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IPVanish Review (March 2024)

A well-rounded option for the everyday user

Reviewed By |

Overall Rating

4/5

FAST FACTS

Fees: $3.99 - $10.99/mth

Best For: Users looking for a VPN, Anti-Virus, and Anti-Malware in one package.

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IPVanish is a VPN service provider based out of the United States.  The company has been operating for many years at this point, slowly expanding its services to include a bevy of security and privacy focused capabilities.

With its included VIPRE anti-virus software, IPVanish is a good option for users looking to streamline multiple subscriptions in to one.

Click Here to Visit IPVanish.

Pros

  • Unlimited Connections
  • Competitive Pricing for First Year
  • Impressive WireGuard Performance

Cons

  • Based in United States
  • Does Not Accept Cryptocurrencies
  • Kill-Switch Only Available on Certain Systems

Accessibility

4.5/5

From an accessibility standpoint, IPVanish holds up well.  Although it doesn’t have the most expansive network of servers or support on every operating system, it hits enough key requirements that the vast majority of users will never have an issue.

As it stands, IPVanish states that it utilizes a network comprised of over 2000 servers, spanning across 75 different locations.  This is somewhere in the middle of the pack when compared to other VPN offerings.

An area where IPVanish does excel, is the amount of simultaneous connections which it allows per account – unlimited.  While the industry standard is typically 4-6, there are a few options around that offer unlimited connection, with IPVanish being one of them.

For users most interested in streaming and/or torrenting, IPVanish touts that it will not only remove geo-blocks, but that it allows P2P sharing over its network.

In time, it would be nice to see an expansion of its services to GoogleTV, Linux, browser support, and more.

Security Features

4.5/5

IPVanish and its security features are a mixed bag.  The service does not seem to support port fowarding, or VPN over proxy.

With that being said, users will benefit from AES-256 encryption, and the ability to utilize split-tunneling (only running designated programs through the VPN).

Although its missing features are not ones which taken advantage of by the average user, they are still something on offer by many competitors.

Privacy

3.5/5

Privacy is a tough thing to gauge with IPVanish.  The company is based out of the United States, which is a founding member of ‘5 Eyes’ – an agreement between various countries that involves the collection and sharing of data/intelligence.  On the other hand, IPVanish boasts a no-logs policy, meaning that even if a government were to demand user data, there would be nothing to hand over.

Aside from its location and policies, IPVanish does include important features such as a functional kill-switch, which will terminate internet access if connection to the VPN is dropped.  There is a downside though, as this feature is not yet available on all operating systems listed as being supported by the service.

IPVanish was notably involved in an event years ago which saw it hand over data logs on its customers after requests from law enforcement agencies in the United States, despite having a no-log policy at the time.  In an effort to move past this, the company has since had a third-party audit completed for transparency on its practices moving forward, with ownership having also changed hands over this time.

Performance

4.5/5

Essentially, users of any VPN that supports WireGuard can expect fantastic performance.  It is the OpenVPN protocol that remains the most common among providers though, and still provides the best security.  As with most VPN providers, IPVanish does not boast speeds nearly as impressive if using the latter.

IPVanish does not impose any data caps with its paid plans, making it a solid option for those heavy consumers through P2P sharing, streaming, gaming, etcetera.

Purchasing

3.3/5

While IPVanish may not boast all the features of some top-end VPN offerings, its price reflects this, coming in cheaper than many.

Plans range from $10.99/mth for a month-to-month subscription, down to $3.99/mth on a yearly plan.

It should be noted that, like most VPN services, these yearly rate discounts diminish going in to year 2.  From that point onward, IPVanish charges $89.99/year (equal to $7.50/mth)

Where IPVanish is able to separate itself apart, justifying its price more-so than the competition, is that its VPN service comes bundled with anti-virus software called VIPRE.  By eliminating the need for a separate anti-virus subscription, IPVanish instantly becomes quite appealing.

Where IPVanish falls behind slightly is in its accepted methods of payment.  As it stands, the company only accepts credit cards, and paypal.  Meanwhile, most providers have moved to accept various cryptocurrencies, Google Pay, Amazon Pay, etc.

With users of VPN services obviously interested in privacy, it is a curious omission, and the same consumers are often interested in the privacy which certain digital assets can afford them.

For now, there is no free variant of IPVanish, however the company does offer a 30-day money back guarantee on its yearly plans.

Conclusion

4/5

Overall, IPVanish should be a reliable and well-rounded option for occasional users looking to streamline their VPN and anti-virus subscriptions in to one package.

Moving forward, it would be nice to see an expansion of supported platforms, and payment options.

While the company may have had a few hiccups in the past, it has done well to distance itself from these, providing users with higher levels of transparency than most through the completion of a third-party audit on its privacy policies.

Click Here to Visit IPVanish.