5 Best Free VPNs for PS4 in 2024 (Fully Tested for Gaming)

Gamers will do anything just to get the best gaming experience possible. It’s understandable, given how relaxing and entertaining video games are. Price tags on PlayStation 4 games differ from country to country. It’s only thrifty to go for the less expensive option. In another case, you might want to redeem a PlayStation gift card that is only valid in a specific region. For that, the service of a Virtual Private Network (VPN) is needed.

Most times, developers release new versions of games in certain regions first, before making it available to others. To get your pads on these geo-restricted content early, you need the services of a VPN, and a good number of these VPNs can be available to you for free.

Risk-free VPNs are the best ones to opt for. They are premium quality VPNs that work effectively on privacy, security, and unblocking of geo-restricted content. They are tagged ‘risk-free’ because they offer a 100% risk-free money-back guarantee for a stipulated number of days. On the other hand, completely-free VPNs offer free platforms with some amount of browsing data. Details will be discussed further in this review.

Best Risk-free VPNs

These VPNs offer the best services. From your security and privacy to server speed and unblocking abilities, they are the best you can get. The same features available on the premium, paid version are the same features available on the free version.

Even though they are not totally free, for a specified number of days, you get to benefit from premium services essentially for free. They come with either free trials or reliable money-back guarantee schemes. Some even offer both.

The top 2 risk-free VPNs are discussed as follows:

Overall Best in Our Tests

ExpressVPN

Overall score: 9.8

• Super-fast servers
• AES 256-bit encryption
• Supports private protocol, Lightway
• Money-back guarantee

Try ExpressVPN

30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

Despite having unlimited bandwidths on over 3,000 speed-optimized servers in 160 locations, ExpressVPN does not compromise its security in any way. It offers the AES-256 military-grade encryption which keeps your connection secure and invisible to cyber crooks. This VPN does not keep your activity log, DNS queries, or any other data that can be used to identify you or your location. Hence, your privacy and anonymity is guaranteed. ExpressVPN has a speed test feature that helps you determine how fast a server is. So you don’t have to select servers randomly, it has been fully optimized for your comfort.

This provider deals with geo-restrictions quite amazingly. It easily gives you access to restricted content. This way, you can get a virtual address and enjoy online PS4 games that are only accessible abroad. ExpressVPN has software synchronized for wireless routers and PCs. You can easily connect your PS4 console to the router or your PC to enjoy the best online gaming experience ever.

This service has a 30-day money-back guarantee on all its plans. So you can subscribe to a plan and before the end of the first 30 days of subscription, request a refund. Their customer support is available 24/7 even by live chat, so your inquiries, requests, and complaints will be appropriately attended to.

Cheapest Option

NordVPN

Overall score: 9.6

• Incredibly fast servers
• Great security features
• Verified no-logs policy
• Unblocks streaming platforms

Try NordVPN

30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

NordVPN has over 5,000 ultra-fast servers. These servers are spread across 59 countries in the world. This VPN service understands how annoying buffering is. So, in addition to ultra-fast servers, it comes with unlimited bandwidth which means you can upload and download unlimited data, unlike some other VPNs that allow you to upload and download only a limited amount of data. This also gives you the assurance of never having to experience lags when you play games.

It has military-grade encryption and kill switch protection. NordVPN channels your internet traffic through a secret encryption tunnel and still masks your IP address. It’s like passing through a hidden route and still wearing a disguise. The IP masking also ensures you can access geo-restricted content without issues. NordVPN doesn’t keep logs of any data, especially the ones that can be used to identify you. With this, you’re safer.

You can easily install NordVPN on your PC and connect your PS4 console to its hotspot. This connection makes your gaming experience absolutely safe and private while you also get to purchase games restricted to regions abroad. To cap it all, NordVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee on any plan you subscribe to. Just make sure you request a refund before the 30 days run out. Then, you’ll definitely get your full refund.

Best Completely-Free VPNs

With the abundance of free VPNs on the market, getting a reliable, honest, and trustworthy free VPN is a user’s major problem. Have you ever wondered how free VPNs generate their returns? It’s a business. They can’t possibly be giving millions of users absolutely free services. It always comes with a catch.

Many free VPNs put a limit to either connection speed, bandwidth, or the number of servers available. They might not even be able to access geo-restricted content as they claim. Sometimes, these VPNs compromise your privacy by selling your private data to ISPs and hackers. On the brighter side, this review discusses the best, safe, and reliable free VPNs, even though they come with a few restrictions here and there.

Best VPN with a Free Version

ProtonVPN

Overall score: 9.0

• Free version available
• Strong security features
• Reliable no-logs policy
• Allows Perfect Forward Secrecy

Visit ProtonVPN

30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

This Swiss-based VPN has 900+ speedy servers in 50+ countries. It is headquartered in Switzerland — this is a good thing because Switzerland has very strict privacy laws and is outside the jurisdiction of the European Union and the United States. To this effect, ProtonVPN is not obligated to give anybody your private data. To seal that, this is a no-logs VPN service. With the AES-256 encryption, kill switch, and always-on features, this VPN is optimized for top-notch security.

If you lose connection with the server, the kill switch terminates your traffic data and the always-on feature automatically re-connects you to the server. This way, you’re always safe. ProtonVPN has unlimited bandwidth which eliminates time-wasting buffering while playing the most interesting missions on your PS4. Having ProtonVPN on your router or PC protects all connected devices including your PS4 console.

Its free version gives you access to 3 countries (Japan, Netherlands and the US) with average speed. You can upgrade to a paid plan to get access to all 50+ countries, 10 simultaneous connections and advanced features. It also has a 30-day money-back guarantee on the paid plans.

VPN with Easy User Interface

Hotspot Shield

Overall score:

• Super-fast server speed
• Remarkable unblocking ability
• Intuitive user interface

Visit Hotspot Shield

30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

Hotspot Shield has over 3,200 bolt-fast servers in 80+ countries. These fast servers are complemented by its military-grade encryption and other security features available on this VPN. Hotspot Shield does not keep your browsing activity logs. So, this VPN is quite safe for you.

Its basic version is totally free, but you can only connect to virtual servers in the United States. Also, the free version comes with a decent browsing speed and a limited bandwidth of 500MB daily, which adds up to about 15GB per month. Even though such limited data would be great for browsing, it is not good enough for streaming purposes. If you’re going to play Ultimate FIFA on your PlayStation 4 for a reasonable period of time, you’ll definitely need more than the allotted data.

The premium version is great for streaming practices so you can upgrade to that and take advantage of their 45-day money-back guarantee. Hotspot Shield supports all OS platforms and it is easy to use and still helps you access geo-blocked content.

Best for Android

PrivateVPN

Overall score: 9.3

• Advanced configuration settings
• Unblocks restricted platforms
• Compatible with most device types
• Supports the OpenVPN, L2TP and IPSec protocols

Visit PrivateVPN

30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

Even though 150+ servers in 60 countries seem small compared to others’, PrivateVPN makes up for it with its encryption features. This VPN uses 2048-bit with AES-256 military-grade encryption. With its zero-data-logging policy, PrivateVPN never even gets to know what you do online. So, there’s no way they can sell you out. It also has the IPv6 leak protection that keeps you safe even when your server connection drops. The leak protection blocks every path that might leak your data out to snoopers.

In addition, PrivateVPN masks your IP address and offers unlimited bandwidth and very decent speed which gives you no worries about buffering, sloppy downloads, and session timeouts. This VPN doesn’t use regular freelance customer service representatives. Their developers are in charge of customer support. So, you get to speak directly to the people in charge of the whole technicalities.

PrivateVPN has a 7-day free trial version that offers all the features discussed and also a 30-day money-back guarantee. All these features complement each other to give you access to play your favorite PS4 combat games online at no real cost.

VPN with the Best No-Log Policy

Windscribe

Overall score: 8.3

• Available in 60+ countries
• Unblocks geo-restricted platforms
• Offers a free version
• Blocks ads and malware

Visit Windscribe

30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

Windscribe has good-speed servers in 63 countries. Despite the fact that it can’t compete with the top-class premium VPNs, Windscribe still stands a chance as one of the favorites VPNs on the free VPNs’ shortlist. This VPN protects your browsing history from your ISP, government agencies, and hackers. It achieves this feat by keeping zero logs of any browsing data that can be used to identify you. It also blocks ads using its R.O.B.E.R.T tool which you can configure to your taste.

Windscribe gives you unrestricted access to geo-blocked content. With this, you can get discounts when you shop on the PlayStation online retail store. This is because, with the masked IP address, you shop as if you’re abroad — when the purchase is cheaper. This VPN service intercepts any potential data leak most especially when you’re connected to a public WiFi network.

It should be noted that the free version gives you 10GB traffic data per month and access to servers in a whopping 10 countries, way more than other free VPNs offer. Also, you get 1GB traffic data every month for every referral you make. And if the user you referred signs up for a Pro account, you also get that same Pro version for free. It’s available for PCs and routers.

Related: Best VPNs for Remote Workers & Freelancers to Work from Anywhere

One of The Cheapest VPNs

Hide.me

Overall score: 9.1

• Advanced IP Leak protection available
• 1,800+ servers in 72 countries
• AES 256-bit encryption
• Offers a completely free version

Visit Hide.me

30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

This VPN offers you up to 1,800 servers in 72 locations. On the free plan, however, you have access to only 5 of these locations. Hide.Me offers advanced security features and digital privacy, keeping your real IP address hidden. It helps you cut corners around geo-restricted content and delivers the content to you as if you were in the region where such content is originally accessible.

Hide.Me keeps a strict no-logs policy and runs on the strong AES-256 encryption. It has some other advanced privacy features that make your online gaming experience secure. One of these features is the advanced IP leak protection. It has a split tunneling feature that allows you to select the apps you want to access the internet directly while your console still goes through the secure network giving you a well-encrypted online gaming experience.

The 24-month premium plan comes with 2 free months and a 30-day money-back guarantee. The free version on the other hand doesn’t require any credit card registration. It’s straightforward. It is available to PCs to which you can connect your PlayStation console without stress.

Are free VPN services good?

As much as freebies excite, not all that glitters is gold. One way or another, you’ll definitely pay in kind. One or more of your server speed, security, privacy and data usage will definitely be compromised. Majority of these free VPNs aren’t able to consistently unblock geo-restricted content. Most times, they unblock it by chance.

Free VPNs are not absolutely reliable. They are usually not 100% honest with the information they give you about their services. It is better to go for the safer option — risk-free VPNs. These VPNs are fully optimized and they are honest with details. It is only logical that you trust risk-free VPNs better because you can rest assured you’re paying for what’s worth it. And if you think a particular VPN is too expensive, there are a lot of other risk-free options you can consider at lower prices.

Features to look out for in a free VPN

1. Server availability — The availability of servers determines what geo-restricted content a VPN is able to unblock.
2. Server speed — Regardless of how secure the VPN is, slow connection and buffering make a horrible gaming experience.
3. Privacy and Security — Technically the whole basis of using a VPN.
4. Monthly data limit — How much data a free VPN allows you to upload and download per month suggests what the VPN can be best used for.
5. Platforms supported — It is important to know if the VPN you want has software for your preferred device.

How to Set Up a VPN for PS4

Setting up a VPN on smartphones or computers is pretty straightforward. But, we can’t say the same for Sony’s PS4. This is because Sony’s PS4 platform isn’t compatible with VPNs. So, you can’t install a VPN app on your game console. Fortunately, though, there are two effective ways around this issue.

Setting Up a PS4 VPN via Routers

PS4 game consoles access the internet through a router’s connection. So, you can install a VPN on your router before connecting your PS4. Your router’s VPN connection then protects your PS4 and all other connected devices. However, not all routers are VPN-compatible.

If yours isn’t, you may need to get a more modern router. Usually, you’ll have to access the VPN client on your router from its settings. Then, you must enter your VPN connection details, including your:

• Username 
• Password, and 
• Your preferred VPN server address 

After that, you can save these changes on your router. Once you connect your PS4 to your router, you’ll enjoy the VPN connection.

Setting Up a PS4 VPN Connection on Your Computer

You can set up a PS4 VPN connection through your Windows or Apple computer. You’ll be turning your PC into a virtual router for your PS4. It’s noteworthy that you’ll need a PC with an Ethernet cable. However, suppose your device doesn’t have an Ethernet port, you can always buy a USB-to-Ethernet port adapter.

Follow the steps below to set up your PS4 VPN with a Windows computer.

• Sign up for and install a VPN on your computer.
• Connect your PC and PS4 with the Ethernet cable.
• For Windows, open the Control Panel and locate Network and Sharing Center.
• Select Change Adaptor Settings.
• Right-click on the VPN connection and choose Properties.
• Open the Sharing tab and select “Allow other network users to connect through this computer’s internet connection”.
• Choose Home Networking Connection and pick your Ethernet connection from the dropdown menu.
• Now, you can connect to your preferred VPN server on your PC.
• Boot your PS4.
• Click Settings > Network Settings > Set Up Internet Connection.
• Use a LAN cable when you see the prompt.
• Select Easy for the connection method and pick Do Not Use a Proxy Server.
• Accept the settings, and start using your PS4.

Frequently Asked Questions on Playing PS4 With a VPN

Conclusion

The free VPNs discussed in this review are far more impressive than many others in the market. Despite that, if you’re a gamer to the soul, it is in your best interest to opt for risk-free VPNs. This is because they are faster, more secure, and more effective in unblocking geo-restricted content. Also, they come with unlimited bandwidth and are overall very reliable. You can still use these premium quality VPNs for free because they both come with a risk-free money-back guarantee. A risk-free VPN is the way to go.