I want to stay safe and anonymous while torrenting, so I use a VPN every time. It protects me from spyware and malware, and keeps my IP address private. This means my ISP can’t track my activity, and I’m protected from copyright trolls and DDoS attacks. My favorite VPN for torrenting is ExpressVPN because it’s blazing-fast, has unbreakable security, and a strong no-logs policy. You can try ExpressVPN’s torrent-friendly features for yourself risk-free as it’s backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee. If you find you don’t like it, just ask for a full refund. Torrent securely with ExpressVPN
Quick Guide: 3 Easy Steps to Download Torrents Safely With a VPN
Download anonymously with ExpressVPN
Why You Need a VPN to Torrent Safely and Anonymously
The majority of music, movies, TV, and books you find on torrent sites are illegal to download and seed because they are copyrighted. Even the accidental download of copyrighted material could land you with infringement penalties. This is common in Australia, the US, France, Germany, Canada, and Sweden. You could even serve jail time of 10 years or more and have to pay fines in excess of hundreds of thousands of dollars. P2P networks are dangerous because anyone can see your IP address, meaning that your activities can be tracked. This also leaves you vulnerable to attacks from hackers or copyright trolls. A copyright troll seeks out IP addresses of people who are potentially downloading copyrighted material. They then send angry letters to your ISP demanding monetary damages on the behalf of the copyright holder. Amongst other activities, hackers can launch a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack against you, blocking your device. Top quality VPNs encrypt your internet traffic and channel your data through a private network of secure servers. Even with the best intentions, every time you torrent you run the risk of accessing a copyrighted file. With a VPN your privacy is protected so, in the event you accidentally click on a copyrighted file, you don’t have to worry as the activity can’t be traced back to you. The best VPN for torrenting is ExpressVPN. It has superfast speeds so you can download and send huge files in no time. You’re also protected while you torrent, thanks to its state-of-the-art security features. You can test ExpressVPN out completely risk-free as it’s backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee — if you don’t like it, just claim a full refund. Torrent safely with ExpressVPN
How to Torrent Safely and Anonymously With a VPN
It’s possible to torrent safely when you use a reputable VPN. A VPN hides your IP address behind that of its own server, keeping your data private. Always connect to your VPN’s server before you access torrent sites, or you could leave yourself open to attacks. Due to the high level of risk, I don’t recommend using a free VPN, but if you are tempted to try it, these are the only free VPNs I’d trust. To stay safe each time you torrent, follow these precautions:
Download a reputable VPN
The only way to torrent safely is to use a trusted VPN every time you P2P file share. It hides your IP address by routing your traffic through its servers and keeps you anonymous while downloading and seeding. By using its private servers, you can also avoid workplace and school censorship. Without a VPN, your personally identifiable information and online activity will be visible to anyone online. This means your Internet Service Provider can see what you’re doing, and hackers may attack you if you don’t disguise your IP and encrypt your traffic. Your ISP can also realize you’re downloading large files and throttle your speed. With a VPN, you aren’t identifiable, so there won’t be any speed caps. Always connect your VPN to a server before even accessing torrent sites because your torrent client begins seeding as soon as it’s open, exposing your IP address. Ensure your VPN has top-quality security features such as military-grade encryption, a no-logs policy, and a kill switch. These protect your identity and location from anyone who might be watching. Your VPN should also have plenty of P2P optimized servers on an extensive server network, so you don’t need to worry about speed throttling. Even the most secure premium VPNs have regular special offers, so you can easily get a VPN with an excellent monthly rate.
Choose a reliable torrent client
To download a torrent, you will need a reputable torrent client that’s lightweight, easy to use, and customizable. One torrent file consists of multiple files from many computers, and the client organizes them all into one package that you can safely extract. The computers seeding or sharing the files will always be using the same client, which is why you can’t download a torrent from a search page. Once you have the torrent, your client will instantly begin seeding the file at the same time. To choose a torrent client, pick one with a simple interface that is customizable for safety. The top torrent clients are functional and easy to adjust, so you can ensure you’ll be torrenting safely without your online identity being exposed. My top choices are:
BitTorrent — Small, easy to configure, and perfect for beginners, but has ads. uTorrent — Easily configurable and suitable for beginners. Small file, but pay attention to what you check and uncheck while installing because it has bundled software. It also has ads. qBittorrent — Open source client that is ad-free but doesn’t enable all extensions. Deluge — Another open source client that’s highly customizable and works with Chrome or Firefox, but it’s not the easiest to use.
Configure your VPN and torrent client
Properly configure your VPN and torrent client to ensure your connection is secure. Your IP should be hidden and all traffic encrypted. This keeps hackers from obtaining personal data and spying on you. This is what you should look out for:
Advanced protocol — Turn on the OpenVPN protocol, which is the best for torrenting. It gives you both speed and security as you download files. DNS Leak Protection — A DNS leak may expose your browsing behavior, so you definitely want this feature if you value privacy. Kill switch — In the event your VPN drops, a kill switch severs your internet connection immediately; this feature is not always on by default so make sure you enable it. AES 256-bit encryption — This is the highest level of encryption so it’s perfect for torrenting. Encrypted files are unreadable by third parties, so they are highly secure. Split Tunneling — You can choose which apps use the VPN connection and which use a local connection.
Access safe torrents
It’s essential to download safe torrents because hackers can inject files with malware. After you’ve downloaded and checked them, delete any .exe files and research any file extensions you don’t recognize. Never download a torrent from a random site you found on a search, as even Google shows the addresses of fake torrent sites in its search results. Use a torrent site that’s well-known and trusted. Check the torrent’s description before you download it. Most of what you’ll find is copyrighted material and illegal to download. Still, you can use The Internet Archive and Public Domain Torrents to stay away from the murky waters of copyright infringement and not risk breaking the law and receiving fines. In some countries, copyright theft has jail time of up to 10 years, so always exercise extreme caution when choosing and sharing your files. Well-known torrent sites include:
1337x The Pirate Bay YTS Lime Torrents RARBG Torrent Galaxy Zooqle Hi10Anime Libgen
There are private torrenting sites you may be able to get invited to. This is a great way to get specialized material. Actively participating in torrent threads in places like Reddit can get you in with the right people and garner an invitation. When you download your torrent, you want to make sure it’s safe. It’s possible to access each torrent file in a controlled environment such as a sandbox. This isolates your files so you can check them for malware without any risk. When the file is sandboxed, it prevents malware from leaking and infecting your device. You can do this by using a simple-to-install-and-use program like Sandboxie. You might also opt to install a virtual machine on your device, which behaves like an alternative operating system. The best VPN to keep you safe every time you torrent is ExpressVPN. Its blistering speeds mean you can download files in minutes, while its military-grade security prevents any malware or privacy breaches. It’s backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can buy ExpressVPN to torrent in confidence. Torrent safely with ExpressVPN
The Best VPNs to Torrent Safely and Anonymously (Tested January 2023)
1. ExpressVPN — Superfast Speeds to Download Torrent Files Without Delays
I didn’t expect ExpressVPN to be so fast, but I had average speeds of around 324 Mbps while torrenting, even at peak hours. During tests, my team and I used servers across the globe and has great results each time. I downloaded the entire audiobook of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer from The Internet Archive in 47 seconds while connected to my local server. You can torrent files in seconds with ExpressVPN. During testing, I found that ExpressVPN has multiple useful tools to make life easier when torrenting. Split Tunneling lets you protect your torrent apps while keeping a regular connection open for local banking, etc. This means you can begin torrenting on BitTorrent with full protection from the VPN, while simultaneously using a standard browser connection to order groceries at a local supermarket. Extensive security features protect your device and personal data every time you torrent. These include:
256-bit encryption that keeps my data impenetrable to anyone who tries to hack my connection A strong no-logs policy ensuring ExpressVPN doesn’t keep any records of my connection or download activity so it can’t be used against me DNS and IP leak prevention keep my browsing history and IP address completely hidden from other torrenters or hackers A lock-kill switch that stops my internet connection in the event the VPN is unexpectedly terminated, so my information remains private even if the VPN isn’t activated.
This VPN’s monthly price may be expensive, but it’s worth it for the level of protection you receive. You can get a discount of 49% when you purchase the 1-year plan, which is just $6.67 per month. You can try ExpressVPN out for yourself risk-free. It has a 30-day money-back guarantee, so if it doesn’t work out, you can ask for your money back. I asked the live chat support rep if I could cancel on the last day of the guarantee. The agent politely issued my refund, and I had the money back in 3 days. Torrent quickly with ExpressVPN
2. CyberGhost — Malware and Tracker Blocks to Boost Security While Torrenting
CyberGhost has a malware and tracker blocker that protected me by blocking the DNS domains these usually appear on. Simply go into Privacy Settings and toggle the switch on to protect against dangerous malware and trackers. Note that it only blocks ads that are known to carry cyber threats, so you’ll still see ads on sites such as YouTube. Still, it was reassuring to have extra protection while browsing torrent sites, and CyberGhost is a great choice for torrenting safely. There are 50+ servers optimized for P2P sharing on CyberGhost so that you can get a fast connection with low latency. Latency is the time it takes for a packet of information to travel from your computer to the server. When I tested CyberGhost for speed, I downloaded a 1.02 GB file in under 5 minutes. It also has servers that are optimized for gaming and streaming, so once you’ve finished torrenting, CyberGhost has all of your online activities covered. This VPN is headquartered in privacy-friendly Romania, ensuring my connection and the sites I visit when I’m using the VPN are not recorded. No government or ISP will be able to request logs of my activities. CyberGhost’s reliable no-logs policy means you can download torrents safely without risk of repercussion in the event you accidentally click on a copyrighted file. It isn’t as fast as ExpressVPN, but local and mid-range servers were more than fast enough to torrent without issues. You can also use CyberGhost’s “Best Server Location” to find the fastest server nearby when you’re looking for privacy. Though the monthly plan is quite expensive, you can get a great deal when you grab the 2-year + 4 months plan, which costs only $2.03 per month. You’ll save 84% on your subscription and get the full money-back guarantee rather than the 14 days that’s offered on shorter-length plans. Try CyberGhost risk-free since it has a 45-day money-back guarantee. If it doesn’t work out, just ask for your money back. I contacted its support chat and asked for a refund. The support representative processed the request immediately, and I had my money 4 days later. Torrent safely with CyberGhost
3. Private Internet Access (PIA) — SOCKS5 Proxy for Faster Torrenting Speeds
Private Internet Access (PIA) comes with an integrated SOCKS5 proxy to torrent even faster. Although using a proxy isn’t always as secure as a VPN, PIA’s multi-hop feature obfuscates your connection, making it look just like normal internet traffic. It’s quick to set up with the simple directions on PIA’s website — just search for “Configure SOCKS5” for detailed instructions that made using the proxy easy. Using PIA’s Port Forwarding function, I had faster downloads because my ISP didn’t throttle my speeds. Since the traffic was coming into a different port than the one I would typically use for downloading, my ISP couldn’t tell I was receiving large files. You can use PIA’s Port Forwarding to boost your speed while torrenting for fast, uninterrupted file sharing. It protects against threats during torrenting with its premium security features, including:
A no-logs policy so your activity isn’t recorded anywhere on its servers 256-bit military-grade encryption that keeps your data from being hacked WiFi protection to keep you safe from prying eyes A Split Tunnel feature so you can keep your torrenting client safe behind a VPN while other apps use a local connection.
The problem with PIA is that it doesn’t allow torrenting on its US servers as ExpressVPN does. But it’s easy to connect to a European server and use any of those for downloading. It has 35000+ servers in 83 locations, many of which are suitable for torrenting. You can get PIA’s 2-year + 4 months plan with its current discount of 83%. That means it only costs you $2.03 a month to be protected every time you torrent. With a 30-day money-back guarantee, you can try Private Internet Access without risk. Just contact PIA for a refund if it doesn’t work for you. After 2 weeks of using PIA, I asked to cancel using live chat. The representative asked if there was anything they could do to help me stay with the service but soon processed my refund. The money was returned to me 5 days later. Torrent easily with PIA
4. PrivateVPN — Port Forwarding Prevents P2P Blocks for Easy File Sharing
It’s easy to set up PrivateVPN’s port forwarding settings in your torrenting client to keep your ISP from blocking your downloads. I do this as it’s more secure since I use a different port to torrent than the one I usually use for internet traffic. Like PIA, you can use PrivateVPN’s port forwarding for faster downloads because your connection is private, and your ISP won’t throttle your speeds based on your internet activity. All of PrivateVPN’s servers allow torrenting, even in the US, so you can always find a server nearby to use for a faster connection. It’s also compatible with all major torrent clients. You can use the one you want for file sharing, and you’re protected from hackers who want to steal your information and send you malware. PrivateVPN worked with my client and provided a close-by server for my downloads that was reliable and easy to connect to. Private VPN’s security features keep your data and IP address private with the following:
Public WiFi protection so, whenever you’re on public WiFi, your IP is protected and your data encrypted DNS leak protection ensures that no one can see your IP when your torrent client connects to a server A kill switch protects you in the event your VPN cuts out as it halts your internet connection until you activate the VPN again.
One downside to PrivateVPN is its small server network. But during testing, all its servers worked great with no signs of overcrowding to make you lose speed when torrenting. You can get PrivateVPN monthly, but its 3-month plan is more affordable. The best plan is the 3-year plan at a 85% discount. You can get PIA for only $2.00 per month. With its 30-day money-back guarantee behind it, you can try PrivateVPN risk-free and protect yourself while torrenting. I tested the money-back guarantee by contacting PrivateVPN on day 21 to ask for my money back through email. The agent and I emailed back and forth a couple of times, and then they refunded my money. The amount reached my account 4 days later. Torrent safely with PrivateVPN
5. IPVanish — Deep Packet Inspection Prevention Keeps Your Torrenting Activities Private
IPVanish prevents deep packet inspection while you torrent so your ISP doesn’t spy on what you’re doing. With the VPN’s encryption, my ISP can’t see my personal information or what type of data I’m downloading. That means that your speed won’t be throttled, even while you download huge files. It comes with multiple security features to protect you while you torrent:
A range of apps to protect every device. You can use IPVanish on Android, iOS, Windows, and macOS, or add it to your router and protect your home network A strong no-logs policy to ensure no one gets your connection or download information Military-grade encryption with a strong cipher so no one can break into your data while you’re online.
Tests proved IPVanish delivers consistently fast speeds which are essential for torrenting. You only need around 5 Mbps to torrent without interruptions, but I had an average of over 300 Mbps using IPVanish’s global network. These speeds ensure rapid downloads so you can torrent efficiently without having to wait around for hours, and prevent any lag or buffering when you stream your downloaded public domain movies. The problem with IPVanish is that it doesn’t allow torrenting on its US servers. IPVanish is based in the US and must comply with the laws. However, it does allow P2P sharing on its other servers, and I had great results with each location I tested. IPVanish is available on a monthly plan, but that’s not the best deal. The 1 year plan is better at a cost of only $3.99 per month. That means you’re saving 66% on your subscription. You can try IPVanish without any risk with its 30-day money-back guarantee. If it’s not working for you, simply ask for a refund. IPVanish has the easiest cancellation process of all the VPNs I tried — all you need to do is click a button in your account dashboard. I put it to the test by going into my account settings and clicking on the “cancel” button. The refund was automatic and I had the money back in 4 days. Torrent fast with IPVanish IPVanish also unblocks: Netflix, Showtime, Discovery+, Paramount+, ITV Hub, ESPN, Vudu, and more.
How to Choose a VPN to Torrent Safely and Anonymously in 2023
I tested over 30 VPNs to find the best ones for torrenting safely and anonymously. Using the following criteria, I selected the top 5. Each of the best VPNs for torrenting has all of these requirements: Torrent safely with ExpressVPN
Comparison Table: 2023’s Best VPN’s for Safe Torrenting
P2P file-share with ExpressVPN
Warning! Avoid These VPNs for Torrenting
VPN Unlimited
VPN Unlimited will block torrenting on all US servers to comply with the law. It also has problems with IPv6 leaks, which can expose your identity.
Turbo VPN
Turbo VPN will terminate your account for torrenting. It also logs attempts to access its servers and will turn over documents to authorities if asked. TurboVPN may also sell your information to advertisers and third parties.
Opera VPN
Opera VPN doesn’t support torrenting and may sell logs of your torrenting activity to your ISP or other entities. Only encrypting what goes through your browser, this VPN lets your ISP see all downloading and other activities performed while using it. Opera VPN may sell its user’s information to advertisers
TorGuard VPN
TorGuard VPN was sued and now must block torrenting on its US servers. This is a problem with a lot of US-based VPNs. If you want to use one found in a more privacy-friendly territory, try ExpressVPN risk-free. It’s based in the British Virgin Islands and allows you to torrent on all its servers.
How I Tested and Ranked the Best VPNs for Torrenting
I tested 30+ VPNs thoroughly to see which ones were the best for torrenting. All of them had the following necessary features.
P2P support — All of the VPNs on my list have P2P support on many, if not all, servers. Strong security — with 256-bit encryption, a kill switch, and DNS leak protection, the best VPNs provide the security you need to torrent safely. No-logs policy — My recommended VPNs won’t log your browsing or connection data, so government entities can’t demand records of your activities. Fast speeds — for lightning-fast downloads with zero lag or buffering. Money-back guarantee — So you can try the VPN and make sure it works for you with no risk.
Of all the VPNs I tested with torrenting, ExpressVPN was the best overall. You can test ExpressVPN out for yourself and if you’re not satisfied, you have up to 30 days to claim a refund. Get fast downloads with ExpressVPN
Is torrenting legal?
It’s complicated. Torrenting public domain content is perfectly legal, and you can do it in as little as 3 simple steps. If copyright has run out, or if the material was created and distributed without a copyright, you can torrent all you want. Copyrighted material, which is most of what you’re going to find, is illegal to torrent. You could find yourself with a jail sentence of 10 years and fines above hundreds of thousands of dollars for downloading and distributing these files. I don’t condone illegal activities, so always torrent responsibly, even when you’re using a VPN.
Is torrenting with a VPN safe?
Yes, with one of the best VPNs to torrent safely and anonymously. Not all VPNs are the same, so make sure you use a secure, no-logs VPN with a kill switch. That way, you can maintain your privacy.
How do I hide my IP address when torrenting?
By using a VPN. You can torrent safely and anonymously with a VPN by ensuring it’s connected before you open your torrent client, or your IP address will be visible to everyone downloading from you. To easily hide your IP every time you torrent, just open the VPN, choose a server, connect, and start the torrent client.
Is it safe to torrent using phones and browsers?
Yes, if you use a VPN with them. There are many reasons why you should use a VPN for torrenting safely, and this applies to phones and browsers, too. You want to hide your IP address and keep your activity private, so make sure you use a secure VPN.
Can I use a free VPN to torrent safely?
Free VPNs aren’t recommended for torrenting. You want a premium VPN to torrent anonymously because the free ones have limited servers and bandwidth restrictions, and some don’t even support torrenting. So, even if you could share files, your data may run out in the middle of a download. Even worse, free VPNs are notoriously insecure. They may sell your personal information to marketers and third parties or log your activity to hand over to your ISP. You’re better off with a quality VPN, such as ExpressVPN.
Start Torrenting Safely and Anonymously With a VPN
Torrenting is a great way to get movie and music files quickly. But the only safe way to torrent anonymously is with a VPN. Otherwise, everyone can see your IP address, and you run the risk of picking up trackers and malware. The best VPN for torrenting is ExpressVPN, with its superfast speeds, top-notch security, and P2P-friendly servers. Try ExpressVPN for yourself, risk-free. It has a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can buy in confidence. Get the best downloads with ExpressVPN
