Residential VPNs are part of the Virtual Private Network community. Instead of using data centers, they route their traffic through residential IP addresses, just like you would find with your ISP. Doing so allows you to get around geo-restrictions and other types of blocks that may stop you. The most extensive examples are media companies like Netflix and other streaming options.
Unblocking content is one of the biggest reasons to connect to a VPN. Since residential VPNs don’t use data center options, you should be able to get around those types of blocks and have excellent privacy protection. However, some streaming services make it hard to use commercial options.
Fortunately, there are several VPN providers from which to choose. Be sure to read the privacy policy for those who offer free services and look at the protocols they use. Here are the options now.
Short on time? Here are the best residential VPN services in 2022
- TorGuard – our top choice for residential VPNs. It offers the user many different options to help keep you safe and help you get around geo-restrictions. They offer a 7-day money-back guarantee.
- Betternet – operating since 2011, Betternet is another option that uses residential IPs. It is one of the most popular VPNs in the category, with over 20 million users.
- Hola – a decent solution for people who want to protect their privacy online. It allows you to browse the internet anonymously and access blocked websites in your country. You can also protect yourself from hackers when using public Wi-Fi networks.
- Tuxler – a free residential VPN service. It provides you with an easy way to unblock access to blocked sites, protecting your privacy and security.
- FinchVPN – basic, ad-supported VPN service provides PPTP and L2TP connections. It has a data limit of 500 MB per month and has servers in five countries – the United States, Malaysia, Luxembourg, Singapore, and the Netherlands.
Best Residential VPN – Full analysis
Let’s closely examine each of our top VPNs that offer residential IP addresses:
1. TorGuard – offers residential IP addresses in the US and UK
TorGuard is our top choice for residential VPN services. You can use this top-rated service to keep your online activities private and secure. It offers more than 3,000 servers in over 50 countries, allowing you to access websites and stream media that would otherwise be blocked. TorGuard also provides various other features, including malware blocking, ad blocking, static IP addresses, and more.
If you’re looking for a reliable and affordable VPN service with residential IP addresses, this well-known service is worth considering. Even though it has advanced features, its software is easy to use, providing excellent security protection. The service offers a 7-day money-back guarantee and up to eight simultaneous devices. It’s one you won’t want to miss.
Another good residential VPN choice is Betternet. The good thing about this app is its user-friendly interface, making it easy for everyone (even non-techies) to use without any hassle or complications whatsoever. Because of how the company designed it, you can download the software onto your computer and start browsing anonymously within minutes after installation.
Betternet’s simple design features, including an “unblock sites button,” allow users to access blocked websites like Facebook, YouTube, and streaming services without others detecting you on their network. Because there are no servers involved, it’s speedy, and everything happens locally over your device.
A premium version of this app offers faster speed and accessibility from even more residential IP addresses worldwide. The premium version provides support for up to five devices and a 45-day money-back guarantee. But if you’re not in a hurry and don’t mind waiting for the update, then, by all means, stick with the free one. It will still do its job, but you may have speed and server selection issues.
3. Hola – ad-supported VPN with 30 minute limit per hour
Hola is an ad-supported residential VPN company. It offers users a reliable connection for 30 minutes out of an hour. Hola offers residential VPN services to millions of customers around the world. The company is based in the United States, with offices in New York City and San Francisco.
Hola’s servers are located in over 50 different countries worldwide, making it quite large. They also offer server locations that are not available with most other companies, such as China and Russia. Their network is highly encrypted using AES-256 encryption technology, which ensures safe data transmission through their network. That way, you don’t have to worry about it being “read” by hackers or snoopers who may try to intercept your traffic for malicious purposes. That includes stealing information from you or, even worse – installing malware on your device.
Hola offers a premium service with unlimited VPN time, unlocks high-speed servers, HD video streaming quality, and no ads. However, keep in mind that both versions only offer one connection per account.
4. Tuxler – change locations up to 10 times a month
In looking at other residential providers, Tuxler VPN uses 100% residential IP addresses. They are a solid option for this reason. With Tuxler VPN, you can rest assured that your information is secure and private. As part of the free version, you have limited server access. Plus, with Tuxler’s unlimited bandwidth policy, you can stream and download as much as you want without worrying about hitting any caps or limits. With the free version, you get 10 location changes a month.
Their premium version is 4x faster than the free version, allows access to all servers, and gives you up to 100 server changes in a month. Tuxler also offers a free trial, so you can try out the service before you commit. If you’re not happy with Tuxler, they offer a no-questions-asked refund policy so that you can get your money back hassle-free.
5. FinchVPN – small network of residential IPs
FinchVPN is a free and easy-to-use VPN service that uses a small network of residential IP addresses. The application works with different servers to let you unblock restricted sites with limited bandwidth for free. That allows you to access blocked websites with a limited number of free servers if you use the free version.
FinchVPN protects your privacy by securing your internet connection on public Wi-Fi hotspots. It also encrypts the transfer of data between client and server using 256 bit SSL encryption. Furthermore, it uses AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) cipher adopted by U.S federal government organizations, including NASA and the NSA. They use it to protect sensitive information because of its high-security level and robustness. It protects hacking methods like brute force attack or dictionary attack. That will be true even when faster computers become available. For the best protection with FinchVPN, you’ll want to choose the OpenVPN protocol.
6. RapidVPN – residential IPs with SmartDNS
RapidVPN is a provider that offers a secure and reliable Residential IP VPN service. The service has servers in over 20 countries, and you can use it on various devices. It is a good option for users who need to connect to a VPN quickly.
One of the best things about RapidVPN is that it is easy to use. The software is simple to install and configure, and it provides fast speeds and great security. The company also offers excellent customer support, so you can get help if you need it.
Overall, RapidVPN is a decent choice for anyone looking for a quick, easy, and secure way to connect to a VPN server. The service has a few different features that make it a good candidate for residential IPs.
7. VPNLand – dedicated IP for streaming services
VPNLand is a residential VPN provider that offers a wide range of features. They have many servers spread across the globe, making it easy for visitors to find and connect to one in their country. Paid members get unlimited bandwidth which ensures you don’t have any limits on what kind of activities you can perform online. VPN Land is also compatible with most devices, including Windows PC. This makes VPN Land great at work or school because there are many times when employees need privacy from prying eyes while doing research projects or having meetings where you discuss sensitive subjects.
VPNLand offers a variety of protocols to choose from, including PPTP, L2TP, OpenVPN, and SSTP. These protocols provide users with plenty of options for connecting to a VPN server that meets their specific needs. The services is compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Android devices, and Windows Mobile. This allows you to use your account on all of your favorite devices.
Their customer support team available 24/hrs via email. You can get in touch if there are any questions about setting up your VPN connection, troubleshooting problems with your internet service provider (ISP), billing issues, and more.
How we chose these residential services
Residential service providers are a different category than the usual providers. However, there are some things to look at if you want to make the best possible decision. Here are the questions we asked.
- Does the service share your data with 3rd parties? Some services share your information with their advertising partners.
- How many countries and servers does the service offer? Free services have very few servers which are usually congested. If you are trying to access content from other parts of the world, you won’t get many options.
- Is the service free or premium? With very few exceptions, choosing a free provider is not the best way to protect yourself or get around geo-blocks.
- If using the premium version, is there a money-back guarantee? Some providers offer a money-back guarantee if you are not satisfied with the service.
- Will the service allow you to get around geo-blocks? Even though you may be using a residential VPN service, not all of them will unblock everything. Free services are usually bad about that because they don’t update them as frequently as premium services.
- What VPN protocols does the service use? You want to stay away from PPTP and L2TP from a privacy aspect. Both of them are hackable.
- With free services, is there a data cap? Some services have a higher data cap than others. Depending on the service, these can range between 500MB a month to much more than that.
- Are the servers fast? If they are part of a free service, the answer is usually no. That means it may be ok to unblock some websites, but if you want to do any streaming, you won’t really be able to do that.
All of these questions are important when you are looking at residential services.
Why use a residential VPN?
As we mentioned, there are some advantages of using a residential VPN. However, it really depends on your goals. The community has many different options, and we’ve not even come close to listing all of them. Here are some of the most common reasons.
Unblocking geo-restricted content
Premium versions of residential VPNs are the best at this. That’s because you get more of a server selection. Additionally, the servers are faster, the company updates them more frequently, and you don’t have to worry about data caps. You’ll want to use a premium version if you want to stream content from different parts of the world. Free services will allow you to get past the occasional blocked website, but you can forget about streaming.
Protecting your privacy
While some services claim to protect your privacy, that depends on your definition of “protecting”. If the company “occasionally” shares your data with 3rd parties, they are not protecting your privacy, in our opinion. Also, the protocols they use matter. The L2TP and PPTP protocols are old, and Microsoft advises you not to use them.
FAQs for using a Residential VPN
Yes. Reputable residential VPN services are safe to use and can help stop others from detecting you. That way, you can protect your privacy and enjoy geo-blocked content from different areas.
As we mentioned, there are many out in the community. However, we suggest using some of the ones we mention in this post. Just make sure they meet the criteria we mentioned, and you’ll be just fine.
Although several on our list are free, you’ll have many of the same issues that you would with a free service that doesn’t use residential IP addresses. In other words, you have to deal with slow speeds, a very limited server selection, data caps, privacy issues, a lack of quick updates, and more. All of those issues make it a bad idea.
The Bottom Line
Using a residential VPN can be useful to help you get around geo-blocked content. They have an advantage over normal services because some services block commercial IP addresses. We suggest using TorGaurd because of the number of servers, locations, and features it has to offer. If you are looking for a residential VPN, you won’t want to miss out on this one.