Proton VPN
VPN with a real Linux app and a free plan that has no data limit.
Our verdict
Proton VPN is the one VPN with a Linux app that feels finished. It has a normal window, a server list, a kill switch and a connect button, which is more than most VPN companies bother with on Linux.
The free plan is worth knowing about. It has no data cap and no time limit, but it connects one device at a time to a small number of countries, and streaming services and file sharing are reserved for paying users.
Two caveats. Proton officially tests only the latest Debian and Ubuntu with the GNOME desktop, so on other distributions you may be on your own if something breaks. And the version on Flathub is built by the community from Proton's open code rather than published by Proton, which is a small but real difference.
What's good
- Free plan with unlimited data, which almost no other VPN offers
- Proper window with a map and a connect button, not a command-line tool
- The app code is open, and the company publishes independent audits
What to know first
- Official support covers only the newest Debian and Ubuntu releases with the GNOME desktop
- The Flathub package is community built and not an official Proton release
- Free plan is one device, a handful of countries, and no streaming or file sharing
The details
- Cost
- Free with paid extras
- Open source
- Yes (GPL-3.0)
- How you install it
- .deb installer, .rpm installer, App store (Snap), App store (Flatpak)
Windows apps it can replace
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