Atlas VPN comes with a free plan that doesn’t limit the amount of bandwidth you can use or the speeds you can get. The plan doesn’t have any ads either, and the only major restriction is that you can only connect to three locations: New York, Los Angeles, and Amsterdam. But as you would expect from a free VPN, you won’t be able to stream on Netflix, and you won’t get maximum speeds as there are many users on the free servers.
Atlas VPN makes it easy to get started as you only need an email address and a payment method. You can then download the app for your devices(s). Atlas VPN provides apps for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS. To log in, the VPN’s system will send you a verification code. We installed the VPN on several devices, starting with the Windows app. After logging in, the app gives you a list of all servers and a connection button on the right. There’s also a menu bar on the left.
Atlas VPN doesn’t offer live chat support, and the main way of reaching out to the team is through their support email. While testing the support, we were impressed as we received a reply after just 35 minutes. Apart from their email support, there’s also Twitter, Instagram, Discord, and Facebook. The Discord channel is quite active, and they even give out a premium code every Tuesday for free users to enjoy the premium service.
Atlas VPN comes with several features and functionalities.
Streaming is one of Atlas VPN’s biggest strengths. The VPN’s entire server network has been optimized to access streaming services, which is not something most VPNs have done. You can use the VPN to stream on Netflix, Disney+, BBC iPlayer, Prime Video, and many others.
The VPN edges out most of the competition by providing multiple Netflix catalogs. During our tests, we were able to access Netflix US, Canada, UK, Netherlands, Germany, Spain, France, and Australia.
Atlas VPN comes with a kill switch to enhance privacy and security. The feature works by blocking your internet connection whenever your VPN connection is lost or disrupted. This is important as it prevents accidental exposure to websites or servers that you are accessing. Note that the Atlas VPN kill switch only works when you’ve not disconnected deliberately.
Safebrowse is a feature that is meant to boost security by blocking malicious websites. The functionality is enabled at the DNS level, and this ensures that sites you visit do not break. The feature is known as Safebrowse Plus on iOS and macOS as it has been equipped with ad-blocking capabilities. It’s not available on Windows at the moment.
The Atlas VPN Android and iOS apps come with a feature that lets users check whether their email address has been involved in a data breach. The feature uses the haveibeenpawned database, and while the website is free, having the feature on the apps makes users more conscious of breaches.
Atlas VPN is quite generous when it comes to the number of devices you can connect simultaneously. While most VPNs offer 5 connections, Atlas VPN doesn’t limit the number of devices you can use.
Atlas VPN is based in the US, which is not a good jurisdiction for a VPN. Nevertheless, the VPN tries to offer good levels of privacy by stating that they are a no-logs VPN, and they do not collect your IP address or store any data about what you while connected to the VPN. This is good to see as the VPN won’t be able to share your usage data even during a legal process. However, the VPN will still have other data such as your city (not precise location) and device details.
As for security, Atlas VPN encrypts all data using the recommended AES 256-bit standard. This means that no government or hacker can intercept your data. The encryption is combined with IPSec/ IKEv2 on various devices. To assess whether Atlas VPN leaks user information, we conducted several tests to check for IP, DNS, and WebRTC leaks. We were glad to find that Atlas VPN doesn’t leak any user information.
Atlas VPN comes out as a decent and capable VPN. However, the VPN is still in its early stages, and it currently lacks advanced features. Nevertheless, its simplicity makes it ideal for novice users and others who would like a simple way of protecting their privacy and security. It is also a great option for streaming and torrenting fans as it doesn’t impose any restrictions, and the whole server network is optimized for streaming.
