Hotspot Shield Review

Hotspot Shield has several pricing tiers ranging from one month for $12.99 to a much higher one-time payment of $139.99 per lifetime. That definitely puts it on the more expensive end of the spectrum for monthly VPN subscriptions.

If one month is too short but you're not willing to commit to one VPN until death do you part, you can snag a six-month subscription for $29.99, or a one-year subscription for $40. It improved downloads speed in our tests, but it is not the fastest VPN on the market. It has a small geographical offering of servers, but it is bundled with tools to protect users from malware.

What we like

• Easy-to-use software
• Strong speed-test scores
• Free version available
• P2P and Bittorrent allowed
• Plays nice with Netflix
• Malware detection
• Free browser plugins

What we don't like

• Expensive $$$$
• Few server locations
• Restrictive free version
• No specialized servers

Speed

In domestic tests, HotSpot Shield increased latency by 232 percent. It has the rare distinction, however, of actually improving download speeds; downloads were 45 percent faster with HotSpot Shield engaged. The same can't be said of its uploads, however. Using HotSpot Shield slowed domestic uploads by 10.6 percent. Despite its download boost, Hotspot Shield is far from being the fastest VPN.

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Privacy

HotSpot Shield wraps its excellent protection and speeds in a snazzy client, and includes a level of malware protection. Its browser plugins offer generous VPN protection for free, too. It can also warn users whenever they land on a known phishing websites or sites that host malware (as determined by developer AnchorFree's database of more than 3.5 million malicious sites).

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Servers

There are just 20 server locations worldwide to choose from for, with some 2,000 servers in total. Hotspot Shield has servers in Asia, Central America, Europe, North America, and South America. It also maintains servers in areas with restrictive internet access policies, including China, Russia, and Turkey. Unfortunately, Hotspot Shield customers looking for servers in the Middle East or Africa will be disappointed.