IPVanish VPN Review – Scam or not?
Update: IPVanish lied about their logging policies. You can read everything about it in this article. We do not recommend to use them anymore, even though they say that “now” they do not keep logifiles – why should you trust a brand which was lying in the past. There are tons of other providers, choose one of them.
Based in the United States, IPVanish is a Virtual Private Network (VPN) provider with an especially strong reputation. The company claims to be the only Top Tier VPN service around, boasting more than 500 servers located in over 60 countries, and providing users with more than 40,000 different IP addresses.
The IPVanish product is marketed as a security product, which ensures online privacy, while protecting users from unwanted snooping, hacking and other malicious threats. Furthermore, it also has the ability to unblock websites and other online content which is usually restricted by geographical region.
In their Privacy Policy, IPVanish explicitly states that they do not collect or log any traffic or use of its Virtual Private Network service. As with all VPN companies, there is no way we can check this, but in our opinion, IPVanish is absolutely trustworthy.
Whats special about IPVanish?
IPVanish owns and operates every layer of its service (e.g. network infrastructure, hardware and software). This is an uber secure, private VPN network that was purpose-built from the ground up specifically for speed and anonymity. All traffic is encrypted and carried all the way to the last mile over this infrastructure.
Very few, if any other providers, operate a top-tier backbone, which explains why IPVanish generally tests the fastest (by far in many cases). This also means that IPVanish can (and does) offer a true zero logs policy (This was a fucking lie). Other providers who claim a zero log policy actually use 3rd party hosting providers, which compromises the ability to honor and enforce a zero log policy for their users.
The IPVanish network has massive capacity in place to not only deliver fast VPN feeds, but deliver sustained throughput speeds. Ever wonder why you start seeing choppy feeds in the evening with some providers?
This is because their network is capped during peak times and unable to sufficiently handle the traffic increase *The IPVanish network now spans 40,000+ anonymous IPs on 500+ servers in 60+ countries. IPVanish is one of the largest and fastest growing VPN networks on the market.
How IPVanish works
The IPVanish VPN service creates a way for users to surf the web in a secured environment. When a user turns on his or her VPN connection, IPVanish opens an encrypted tunnel where all userdata (email, instant messages, financial info, web traffic, data requests) passes through.
This process prevents any third-party entity (Internet service providers, advertisers, search engines, government organizations, office servers, hackers, etc.) from gaining access to user traffic information and activities, protecting your information. It also hides your IP address, replacing it with one from IPVanish’s network, allowing you to bypass local censorship restrictions.
To make use of the Virtual Private Network, users need to install the automated client software onto their device and open it. From there, they will be able to choose which server to connect to from a list of more than 90 cities across the globe. Once connected, this selection will determine your visible IP address location, allowing you to browse as if you were physically in that city.
Features of IPVanish
Allows P2P / Filesharing Traffic
IPVanish places no restriction on Peer-to-Peer traffic, like BitTorrent and TOR. So if P2P file sharing is what you’re looking for, you can go for IPVanish.
NAT Firewall protection
IPVanish provides NAT firewall protection to users when they are connected to the VPN service. NAT firewall prevents malicious entities like botnets and hackers from exploiting your computers and mobile devices.
Wi-Fi Hotspot Protection
Because public networks are unprotected, they make it easy for a hacker to get ahold of private information from browser histories, stored credentials and even financial data. IPVanish arms its users with device protection when connected to public Wi-Fi spots, such as airports and cafes.
Supports Multiple Protocols
IPVanish offers connections over PPTP (128-bit encryption), OpenVPN (128-bit encryption) and L2TP (256-bit encryption). They also provide connections over the IPSec and IKEv2 protocols for their mobile apps.
Device Compatibility
While IPVanish has automated software for Windows, Mac OS X, iOS, and Android devices, it is compatible for a wide variety of devices. IPVanish VPN has manual configurations available for Windows Phone, Ubuntu, Chromebook, Android TV — even most routers.
No Logging!!
IPVanish does not record, store or monitor any of their user’s VPN activity and data. On the other hand, they do save information used for payment such as an email address and a billing address. Fortunately IPVanish also accepts Bitcoin for users looking to avoid the association with transaction data.
Unlimited bandwidth and server switches
IPVanish offers users both unlimited data transfers and an infinite number of server switches, empowering subscribers to use secured VPN connection as often as possible. Their server network is very fast compared to other providers.
Unlimited number of installed devices
IPVanish software and apps can be installed on as many devices as a user desires to provide flexibility in network protection and usage. However, only two devices can be connected to the VPN connection simultaneously (1 device using OpenVPN and 1 other device using either L2TP or PPTP).
Allows Bitcoin payment
Bitcoin can be used to pay for an IPVanish subscription. Bitcoin is an global, encrypted currency that enables anonymous payments for goods and services in order to protect user privacy. Bitcoins can be purchased on sites like localbitcoins.com – or win them at a bitcoin casino.
7 days refund policy
New subscribers can process a refund on their payment in the event that they wish to discontinue their services within 7 days upon registration of their account.
Customer support
IPVanish offers 24/7 email support for their customers.
Security
IPVanish makes use of 256-bit AES encryption, which means that the product offers excellent, military-grade security. In addition, user privacy is further guaranteed by the use of shared dynamic IP addresses, which ensures that any individual user’s activity cannot be identified.
Moreover, every component of the IPVanish service, including app development and customer support, is managed internally. In fact, the company does not even log connection times, which now makes it one of the most comprehensive zero logging policies in the VPN market. By removing the middleman, IPVanish is best-equipped to make sure that user information remains protected.
IPVanish Servers
PVanish has 500+ VPN servers throughout more than 60 different countries. These include:
Costa Rica, Latvia, Argentina, Sweden, Italy, Malaysia, Egypt, Portugal, Kyrgyzstan, Belgium, Iceland, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Israel, Romania, South Africa, South Korea, Bulgaria, Norway, Switzerland, Indonesia, Germany, France, Hong Kong, Australia, India, Thailand, Luxembourg, Poland, Canada, Malta, Brazil, Austria, Russia, Slovakia, United Kingdom, Hungary, Mexico, Spain, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Denmark, Japan, Ukraine, Turkey, United States, Finland, Panama, New Zealand and Croatia.
More are likely on the way as well, as IPVanish extends their server network constantly – and we cannot update each article every time a VPN provider adds a new server to its infrastructure.
Pricing and Payment Methods
As with other VPN service providers, IPVanish’s pricing plans allow customers to choose different subscription lengths, with a bigger discount for the longer plans. A one month subscription costs $10, a three month subscription costs $26.99 ($8.99 per month) and a one year subscription comes to $77.99 ($6.49 per month).
In terms of payment methods, customers can choose between a major credit card or PayPal. Again, payment can also be made via Bitcoin; and because the company only requests an email address and password, payments can be made completely anonymously, offering even more privacy protection. Also anonymous prepaid credit cards are supported by IPVanish.
Although IPVanish does not advertise a free trial, there is one specifically available through their iOS app. Instead, IPVanish offers a 7-day money-back guarantee, which allows customers to test the product and claim a refund if it is not to their satisfaction.
Compatibility
As far as VPN services go, IPVanish offers one of the widest ranges of support for different devices and operating systems. They provide automated software for the most popular platforms including Windows, Mac OS X, iOS, Android, and manual configurations for the rest.
Windows Phone, Ubuntu, Chromebook, Android TV and a number of different routers are compatible with IPVanish through manual setups. Detailed tutorials for setting up the VPN client on each of the compatible devices and operating systems listed above can be found by looking here: https://www.ipvanish.com/vpn-setup/
It is worth noting, however, that some of the encryption protocols will not be available on all devices.
Customer Support
IPVanish provides 24/7 customer support through a ticket-based email support system and a forum, which includes contributions from both staff and other customers. That said, the support team is fast, helpful and knowledgeable, while on the forum many users are happy to provide their own advice.
Further support is offered on the main company website, which includes step-by-step tutorials, video walkthroughs, and a knowledgebase of answers to the most common queries.
The IPVanish Client Interface
Benefits of IPVanish
VoIP with IPVanish
You can save tons of money when you use VoIP applications like Vonage and Skype with IPVanish. Instead of these applications charging you higher rates when you make international calls from your physical location, you can simply connect to a server of the country you are calling or those that have lower charge rates to keep your bill lower. Mobile network companies try to block these VoIP connections – but with a VPN, they can’t!
IPVanish Prevents Geo-Targeting
IPVanish prevents third-party websites and organizations from determining your location through your IP address. Establishing a VPN connection will automatically replace your IP address with one of their own, so that, what other people will see is one of their dynamic IP addresses. This prevents Internet marketers from serving you ads relevant to your location and search history.
IPVanish Protects Your Internet Freedom
Every day, your online freedom is threatened by local firewalls, government agencies, hackers and even ISPs — the same people you pay to gain access to the web. These entities block websites and applications by pre-programming restrictions into their systems. But with IPVanish VPN, you can easily tunnel out of these situations and bypass local filters to provide you the open access that you crave when surfing the net.
Our IPVanish Speed Test Results (median values)
- Upload Speed: 4.26 Mbps
- Download Speed: 10.65 Mbps
- Ping time: 260 ms
Speed tests of IPVanish servers with SpeedOf.me:
IPVanish Plans and Pricing Overview
1 Month
- OpenVPN, PPTP and L2TP/IPsec VPN protocols
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited server switches
- 7-day money-back guarantee
- Unlimited P2P traffic
- Wi-Fi hotspot protection
3 Months
- $8.99/month, billed $26.99 every 3 months
- OpenVPN, PPTP and L2TP/IPsec VPN protocols
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited server switches
- 7-day money-back guarantee
- Unlimited P2P traffic
- Wi-Fi hotspot protection
12 Months
- $6.49/month, billed $77.99 every 3 months
- OpenVPN, PPTP and L2TP/IPsec VPN protocols
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited server switches
- 7-day money-back guarantee
- Unlimited P2P traffic
- Wi-Fi hotspot protection
IPVanish Payment Methods
- Visa
- MasterCard
- American Express
- Discover
- JCB
- Visa Electron
- Delta
- PayPal
- Bitcoin
- IDEAL
- Bancontact/Mister Cash
- Giropay
- Boleto Bancário
- CashU
- Alipay
IPVanish: Pros and Cons
Pros:
- 500+ servers in 60+ countries
- 40,000+ IP addresses
- Unlimited bandwidth, server switching, and P2P traffic
- Diverse device compatibility
- Accepts anonymous payment
- Diverse device compatibility
Cons:
- Lied about keeping no log files
- No free trial
- VPN service subject to US data privacy laws (NSA, Gag Orders)
- Only up to 2 simultaneous connections
- Limited time duration to claim refunds (7 days upon registration)
IPVanish Review Conclusion
Formed in just 2012, IPVanish has one of the fastest (and fastest growing) Virtual Private Networks in the world. While there is still room for improvement, particularly in the vanity features of their apps, it’s important to remember that IPVanish is still a young and growing company.
They have already positioned themselves as the most privacy-minded VPN service provider in the industry. As a self-owned and operated VPN provider with the most transparent Privacy Policy in the sector, no competitor can guarantee the security that IPVanish can. With an ever-expanding network, ultra-fast speeds, and unprecedented quality of service, there is a lot of promise for this company. IPVanish may be a rising star that just needs a little polishing in order to shine brighter.
Update: As they lied about their logging policy, we do not recommend to use them.
Go to IPvanish.com
The server speed is ok, but their software sucks big time, it is very slow and it loads a map on startup that you can not deactivate. pretty stupid bullshit.
it is very slow and takes a lot of time to load up, this is just very annoying.
will never use ipvanish again because of their shitty software, they should find a better coder first
italian vpn doesn’t work anymore! this article is so old.
for matter of facts, their vpns does not do really anonymous and i can provide any proof af that, in my experience with their swiss vpn i wasn’t able to connect to that location in the manner meant to be simply because yes, their vpn it was working BUT wasn’t anonymous and the destination service just find out my real location! this is a serious security issue! So, what about the security of all the vpns they got in their service???!
their service is even not reliable, they got issues with that, all of the sudden vpn locations are disappearing as easy as like it’s so normal to shutdown something customers they paid for and keep it down for good with no ETA given.
they simply shut down locations and so, you are SOL
this is my experience with ipvanish
the new update for android is pretty excellent. It would be great if they could show ping times for when my Shield Android TV connects over Ethernet, it only shows Wi-Fi ping information
It works like a dream. Never had an issue. Researched the web for a client that would suit my needs and this ticks all the boxes. Provides me a real sense of security. Keep up the great work guys! Love it
App is pretty good. I got this on my desktop and that program is amazing.the app here is pretty good too they seem to be progressing often. Surfing the net with different i.p. address is crucial now days. App is good
Très bon service VPN, rapide, et surtout qui ne garde pas de log (contrairement à HideMyAss ou VyprVPN par exemple). Discret et efficace. Toutefois, de nombreux serveurs sont repérés pour certains contournements comme Netflix. Mais l’architecture est solide et IPVanish est un bon choix pour ceux qui cherchent un moyen efficace de renforcer la sécurité de leur vie privée. Et maintenant qu’ils ont ajouté 10 serveurs en France, c’est tout simplement parfait.
Support was quick to reply and gave me a workaround to the problem i had of connecting to the vpn! Works like a charm
Used this on Apple, Android and Windows and there isn’t anything to warrant a star less. Some other reviewers should try troubleshooting more thoroughly instead of using false or incorrect information.
initially cannot log in either in wifi or 4g cellular network. using samsung s6. works on laptop and another android phone. after i uninstalled and reinstalled then it works fine. quite fast servers
Better VPN Works like a charm on my Oneplus one.
By far the best VPN for gaming. I use ipvanish on my ipad and iphone — never, not once, have I had any issues connecting to jumping servers.
Using on my iPhone and my home Mac. Great secure service as they don’t keep logs and the speed decrease is not even noticeable. Use a server anywhere in the world to protect your privacy.
Top VPN! It’s super fast and iOS app is v good. All I need an Ubuntu app with the server list…
Previously it was very disappointing, only worked intermittently. But since I haven’t had recent problems, I think it is now over the hump. I have been very lucky with their support team, they credited my account when DE servers were down. No problems getting BBC or STV either
Absolutely the best VPN provider available! Fast speeds, great support and easy to use applications! Perfect!
I am confused by the servers the apps choose to suggest me first. They are typically other countries first and or nowhere near my geographical location. That being said ping times are excellent and connection times are very quick.
Working like a charm since the last update!
Works great No problems for me. Use on all my devices. I have had several vpn programs.This one is the best.
I’ve used a few other vpn’s that gave me trouble with Sky, but I’ve no issues at all. For some reason I was given a lifetime ban from a forum I’d never posted on and had only used twice. they couldn’t resolve it so I installed I P Vanish and had instant access
One of the best I have used. Very happy with the service. They just need to drop their prices
Hello, please how can l get to chat with your Customer care line please…..?
Works I have been using this for 3 years without any problems. It does what it says on the box.
Great VPN After the new update I had to hop on and rate this. I have been using IP Vanish for a little over a year now and I love it. The service itself is incredible but I’m here to talk about the app specifically. The ui is clean and simple, the auto reconnect feature and auto hop feature is great. I have this set up to connect whenever I am away from my home. The speed is good and I don’t notice any significant battery drain. Overall this is a great app.
Great update! One of the few complete revampings of an app that actually makes it far better. Very fast and easy to use.
Does what it says on the tin. I like the new interface very much.
what router where you using and did it work.
the software works great, but if you use a router speed drops from 50mb to 5mb.
IPVanish is a fraud. When i signed up i received a mail asking for a copy of my Credit Card as well as government issued ID. My Credit Card was supposedly not to be charged until they received the requested documents. It turned out my card was charged immediately and they didnt reply to any emails from then on. Summary: They tried to phish my documents and stole my money.
Worst ever. How did they get the good reviews?! Now I’m signed up and paid for a year and it sucks! Hate it! Makes me change my password at least once a week. Says too many failed attempts have been made when NONE HAVE BEEN MADE! Help desk totally rude and acts like they have no idea how to help me!
What did YOU review?!
I wanted to watch foreign TV with IP vanish.
It was working for a while, but than it stopped.
I have 10 more month from my contract, no help was provided, no service is provided, and no refund.
Never ever think about go with IP vanish, it is a rip off.
I have paid for one year to watch foreign TV. It was working for 2 months than it stopped.
No help!
No no service!
No refund, because it was outside the 7 days!
I have paid £80 for nothing.
They don’t care about their customers
Do not pay for this rubish!
like a crap. they dont even give details tutorial in each os. apps and devices. such as socks5 setup in android mobile phone specifically, they only give common regular setup and its so annoyed. the customer support also give unpleasant services, i send 3rd x times ticketing request about socks5 setup but they doesnt replied every single of my question,and also TOR connection is horrible, i reconnect thousand times orfox page and always failed, finally TOR connected when i uninstalled ipvanish apps in my android phone, not worthied quality for $69 a years VPN
IPVANCE TAKEN FUNDS OFF MY CREDIT CARD WITHOUT MY PERMISSION.
WHAT MUST I DO
I CANCEL MY CREDIT CARD
Total scam if you ever want to cancel ( I cancelled years ago, last year they tried to bill me, they claimed to have sent me an email requiring a response – I never received any such emails this year) They constantly try to frustrate you and continue billing. I ended up having to cancel my paypal account and work with my credit card co. When I signed up over two years ago, I did not agree to auto renewal. When I started my “battle” with them this year, they claim their policy was updated in July 2020 (catch is since I haven’t been their customer for two years, I never received this information… their database appears to be billing former customers… I’ve been battling with them via email for almost 3 weeks now. They’ve tried sending me a “deal” but I told them I already had another VPN, they’ve tried putting a little tag line saying they need me to respond to get cancelled (good luck no matter how many times you do) their latest scam is to say they are waiting for paypal to release the funds, it just goes on and on. I strongly recommend avoiding this company like the plague.