Gabe: Hey, folks.
This is Gabe at Security Baron.
If you've been wondering if there's a VPN out there that can keep up with the performance
that your games demand, we did some rather rigorous testing on Fortnite and have some
answers for you, with a look at the best VPN for gamers.
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Gabe: In today's video we'll be explaining why you'd want a VPN, detailing our methodology
for testing each VPN for gaming, establishing baseline performance on both WiFi and ethernet,
before diving into the results of our testing and giving you a winner in four categories
-- best for ethernet, best for WiFi, best for privacy, and best at.
If you'd like to see a list of our favorite VPNs, Google "Security Baron best VPNs."
If you have a question about today's video, leave us a comment and I'll get back to you.
You may be wondering, why do I, a gamer, need a VPN?
The core functionality of a VPN is to anonymize your Internet activity, mask your IP address,
and encrypt your data, which is great for protecting your privacy for anything that
you access online.
VPN services typically allow you to route your traffic through servers located around
the world.
In terms of content, this means that you may have access to things that you could not previously
unlock.
In the gaming world, it means you can have access to games and gaming services that you
may have been prohibited from entering, depending on your location.
Of course, some games and gaming platforms do frown upon this, so venture into this territory
at your own risk.
Ultimately, VPNs cannot only help protect you online but enrich your overall Internet
experience.
For testing each VPN's performance while gaming, I played Fortnite's 100-player Battle Royale
mode.
Typically, when testing out VPNs, I use both a PC and a Mac.
Unfortunately, I don't have a PC beefy enough to run much of anything even something as
performance light as Fortnite.
For today's testing, I used a 2017 Retina 5K iMac.
To get the data for this list, first I gauged baseline performance by playing three matches
without a VPN on both WiFi and ethernet.
Next, I played three matches using each VPN on both WiFi and ethernet, so you can make
an informed decision, regardless of what your gaming setup looks like.
When analyzing the matches later, I noted fluctuations in ping and packet loss to find
average ping which is measured in milliseconds, and average packet loss throughout the match
on both download and upload, which is measured in percentage of data lost.
In online gaming, ping is king.
Having a lower ping will provide a smoother game play experience and having a higher ping
can cause stuttering or brief disconnections that can ruin a match.
Ping of 20-30 milliseconds or lower is the ideal range for the most consistent experience,
but 30-50 milliseconds is more than adequate.
Packet loss refers to small packets of game data that each player uploads to the game
server and downloads from the game server during a match.
Too much packet loss can pull a player out of sync with other players in the match, so
it's another important facet of a consistent online gaming experience.
If you'd like to see a more detailed guide on our methodology, check out our written
article at securitybaron.com.
Aside from gaming performance there's specific characteristics that I look to when evaluating
a VPN.
Things like a strict no data logging policy, headquartered outside of surveillance jurisdiction,
kill switches, split tunneling, highly rated mobile apps, and low prices.
Of course, the sooner you pick a VPN the sooner you can begin game security, so let's get
started.
Now it's time to set the stage with our results of baseline performance without the use of
VPNs.
Baseline performance without a VPN on WiFi was solid, averaging a ping of 25-30 milliseconds
and packet loss of 4 percent on upload and 1 percent on download.
On ethernet I averaged a ping of 10-15 milliseconds along with 0 percent packet loss on upload
and download.
Battery -- while WiFi performed well it can't even touch the lightning fast rock solid performance
of a hardwired connection.
Now that all that is out of the way and the stage has properly set, let's dive into each
VPN's individual performance.
Let's start off strong by answering what is surely the most pressing question on your
mind.
How does Windscribe compare to the competition?
Maybe that's not the most pressing question in your mind, but I digress.
On WiFi, my ping fell within 35-45 milliseconds on average with packet loss on upload and
download averaging 5 percent and 1 percent respectively.
Solid but not great.
However, the experience with ethernet was a different story with average ping shifting
to 15-20 milliseconds and packet loss averaging a whopping 0 percent.
It was a close battle but Windscribe slightly etched NordVPN on packet loss and they're
my pick for best VPN for ethernet.
Almost every VPN has one or two drawbacks and Windscribe is no exception.
It is based in Ontario, Canada, which means it's subject to various surveillance jurisdictions,
but generally speaking, Windscribe is a really solid option for VPN gaming.
You have not only a strict no data logging policy, but also kill switch, split tunneling,
and other features that make it a solid option for those of you looking to get VPN with your
gaming.
Well, hold on.
I hope you're enjoying today's best VPN for gamers video.
If you want to be kept up to date on the newest in VPN, cybersecurity, smart home security,
and more, subscribe to our channel, Security Baron.
We're dropping new content weekly.
All right, let's get back to the video.
Getting ghosted on by a crush?
That's just a typical Friday night.
Getting ghosted on by your VPN, now that's absolutely devastating.
Let's go ahead and see how cyberghost stacks up.
Gaming with WiFi brought ping within 25 to 30 milliseconds on average, with packet loss
on upload and download averaging 3 percent and 0 percent respectively.
On ethernet, average ping was 20 to 25 milliseconds with packet loss averaging 2 percent download
and 0 percent upload.
Cyberghost was an absolute killer on WiFi, giving its name a whole new meaning.
Now, of course, no VPN is perfect and cyberghost does retain more about you and your Internet
activity than we think is necessary.
They do have amazing customer support and people seem to enjoy their experiences with
the customer support team.
Finally, they have one of the most affordable subscriptions out there at just $2.99 a month.
Now, you may have seen one of NordVPN's slick advertisements on the Internet or even on
TV, but how does it hold up when it comes to gaming?
During my testing on WiFi, my ping fell within 35 and 40 milliseconds on average with packet
loss on upload and download each averaging 2 percent.
On ethernet, things shifted in an even more positive direction with a ping of 15-20 milliseconds
and 1 percent packet loss on upload and download.
In other words, WiFi performance was solid and ethernet performance was nearly identical
when compared to the baseline statistics.
An impressive showing from NordVPN.
Every rose has its thorns, and I do wish that NordVPN had randomized IP addresses or split
tunneling.
However, it does have a super highly rated mobile application on both iOS and Android,
and a pretty low price at $3.49 a month.
It is packing a powerful punch, NordVPN that is, in the VPN market.
I'm pretty happy with its current offerings.
Our final challenger has arrived in the ring and its name is Private Internet Access, colloquially
known as PIA.
Running PIA on WiFi brought ping within 50 to 55 milliseconds on average, with packet
loss on upload and download averaging 3 percent and 0 percent respectively.
When looking at that ping all I can say is, "Ouch."
Ethernet shakes things up a bit with an average ping of 25 to 30 milliseconds and packet loss
averaging 1 percent download and 0 percent upload.
Not bad overall.
The downside to PIA is that the fact that it may be a bit of contradiction to its name.
\
It may not be the most private, as it is based in Denver, Colorado, which is subject to a
number of surveillance jurisdictions.
However, on the other hand, it is an incredibly user-friendly app.
You can torrent.
You can even know that you're going to be paying a pretty low price at just $3.33 a
month.
Overall, if you're looking for a great mobile app for your VPN experience you may have to
look no further than PIA.
All right, let's recap some of the elements of each of the VPNs that we reviewed today.
If you're hardwired and gaming you're going to want to check out Windscribe for its lighting
fast speeds on ethernet.
Additionally, you get the ability to access torrents and Netflix in the US and UK all
for $4.08 a month with the one-year plan.
If you're gaming on WiFi, then you're going to want to check out cyberghost for its excellent
WiFi performance.
Additionally, you get really amazing customer support and a very affordable plan at just
$2.99 a month with the one-year subscription.
If your primary concern is privacy, NordVPN has you covered.
It's located in Panama, which is outside of international surveillance jurisdictions.
It also has a strict no data logging policy, and it allows you to access Netflix with the
one-year subscription coming in at $6.99 a month.
Finally, if you want to be interfacing with a slick and intuitive app, PIA or Private
Internet Access is the VPN for you.
In addition to that, it has solid customer support, and support for torrenting at a monthly
fee of $3.33 with a one-year subscription.
However, all of these services performed well and we're confident that they could be a solid
choice for you for both your gaming and browsing needs.
That concludes our look at the best VPNs for gamers.
If you'd like to take a look at how each of these VPNs fares outside of gaming, check
out their individual reviews at securitybaron.com.
As always, this is Gabe, Security Baron.
Be secure.
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