Mobile VPN: What Is It and How Does It Work?

A virtual private network bolsters your privacy by hiding your public IP address, which contains information about your general geographical location and your internet service provider. Using a VPN, you can make apps and websites think you’re in a different area -- another city, state or even country -- while keeping your web browsing activity hidden from your ISP.

Having a VPN on your phone offers several benefits, from privacy protection to streaming and circumventing throttling restrictions. Let’s explore mobile VPNs, from why you’ll want one to the best options on the market and how to set one up.

Why do I need to use a VPN on my phone or tablet?

A mobile VPN provides several advantages. I’ve got a VPN on my OnePlus 10 Pro that I use almost daily. These are the main reasons you’ll want a VPN app on your phone or tablet.

Privacy

One of the most common reasons you should install a VPN on your phone is for privacy. Whenever you use an internet-connected service, like visiting a website or using an app, your public IP address gets shared with that platform. With a VPN enabled, that app or site doesn’t see your public IP address, and instead views the IP address of the VPN server you’re connected to. If you’re in the US but on a UK server, the websites you’re browsing and apps you’re using will think you’re across the pond.

Unblocking geographically protected content

Because a VPN masks your public IP address -- which contains information about your general geographic location -- it makes it look like you’re in another city, state or even country. For instance, if you’re in Chicago, Illinois but tunneling through a Canadian VPN server, internet services think you’re in Canada. You can accordingly access region-restricted content using a VPN, like foreign Netflix, Disney Plus or Amazon Prime Video libraries. I regularly use a VPN to save money on streaming service subscriptions with geo-unblocking.

Circumventing throttling restriction or censorship

If you need to access restricted websites -- perhaps you’re on school Wi-Fi or in a country with strict censorship -- a VPN can help you get around region blocks. Many wireless carriers limit streaming video quality to 480p while you’re using mobile data (although you can stream in up to 4K on Wi-Fi even on these plans), a practice known as traffic shaping. Some companies let you disable data saver or stream saver settings to enjoy up to 4K streaming video using mobile data, others don’t. A VPN bypasses these restrictions, so virtual private networks are useful for removing standard definition-quality streaming video limits from certain wireless carriers. US Mobile introduced a streaming video throttle -- which it sort of walked back -- and many Reddit users correctly suggested using a VPN to get high-quality streams on 5G or 4G.

Tourismus

Because VPNs mask your IP address and trick apps and internet services into thinking you’re in a different country based on the server you’re tunneling through, they’re great for travel. You can use a VPN while traveling internationally to unblock geo-protected content from your home country. On a trip to Rome, I used a VPN to watch a Philadelphia Eagles game on the US-only streaming service YouTube TV. A VPN may let you access online banking apps or your email worldwide without triggering CAPTCHAs by duping those apps into thinking you’re in your home city or country rather than somewhere else around the globe.

CNET's top mobile VPNs

Most VPN providers offer apps for iPhones, iPads, Android phones and Android tablets. Here are the best VPNs for Android and iOS/iPadOS:

ExpressVPN is the best overall VPN for mobile devices, offering user-friendly apps, excellent streaming support and top-notch privacy.

NordVPN is the fastest VPN for phones and tablets based on our testing. Thanks to Nord’s blisteringly fast connectivity, it’s a solid VPN for streaming videos.

Surfshark is a wallet-friendly VPN that provides exceptional unblocking capabilities, a generous server network and unlimited simultaneous connections, all without breaking the bank.

Proton VPN has a good free plan that doesn’t sacrifice privacy and Android users don’t even need to register to use it, allowing even stronger privacy.

How to choose the best mobile VPN

Device compatibility

The main thing to look for when selecting a mobile VPN is Android and/or iOS support. Nearly every VPN provider has Android and iOS/iPadOS support, so you should be fine. Think about the other devices you want to run a virtual private network on -- like Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android TV, Fire TV and Apple TV -- to make sure you’re able to install an app.

Speed

All VPNs slow down your internet connection somewhat when compared with a raw internet connection; that’s because your data gets re-routed through a VPN server and encrypted first rather than establishing a more direct connection. The fastest VPNs only drop your internet download speed by around 25% or less. Look for a VPN provider that has an under 26% average internet speed loss, especially if you want to stream 4K videos or play video games.

App design

VPN apps can range from pretty simple or overwhelming, particularly if you’ve never used a VPN before. When you’re using a phone or tablet, the small screens can be confusing if they’re too cluttered, you’ll also want to make sure you can find all of the settings you need to access.

Streaming support

Many folks -- myself included -- rely on VPNs for streaming. You’ll want a VPN that unblocks the streaming services you want to use, like Netflix, Disney Plus, Amazon Prime Video or Hulu in the countries you want to stream from. Additionally, for streaming, you’ll want a fast VPN that can handle 1080p or 4K video quality.

Privacy

Since VPNs mask your public IP address, they’re useful privacy tools. You’ll need robust encryption and a company you can trust. For encryption, we suggest AES 256-bit over the OpenVPN and IKEv2 VPN protocols, or ChaCha20 with WireGuard. Aside from strong encryption, you’ll want to use a VPN provider that’s been audited by third parties. While you can (and probably should) still be skeptical, audits to verify no-logging claims are crucial trust signals that back up VPN provider braggadocio. RAM-only infrastructure -- which ensures that your internet activity while using a VPN isn’t stored permanently -- and privacy-friendly jurisdiction outside of intelligence-sharing alliances are both nice-to-haves from a privacy perspective.

Price

You can expect to pay anywhere from $5 to $16 monthly, $40 to $100 annually or $60 to $110-plus for a two-year VPN subscription. Generally, most VPN companies provide cheaper prices for longer-term subscriptions, meaning you’ll pay less when broken down per month for a one-year plan than a monthly plan, although you often have to pay for that entire term upfront. A two-plus-year subscription usually gets you the best price, but we don’t recommend shelling out for more than a year at a time because of how quickly things change in the VPN industry. Your fast, private VPN could be slower or suffer a data breach over a year. For the maximum savings with the lowest risk, consider an annual subscription.

Many VPN providers, including NordVPN, Surfshark and Proton VPN, give you a cheaper upfront cost with future price hikes. For instance, Surfshark initially sets you back $42 for a year’s worth of service but renews at $60 annually. Thankfully, the majority of VPN companies let you stack subscriptions, so you can buy a discounted plan at any time and it should extend your service, avoiding a pricier renewal.

You can often find sweet deals on VPNs around holidays like Black Friday and Cyber Monday. I recommend signing up for a new plan around then or buying another subscription to stack on top of your existing plan seasonally as sales pop up.

True Mobile VPN vs. VPNs that Run on Mobile Devices: What's the difference?

Although nearly all VPN companies feature apps for Android handsets and iPhones, a true mobile VPN seamlessly switches between Wi-Fi and mobile data networks. Just because you can install a VPN app on your phone doesn’t mean it’s a mobile VPN. 

Luckily, there’s an easy way to test your virtual private network to see if it’s an actual mobile VPN. Here’s how to tell if you’re using a real mobile VPN:

1. Connect to a Wi-Fi network on your phone. 
2. Fire up your VPN app. 
3. Start streaming a video or run an internet speed test.
4. Unplug your wireless router while the video or speed test is going. 
5. See if your VPN switches over to your mobile data network without interrupting the video or speed test.

If you’re using a real mobile VPN -- not just an app that runs on a phone or tablet -- your VPN won’t have to change IP addresses even when jumping back and forth between Wi-Fi and cellular connections. In my assessment, ExpressVPN, NordVPN, Surfshark and Proton VPN all proved to be true mobile VPNs, easily switching between Wi-Fi and 5G signals without missing a beat.

How to set up a VPN on an Android phone

The easiest way to use a VPN on your Android phone is by downloading the app from the Google Play Store:

1. Open the Google Play Store app.
2. Tap the search bar (the magnifying glass).
3. Type in the name of your VPN provider. 
4. Tap Install next to the correct option in the search results list.
5. Open the app once it’s installed, sign in with your account credentials and start using your VPN. Or, if you don’t have an account yet, select a plan, register and login.

How to set up a VPN on an iPhone

On iOS and iPadOS, you’ll download a VPN using the Apple App Store:

1. Fire up the App Store.
2. Search for your VPN provider.
3. Tap get beside your VPN provider’s app.
4. Launch the app, sign in and pick a server. Or, pick a plan, create an account, sign in and choose a server if you’ve not yet registered for an account.

If you need to turn off a VPN on your iPhone, the process is pretty simple: Open your VPN app and tap the On or Connect button.