It’s a straightforward refund process and takes less than 10 minutes altogether — I had my money back the next day. Unlike many other VPNs, you can even use the money-back guarantee on the 1-month plan. If you’re looking for a higher-performance VPN, I suggest you try ExpressVPN risk-free. It’s backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee so you can test out every feature without committing to a subscription. If you don’t like it, it only takes minutes to get a refund approved over 24/7 live chat.
Quick Guide: How to Cancel Hotspot Shield and Get a Full Refund
Step-By-Step Guide: How to Cancel Hotspot Shield and Get Your Money Back
You can request a refund either through live chat or by filling out an online form on the website. I tested both methods and found that live chat offered the fastest response. For this reason, I recommend requesting a refund through live chat if you can, but I’ve also included instructions for Hotspot Shield’s ticketing system if you prefer to use this method.
How to Cancel Hotspot Shield Over Live Chat
How to Cancel Hotspot Shield Over Email
You’ll need the email address you used to create your account and your order purchase number to complete the refund process.
The Best Alternative VPNs to Hotspot Shield (Tested in January 2023)
1. ExpressVPN — #1 Alternative to Hotspot Shield — Fast Global Network and Top-Tier Security Features
ExpressVPN is the top alternative to Hotspot Shield with fast speeds and industry-leading security. Its network of 3000+ servers in 94+ countries ensures there’s always a local connection so you get the fastest possible speeds. ExpressVPN uses military-grade encryption and built-in leak protection keep your online activity anonymous, with an audited zero-logs policy that guarantees never to log your data. A kill switch ensures all internet traffic is automatically blocked when the VPN connection drops (like when you’re switching servers), so your real IP address is never exposed. Each server is also equipped with TrustedServer technology, which ensures all servers run on RAM and are wiped of data with every scheduled. The customer support team is available 24/7 over live chat and email if you have any difficulties with the setup. I’ve always received helpful responses to any questions, although I suggest using live chat as it’s the quickest way to get in touch with ExpressVPN. You can download ExpressVPN on your own device and test the service risk-free as it’s backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee. If you’re not entirely satisfied, you can get a no-questions-asked full refund. I contacted ExpressVPN’s 24/7 live chat and asked for a cancellation, which the agent arranged in less than 5 minutes. Best of all, I had the money back in my account in just 5 days.
2. CyberGhost — Optimized Servers for Smooth Streaming, Torrenting, and Gaming Worldwide
CyberGhost provides a range of optimized servers for streaming, gaming, and torrenting. These servers have been especially configured to ensure optimal speeds and steady server connections. I was especially impressed with the streaming-optimized servers — CyberGhost makes it easy to connect to popular platforms like Netflix US, HBO, BBC iPlayer, Disney+, and even niche platforms like Crunchyroll and Yle. Every connection uses military-grade encryption and leak protection, as well as an automatic kill switch to secure your data if the VPN connection is interrupted. While the company has yet to undergo an independent audit, I was pleased to find CyberGhost operates using RAM-based servers that can’t physically store any data. There’s also a blocker against malware, trackers, and ads — although only ads that contain malicious files will be removed. To find out if it suits your needs, I recommend you take advantage of CyberGhost’s generous 45-day money-back guarantee. If you change your mind during the guarantee period, you can get a full refund over 24/7 live chat or email. When I tested this process myself, a representative arranged my refund over live chat in just a couple of minutes and I had my money back in a week.
3. Private Internet Access — Best Budget VPN With High Number of Device Connections
Private Internet Access (PIA) is a great low-cost alternative to Hotspot Shield. You can pay as little as $2.03 on the 2-year + 4 months plan. Best of all, you can use the VPN on 10 devices at the same time — perfect if you want to cover all the devices in your household. For this affordable price, you’ll have access to an enormous network of over 35000 servers in 83+ countries. This vast network means you can always find a server in the country of your choice. The majority of servers are concentrated in the US, which is perfect if you like streaming Netflix, Hulu, SlingTV, YouTube TV, HBO Max, Disney+, ESPN, and other US-based platforms. Like ExpressVPN and CyberGhost, your internet traffic is secured with military-grade encryption, data leak protection, and an automatic kill switch. I ran multiple tests to ensure all data was secure within the encrypted connection, and all results showed zero data leaks. These results are especially important as PIA has yet to undergo an independent audit, so its no-logs privacy policy remains unverified. You can try Private Internet Access risk-free with the 30-day money-back guarantee and see if it’s right for you. Try Private Internet Access risk-free
How do I cancel and get my money back from Hotspot Shield?
You can follow my step-by-step guide to getting a refund from Hotspot Shield. It’s easy as long as you’re within the 45-day money-back guarantee period. I recommend using live chat as this makes the process quick and easy — it took less than 10 minutes to arrange my refund and I had my money back in a day. If you choose the email option, you should have a response and refund approval in less than 12 hours. However, you can only use my guide if you signed up through Hotspot Shield’s website or the Google Play Store. Unfortunately, Hotspot Shield can’t process your refund if you signed up through the Apple App Store. You have to contact the store directly and see if you’re eligible for a refund as it depends on Apple’s own Terms and Conditions.
Can I cancel Hotspot Shield anytime?
Of course. Simply sign in to your Hotspot Shield account to access your account dashboard and click “Cancel plan” in the “Account info” menu. However, this doesn’t automatically grant you a refund. Instead, it cancels your account auto-renewal so you’re not charged for further subscriptions. You’ll be able to use your Hotspot Shield service until your subscription expires, but you can only obtain a refund if you cancel within the 45-day money-back guarantee period.
How long does Hotspot Shield take to issue a refund?
It only took 1 day for me to get my refund, although Hotspot Shield’s policy states that all refunds should be issued within 10 business days. You can ask for a refund over live chat or email — I personally found that live chat was much faster and easier. If you’re still looking for a VPN after you cancel Hotspot Shield, I suggest you check out this list of the best VPNs in 2023 for alternative options.
How long does Hotspot Shield take to issue a refund?
Unfortunately, no. You can’t claim a refund with Hotspot Shield if you’re outside the 45-day money-back guarantee. This is clearly stated in Hotspot Shield’s money-back guarantee policy. However, if the service is not working and you have contacted the company to try and rectify the issue, you may be eligible for a refund. A refund outside of the money-back guarantee period is entirely at the discretion of Hotspot Shield and is not certain. Once you’ve gotten your refund, you might want to consider a new VPN. A superior alternative to Hotspot Shield is ExpressVPN — it has much faster speeds, a proven and audited privacy policy, and its servers can unblock all popular streaming platforms (like Netflix and Disney+).
Don’t Give Up on Finding the Right VPN for You
If Hotspot Shield isn’t suitable for your VPN needs, getting a full refund is easy as long as you make your request within 45 days. However, it’s essential that you don’t leave your devices unprotected, as this puts your data security at risk. If you still need a VPN, I suggest you try ExpressVPN and see if it’s a good fit for you. It’s the best VPN in 2023 and I don’t think you’ll be disappointed — although it’s also backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can get a refund if you’re not fully satisfied. When I tested the refund policy, it only took a couple of minutes to arrange over 24/7 live chat and I had my money back in less than 5 days.
