Getting started

How easy is it to set up and use the service?

VPNs can be a hassle to set up, and providers typically don’t give much help to Linux users. So we’ve deliberately selected more Linux-friendly services. We tried out each provider, assessing details like the sign-up process, installation, and any special setup involved. We also looked at any clients provided, checked their setup tutorials, and tried them out in real-world situations to test their usability.

If you’re an old VPN hand then you might not care much about that, especially if you’re thinking of just installing a standard such as OpenVPN. But even in that situation there’s a chance you’ll need at least some configuration advice, so we also scored the provider’s “Getting started” pages and tutorials for their quality and detail.