Best Free VPN services for France (Get a French IP Address)

Best VPN for France
Written by: Per-Erik Eriksson

There are many reasons to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN). VPNs are popular in France because of the added privacy and enhanced security they offer when online. Beyond that VPNs can help you access content that may otherwise be geographically restricted such as TV channels from another country.

There is a staggering choice of VPN services available so we’ve done the hard work and looked at some of the best options to use in France.

In case you don't want to read the entire article, here’s a quick summary of the best VPN services according to our independent tests and research:
  • NordVPN Best VPN for general work and entertainment purposes. I found it to be reliable, high-speed, and easy to set up, and it's one that I use daily for work.
  • ProtonVPN (Free Version) Proton is often referred to as the single most trustworthy company in the VPN business. They focus on security over anything else and offer the best free VPN available. This is the company behind ProtonMail.
  • CyberGhost VPN was voted as the best gaming VPN for 2023 and is one of the cheapest VPN services among the whole top 10.

Best France VPN 2023

RANK
BRAND
DEVICES
STATS
DOWNLOAD
1
NordVPN Logo
6

6 simultaneous devices.

  • Fastest VPN 2023
  • Servers: 5300+
  • Countries: 60+

WHY I LIKE NORDVPN NordVPN has long been regarded as one of the strongest brands in cybersecurity. With one of the largest server offerings on my list and support for most, if not all operating systems, making NordVPN an obvious choice for many. They have 24/7 customer support if you need help getting started. Their app is one of the most well-designed apps I have ever used. NordVPN even accepts cryptocurrencies as payment for extra anonymity.

2
Surfshark logo

Unlimited simultaneous devices.

  • Best Cheap VPN 2023
  • Servers: 3200+
  • Countries: 65+

WHY I LIKE SURFSHARK: Surfshark VPN is perfect for those who want a cheap and reliable VPN that also has many extra features. "Camouflage Mode" hides your usage from your ISP, "Kill Switch" suspends your connection and protects your information if you temporarily lose Internet access, "MultiHop" to connect from multiple countries at the same time just to name a few. My favorite feature of Surfshark is "Whitelists" which allow the user to exclude specific apps and programs from the VPN connection.

3
Cyberghost VPN Logo
7

7 simultaneous devices.

  • Best Torrent VPN
  • Servers: 7400+
  • Countries: 91+

WHY I LIKE CYBERGHOST CyberGhost VPN is the first choice of many other cybersecurity experts, and the reason is clear; they have the most complete VPN service. An incredible number of extra features that are best suited for the more advanced users but also work flawlessly for every-day purposes like P2P-filesharing. Cyberghost VPN also has the longest stretching money-back guarantee at a full 45 days.

4
Private Internet Access VPN Logo

Unlimited simultaneous devices.

  • Best Netflix/Streaming VPN
  • Servers: 35500+
  • Countries: 84+

WHY I LIKE PIA VPN: PrivateInternetAccess is at the top of my streaming tests, which is a great combination with their easy-to-use UI, Open-Source software and built in adblocker. PIA is also perfect for those who want to be able to pay with PayPal which for some reason, many other VPN services do not support. 30-day money-back guarantee, multiple Netflix libraries, and extremely affordable are the three main selling points for this VPN service.

5
Atlas VPN Logo

Unlimited simultaneous devices.

  • Robust/Security focused
  • Servers: 750+
  • Countries: 43+

WHY I LIKE ATLAS VPN: Atlas VPN is one of the best new free VPN services. With the free version, you get unlimited data, no ads and zero logging. During my speed tests, Atlas VPN performed very well and could compete with mainstream services. Kill Switch, Ad-blocker, and P2P support all included with a regular subscription, which is incredibly cheap for such a robust service.

6
ProtonVPN Logo
10

10 simultaneous devices.

  • Best Free VPN 2023
  • Servers: 1713+
  • Countries: 63+

WHY I LIKE PROTONVPN: ProtonVPN is based in Switzerland and is most known for their e-mail service ProtonMail. They currently offer the safest free VPN services on the market. There is also support for TOR usage and P2P file sharing. I highly recommend ProtonVPN if you are intending to do some extensive online sharing. It goes without saying that Proton does not collect logs of any kind and is completely safe to use.

7
PrivateVPN Logo
10

10 simultaneous devices.

  • Best VPN for Gaming and Streaming
  • Servers: 200+
  • Countries: 63+

WHY I LIKE PRIVATEVPN: PrivateVPN is the strong underdog in the world of VPNs. With a shy number of servers, it is evident that they are focusing on quality over quantity. Overall, PrivateVPN is a very decent choice of VPN, especially if you had enough of the excessive advertising by some of the other more known brands in this list. Setting up the VPN requires extremely little intervention, and you can even pay with Bitcoin.

8
ExpressVPN Logo
49%
DISCOUNT

30 day money-back guarantee.

  • Best Mobile VPN app
  • Servers: 3000+
  • Countries: 94+
9
Orchid VPN Logo
$4.99
One-time fee.

~60GB

  • Pay for that you use
  • Unlimited devices
  • Pay in Crypto
10
Hotspot Shield VPN Logo
77%
DISCOUNT

45 day money-back guarantee.

  • Fastest free VPN
  • Servers: 3200+
  • Countries: 80+
11
ZoogVPN Logo
85%
DISCOUNT

7 day money-back guarantee.

  • Great free VPN
  • Servers: 1000+
  • Countries: 26+
12
OVPN Logo
68%
DISCOUNT

10 day money-back guarantee.

  • Best reputation
  • Servers: 91+
  • Countries: 17+
13
Trust.Zone Logo
76%
DISCOUNT

No money-back guarantee.

  • Best new VPN
  • Servers: 202+
  • Countries: 41+
14
iTop VPN Logo
79%
DISCOUNT

15 day money-back guarantee.

  • Great adblocker included
  • Servers: 1800+
  • Countries: 20+
15
Speedify Logo
66%
DISCOUNT

30 day money-back guarantee.

  • 5 devices simultaneously
  • Unlimited usage
  • 50+ locations
16
HideIPVPN Logo
70%
DISCOUNT

30 day money-back guarantee.

  • Unlimited traffic
  • Up to 1 Gbps
  • Free trial
17
VeePN Logo
85%
DISCOUNT

30 day money-back guarantee.

  • 10 devices
  • Unlimited bandwidth
  • Countries: 60+
18
HideMy.name Logo
50%
DISCOUNT

30 day money-back guarantee.

  • 5 devices
  • Free trial
  • Countries: 45+
19
UTunnel.io Logo
$5.00 /user

14 day free trial/money-back guarantee.

  • Simple Cloud VPN Setup
  • Site-to-site VPN Tunneling
  • Easy Server & User Management
20
BullVPN Logo
32%
DISCOUNT

No money-back guarantee.

  • 2 devices
  • Countries: 28+
  • Locations: 100+
21
SymlexVPN Logo
67%
DISCOUNT

7 day money-back guarantee.

  • 5 devices
  • Locations: 65+
  • 24/7 live support
22
iProVPN Logo
80%
DISCOUNT

30 day money-back guarantee.

  • 10 devices
  • Countries: 20+
  • P2P Optimization
23
SecureVPN Logo
66%
DISCOUNT

Basic, advanced, and pro plans.

  • Countries: 22+
  • Locations: 36+
  • 24/7 live support
24
Hola VPN Logo
79%
DISCOUNT

30 day money-back guarantee.

  • Best multi-device VPN
  • Servers: 1000+
  • Countries: 200+

A good VPN provider gives you a secure channel to the internet. Encrypting your data stops would-be hackers from getting access to your personal information and makes it impossible for anyone to see which websites you are visiting.

As you would expect, almost all VPN suppliers offer 24×7 customer support with online step-by-step help and FAQs. Additionally, some will offer live chat and telephone support round the clock.

The best VPN providers have ‘kill switch’ technology which gives you ultimate protection in the event of any connectivity issues.

Most VPNs will give you the facility for ‘split tunneling‘ which is a way of accessing the internet directly and through the VPN side by side. So, for example, if you were downloading a movie to your tablet and doing some banking you might choose to use the secure VPN for the financial transaction and the movie download on the standard internet link. That means you can optimize the speed of both activities.

We have reviewed the VPNs against all the aforementioned features and in addition, looked at the following criteria to come up with our shortlist

  • Reputation, customer reviews, service
  • Number of countries they cover (including France of course)
  • Costs

NordVPN

Nord VPN New Logo

NordVPN is one of the most popular on the market. Based in Panama, they are not subject to any laws which would mean they have to retain data about customer activity. That gives you the assured privacy you want from a VPN supplier.

  • Good reputation for service and reliability
  • Cover 59 countries with over 5000 servers
  • Connect up to 6 devices
  • 30-day money-back guarantee

PrivateInternetAccess VPN

Private Internet Access VPN New Logo

Owned by UK register Kape Technologies but headquartered in the USA, PIA is subject to USA data retention mandates.

  • Good reputation for reliability – some questions over USA data laws
  • Cover 84 countries with ‘next generation servers
  • Connect up to 10 devices
  • 30-day money-back guarantee

ProtonVPN

ProtonVPN Small Logo

Swiss-based Proton first developed this VPN to give protection to people at risk in countries with repressive regimes. People like journalists and activists were given anonymity and security through the use of the service

  • High ethical standards
  • Nearly 2000 servers in 63 countries.
  • Free-to-use option for a single device and with limited servers

Surfshark

Surfshark Small Logo

Registered in the Netherlands, Surfshark is part of the Cyberspace company which owns Nord VPN. However, the two businesses operate independently.

  • Reliable. Online chat only, no telephone support.
  • Over 3200 servers in 94 countries.
  • Unlimited devices
  • Great budget options
  • 30-day money-back guarantee

FAQ

What is an IP address?

This is a code that tells the internet where you are.

Is torrenting legal in France?

First of all, we should explain the term torrenting as used when we are talking about uploading or downloading a data file. Strictly speaking, a torrent is a tracker file that monitors where your download file is. However, in common parlance, people refer to ‘torrenting’ to describe when the uploading or downloading itself. If you want to download a television program, movie, music, or book you will use ‘torrenting’.
Torrenting is completely legal in France. However, if you download or share anything that is subject to copyright, you may well be acting illegally. Torrenting things which have no copyright is unrestricted.

Should I use a free VPN or is it better to pay?

The answer to this isn’t straightforward. It really depends on what you one from your VPN. Hopefully, this article will have shown you the things to look for. One consideration is how many devices you want to be connected to at any time. If you simply want to use the VPN for a couple of banking transactions each week then perhaps a free one is okay. However, it’s a truism that you get what you pay for and you may find free services are funded by lots of online adverts or, worse, your data is sold to third parties. The VPN provider is in business to make a profit for its shareholders after all.

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