We carried out our tests using the desktop version of Speedtest by Ookla.

We understand that your home internet may have slower speeds than our test machine. To account for this, and give you an idea of how OVPN might perform in a normal home setting, we additionally carried out tests on a 35 Mbps broadband connection in Canada. Of course, your mileage will vary depending on your hardware and base internet speed.

To conduct both server-based and home tests, we connected to OVPN servers in New York, London, and Singapore. We used the WireGuard protocol, which is the fastest available. 

We ran each test three times, at three-hour intervals, and used those results to calculate the averages in the table. As you can see, the VPN's global download average was 220 Mbps.

To provide real-world performance information, we tested OVPN using an Asus Zenbook 14 laptop connected to Cogeco broadband in Ontario, Canada. On the day of testing, my download speed without the VPN was 34.6 Mbps:

Below, you can see the results of tests while connected to the UK, US, and Singapore OVPN servers:

• UK server. Download speed of 22.77 Mbps. This is a 34% drop.
• US server. Download speed of 32.84 Mbps. This is a 5% drop.
• Singapore server. Download speed of 18.26 Mbps. This is a 48% drop.

As you can see, the VPN’s performance was pretty decent. The closest server to me geographically was in New York. This OVPN server managed to keep my internet running close to full speed. Good stuff.

The UK server slowed down my internet by approximately a third. This was almost identical to the decrease in speed I experienced with NordVPN when conducting the same home broadband test. This means it compares with other market-leading fast VPN services.

The Singapore server suffered the biggest speed drop. This is understandable due to the distance involved. However, I would still have hoped for slightly better results. I have tested VPNs that caused a smaller speed drop in speed using servers in Asia. If you need fast speeds in Asia, you may prefer Surfshark, which gave exceptional results.

Overall, we found OVPN’s performance to be pretty decent. The VPN’s top speeds show that it has plenty of throughput, and we had no issue streaming US Netflix and doing other data-intensive tasks while connected to the VPN.

OVPN’s lack of servers in some countries may be frustrating for some users. Remember that you should expect to lose some speed when connecting to servers located far away.

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Streaming

Many people want a VPN to access regional content or access their home streaming services while on vacation. To this end, we decided to thoroughly test OVPN with various popular streaming services.

We were able to access Netflix US and Netflix UK, without issues. When I connected to the Japanese server, however, my catalog did not update to Japan. Instead, it showed me a limited catalog consisting only of Netflix originals. This is the default catalog that Netflix serves when it detects VPN usage.

Staying connected to the New York server, I successfully logged in and watched US Hulu, Amazon Prime, and HBO Max. For those interested in streaming US TV for free, OVPN worked perfectly to access Xumo Play—an awesome free streaming platform owned by Comcast.

Moving on to test UK streaming services, the VPN worked flawlessly for logging in and streaming my BBC iPlayer account. Unfortunately, I received an error message when trying to stream ITVX:

My BT Sport account returned an error message. However, I was pleased to find that I could log into Channel 4 without any problems (and watch Countdown, win!).

As you can see, my experience of streaming using OVPN was a bit of a mixed bag. Although it works with numerous streaming platforms, it can be a bit hit-and-miss. For this reason, we strongly recommend testing it with your preferred platforms during the refund period.

OVPN is Swedish, and, for this reason, it claims to support a variety of EU streaming services like Viaplay, NRK, SRF, ORF, Magenta, and RTL. According to its website, it works with all the following streaming platforms:

That's a pretty impressive list of supported streaming services. However, because I did encounter an issue with at least one platform on that list (ITVX), I would recommend testing it with your platforms during the trial period to be certain.

It doesn't matter which US server you connect to for streaming. The VPN can detect when you attempt to stream content from a specific domain such as Netflix or Hulu, and will automatically redirect your traffic to that platform using clever DNS routing. You will automatically use a streaming-optimized server, regardless of the server location you select in the app.

This approach is excellent because you don't need to worry about contacting OVPN to find out which server is optimized for a particular streaming platform. If OVPN has a server that works with your streaming provider, it will automatically route your data to that server using this DNS-routing feature. 

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Security

In this section, we will thoroughly check OVPN’s encryption implementation and check under the hood to see how the VPN is protecting your data. This includes performing leak tests to be sure that the VPN doesn’t accidentally leak your DNS requests or suffer from WebRTC leaks. Leaks of this kind would make it unsafe to use the VPN for privacy purposes, which is why we always implement these important checks as part of our testing methodology.

Protocols and encryption

OVPN keeps things as simple as possible by providing a choice of just two different protocols in its apps. On Windows and macOS, you can toggle between WireGuard and OpenVPN. You can also switch from OpenVPN UDP (which is the default) to OpenVPN TCP over port 443, which can help to provide connectivity on networks that have a stubborn firewall.

The Android and iOS clients do not allow you to switch between OpenVPN and WireGuard. Instead, OVPN has decided to offer WireGuard exclusively in its mobile apps. This helps to make the VPN beginner friendly, and because WireGuard is both fast and secure, there is no doubt that it is the preferred protocol for most home internet users.

If you have an elevated threat model and find yourself hesitant to fully trust WireGuard, you have the option to connect using the third-party OpenVPN Connect app instead. This alternative is also useful if you prefer to use OpenVPN TCP over port 443, allowing you to access the VPN even when connected to networks that block common VPN ports. Config files for OpenVPN are available in the member's area of the website for this purpose.

Natural skepticism aside, it is important to note that OVPN has taken measures to address potential concerns related to WireGuard. The VPN leverages a key management daemon on its WireGuard servers, ensuring that user IP addresses are not logged. To achieve this, the servers are configured to delete user IPs every three minutes. You can find out more about this on OVPN’s website. 

Both WireGuard and OpenVPN are trusted VPN protocols implemented with strong encryption capable of completely concealing your web traffic and personal data from prying eyes. 

Below, we have included the encryption implementation details for each of its protocols: 

• OpenVPN: Cipher: AES-256-GCM or ChaCha20-Poly1305 (available in OpenVPN 2.5+). Handshake: 4096-bit RSA key. Authentication: SHA-384. Perfect Forward Secrecy using DHE.
• WireGuard: Cipher: ChaCha20 with Poly1305 for authentication and BLAKE2s for hashing. Curve25519 for Perfect Forward Secrecy. 

OVPN provides both OpenVPN and WireGuard for its users, and we were impressed with the amount of information about these protocols published on its website. 

The VPN isn’t bloated with clutter, such as outdated protocols. Users always receive a high level of protection. OVPN implements both protocols securely, which means that they are suitable for gaining online privacy and security in most situations.

On the other hand, OVPN does not provide any advanced obfuscation methods, such as Stunnel, Obfsproxy, SSH, or SSL tunnels. If you live in a country where using a VPN could be enough to raise suspicions; you may prefer to subscribe to a VPN that has this additional privacy feature.

Leak tests

We thoroughly tested OVPN for leaks that would betray your privacy when connected to the VPN. We used browserleaks.com in an incognito window to prevent the cache left in our browser from potentially affecting the results. 

As you can see below, the VPN did not leak our real IP address. The results show that OVPN securely proxies DNS requests to its own servers; which is the most private way for a VPN to resolve these requests. 

The VPN was free of WebRTC leaks, giving it a full clean bill of health in terms of privacy. 

This makes OVPN a reliable service to use for preventing local networks, ISPs, government agencies, and other eavesdroppers from intercepting your browsing history or communications. It also makes it a reliable service to gain online privacy on public WiFi.

Additional security features

In addition to the kill switch mentioned earlier, OVPN implements DNS-based filtering that blocks ads, tracking scripts, and traffic from malicious websites. This provides an additional layer of security when you browse the web.

OVPN provides the address of its Adblock DNS servers on its website. Anybody can use these servers to resolve their DNS queries privately while also blocking annoying ads. This is true even if you don't actually subscribe to OVPN, which is actually pretty generous!

You can either setup your system to use these DNS servers manually in your operating system or pick Ad-Block DNS inside of the OVPN app:

We tested OVPN’s Adblock DNS on websites that serve a lot of ads, and were happy to find that they were indeed blocked. However, it won’t work for embedded ads on YouTube or Twitch. It can help to save mobile data and should help to improve page load times. 

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Privacy

Jurisdiction 

The location of a VPN provider has a significant impact on the type of logs they keep and the government regulations they have to follow.

OVPN operates servers worldwide, making it possible for authorities in specific countries to potentially raid their servers. However, thanks to their strict no-logging policy and use of diskless servers running in RAM, there would be no useful data for them to seize. In the event of such an incident, OVPN can simply pull the plug and erase everything on the server.

The advantage of OVPN being headquartered in Sweden is that the company is not obligated to comply with any mandatory data retention directives. This allows OVPN to maintain a robust no-logging policy on a completely legal and compliant basis.

Sweden is part of the greater Nine Eyes surveillance treaty, which includes countries like the US, the UK, and the EU. This means that the government cooperates with other governments for reasons of national security and intelligence sharing. While not ideal, this collaboration will not impact OVPN users thanks to the VPN's solid no-logging policy.

Privacy policy

We thoroughly examined OVPN's privacy policy to find out how it handles user data, and found it to be both informative and well-written.

The policy clearly explains that the company does not collect, handle, use, or retain any persistent records of the servers users connect to, and it never associates your home IP address with any connection logs. No one can determine which server you connected to, or what you did online while connected to the VPN server.

As you can see in the screenshot below, the VPN does not log your home IP address, your MAC address, your internet traffic, your DNS requests, any connection/disconnection timestamps, or bandwidth information. OVPN is a true no-logs VPN that harvests neither usage nor connection logs. 

The VPN admits to collecting some data from visitors to its website. IP addresses are anonymized, meaning the company uses aggregated information to track visitor numbers and other information needed to run its business. The company also admits to using some cookies:

The use of cookies of this kind is not unusual, and does not affect users’ privacy when using the VPN application.

Though the policy doesn't explicitly mention GDPR, it grants customers the right to request, correct, and delete personal information held on file, aligning with key data rights provided by the EU's privacy regulation.

Overall, we were impressed with the policy’s detail and transparency. It clearly explains what the company does with user data. We also liked the option to sign up without providing an email address, which highlights the VPN’s commitment to user privacy. 

Anybody who decides to sign up without an email will not be able to recover their account in case of a forgotten password, so be sure to make a note of this information and keep it safe.

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Customer Support

OVPN provides support both by email and live chat on its website. We found the agents to be well-trained, polite, and knowledgeable about the VPN’s features and inner workings. This is extremely helpful because, when you speak to an agent, they can instantly understand your request and provide help.

For the time being, live chat is available only during EU business hours. If you contact OVPN out of hours, expect to communicate via email instead. 

Other than that, my only real gripe is that the agents do sometimes disappear for a while before returning to answer your question. It was my impression that this happened not because they needed to research the answer, but rather because they were busy with another customer. 

I did not find this to be an issue because (unlike some VPNs which are extremely frustrating) the live chat window stays open at all times and does not time out, so you will get an answer as soon as the agent can get back to you.

The VPN has an FAQ section that is neatly categorized into sub-section such as Platforms, Functionality, Pricing, Security & anonymity, and Streaming. This section has over 150 articles, which alongside its various installation guides makes it one of the most informative VPN websites we have ever encountered.

We were able to find information about every single one of OVPN’s features, which made it very easy to find out how to use the VPN or why the VPN has some of its more unusual settings (such as compression for OpenVPN).

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Is OVPN easy to use?

Yes. Despite offering excellent reliability and strong protection against data snoops, this VPN is very easy to install and use. It’s a decent option for beginners. You can install it manually (it provides WireGuard and OpenVPN configs) and set up port forwarding in the member’s area of its website, making it an extremely versatile VPN.

The app might not be the prettiest to look at. The setting menu is simple, and it is easy to connect to the fastest server available thanks to its Best Server feature. The depth of knowledge and information available means that both beginners and techy users will get everything they need when visiting OVPN’s website.

Admittedly, some of this VPN's ease of use is due to the lack of advanced features that you get with advanced VPNs like NordVPN, ProtonVPN, and Mullvad. If you want obfuscation or Tor over VPN, then you will need to subscribe elsewhere. MultiHop is available as an add-on if you want it.

Overall, OVPN is easy to set up and use and its website is set up to make fixing any issues or finding information about how the VPN works as easy as possible. This includes more openly available technical information about the VPN’s technology, servers, and encryption implementation than just about any other VPN on the market.

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Our verdict

OVPN is a VPN provider that prioritizes user privacy. Instead of positioning itself as a VPN for accessing TV services, OVPN has dedicated its efforts to crafting a secure experience grounded in a network of self-owned, diskless servers.

Unlike some leading VPNs (NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark, IPVanish, and VyprVPN), OVPN has yet to undergo any third-party audits. You must trust that the service does what it says it does. Hopefully, it will undertake audits in the future to further improve trust in its infrastructure and apps.

With that said, OVPN runs a tight ship. Our tests revealed that OVPN offers robust protection using trusted protocols and encryption standards. We were impressed with its watertight no-logging policy and the amount of technical information about the service it publishes on its website.

One drawback is that OVPN only has servers in 20+ countries. This coverage pales in comparison to competitors like Surfshark (100+ countries) and ExpressVPN (94+ countries). 

OVPN is better for Windows users than users on other platforms, thanks to its split tunneling feature. Although it has iOS and Android apps, they lack a kill switch – a feature we consider vital. This omission makes the VPN seem overpriced, particularly for users who want to use a VPN at home, work, and on public WiFi. If this is you, we would probably recommend shopping elsewhere. 

OVPN allows port forwarding, which is a pretty rare feature. This makes it a useful option for users who want to seed torrents. The live chat support agents are decent but only available during Swedish working hours.

Overall, there were too many limitations for us to confidently recommend OVPN over leading competitors. Numerous VPNs offer more features at a lower cost. On the plus side, it does work to watch Netflix US, and, as a Windows VPN for torrenting, it is pretty decent. If you like the sound of OVPN, you can give it a test run using its 30-day money-back guarantee. 

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Bleeping Computer Rating: 8.4

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