IPVanish Review

Streaming, Does IPVanish Work with Netflix?

Yes, IPVanish is one of the few VPNs that can successfully unblock Netflix. The same is true for other popular streaming services like HBOMax, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Disney+, and more.

When it comes to VPNs, one of their main selling points is their ability to unblock streaming services. The truth is that not all VPN providers have the resources to achieve this since premium streaming services have sophisticated “anti-VPN” mechanisms. 

Luckily, IPVanish is one of the few VPN providers that manage to unblock streaming services with ease.

While IPVanish does not have a list of special servers for streaming, we have been able to verify that their servers have had no difficulty in unblocking Netflix. All you have to do is choose a country, establish a secure connection with IPVanish and start enjoying Netflix!

For our tests, we chose to connect from the United States, Ireland, and Korea.

As you can see in the images above, IPVanish had no trouble unblocking Netflix using the standard list of servers.

This is where the differences in criteria between IPVanish and other VPN providers begin to show. Most IPVanish’s competitor VPN providers (NordVPN, ExpressVPN, CyberGhost) include a list of servers prepared for streaming in their user interface. We are pretty sure that not all IPVanish servers are suitable for unblocking Netflix; however, we suspect that the process of selecting the right server happens behind the scenes. 

Is this a disadvantage? Not necessarily. On the contrary, for many users, the convenience of having the application take care of everything could be considered an advantage. However, since it does not discriminate servers by type, there is also no way of knowing if IPVanish has enough servers to maintain an acceptable bandwidth. 

After carefully reviewing IPVanish’s simple interface and finding no clues to help us get an idea of the capacity of their servers, we got what we were looking for in the least expected place. By logging into the user account from the IPVanish page, we got a tab with a list of all their servers.

As you can see in the image, this tab shows both the server address and its status. You can even sort the servers by the load.

All in all, although simple, IPVanish offers a solution for all users who are looking for an uncomplicated solution to enjoy their favourite TV shows and movies on Netflix, Disney+, HBOMax and other streaming services.

P2P, Does IPVanish Allow Torrenting?

Yes, IPVanish can be used for torrenting. However, it is highly recommended to use an external client configured with the IPVanish SOCKS5 Proxy for that purpose.  

When it comes to downloading torrents, IPVanish’s convenience vanishes altogether. You can theoretically connect to a server and start downloading your torrents. However, for the reason explained in the previous section (lack of server type discrimination), it is highly recommended to use an external client configured for this purpose.

In other words, our recommendation is to use this guide to configure a SOCK5 Proxy with a suitable BitTorrent client such as uTorrent or Transmission, for example.

This configuration requires you to have the username and password of the server you wish to connect to in order to download torrents. This information can be obtained from the IPVanish web interface, as shown below.

Needless to say, this is a completely manual process, and although it is not complicated, it may discourage many novice users.

We would have preferred the IPVanish application to take care of this, but as we will see in a moment, the IPVanish UI is not characterized by being the most advanced on the market.

IPVanish Windows Vs macOS Apps

In all our reviews, we dedicate a section to comparing the VPN application on the two most widely used operating systems, Windows 10 and macOS. It is worth noting that we do not give a rating to the UI design but focus exclusively on the user experience as well as the functionality offered by the application.

In the case of IPVanish, it is necessary to make such a clarification, since the style of its UI is quite outdated. However, as we mentioned a moment ago, that will not be the focus of our analysis.

That said, both the main screen of IPVanish for macOS and Windows 10 is very similar.

Once a secure connection is established, both applications display basic information in a very similar manner.

As you can see, in addition to the typical connection information, a real-time graph of download and upload speed is also displayed. 

As for differences, the two most notable ones are that the Windows application shows the option to activate the Kill Switch on the main screen while the macOS application does not (we will talk more about the Kill Switch shortly).

Another difference, although more subtle, is that the Windows app includes a button to easily access the settings, while in macOS, you must access the Preferences from the menu bar. 

Once you open the configuration screen, you can see some other differences.

As is usually the case with most VPN applications, the Windows 10 version usually has more options. However, this is not the only difference. If you pay attention, the settings in Windows are divided into three tabs, GENERAL, CONNECTION, and DIAGNOSTICS. At the same time, the macOS app includes a drop-down list to choose the connection protocol, and also includes an additional tab for OpenVPN, another for IKEv2/IPSec, and another for Diagnostics.

IPVanish Kill Switch

Today, having a Kill Switch is indispensable. But what is a Kill Switch exactly?

In simple terms, a Kill Switch is a feature that ensures that no data is transmitted that could compromise your privacy in the event that the secure connection goes down. For example, suppose you are downloading torrents. The last thing you would want is for your ISP to find out what you are doing. The Kill Switch ensures that all communications will be blocked to prevent any data leaks that would put you in the spotlight if the secure connection is lost.

Having said all this, IPVanish offers the advantage of having Kill Switch for both macOS and Windows. In addition, Kill Switch functionality is also available on Android 8+ and iOS.

Speciality Servers 

As mentioned at the beginning of the review, IPVanish does not have the ability to discriminate which of its servers are speciality servers. If you are wondering what speciality servers are, the answer is simple. Speciality servers are servers that have been configured with a specific purpose in mind. Among the most common speciality servers are:

• Double VPN Servers
• Onion Over VPN Servers
• Obfuscated Servers
• Torrenting Servers
• Streaming Servers

We already know that IPVanish has streaming servers capable of unblocking blocked content from Netflix and other similar services. We have also mentioned that by means of a BitTorrent client and a SOCKS5 Proxy IPVanish allows you to download torrents safely. What about the rest?

Well, although IPVanish does not discriminate servers by type, when we check the connection configuration, we get that it does indeed support obfuscated servers; it just calls this feature “traffic scramble”.

In the case of macOS, the option to activate this feature is found in Preferences > OpenVPN, while in Windows 10, you must select the CONNECTION tab and change the active protocol to OpenVPN to have access to this useful feature.

According to the IPVanish website, the Scramble option is also available on Android and Fire Stick/TV.

Sadly, IPVanish does not have other types of speciality servers such as Double VPN or Onion Over VPN.

Does IPVanish Support VPN Split Tunneling?

Yes, IPVanish has support for Split VPN Tunneling, but only for Android and Amazon FireOS apps.

A feature that is gradually becoming a necessity for most users is the possibility of using two networks simultaneously. VPN Split Tunneling allows the device to have two networks in parallel, one with the secure VPN connection and the other showing your real IP address.

If you are wondering what the use of Split Tunneling is, we will explain it to you in a simple way. Let’s suppose you live in an area where your bank stores the IP address from which you connect for security reasons. Now let’s assume you are enjoying your favourite show on Hulu or downloading torrents and forget that you are using a VPN connection with the IP address of another country. If you log in to your bank, this could bring you inconvenience, even temporarily blocking your account.

That said, there are different modes of Split Tunneling, such as App Exclusion, Inverse Split, and URL Split modes. Does Split Tunneling count with any of them? Actually, yes, but unfortunately, only for Android and FireOS devices.

We recommend reading this article for more information on how to configure your devices to use this feature.

Supported Protocols 

IPVanish is one of the VPN vendors that supports the largest number of protocols, from the latest ones such as WireGuard to the legendary PPTP and L2TP.

In this section, we will briefly address each of them, mentioning their use cases and limitations.

OpenVPN. If you are looking for a reliable, efficient, and flexible protocol, then OpenVPN is the solution. This is one of the most widely used VPN protocols because it provides a high level of security for both TCP and UDP connections while offering quite acceptable performance. An advantage of IPVanish is that it provides OpenVPN support for both macOS and Windows by default. Additionally, IPVanish also supports OpenVPN on Android, iOS, FireOS, Linux devices, routers, and more. 

IKEv2 (Internet Key Exchange Protocol Version 2). The IKEv2 protocol has quickly become popular due to its focus on mobile devices such as phones and tablets. A distinguishing feature of the IKEv2 protocol is its high stability even when switching from a Wi-Fi wireless network to a cellular network. From a security and performance point of view, the IKEv2 protocol provides the same (or even higher) level of security as the OpenVPN protocol. Fortunately, IPVanish supports this robust protocol for Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, and Windows devices.

WireGuard. You can think of the WireGuard protocol as the new kid on the block. Despite being a relatively recent protocol, it has been well received by the IT community because it provides exceptional security features on par with IKEv2 and superior performance to OpenVPN. Everything points to WireGuard soon becoming the de facto VPN protocol. However, at the moment, it is still under active development, so many VPN providers, including IPVanish, include it as a “beta” version only available on macOS. 

L2TP (Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol). L2TP is a protocol that is currently supported by a few VPNs. The reason is that this protocol, very popular among mobile devices, is slower and not as secure as the IKEv2 protocol, so it could be said that L2TP has been replaced by a newer and more efficient protocol. However, despite not being as fast, L2TP is a good alternative for older mobile devices that do not support OpenVPN or IKEv2. IPVanish currently offers L2TP support for Android, iOS, Linux, Windows, and macOS devices.

PPTP (Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol). PPTP is arguably the “grandfather” of all modern VPN protocols. To date, it is known to have many known security vulnerabilities, so it goes without saying that very few VPNs support it. Despite its slowness and low level of security, this protocol is the only option for older operating systems that do not have OpenVPN support. Currently, IPVanish provides support for this protocol only on Windows.

Supported platforms

The expectation today is that VPNs support a wide variety of devices. In this sense, IPVanish supports the following platforms.

• Windows 10, 8.1
• macOS 10+
• Linux (Debian and Red Hat)
• Android 5+
• iOS 11+
• Google Chrome
• Android TV
• Amazon Fire TV
• Routers supported by DD-WRT, TomatoUSB, and TomatoUSB Merlin firmware.

Although the coverage offered by IPVanish is one of the broadest in the market, there are some points that need to be emphasized.

On the one hand, we must remember the comments we made earlier regarding the user experience of the IPVanish app (macOS vs Windows). The functionality of the apps, as well as their layout, are notably different. But that’s not all. Unfortunately, the app’s support for macOS leaves much to be desired.

IPVanish Servers Locations

When it comes to geographic coverage and the number of servers, IPVanish is behind competitors like NordVPN and ExpressVPN. In total, IPVanish has 1,600+ servers in 75+ locations around the world.

To put it in perspective, NordVPN has 5,267 servers spread across 59 countries. In the United States alone, NordVPN has 1,970 servers. 

On the other hand, IPVanish has 1,170 servers in the United States. Not only is their number considerably smaller than NordVPN’s, but these servers represent 73% of IPVanish’s total number of servers.

In other words, it is our opinion that IPVanish is not the best alternative for people who need good coverage and bandwidth in Europe, Asia, Oceania, or South America. 

Customer Support

Sadly, customer support is another area where we feel IPVanish could do a better job. 

Although IPVanish has Live Chat and email support, we found both the FAQs and support articles to be limited to say the least. 

This could be a drawback for users who don’t like to contact customer support as they are used to having plenty of online resources. Add to this the not so intuitive user interface, and it could become a drawback.

IPVanish Price

If price is an important factor in your decision-making, then IPVanish could be the solution you are looking for. IPVanish has two plans, $10.99/month (monthly plan) and $3.75/month (1-year plan).

As we usually do, to give you a better perspective of the prices, we will compare IPVanish with a VPN with similar features, CyberGhost VPN.

Although both services have different plans, below is a comparison of their prices.

Monthly plan

• IPVanish from $10.99 per month
• CyberGhost VPN from $12.99 per month
• Winner IPVanish

Other plans

• IPVanish, from $3.75/month (1-year plan) billed $ 89.99 during the first year, then $131.88 every 12 months.
• CyberGhost VPN, from $2.25/month (3-year plan), from $3.49/month (2-year plan), from $3.99/month (1-year plan)
• Winner IPVanish (during the first year in the one year plan)

From the results shown above, it is clear that IPVanish can be an interesting alternative if you only want to use it for a month or two using the monthly plan. However, the annual plan is only slightly cheaper than the one offered by CyberGhost VPN and only for the first year.

You should add to the above all that has been discussed so far. CyberGhost VPN has more servers around the world, more features, and a better UI than IPVanish. If you would like more details about this and other VPNs, we invite you to read our other reviews here.

In conclusion, if you are looking for a long-term VPN service, then IPVanish may not be your best alternative.

Speed & Performance

As for the speed tests, something similar happens, as explained in the previous section. Unlike what many people think, there are no 100% reliable speed tests. There are too many factors at play, so it is challenging to establish the real speed of a connection, whether it uses VPN or not.

That said, we proceeded to perform several tests using the following procedure.

• We made use of an ad-free and open-source test to measure the speed of the Internet connection.
• We used a 4G LTE broadband service as a base since it is slower and more limited than a wired service.
• Our tests were done from the USA, then in the UK, and finally in Australia.

Let’s start with the base speed (without activating IPVanish) at the time of starting the tests.

The base speed, in this case, 7.44 Mb/s, will allow us to determine how efficient IPVanish is. Ideally, the base speed should be as close as possible to the speed of the desired server location. Let’s see what happens when choosing a server in the USA.

As can be seen in the image, the speed drop is negligible, which is the expected result given that it is a nearby server. Let’s now check the internet speed when connecting to a server in the UK.

Everything changes when connecting to Europe. The drop in speed is one of the larger ones we’ve observed, equivalent to 44% of the base speed.

It now remains to test with a server on the other side of the world, in Australia.

As expected, the speed is even lower, equivalent to only 20% of the base speed.

If you are wondering what causes such a large difference, we can tell you that there are several factors to consider. On the one hand, there is the test itself, which, as we said, is not 100% reliable. There are also factors such as network and server congestion. However, we suspect that one of the determining aspects in the case of IPVanish is the amount of bandwidth available.

Privacy, Does IPVanish Log My Data?

No, IPVanish doesn’t track, collect, or share your private information. However, as a U.S.-based company, it is subject to certain regulations.

IPVanish is a company that takes privacy very seriously. Proof of this is the measures it has taken to ensure that your data is kept private.

• Zero-log policy. IPVanish doesn’t collect connection timestamps, session information, bandwidth usage, traffic data, IP addresses, or any other user data as stated in their no-logs policy.
• Based in the US. Unfortunately, IPVanish is an American company. This means that some data may be shared with law enforcement agencies..
• Payment methods. IPVanish does not have a cryptocurrency payment option, so your credit/debit card or PayPal details will be recorded by the company.

IPVanish review: Verdict

Throughout this review, we have discussed different aspects of IPVanish.

Is IPVanish a good option for you? Our view is that IPVanish can be a solid choice for most users – especially those seeking to utilise US server locations.