VyprVPN Review 2023 | Is It Still a Good, Secure Option?

VyprVPN has been around since 2009 and during the past decade I’ve been a customer as the company has grown, iterated and re-designed its software. In this VyprVPN review, I want to compare the service against many others to see if it’s still a good, secure option.

There are very few VPN companies that truly “stand out” in the China market where I’m at, especially right now when everybody is asking if VPNs still work in China.

And in my opinion, if a VPN service can withstand the harsh realities of the Chinese internet…

…it can work pretty much anywhere in the world!

I’ve tested quite a few VPN services over the past ten years and I can tell a dramatic difference between those companies that say they are customer-focused versus those that actually work hard to serve their customer.

In this review of VyprVPN, I’m going to provide:

Hopefully by the end, you’ll have a better idea of whether this software is the right choice for you.

Note: Some links within this article are affiliate links, which means that at no extra cost to you I will get compensated if you sign up to use VyprVPN. This is my honest review, however, and I wouldn’t recommend this if I didn’t use it myself.

Personal VyprVPN Review [Video]

Before you read through the written portion of this VyprVPN review, take a few minutes to watch this video review of the VPN service.

Hopefully the video gave you a good overview of what VyprVPN offers as well as what I consider to be their pros and cons. In short it boils down to this:

VyprVPN Pros:

VyprVPN Cons:

Dedicated iOS, Android, & Windows apps that are both easy to use and beautifully designed. Proprietary Chameleon 256-bit encryption that provides even more protection and anonymity, especially here in China. High speeds from a network of over 700+ servers across the globe. Free Service Add-ons such as DumpTruck (cloud storage) and Cyphr (secure messaging). 3-day FREE trial of the software and services (an uncommon offer with VPNs nowadays)

At present, they do not offer the ability to pay with Bitcoin or any other anonymous form of payment. Minimal logging of user data (more on this below). While VyprVPN is an excellent service, their pricing is just slightly above the average.

**Update: VyprVPN has now added an Internet Kill Switch as an option for their Mac and Windows software!

The Apps | VyprVPN Review 2023

One of the primary advantages of using VyprVPN is the simplicity of their apps. I personally use a VPN for my Mac and iPhone but they also have apps available for Windows and Android devices.

The fact is that almost every VPN worth its salt today has a dedicated app of some sort. Not all of them are very pretty to look at but they (mostly) get the job done.

With VyprVPN, I saw two particular differences with the apps they offer:

• Design: I’m a firm believer that the design of an app shows how much a company cares about the customer experience. VyprVPN’s app is easy to use and I particularly like the visual element that shows me a running window of my current upload/download speeds (with AND without the VPN on). They put time into app development and it definitely shows.

• Settings Options: As you can see in the screenshot above, VyprVPN has done a good job offering a number of unique settings that are easy to enable. This includes their proprietary Chameleon protocol, the split tunneling VPN setting and more. Not every VPN gives you such easy access to advanced features like this.

For me, it took all of 5 minutes to download the VyprVPN app on my Mac and an additional 3 minutes to find the app on my iPhone and input my userID and password.

After that, the programs run seamlessly in the background with minimal interruption.

Security & Logging | VyprVPN Review

In places like China and throughout the Middle East, where internet censorship is an ongoing battle, VPN services have to stay one step ahead of the censors.

Modern technology is such that many VPN connections can be detected and shut down unless they are further hidden. This has happened to me quite a bit when I use many of the cheaper VPNs.

VyprVPN is one of only a handful of VPN companies that has come out with a proprietary encryption protocol that is difficult to detect and shut down.

They call it Chameleon and it’s basically just a “stealth” 256-bit encryption protocol.

Without sacrificing too much speed (they say), it has given me the freedom to use my VPN without constantly being cut off or throttled by my ISP.

VyprVPN Servers and Logging Policies

Golden Frog, the parent company behind VyprVPN, also owns and maintains all of its servers across the globe, which is a much better option than many of the other services which lease server space just so they can claim a higher number of servers.

Despite the high security that this 256-bit encryption brings, it’s important to note that VyprVPN does admit to minimal user logging.

Frankly, this doesn’t bother me since I don’t participate in any illegal downloading, but they clearly lay out in their Terms of Service that they log information in order to provide improved service and customer support.

The bottom line is that if you’re getting a VPN for the purpose of illegal downloading, you should probably look at other VPN options for China. If you’re like me, though, and just want to securely get past internet censorship, VyprVPN is still a great option.

Note on Logging: I’m going to get on my soapbox here for a moment and warn you against any VPN that gives you a blanket “we don’t log” statement. Most VPNs are lying about their logging policies.

This is a buzzword around the internet right now and companies not only know this, they also know that there’s no way you can verify their statement.

The fact is that every VPN company logs something (it’s virtually impossible not to), it’s just a matter of what they log and how long they keep it. I prefer to work with a company that is open about what they do and don’t log.

Additional Services (Update 2023)

VyprVPN actually began as an internet service provider in Austin, TX and later started a usenet service known as Giganews, a place where users could exchange large files at high speeds.

They used to offer a cloud storage service called DumpTruck and an encrypted messaging service known as Cyphr.

These never quite took off, though, and both of these services have since been discontinued.

You may still find some references to these services even on the VyprVPN or Golden Frog website, but they are no longer available to use.

VyprVPN Feature Comparison

VyprVPN now offers a single package that can be purchased on a monthly or annual basis.

This is standard across the VPN industry nowadays and is a change for VyprVPN, who used to have two plans to choose from. Now, all users are offered the same features, which include:

1. Simultaneous Connections: This refers to the number of devices that can be connected to the VyprVPN service at the same time. VyprVPN allows you to download the app on as many devices you’d like, but you can only connect 5 of them at the same time.
2. Chameleon and Wireguard Protocol: In addition to the proprietary Chameleon protocol, which is great for places like China where internet censorship is a big deal, the Wireguard protocol is a newer protocol that promises excellent speeds with the same kind of security as OpenVPN.
3. Access to Georestricted Content: Using VyprVPN’s global network of servers (which they own!), you can bypass restrictions on content such as Netflix, BBC, ESPN, Disney+ and more.
4. Money Back Guarantee: You can try out the service for 30 days and even if it doesn’t fit your needs, you can still get your money back, no questions asked.

VyprVPN Pricing and Discount

VyprVPN pricing is almost exactly on the average for the VPN industry. Like most other providers, though, they offer steep discounts for those that purchase for the year.

The best part, as I mentioned above, is that you can try the service for 30 days risk-free to see if it’s worth continuing further.

In terms of VyprVPN promo codes and discounts, right now you can take advantage of their special VyprVPN Offers available.

When you consider how well VyprVPN works in conjunction with their stealth Chameleon protocol, they are a no-brainer in my opinion.

Final Thoughts on VyprVPN

I honestly wasn’t expecting too much from VyprVPN because I’ve really been happy with a few of the other VPNs I use on a constant basis (including ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access).

They’ve won me over, however, with their beautiful array of apps and their commitment to the China market.

This is a great VPN that I use to access Google services in China among many other censored websites and apps. But China’s internet changes all the time, and these services need to keep up.

VyprVPN actively updates their Chameleon protocol and watching what changes the Chinese censors make to how they block VPNs. For most VPNs this means issues but Vypr has been very good at staying reliable for me.