Surfshark is a very good and affordable VPN, full of extra features. It unblocks 10 Netflix regions, Disney+, HBO Max, and many more services. The VPN is also highly secure and well-suited for anonymous torrenting. Speeds could be faster, but Surfshark still offers great value for your money.
Data Cap | Unlimited |
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Speed | 85Mbps |
Logging Policy | Anonymous Server Usage Data |
Data Leaks | No |
Jurisdiction | Netherlands (EU Member) |
Servers | 3,200+ |
IP Addresses | 3,200+ |
Countries | 95 |
US Netflix | Yes |
Torrenting | Permitted |
Simultaneous Connections | Unlimited |
Works In China | Yes |
Support | 24/7 Live Chat |
Cheapest Price | $2.49/mo over 24 months |
Free Trial | 7 Days (Payment Info Required) |
Money-Back Guarantee | 30-day Money-Back Guarantee |
Surfshark is a top VPN for torrenting. Its privacy-focused logging policy and high encryption help hide your P2P activity from your ISP. Also, the VPN’s kill switch stops your IP address from showing if your VPN connection drops. This keeps your download activity safe from any accidental exposures, and lets you torrent safely using Surfshark. All Surfshark servers allow P2P file-sharing, but some servers are specifically optimized for P2P activity. You can find these servers by typing in ‘P2P’ into the app’s server search bar.
These fast P2P-optimized connections let you torrent anonymously using torrent clients like qBittorrent, BitTorrent, Deluge, Transmission, uTorrent, and Vuze.
Surfshark’s same-country local connection speeds are very good, dropping just 15% to 85Mbps. If you’re in the US and connect to a nearby US server, you can expect similar results. The VPN’s speeds have been consistetnly improving over the years, in part thanks to the upgrade of many servers from 1Gbps to 10Gbps. Some servers in the US, Canada, Germany, France and more are already upgraded, with more scheduled. We find that the OpenVPN connection is reliably faster than WireGuard when using Surfshark. For optimal speeds, select OpenVPN. While Surfshark is reasonably fast on short-distance connections, rivals Private Internet Access and NordVPN recorded even faster speeds.
Surfshark’s speeds over long-distance connections are also good. We connected to its US, Australia, Canada, and Germany servers from our London office and measured our connection speeds before and after. We recorded an average speed loss of 43% when connected to the US, and 40% connecting to Australia. This is not unusual for long-distance connections, though VPNs like Hotspot Shield recorded speed losses of just 17% on US servers.
Surfshark’s international speeds are good and stable across the board, with speed loss consistently under 50% when connecting to servers very far away.
Surfshark does not keep user activity logs or connection data. The service’s logging policy is sensible and privacy-focused, but not completely zero-logs.
While Surfshark isn’t a no-logs VPN by definition, it comes close to it. It doesn’t collect personally identifiable data, meaning it won’t store your internet activity or originating IP address. The VPN service’s privacy policy states the following:
“To maintain a perfect quality of our Services and provide you with efficient support we collect diagnostics information and monitor crash reports on our apps. The information we collect contains aggregated performance data, the frequency of use of our services, unsuccessful connection attempts and other similar information.”
There are some very minor causes for concern in the above wording. Firstly, we were alarmed by the phrase “other similar information.” A good privacy policy is as specific as possible – it’s unclear what “similar information” entails exactly. Secondly, Surfshark collects advertising identifiers – unique, resettable IDs for advertising provided by third parties. You can opt out of personalized ads by adjusting the settings in your app. In addition, there has still been no independent audit of Surfshark’s logging policy, specifically. Without a confirmed audit, there’s always room for doubt around logging practices. Many major VPN companies, like ExpressVPN and VyprVPN, have already done so to earn even greater trust. It’s worth noting that there’s a separate privacy policy for its BlindSearch and HackLock features. BlindSearch collects an aggregated number of performed searches, and HackLock stores your email address. Both tools are separate from the main VPN applications. In the spirit of transparency, Surfshark publishes the number of government agency requests it receives on its warrant canary page. As of writing, it has received zero requests for information.
Surfshark is owned by Surfshark Ltd, whose CEO is Vytautas Kaziukonis. In 2018, the company was incorporated in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) where there are no intrusive data retention laws or practices and is widely viewed as a privacy-haven. In 2021, the company moved to the Netherlands, renaming itself to Surfshark B.V. in the process. The Netherlands is a member of the European Union, and the Nine Eyes intelligence sharing network. While this move isn’t the best for privacy, Surfshark insists no Dutch laws force it to collect user data. The Netherlands jurisdiction shouldn’t be an issue as long as Surfshark continues to maintain its current logging policy.
One of Surfshark’s highlights is the provision of city-level choice in 12 countries:
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