Internet users in Russia are subject to intrusive government oversight and heavy online censorship.
If you are not using a VPN in Russia, you are putting yourself at risk.
Following the VPN ban in November 2017, getting a VPN to Russia became even more challenging.
The good news is that our recommended VPNs will still work well in Russia and give you unlimited internet access. Don’t worry, none of these VPN services comply with Russia’s demand for disclosure of user information.
Important Factors When Choosing VPN for Russia:
- Works in Russia
- Has numerous servers near Russia for optimum performance
- Useful privacy features
- Transparent, fair and confidential registration policies
- Well designed and easy to use applications
- High quality customer support
Best VPN Services in Russia, Russia
1. ExpressVPN
Pros
- Excellent speeds and reliability
- Server selection in Europe / USA
- User-friendly applications
- Instant setup on all devices
- Browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox
- No restrictions on P2P traffic
- Reliable access to Netflix and iPlayer
Cons
- Expensive
ExpressVPN is the most reliable provider for Russia, even for the last VPN ban.
It has many different server options on the west coast of Europe and the USA. This is vital to get the best possible performance.
Custom applications provide simple, secure, and configurable protocol settings that can be useful if content blocks become more aggressive.
For a more in-depth look, please read our full ExpressVPN Review.
2. NordVPN
Pros
- Long plans affordable
- Good speeds on local connections
- User-friendly applications for popular platforms
- Strict zero-day policy
- Advanced features including DoubleVPN
Cons
- Alternative VPN protocols for Windows and Android require manual configuration
NordVPN is a great budget choice for Russia, but in general it is not as reliable as ExpressVPN.
It offers congested servers as a solution to bypass censorship, and performance is solid thanks to many servers in Eastern Europe.
Privacy friendly A strict zero-day policy with a jurisdiction in Panama makes Nord an excellent choice for privacy.
For a more in-depth look, please read our full NordVPN Review.
3. Astrill VPN
Pros
- Two special protocols for defeating censorship
- Good in high censored countries
- Very fast VPN speeds
- Multiple server selection in Europe and USA
- 24/7 live chat support
Cons
- No refund policy
- Inconsistent performance
- Expensive even on long plans
Astrill is one of the best VPNs for use in high censored countries, with one not two privacy protocols.
City-level server options in both the US and Europe are great for optimizing performance, but our speeds are slightly lagging behind those offered by our best choice.
We don’t really like the non-consumer reimbursement policy, but you can try VPN for free for seven days (with limited servers). This is a very expensive VPN.
For a more in-depth look, please read our full Astrill VPN Review.
4. PrivateVPN
Pros
- Stealth VPN unblock censored content
- Consistently good VPN speeds
- Server selection in Europe and USA
- User-friendly applications for popular platforms
- Advanced privacy features such as Tor over VPN
- Strict zero-day policy
Cons
- Few servers
PrivateVPN is an alternative budget option for Russia. This proprietary Stealth protocol masks your VPN connection to circumvent censorship.
In Europe and the US, hundreds of server options mean you can connect to a nearby country for the best possible performance.
Simple custom applications have advanced features such as access to Tor via VPN for an extra layer of privacy and maintain absolutely zero user registration.
For a more in-depth look, please read our full PrivateVPN Review.
5. VyprVPN
Pros
- Chameleon protocol bypasses censorship blocks
- Server selection in the US on European and western coasts
- Zero-day policy
- User-friendly applications and instant installation
- Connect securely to 64 countries
- 24/7 support via live chat
Cons
- Chameleon protocol limited to Premium plan
- Limited customer support resources
- Speed lags behind best VPN choices
VyprVPN provides reliable access to blocked sites in Russia thanks to the special Chameleon protocol.
There are enough server locations in Europe and the west coast of the US, but speeds could have been better, especially in local connections.
VyprVPN has recently become zero logs, good news of renewal of privacy policy.
For a more in-depth look, please read our full VyprVPN Review.
How do we choose the best VPN for Russia?
Our best choices for Russia are that they should work effectively to bypass government censorship blocks and allow users to access limited content despite the ever-increasing blacklist of VPN providers.
We are looking for excellent performance in our worldwide speed tests and many server options in nearby US speaking countries such as Ukraine, Lithuania, Finland on the west coast. Other key factors include the level of customer support offered and the user experience of specific applications.
We are constantly testing all VPNs on our site to provide you with the most current recommendations. We’re testing access to popular sites like Netflix, Facebook and Google, and we’ve made sure local speeds are good enough. So you can do everything you want to be online without sweating.
Providers have also earned bonus points for offering additional tools such as Stealth VPN; because they make it much easier to handle content blocks without being detected.
Do I Need VPN in Russia?
If you want to access the Internet without any restrictions, you should definitely use a VPN in Russia. The Russian government is gradually blocking more and more websites to limit online freedoms – the last victim was the popular messaging application Telegram.
Although VPNs are still technically legal in Russia, we should say that you should not try to access any content that violates copyright laws.
