Is the proton vpn free tier any good? (sh.itjust.works)

submitted 1 week ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Didn't even know they had a free tier until yesterday. Is it any good? I've been using it with no issue on low data situations.

Yes, I know about the original dev political issues.

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[-] [email protected] 11 points 1 week ago

Since it's free, huge number of people are using those servers. You will get a lot of captchas and many sites outright block all those IPs.

Trustworthy? I am okay with them, but if I need something more private I'd use Tor.

If you're considering spending any money with them, I'd say go with Mullvad, since it would be cheaper. If you want all Proton's services bundled, they can be good.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 21 hours ago

Mullvad is definitely the way to go for privacy. They don't even require an email to sign up, just generate an account number and pay. You can literally mail them cash in an envelope if you want to be completley anonymous.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 1 week ago

I heard good things about mullvad. I will get a paid version when I have more need for it. I had thought free versions didn't exist previously . But I don't trust it fully

[-] [email protected] 2 points 1 week ago

If you're into torrenting, paid Proton VPN is one of the best.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 1 week ago

I used to be, I kind of do want to get back into it. I worry more about malware and viruses now though.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 1 week ago

Well, not torrenting games and software and you're pretty sure to stay virus free.

For games you'd have to find some uploader who you trust.

[-] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago

They run some very good deals on their paid service. On Black Friday last year I got two years of service for $75.

[-] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago

They claim to have port forwarding, something i learned was untrue after purchasing. They also don't offer refunds.

For torrents i recommend airvpn. For privacy i recommend Tor / Tails.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 1 week ago

They have port forwarding, though.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 1 week ago

Not in Linux containers, not that i could get working. If you have a working config could you please share it.

I tried for two days and gave up, it's (or was ) non conventional with some cli that did not work in an alpine container or arch. AirVpn worked immediately.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 1 week ago

Port forwarding is trivial in the desktop client. I haven't dipped my toe in the self hosting waters (yet), so I can't speak to that area.

[-] [email protected] 0 points 1 week ago

That was the issue i hit. I torrent in containers so that was a big deal for me.

[-] [email protected] 4 points 1 week ago

The do traffic analysis and will block you if you do something scummy.

Not that they shouldn't. But keep in mind.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 1 week ago

If they can still block you, how does anyone torrent?

[-] [email protected] 3 points 1 week ago

On the free-tier torrenting is not allowed, on the payed vpn its ok

[+] [email protected] -10 points 1 week ago

If you're not the paying customer, you're the product being sold

[-] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago

No. You really should apply context. This isa very clear example of a limited service that's meant to convince you to buy the full offering.

[-] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Sometimes it's free to make you lock into their ecosystem.

Once you have an account with them, there is less of a barrier to solve a problem you have by purchasing their service, especially when you feel like you got a lot of value for free from that company.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 1 week ago

If you are a paying customer, it still doesn't mean you are not being sold as a product to someone else. This saying is too commonly spread and it's just a fallacy.

Also, there's very simple and straightforward examples of how even if you aren't a paying customer, you are not the product.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 1 week ago

It's a heavily limited free tier to promote their paid offering, in this case I don't think that phrase is accurate.

this post was submitted on 23 Jul 2025

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