The Best Free VPN for Chrome – Tested in 2022

Best Free VPN for Chrome – much-needed addition for boosting your browsing experience!

The most popular web browser in the world, Google Chrome, is considered an ideal choice for privacy seekers – thanks to its privacy-centered features and outstanding accessibility.

But you know what? It’s not as secure as you think it might be. The browser is still susceptible to cyber attacks and other threats present online. Most importantly, the traffic generated from your Google chrome can also be trackable by your ISP, advertisers, and other government entities.

In this case, a Canada VPN comes in handy to anonymize your connection, dodge snoopers, and unblock geo-restricted content.

These VPN add-ons work slightly differently from their desktop counterparts. While a full-fledged VPN app secures your entire device, the Google Chrome VPN extension is only limited to your web browser. However, these handy add-ons are faster and easily accessible to switch servers and block ads or malware with just one click.

In this blog, we’ve listed down the best free VPN extension for Chrome and their key features that can help you make an informed purchase.

The Best Free VPNs for Google Chrome – Quick Overview

We don’t really recommend users to go for completely free VPNs, given their bad rep and security flaws. However, if you still want to have the best free VPN for Chrome, go for the ones listed below:

Why do I need a VPN for Chrome?

VPNs are needed for many reasons, such as unblocking geo-restrictions, data security, and online privacy. This digital software can bypass the geo-restriction wall, providing access to unlimited content at your fingertips.

Moreover, with VPN, users can get complete anonymity and the freedom to explore the internet world without the fear of being tracked or monitored.

According to Statista, Google Chrome is Canada’s most popular web browser, dominating over half of the overall market with 53.4%. If you also fall into this percentage, a good Chrome VPN to go with it can really enhance your online experience.

A Chrome VPN is an easy and fast way to protect your internet connection. Since your VPN is incorporated into your browser, it’s simple to access and change your server location with a single click.

How we tested and shortlisted Free VPNs for Chrome

We’ve shortlisted the best free VPNs for Chrome according to the following criteria:

Reliability

Reliability is one of the factors we pay special attention to while shortlisting chrome VPNs. Since free VPNs are notorious for compromising users’ information, we select only those free VPNs that have a strict no-log policy in place.

Compatibility

Obviously, a VPN service has to be compatible with Google Chrome. It should be well-designed and easy to use. All the services mentioned above offer Chrome add-ons and are super handy to use.

Effectiveness

The best VPN for chrome should be effective at unblocking streaming sites while also providing you robust security. The selected free VPNs have a fair share of limitations like few servers and less bandwidth allowance. Still, they are strong enough to bypass geo-restriction and ensure full security.

Security

Another most important thing to consider while choosing the best free VPNs for chrome is the level of security they offer. They should offer industry-standard VPN protocols, military-grade encryption, Kill Switch, and other additional security features.

The Best Free VPN for Chrome – Full Analysis

Here’s the in-depth analysis of our selected best free VPNs for Google Chrome:

1. ExpressVPN– the fastest and the best VPN for Google Chrome

ExpressVPN is hands down the best Chrome VPN – thanks to its excellent speeds, extensive server coverage, and outstanding compatibility with Chrome browser– what else do you want?

It has a network of 3000+ servers in 90+ countries, allowing you to access geo-restricted content from around the globe. Due to its strong unblocking capabilities, it also falls under our list of best VPNs for streaming. and top recommendations for Windows VPNs.

ExpressVPN features include AES-256-Bit encryption, internet kill switch, Trusted Server network, and private DNS. With all of these features at hand, you can browse the internet safely while remaining anonymous all the time.

ExpressVPN ticks all the boxes that one could expect from a VPN for chrome, which is why it is highly regarded. The service is headquartered in the British Virgin Islands, so there’s no need to worry about data retention laws since the jurisdiction doesn’t fall under Five Eyes or any other international surveillance alliance. Which makes it one of the best VPNs for Firefox as well.

While its Chrome extension takes seconds to download, you do need to install the full ExpressVPN app to use it. It’s just a small price to pay for an extension that allows you to spoof the location reported by Google’s geolocation API, thereby preventing websites from knowing your actual location.

We ran multiple tests to measure its effectiveness, and believe us, it has outperformed all of our VPN tests. With ExpressVPN, we successfully got into the American Paramount library and comfortably broke through BBC iPlayer virtual barriers in Canada.

The streaming speed was excellent too. In our streaming test, it delivered a downloading speed of 89.38 Mbps and 84.66 Mbps uploading speed in our 100 Mbps base connection.

I just love how it cares about our privacy and offers an incredible kill switch to prevent our data from getting exposed during temporary outages – it didn’t have a single loophole.

Its subscription is available for CA$ 9.13/mo (US$ 6.67/mo)(Save up to 49% with exclusive 1-year plans + 3 months free) that also comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

We know it’s not a free VPN to begin our list with. But if you ask me, I will blindly choose ExpressVPN over any other free provider because, for me, it’s the online security that matters. I cannot risk my data just for the sake of saving some bucks. But again, this is not my place to make a decision. At the end of the day, it’s you who’s going to decide…

So, tell me, what’s more, important for you: guaranteed security through a reliable VPN or using an unreliable free service that doesn’t even last long?

If you’re still going with the latter, check out our recommendation to try your hands on completely free VPNs for Chrome:

2. Hotspot Shield – The Best Free VPN for Chrome Extension

Hotspot Shield is a pretty great free VPN service to fulfill your secure browsing needs. It offers 500 MB of free data daily, meaning if you exhaust all of your data, you will get 500 MB more the next day.

However, its free package includes access to only one server that is the US. This means you can only block services that are based in the US, such as HBO Max, Hulu Live TV, Crackle Canada, and others.

It might be an issue for some users, but when considering free data amount and security standards, it’s not a bad option after all.

Moreover, the provider also works great with multiple devices like Android, Windows, Firestick, Mac, and more. In fact, our testing found it a pretty great free VPN for Windows and the Best free VPN for iOS users.

3. Windscribe – Top free browser VPN for Chrome

Windscribe is a Canadian-based free unlimited VPN proxy for chrome users, providing a 10 GB data limit to free subscribers. It offers access to 10 different server locations and is also effective at unblocking geo-restrictions on websites.

Most of its servers are P2P optimized, making it a good free VPN for torrenting.

As far as security is concerned, Windscribe uses 256-bit encryption and has a strict no-log policy. However, its 10 GB/month data limit is not enough for streaming hours of content. We also tried unblocking ESPN+ from Canada with Windscribe but to no avail. It also displayed a YouTube TV proxy error when streaming YouTube TV titles from Canada.

However, its 10 server locations, unlimited simultaneous connections, and 10 GB/month make a good package for someone looking for a free VPN for Chrome for temporary use.

4. TunnelBear – User-friendly Google VPN for Chrome

TunnelBear is another Canadian VPN service on the list, providing a 500 MB data limit to free Chrome users.

Yes, the data is so less for streaming, which will run out very quickly while streaming titles from Disney Plus Canada or Discovery+ Canada. However, it offers a good server coverage of about 20+ server locations.

It also offers pretty good security with 256-bit encryption and a user-friendly interface. But again, the low bandwidth limit can be off-putting for some Chrome users.

5. UrbanVPN – Free VPN Google Chrome extension with unlimited bandwidth

UrbanVPN is a unique VPN that offers a P2P-friendly network of servers where the end-users share their computer resources with other users.

The most compelling thing about this best free IP-blocker VPN is that it works with Netflix. It is one of the rare free Netflix VPNs that can unblock web content from Netflix’s foreign libraries without showing a Netflix proxy error. However, it might not be an ideal choice from a privacy perspective.

The reason being the provider keeps logs of some information such as IP addresses, and the P2P system naturally gives way to security vulnerabilities. Even so, if you want to access American Netflix for free, you can trust the Urban VPN Chrome extension.

How to set up & use a Free VPN on your Google Chrome?

Here’s how you can set up a VPN on your Google Chrome. We’ll be using the ExpressVPN example to show you how it is done.

Note: A desktop ExpressVPN app is required for its extension to work.

How to add a VPN Extension to Incognito Mode?

Here’s how you can add a Chome VPN free Extension to Incognito Mode:

The Downside of Free Chrome Extensions VPN

There are many problems associated with free VPN service providers. Yes, it’s tempting to go for free services instead of paid ones. But you know what? It’s really a risky bet since many VPN services are caught logging users’ data to sell to advertisers for revenue. These services are secretly making money out of your personal data without even your knowledge.

Here are the common problems you will be most likely to experience with free VPNs for Chrome:

• Limited bandwidth allowance
• Extremely low speed
• Access to limited server locations
• Overcrowded servers
• Poor performance
• Weak security
• Compatibility problems
• Proxy errors while streaming

We understand the allure behind free VPN services, but there’s nothing in the world more precious than your security. Don’t risk it for the sake of saving some bucks!

Therefore, it’s highly recommended to use a reliable VPN such as ExpressVPN that guarantees your security no matter what! Remember: you won’t get your privacy back once it’s out there exposed!

Beware! Don’t use these free Chrome VPNs

Most free Chrome VPN extensions implement limitations to the extent that they pretty much become useless. They impose data caps, throttle your bandwidth, have small networks of servers, and incompetent unblocking power. Some free VPNs log users’ data and generate revenue by running ads, which is off-putting for many Chrome users.

Here are some of the free VPN services you should avoid using for Google Chrome:

• Hola VPN – it has zero encryption, runs ads, and shares your information with unknown third parties.
• Cross VPN – this IP changer Chrome VPN is notorious for carrying potential trojan viruses by VirusTotal. Downloading this free VPN for Chrome can put your device at risk of being infected with malicious software.

FAQ: Best Free VPN for Chrome

Conclusion

Google Chrome doesn’t have a built-in VPN facility, nor does it have adequate features to protect your data and privacy. With the best free VPN for Chrome listed in this blog, you can protect yourself from cyber threats and access geo-restricted content in one go!

However, the best free VPNs come with their own set of limitations, such as data caps, slow speeds and small server networks. If you want to have a Chrome VPN with unlimited bandwidth, lightning-fast speeds, and strong unblocking capabilities, ExpressVPN is your best option for Google Chrome. It may not be free, but it offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can try it for a whole month before making any permanent transaction.