Windscribe VPN review 2024: Cost, features and more
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BLUEPRINT
Updated 5:57 p.m. UTC Jan. 3, 2024
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Our take
Windscribe VPN service is widely compatible with a range of devices and offers a basic free plan for limited use.
Windscribe
Pros
- Free plan available with limited features.
- Build your own plan for $1 per location per month.
- Reasonably priced monthly plan.
Cons
- Smaller network of supported countries than some competitors.
- Month-to-month plan is expensive.
- No live support.
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Windscribe VPN review 2024
Windscribe is a VPN provider based in Canada, offering private browsing on a wide range of supported devices. Windscribe balances the cost of its annual plan and “build your own plan” well with its available VPN features. It even offers a free plan, though you must pay for access to all of its features. However, its service is pricey if you opt for a monthly plan, and it’s one of the slower VPN offerings on the market today.
The free plan is excellent, but you may want to keep shopping around if you’re looking for the fastest and most robust VPN from a paid provider. While it’s not the fastest VPN, it works well on various devices with customizable settings, including support for computers, browsers, smartphones, smart TVs, routers or through your preferred VPN software compatible with the most common protocols.
Featured VPN service offers
NordVPN
Free plan
No
Cheapest monthly plan
$12.99
Download speed (average)
235 Mbps
Surfshark
Free plan
No
Cheapest monthly plan
$15.45
Download speed (average)
263 Mbps
Private Internet Access (PIA)
Free plan
No
Cheapest monthly plan
$11.95
Download speed (average)
124 Mbps
Windscribe VPN overview and facts
You’ve likely never seen an advertisement for Windscribe VPN, and that’s by design. The company doesn’t have a marketing budget and aims to grow by offering a freemium model, where users can start for free and pay to upgrade to a premium-level service.
Past users rate the service highly. It currently holds a 4.8-star rating with more than 8,000 reviews on Trustpilot. With the Better Business Bureau (BBB), it holds an A- rating with only six complaints in the past three years. However, Windscribe’s responses to BBB complaints are somewhat snarky, which doesn’t make its customer service look very good. But if you’re tech-savvy and can handle everything independently, you should be up and running quickly without help.
It’s not a service perfect for everyone, but it can be a bargain if you’re looking for a free option for minimal use or a customized plan where you pay per location.
Windscribe VPN pricing
| PLAN | MONTHLY COST | DATA LIMITS |
|---|---|---|
Free
| $0
| 10 GB with verified email address
|
Build A Plan
| $3 per month minimum
| Varies
|
Pro
| $9 per month with a monthly plan or $5.75 per month with an annual plan
| Unlimited
|
ScribeForce
| $3 per user (5 users minimum)
| Unlimited
|
You can get started with a free account including 10 gigabytes (GB) per month of data transfers and a limited subset of server locations after confirming your email address – before confirming your email, you get 2 GB per month. With the build-your-own-plan model, you pay $1 per location with a minimum cost of $3 per month, but not all features are included.
With the Pro plan, you can access unlimited data and all servers. With five or more users, you can upgrade to a business plan, which is basically a discounted version of Pro for businesses.
Free
The free plan is a great starting point for new users, as you can test out the service without commitments. You’ll initially get 2 GB of data, then 10 GB per month if you verify your email address. The free plan is limited to 10 countries out of more than 60 supported. It’s okay for email and web browsing, but won’t be sufficient for working online or streaming.
Build A Plan
The Build A Plan option enables you to pick and choose which countries you want to use. The minimum cost is $1 per location for three locations or $3 per month. You can mix and match to get more server locations, unlimited data and access to the advanced filtering tool called R.O.B.E.R.T. The low-end option here is extremely cheap for VPN access, though if you find yourself paying at least $6 per month, you’re better off upgrading to Pro.
Pro
The Pro plan includes everything Windscribe has to offer, including access to all servers in all locations with unlimited data. It also includes full access to R.O.B.E.R.T., a customizable domain and IP blocking tool that blocks ads and trackers, specific IP addresses and full genres of sites, such as gambling and social networking sites. The Pro plan costs $9 per month when paid monthly or $5.75 per month when paid annually.
ScribeForce
Businesses with at least five users should consider the ScribeForce plan. ScribeForce includes everything from the Pro plan at $3 per user per month. Beyond the discounted rate, ScribeForce stands out as a business solution because it includes team management tools and shared static IP addresses.
Windscribe VPN plans
| PLAN | STARTING PRICE | NUMBER OF LOCATIONS | DATA LIMITS |
|---|---|---|---|
Free
| $0
| 10 countries
| 10 GB with verified email address
|
Build A Plan
| $3 minimum
| $1 per location
| Varies
|
Pro
| $9 per month with a monthly plan
| 69+ countries
| Unlimited
|
ScribeForce
| $3 per user (5 users minimum)
| 69+ countries
| Unlimited
|
Free
With a 10 GB monthly limit, the free plan is suitable for new users looking to try out Windscribe to see how it works and those with relatively low data transfer needs. While email and web browsing should easily fit within 10 GB per month, video streaming would likely blow through that limit quickly. This isn’t a free trial. It’s available indefinitely.
Build A Plan
With the Build A Plan, you can mix and match features and only pay for what you use. This plan is best for international users looking for a VPN with a low budget and computer wizards looking for specific VPN needs by device or location.
Pro
If you want a VPN for daily use, the Pro plan is the best choice. Due to pricing, the annual subscription is the best deal. With the Pro plan, you have unlimited data access across all of Windscribe’s available server locations. Windscribe’s Pro plan would be a good fit for entrepreneurs and small business owners looking for a VPN only for themselves.
ScribeForce
If you work on a team of at least five, ScribeForce is your best option. At a reasonable price of $3 per seat per month with a five-seat minimum, you can share unlimited VPN access with your entire team using the ScribeForce plan.
Windscribe add-ons and optional features
Windscribe’s business model doesn’t include add-ons. Instead, it offers plans that include its full feature set or a build-your-own plan option that allows you to choose exactly what features you want. Business owners may appreciate this service model for its transparency and lack of upsells.
Windscribe customer support and experience
Most customer support issues with Windscribe VPN are handled using self-service features. Windscribe offers an extensive help section where you can find answers to common questions and find guides to getting started.
Phone support is unavailable, and chat support is only from a bot. The only way to reach a human for support is through an email form. Account and technical support have different forms to handle your questions by department. Response times may vary.
Windscribe vs. NordVPN
| COMPANY | LOWEST PLAN COST PER MONTH | HIGHEST PLAN COST PER MONTH | AVERAGE DOWNLOAD SPEED | NUMBER OF SERVERS | NUMBER OF COUNTRIES | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Windscribe | $0.00 | $9.00 | 100 Mbps | Hundreds | 69 | |||||||
| ||||||||||||
 NordVPN | $3.79 | $14.99 | 235 Mbps | 5,000 | 60 | |||||||
|
If you’re shopping around and want to compare Windscribe versus the giant NordVPN, your decision should come down to cost and data needs. Windscribe offers plans that may be cheaper in some situations, notably the free and build-your-own plan options. However, according to our tests, NordVPN offers an average download speed that’s twice as fast. For performance with paid plans, NordVPN is a much better choice. But you may pay a bit more, depending on the plan you choose.
For comparable unlimited plans, Windscribe charges $5.75 per month annually and NordVPN charges $4.49 per month annually or $3.79 per month when paid every two years. However, if you opt for a monthly plan, NordVPN is among the most expensive on our Best VPNs list.
Windscribe vs. Surfshark
| COMPANY | LOWEST PLAN COST PER MONTH | HIGHEST PLAN COST PER MONTH | AVERAGE DOWNLOAD SPEED | NUMBER OF SERVERS | NUMBER OF COUNTRIES | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windscribe | $3.00 | $9.00 | 100 Mbps | Hundreds | 69 | |||||||
| ||||||||||||
 Surfshark | $1.99 | $19.99 | 263 Mbps | 3,200 | 100 | |||||||
|
Surfshark is an impressive competitor with a larger network of servers, more supported countries and cheaper plans if you choose a long-term option. Windscribe is better for its free plan and a cheaper month-to-month plan. But in other cases, Surfshark is the better option.
When you pay for Surfshark annually, it’s $3.99 per month. When paid every 24 months, you’ll pay just $1.99 per month. That’s around the price of Windscribe’s cheapest build-your-own plan option with minimal features and cheaper than other Windscribe plans. For most business users, Surfshark’s faster speeds and lower costs when paid long-term make it the more desirable VPN.
Read our full Surfshark review for more information.
Is Windscribe VPN right for your business?
For business users, Windscribe may be a reasonable choice. If you’re a solo business owner who wants VPN protection for your daily browsing, the Pro plan is affordably priced and should meet your needs. However, it’s one of the slower VPNs we tested, so power users may not be thrilled with the results.
If you’re looking to get a VPN for your team and employ at least five members, the ScribeForce plan may be appealing. Starting at $9 per month when billed monthly, it’s an affordable entry-level VPN with unlimited data and access to all VPN locations.
For those on the fence, there’s no cost to sign up for the free plan to give Windscribe a try. While it’s limited to 10 countries and 10 GB of data per month, it’ll give you an idea of whether the VPN’s speed performance will meet your needs.
Methodology
We extensively research the key competitors within an industry to determine the best products and services for your business. Our experts identify the factors that matter most to business owners, including pricing, features and customer support, to ensure that our recommendations offer well-rounded products that will meet the needs of various small businesses.
We collect extensive data to narrow our best list to reputable, easy-to-use products with stand-out features at a reasonable price point. And we look at user reviews to ensure that business owners like you are satisfied with our top picks’ services. We use the same rubric to assess companies within a particular space so you can confidently follow our blueprint to the Best VPNs.
Featured VPN service offers
NordVPN
Free plan
No
Cheapest monthly plan
$12.99
Download speed (average)
235 Mbps
Surfshark
Free plan
No
Cheapest monthly plan
$15.45
Download speed (average)
263 Mbps
Private Internet Access (PIA)
Free plan
No
Cheapest monthly plan
$11.95
Download speed (average)
124 Mbps
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Windscribe doesn’t offer a free trial. Instead, it features a free plan with no time limits. The free plan is limited to 10 GB of data per month and won’t give you access to all of the VPN’s features, but it’s a great way to test out the service.
Windscribe is based in Toronto, Canada. While the main operations are in North America, Windscribe manages VPN servers in more than 60 countries worldwide. Some users may want to avoid a VPN based in Canada due to its inclusion in the five eyes, a group of countries known for intelligence sharing. Ultra privacy-focused users may prefer a VPN operating outside of the five eyes jurisdiction – Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Windscribe operates servers in more than 60 countries and 110 cities. Supported locations in the free plan include the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, France, Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, Norway, Romania and Turkey. Paid users can connect to dozens of additional locations.
Windscribe is extremely secure. It implements the latest VPN protocols and doesn’t log any customer activity, regardless of your plan. Windscribe hosts its own servers with no tracking or analytics of any kind and never sells customer data.
Windscribe supports the popular OpenVPN, IKEv2 and WireGuard protocols. If you’re looking to use your own VPN software, Windscribe offers a tool to generate configuration files in a couple of clicks. You can also use Windscribe for popular operating systems and devices through its default software.
The fastest and simplest connection is through the browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox and Microsoft Edge. Other Chromium browsers, such as Brave and Vivaldi, should also work with the Chrome extension. You can also download and log into the apps for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android and several smart TVs and compatible routers.
Windscribe doesn’t keep any logs of customer activity. With a strict no-log policy, your web browsing and other online activity are completely private when you’re connected to Windscribe.
Windscribe ranks on the lower end of speeds, averaging 100 megabytes (Mbps) for downloads and 183 Mbps for uploads. Our minimum and maximum upload speeds were 3 Mbps and 190 Mbps, respectively, indicating spotty performance depending on when and where you connect.
Windstream VPN works with most computers, smartphones and other devices. If you install Windscribe VPN on your home or business router, all traffic is encrypted regardless of the device you use.
Blueprint is an independent publisher and comparison service, not an investment advisor. The information provided is for educational purposes only and we encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific financial decisions. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
Blueprint has an advertiser disclosure policy. The opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Blueprint editorial staff alone. Blueprint adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. The information is accurate as of the publish date, but always check the provider’s website for the most current information.
