AirVPN vs Proton VPN

Side-by-side comparison based on Reddit & Twitter discussions

Community Pick

Proton VPN

Based on community sentiment and discussions

Approval Rate
85%
28 recommend · 5 warn
Data Quality
High
Reviews
38
Reviewers
28
Best for:
Torrenters who specifically need port forwarding Privacy-focused people who want minimal tracking and anonymous payment options Linux users and home-lab folks using Docker, Gluetun, Sonarr, or similar tools People who like tweaking settings and having more control
AirVPN has a strong reputation online as a privacy-first VPN that gives you a lot of control. People especially like it for torrenting because it still offers port forwarding, which can help you conne...
Approval Rate
71%
493 recommend · 203 warn
Data Quality
High
Reviews
1,012
Reviewers
836
Best for:
People who want a good free VPN that doesn’t feel sketchy Privacy-focused users who like the Proton ecosystem Folks who want optional anonymous payments Everyday users who want a reliable VPN for general browsing
Proton VPN has a solid reputation as a privacy-focused VPN, and a lot of people like it because it feels trustworthy and reliable day to day. The free plan gets praised a lot as one of the better “act...

Performance by Use Case

Use Case AirVPN Winner Proton VPN
Streaming 0% (2) 74% (64)
Torrenting 90% (12) 74% (37)
Privacy 100% (12) 67% (397)
Censorship - 60% (73)
Gaming - 44% (9)
Travel - 83% (7)
Work - 100% (3)
Router - 67% (4)
Mobile - - 100% (2)
Price - 73% (52)

AirVPN

Strengths

  • Port forwarding for torrenting
  • Privacy-focused and no trackers
  • Anonymous payment options
  • Lots of control and advanced settings
  • Linux-friendly for tinkerers

Weaknesses

  • Can be complicated to set up
  • Speeds can feel inconsistent
  • Not a simple app experience
  • Split tunneling (like excluding Plex) can be a headache

Proton VPN

Strengths

  • Strong privacy reputation
  • Best-in-class free tier
  • No-logs and audit-focused image
  • Anonymous payment options
  • Good reliability overall

Weaknesses

  • Can be slower than competitors
  • Port forwarding can be annoying for torrenting setups
  • Auto-connect behavior can be frustrating
  • Not everyone trusts it as much as top privacy rivals