Hotspot Shield icon
Hotspot Shield icon

Hotspot Shield

 357 likes

Secure your digital life with a fast VPN offering encryption, anonymity, and access to global content. Hotspot Shield provides free and unlimited versions with no-logs policy, malware protection, support for multiple devices, and a broad country network.

Hotspot Shield screenshot 1

License model

  • FreemiumProprietary

Application type

Country of Origin

  • US flagUnited States

Platforms

  • Mac
  • Windows
  • Linux
  • Android
  • iPhone
  • Android Tablet
  • iPad
  • Google Chrome
  • Android TV
  • Fire TV
  • Microsoft Edge
3.4 / 5 Avg rating (16)
357likes
25comments

Features

Suggest and vote on features
  1.  No Tracking
  2.  Ad-free
  3.  Dark Mode
  4.  No Logs
  5.  Online Anonymity
  6.  Access blocked content
  7.  Open API

 Tags

  • unblock-websites
  • hulu-outside-us
  • video-outside-us

Hotspot Shield News & Activities

Highlights All activities

Recent News

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Recent activities

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Hotspot Shield information

  • Developed by

    US flagAura
  • Licensing

    Proprietary and Freemium product.
  • Pricing

    Subscription ranging between $8 and $13 per month + free version with limited functionality.
  • Rating

    Average rating of 3.4 (16 ratings)
  • Alternatives

    219 alternatives listed
  • Supported Languages

    • English
    • Arabic

AlternativeTo Category

Security & Privacy

Apple AppStore

  •   Updated May 17, 2025
  •   4.57 avg rating
View in AppStore

Our users have written 25 comments and reviews about Hotspot Shield, and it has gotten 357 likes

Hotspot Shield was added to AlternativeTo by Filip on Apr 10, 2009 and this page was last updated Apr 28, 2025. Hotspot Shield is sometimes referred to as Hotspot Shield VPN, HS.

Comments and Reviews

   
 Post comment/review
Comment summary: Hotspot Shield has received mixed feedback. Many users criticize the free version for its intrusive ads, data privacy issues, and slow speeds. Some report it being flagged as malware by antivirus software and having background processes difficult to remove. While the service is praised for unblocking geo-restricted content, it is noted to lack genuine protection for privacy. Positive reviews highlight its easy installation and use, especially on mobile, but call for better updates to enhance security and functionality.
Top Positive Comment
infiniteinfinity
Jan 13, 2018
1

Best free vpn ever! it's support any platform and you can just use it without any payment with good speed and no limited bandwidths. good design, very simple and stable connection. it has everything you need even in free version!

Top Negative Comment
setgid0
Feb 14, 2018
3

About me: I'm an ethical hacker and cybersecurity expert. Do NOT use this VPN.

Yes, it may be "free", but do you know how a VPN works? Think of this VPN like a free man-in-the-middle attack inflicted on yourself, with the added benefit of slower internet speeds.

Does this protect you at all? Answer: No, none what-so-ever.

Pros: it's FREE!

Cons: it sniffs, records and logs all of your internet browsing (and net activity central to the kernel that you don't even understand how sensitive it is.) It adds in ADs and trackers, many of witch attempt exploitation vectors to infect your device. It slows down your internet, it has control over parts of the Android (and iOS) operating system that it shouldn't, it sells all of your personal info along with your device's CPU power and bandwidth... there may be a few others here as well. But hey, it's FREE!!!

If you want a REAL VPN with actual encryption, anonomity protection, elmination of ADs and trackers via DNS and a zero logging policy (as proven by court documents) just pay up the $40/year and get PIA (https://alternativeto.net/software/private-internet-access/). They are an excellent company with a great product at a fair price.

Note: I am NOT in any way affliated with PIA or any company for that matter.

lionking420
Jul 10, 2022

Heath this man's words people, as it should be applied to any "free" vpn in question, on any platform. To understand, you must know how much money and maintenance is actually involved in running a server center capable of running tens of thousands of VPS instances (the least needed to be somewhat available to all as a fast-ish proxy). If a company offers a free service, it is assumed that the majority of customers will then elect to not pay. Ask yourself, is it even realistic to assume a company has a business model that is just ok with catering to thousands for free?

fscottelisberg
Dec 18, 2024
-1

No "Free" version currently offered on the official website.

TBayAreaPat
Jul 18, 2024
-1

Free Version.. This is proving to be a great VPN to me :-) Got past IP block Extra nice thing is the guidance.. like telling load. https://www.hotspotshield.com/free-vpn/

Sam Lander
Jun 12, 2024
0

Full of ads, not trustworthy (not open-source and no good privacy policy).

You are basically giving the data to some other company rather than your ISP.

So the only two good uses for this are to download things you shouldn't be downloading (but not anything greater than mere piracy), and bypassing fascist government censorship.

Maybe, and just maybe it would be useful for connecting to an unsecure wifi network. But I would get a trusted VPN in that case, such as Mullvad or Proton.

Guest
Oct 18, 2020
-2

I have never experienced the dark web so I'm trying to access a source so I can view the dark web

Shoji
Sep 9, 2018
-1

Connect automatically to best location with detailed statistic such as speed, bandwidth, number of sites unblocked

Show more comments
7 of 25 comments

What is Hotspot Shield?

Hotspot Shield is a security software that encrypts your online connection, protecting against potential threats from hackers and cyber criminals. It allows users to bypass geographical restrictions and access global media, apps, and networks by encrypting all traffic. The software hides the user's IP address, identity, and location, ensuring privacy and security. It offers a free version with basic features and an Elite version with unlimited features. Powered by Aura, Hotspot Shield provides VPN coverage from 20 countries and does not keep any logs of its users, ensuring their security and privacy.

Official Links

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