Wouldn’t it be great if every Virtual Private Network (VPN) service stored no logs of your internet activity?

Unfortunately, the reality is far from that and finding a service with a proven and reliable logging policy is next to impossible, right?

• Unclear logging policies
• Audit claims that don’t cover the entire service
• Sketchy company ownership

The great news is, it really doesn’t need to be this way.

There are reliable providers out there that have either had their privacy policies audited by third parties or had them proven in legal cases.

Inside this guide, you’ll learn which these are and ultimately which are the best at doing their job.

I’ll show you precisely the services you should be using if you value your online privacy and offer exclusive hints and tips on what to look out for when choosing.

So, are you ready to keep your online activity private? Let’s dive in.

Top No Log VPN Providers

We have tested all of the major VPN services and our top 7 recommended VPN services that keeps no logs are:

1. ExpressVPN – Number 1 recommendation
2. NordVPN
3. VyprVPN
4. PrivateInternetAccess
5. IPVanish
6. CyberGhost VPN
7. Surfshark

Below you will find more detail on why these VPNs have made it onto our list.

1. ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is a VPN service that has a proven no user log guarantee. It was tested a couple of years ago when they found themselves inadvertently caught up in the assassination of a Russian ambassador.

Turkish officials investigating found that a suspect had been using ExpressVPN, but ExpressVPN didn’t hand over any details because they didn’t have any. This is their no logs policy in action.

If that isn’t enough to convince you, ExpressVPN has also had an independent audit carried out by big six accountancy firm PriceWaterhouseCooper (PWC) which found no issues with the veracity of their claims or privacy policy whatsoever.

ExpressVPN is located offshore, in the British Virgin Islands, where there are no local laws requiring data retention or requirement to keep traffic logs. They also accept payment by bitcoin, which makes it possible to sign up almost entirely anonymously too.

Throw in some of the most robust VPN encryption on the market and you’re onto a winner with this zero-logs VPN service.

Robust features include DNS leak protection (against DNS queries), military-grade encryption, a kill switch as standard, unlimited bandwidth, a massive VPN server network with thousands of IP Addresses, good speeds, five simultaneous connections and their own DNS servers.

The also offer bonus privacy features, the ability to unblock almost all major streaming services, a great range of apps including for iOS and Android, reasonable prices, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.

ExpressVPN is our undisputed pick for the best Zero Logs VPN.

Our Recommended No Logs VPN Service

30-day money back guarantee

2. NordVPN

When it comes to no logs VPNs with a strong privacy policy, NordVPN is great. Their headquarters are in Panama, which is excellent because there are no local laws requiring them to retain any customer data or keep logs.

They take advantage of this and keep absolutely no user records beyond the names and card details of those who sign up.

A few years ago saw some rumours about NordVPN data mining. So firmly did it reject these accusations, that they have now commissioned the independent auditing of their security and their zero logs guarantee. PWC carried these out and once again gave a clean bill of health.

There are no court cases we are aware of that have suggested NordVPN keeps any data on their user activity whatsoever. You can also pay with Bitcoin if you want to ensure stronger privacy protection too.

NordVPN’s encryption is as strong as any with 256-bit encryption offered as standard. There are also multiple advanced security features and privacy features that you can use too, such as double VPN servers, selection of VPN protocols, VPN with Tor servers, DNS leak protection, and a kill switch.

The VPN company even provides dedicated servers that you can purchase, which is a nice feature to have available.

NordVPN combines this near-perfect privacy protection with six simultaneous connections, a vast amount of servers with thousands of IP Addresses, great apps including iOS and Android devices, 24/7 live chat support, and fast internet connection speeds. It can unblock almost all streaming services too.

If you want privacy, look at NordVPN. It has some of the lowest prices around too and with a 30-day money-back guarantee on offer. NordVPN is one of the best no-log VPN providers, it’s a great option for privacy-conscious VPN users looking for a no-logs policy VPN.

Not even your internet service provider will know what you’re doing while using this mostly anonymous VPN.

3. VyprVPN

VyprVPN was one of the first VPNs around which had its no logs policy independently verified. Their independent audit proved that VyprVPN has a strict no-logs policy.

VyprVPN’s rapid improvement in this area is a testament to how seriously they take user privacy these days. We certainly have no hesitation in recommending them as a secure and private VPN provider.

VyprVPN currently owns its own server network. This is great as it means no third party companies are involved in the process.

This renewed focus on privacy hasn’t come at the expense of any other areas of their service either. VyprVPN still offers decent connection speeds, excellent security features, a kill switch, NAT firewall, a reasonable VPN server network, and strong 256-bit military-grade encryption.

There is a 30-day money-back guarantee available. VyprVPN is headquartered in Switzerland which has some of the best privacy laws in Europe. They won’t store any of your data on this no logs VPN.

VyprVPN is one of my favourite no logs VPNs, you’ll love them too.

4. Private Internet Access

Private Internet Access (PIA) is another VPN that offers a zero logs policy guarantee. They are adamant they keep absolutely zero logs such as no IP logs.

This no-log VPN hasn’t yet conducted any independent audits which we would like to see. PIA has however been subpoenaed in multiple court cases and not coughed up any information. This strongly suggests that their zero logs policy is correct and they don’t hold any information about their users.

PIA’s is headquartered in the USA. This is a country that doesn’t have the best data retention laws in the world. Crucially, those laws that are already in place are yet to be applied to VPNs so, for now at least, Private Internet Access is fine.

They offer a huge 10 simultaneous connections which is one of the largest on the market. You’ll be able to make a secure internet connection with this mostly anonymous VPN.

There is a 30-day money-back guarantee and you can pay for Private Internet Access using a massive range of methods including privacy-friendly Bitcoin and even anonymous gift cards.

Their encryption is as strong as anything on the market and their overall service is pretty impressive too with decent speeds, a kill switch, port forwarding, and a good network of servers.

PIA is one of the best no-log VPNs out there. You can rest assured that their mostly anonymous VPN has got your back with their strict no logs policy, not even your internet provider will know what you’re doing online.

5. IPVanish

IPVanish is regarded as one of the best privacy-focused no-log VPNs on the market.

They are planning on independently auditing to prove this but at the time of writing, this has not yet been conducted.

IPVanish is located in the USA which comes with the same pros and cons as some others.

They do offer impressively strong encryption as standard, and their all-around service includes unlimited simultaneous connections, fast speeds, a huge range of VPN servers, a kill switch, and a vast network of servers, which is excellent.

There are plenty of bonus features available on this no logs VPN like protection against DNS leaks and a kill switch. They’re not quite the fastest and their apps look a little dated so it’s not all positive.

They do not accept payment by Bitcoin, which is a shame and something we would like to see them add. But there is now a 30-day money-back guarantee and we are still confident that IPVanish is a strong contender on the no logs VPN list.

6. CyberGhost VPN

CyberGhost VPN is based in Romania, a location that has both pros and cons and claims to be a zero-logs VPN.

It is inside the EU which is far from ideal, not least because it links them to a number of the 9 Eyes and 14 Eyes information-sharing alliance countries. But domestic laws are still fairly strong and CyberGhost VPN appears to have robust privacy protections in place and a strong logging policy.

These have not been tested in court as far as we are aware and they are yet to conduct an independent review like some of the other VPN providers on this list. However, we have scrutinised their privacy policies in some detail and are satisfied with what we have seen there.

CyberGhost VPN has also invested in their infrastructure in recent years too meaning they have very strong encryption, good connection speeds, protection against DNS leaks, and some nice extra features too.

The CyberGhost VPN apps are exceptional. They are very easy to use, especially for novice VPN users, and available on most devices too. CyberGhost VPN is competitively priced and comes with a huge 45-day money-back guarantee.

Another top-quality, privacy-friendly VPN.

7. Surfshark

Surfshark is a new VPN provider to the market and claims to be a no-logs VPN with a logging policy that backs up their declaration.

Surfshark is based in the British Virgin Islands, an offshore location with great local laws that means it can offer some of the best user-privacy protections, including a no logs policy and not share your data with any third party.

It hasn’t run any independent audits on its logging claim yet and its age means there haven’t been any court cases for it to point towards either. Scrutiny of its logging policy and privacy policy actually does raise a few issues since Surfshark does collect more information than we would ideally like to see.

Quite simply it is all too vague and they appear to log far more information than they need to.

This is a shame as it detracts from an otherwise excellent VPN that comes with other little perks like unlimited simultaneous connections, low prices, and a 30-day money-back guarantee. It also has a wide range of impressive apps that are all packed with features yet still provide an easy to use experience.

An impressive package but there is more work to be done before Surfshark will climb any higher up this list.

How to choose a ‘No Logs’ VPN

If privacy is your top priority, then it is essential to research your Virtual Private Network thoroughly before signing up to use a VPN.

This is because just about every VPN will claim to offer a no logs policy, but the truth is that some of these guarantees are far more dependable than others.

In this section, we are going to offer some tips on how to identify a reputable no user logs VPN guarantee from one that is little more than a hollow promise.

The key features you should be looking out for are:

A no user log guarantee

The first thing to look for is whether your VPN is offering a no user log guarantee or not.

The majority will make the claim even if it is a shaky one. If the VPN you are looking at makes no such claim, this almost guarantees that it will be hoovering up your internet traffic.

This type of VPN is definitely best avoided.

Minimal additional data retention

Keeping zero logs of your internet activity and internet traffic is crucial but this is not the only data that VPNs can collect. Some will legitimately claim a no user log guarantee, but still, collect a huge amount of information and metadata about your activities.

This can include information as diverse as your actual IP Address, the IP Addresses you were using, the times that you logged on and logged off, how much data you used, which servers you connect to and so on.

This information can corroborate other data about your IP Address or your activity available elsewhere and reveal a great deal about your online activity to government agencies, a hacker or other third parties.

Users should be wary of VPN providers that collect too much of this type of data.

Independent Audit

A more recent trend for VPNs serious about their online privacy provisions is to get an external auditor to test their systems and processes to prove that their no user log guarantee is watertight.

These are generally carried out by either specialist systems analysts or major accountancy firms.

There are only a few VPNs that have taken this step so far, but more are following their lead and such independent audits are well worth looking for since they ensure that the claims a VPN service is making are credible.

Criminal Case history

A good test of how robust a no-logs policy is is to see whether data from their users have turned up in court cases.

Courts and law enforcement agencies will often request data from VPNs when IP Addresses owned by them are connected to a case.

A reputable VPN will say they have no data about your information usage to share, but some will cough up information to a court or a government which reveals a lot about what information they are retaining about you.

All of the cases like this we are aware of are referenced in our VPN reviews.

Strong encryption

Be sure your VPN offers robust encryption to make sure your data won’t be compromised while travelling between servers.

256-bit Encryption on a secure protocol like OpenVPN or WireGuard is the least you should be accepting.

Jurisdiction

The laws are different in every country and some countries require VPNs based there to keep far more information than others.

Look for a VPN that is based in a country and under a government with minimal data retention requirements.

Offshore locations like the British Virgin Islands and Panama are ideal.

Payment by Bitcoin

If you genuinely want your VPN usage to be completely private, you will need to make payment by a crypto-currency such as Bitcoin.

Bitcoin is one of the few genuinely semi-anonymous payment options which means there is no record that you even have an account with your VPN service (assuming you use an anonymous email address to register).

Almost all VPNs will keep some records of payment so if you are using a credit card, it will be possible to determine that you have a VPN account with a specific provider.

Not all VPN providers offer Bitcoin payments, but some do and if privacy is your priority, it is worth seeking out.

What does a No Logs Guarantee actually mean?

A no logs guarantee is a promise from a VPN provider that it will not collect any information about its users’ internet usage or share the VPN traffic data with third parties.

VPNs offer privacy and security features to their users but this is all built on trust since you are sending all of your information through their servers.

A disreputable VPN, like a free VPN we see on the market, will collect up this data and sell it for profit to anyone willing to pay.

This does not deliver online privacy so the premium VPNs that charge for their service will usually promise not to do this.

A no-logs policy should mean your VPN provider keep no records of any website you visit, the messages or emails that you send, the files you are downloading, or what you are doing online.

If they are based in some countries, this can be hard since there are legal obligations for providers of online services like VPNs to keep records of what their users are doing for a minimal amount of time.

Australia is perhaps the most prominent example of this but the UK has similar laws in place too.

Whether VPNs fall under such rules is open to debate and is yet to be tested in the courts, but if privacy is your priority, it is best to choose a VPN located in a country where there are no such risks such as the British Virgin Islands or Panama.

What are logs?

When using a VPN, logs are essentially a record of what you have been doing online.

The best VPN keeps no logs whatsoever about this and if asked to disclose details by a law enforcement agency or a court, will have nothing to reveal.

There are two main types of log and it is worth distinguishing between the two since one type is far worse than the other.

Usage Logs

These are a record of any website that you visit while using a VPN and what you are doing while you are there. They’re often referred to as ‘Network Traffic Logs’.

If you are using an email service or an online messenger service, it can also include the contents of the messages you are sending too.

Needless to say, details like a website you visit is all private and sensitive information that no VPN user wants to be logged. If your VPN provider is collecting this type of information, ditch them now and choose one of the VPN providers we have recommended in this guide instead.

Connection Logs

Connection logs is a term used to refer to the metadata that a VPN can sometimes collect about your online activity. These are often called ‘Connection Timestamps’.

It doesn’t include the content of what you are doing online but can include sensitive session information like your actual IP Address, the IP Addresses you were using, the time that you connected and disconnected from the service, the amount of data you used during your session and so on.

This information might not seem important but it can reveal a lot about what you were doing especially if combined with other information such as details from any website you were using.

Do VPN services keep logs?

Due to the type of service that a VPN is, it means that keeping some logs is inevitable.

These are often automatically generated by the hardware and infrastructure that a VPN uses. The key for a privacy and security-focused VPN is how much effort they go to minimise and remove this information to ensure they can legitimately claim their service is a no-logs VPN.

For example, ExpressVPN has recently switched to running all of its services from RAM.

This means that even if any logs were generated (and ExpressVPN’s third-party audit proves that they aren’t) that data wouldn’t be stored locally on servers that someone else could access. Making them the best out of the no-log VPNs on my list.

How can I trust a VPN service’s no log claims?

The truth is that any VPN can claim to offer a no user log guarantee and unless you have the access and technical knowledge to check their systems, you have no real way of knowing.

The reality is that some claims are far more dependable than others. As we have seen, a growing number of VPNs are commissioning independent audits to confirm their no data logs promise.

An audit involves a specialist data security firm looking at their code and systems and checking to see that they are indeed keeping no data logs. An audit is perhaps the single best way to know if a no logs claim is genuine.

Check Feedback

Feedback and reputation is another good way. A website like ours has a lot of experience testing VPNs, scrutinising their logging policies, on top of a vast knowledge of the industry.

We’ve been around 8 years which makes us practically old age in this industry so have seen a lot.

If there are doubts about a provider, we will know and we will not hesitate to tell you.

Court cases are also an important pointer. If a VPN’s user data appears in a court case, there are automatically questions for that provider to answer. We keep a close eye on such stories and always report them back to our readers.

Lastly, a good barometer is to look at how long a VPN has been around. Most VPN users insist on a dependable no user log guarantee.

At the first hint that such a guarantee is not what it seems, many customers run for the hills and that provider is usually not around much longer.

If your provider has been in the market for a long time, it is a reasonably safe bet that their no user log guarantee is a genuine one.

Is VPN really untraceable?

This is a tricky question to answer.

A VPN is a hugely effective tool at helping you to avoid becoming a victim of mass surveillance. It stops the likes of your internet service provider, Google, and an average hacker from being able to access your data, see your IP Address, and harvest your personal information.

But a VPN does not make you 100% anonymous online.

If you are a target for the National Security Agency, GCHQ, or the Chinese Communist Regime, there are still ways to track you and it would be naive to think that a $5 a month security tool will protect you.

But it will definitely make their job an awful lot harder and for the average person, a VPN provides more than enough online security features and privacy protections.

Are ‘free’ VPNs no logs?

In a word, no.

A free VPN has to make money from somewhere and the most readily available asset they have is the data of their users. Selling this is the way that many ‘free’ VPNs generate money and even if they claim to have a no user log guarantee, a look at the fine print often reveals the truth.

There is a growing body of data that links many free VPN apps back to Communist China too where local laws require companies to retain all user data such as your real IP address and hand them over to the regime.

Add in the frequent use of advertising revenue as well and it is fair to say that the number of free VPNs that offer a no logs promise you can even remotely take at face value can be counted on one hand.

The true figure is probably none.

Best free no-log VPNs

1. PrivadoVPN

PrivadoVPN are a no-log Virtual Private Network that offers a free service that you can use to unblock websites all over the world.

As their business is registered in Switzerland, your data is protected by some of the world’s strongest privacy laws. As PrivadoVPN say “your online activity will remain nobody’s business but your own”.

They offer some excellent privacy features such as IP leak protection, a built-in kill switch and malware protection.

However, there are limitations to the free VPN service. You’ll only have access to 12 server locations which pales in comparison to ExpressVPN who offer you connections in over 160 locations globally.

You’ll also only be able to connect 1 device at a time to the VPN service, with a 10 GB data cap on your usage each month. ExpressVPN on the other hand offers 5 simultaneous connections and has unlimited bandwidth on its VPN service.

10 GB of data is OK for general browsing the internet or reading emails, but isn’t suited for streaming high-quality video from the likes of Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, and more, which ExpressVPN excels at.

2. ProtonVPN

ProtonVPN is one of the best free VPNs around that offer a no-log service. They are based in Switzerland which means they are protected by some of the world’s strongest privacy laws.

They’re also outside of US and EU jurisdiction, and not a member of any surveillance coalitions such as the 14 eyes. This is great news for your private data.

ProtonVPN have great security features such as AES 256 bit encryption, strong protocols, a built-in kill switch, and they protect your DNS queries.

With their free subscription, you’ll get access to 23 servers in 3 countries which is extremely low compared to NordVPN that offers 5,278 servers in over 60 countries. This huge difference will limit your ability to access blocked content online such as regionally blocked streaming services.

Your connection speed will also be capped to what ProtonVPN state as “medium-speed”, this won’t be suitable for streaming video or downloading files. NordVPN on the other hand offers some of the world’s fastest connections.

3. Windscribe

Last on my list is Windscribe, they’re another VPN provider that offers a free version of their no-log VPN service.

Windscribe is a zero log service, but they do keep some data on the total amount of bandwidth you used and when you last logged on. This is to keep track of how much data you’ve used.

They provide apps for most of the common devices such as Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and more. The apps look pretty good and are straightforward to use.

While it does have some nice features, it is held back by some of its limitations. One of the main setbacks is the extremely low data cap (2GB per month) which will just about be enough to read through emails and a few blogs, but not much more.

They also had a pretty serious security blip recently which is worth considering.

When you compare this to the likes of VyprVPN which have no data caps, then the difference is staggering.

They also only offer you access to 10 servers and charge $1 for every additional server you want to add (with a minimum of $2 per increase). This can soon add up, especially when VyprVPN charges just $1.63 per month for access to over 700 servers worldwide.

Does ExpressVPN really keep no logs?

Out of all the no log VPNs mentioned above, ExpressVPN is one of the best no-log VPN services on the market. Their claim should be believed as they’ve had some historical cases pop up over the last few years that have proved they don’t keep any logs or user data.

They were even independently audited by the third-party company PwC to increase transparency in the VPN industry, and to prove ExpressVPN’s claims. PwC found that ExpressVPN doesn’t keep any logs, which is exactly what you want to see from a leading VPN.

If you look at a court case regarding the assassination of a Russian ambassador in 2017, it appeared that ExpressVPN had been used in an attempt to delete conversations that are linked to the crime. When asked to hand over VPN connection data, ExpressVPN couldn’t as they don’t keep any.

Currently, there are no known cases of ExpressVPN handing over any user data or logs, and with them being headquartered in the British Virgin Islands, they’re out of the jurisdiction of the US, EU, and other governing bodies.

The bottom line is, ExpressVPN is one of the safest VPN companies around that have a proven track record of not keeping logs.

Does NordVPN really not keep logs?

NordVPN has been independently audited by one of the world’s biggest and most reliable auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers AG who are based in Switzerland. It was found that they don’t keep any logs on their users such as VPN connection data, sites visited, etc.

At the moment it appears that there haven’t been any known cases of NordVPN handing over any logs (as they don’t have any to hand over, to begin with), this is exactly what I like to see from a VPN provider and it’s precisely what you need.

NordVPN is registered in Panama, which is good news for you. There are no mandatory data retention laws in Panama, and they don’t participate in the 5 eyes or 14 eyes surveillance alliances.

If you want a secure VPN provider, you won’t go wrong with NordVPN.

In Summary

Most VPN providers claim to offer a strict zero-logs policy (no customer connection logs, server logs, personal data logs, etc), but as we have seen some are much more dependable than others.

In this article, we have delved into the VPN world to identify the seven providers who offer the best no-log VPNs service, the most robust logging policies, and all the overall privacy protections that you want.

ExpressVPN is the provider that has come top of the pile for storing no logs. They are priced very reasonable and come with a long money-back guarantee as well as not sharing your information with any third party.

If you want to do your research, we have also offered some pointers on how to identify whether a no-logs policy is worth any more than the paper it is written on.

There are a lot of VPNs on the market and sadly, many of them are keen to get hold of your cash without offering you the level of service you want.

If online privacy matters to you and you want to keep your online data safe, you need one of the no-log VPNs mentioned above that don’t store user logs and are covered by a strict zero-logs policy.

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