Our Testing Methodology

Our Review Process: Real-World Testing for Real People

Our approach is hands-on and rigorous. We don’t just skim the surface; we dive deep. Whether it’s a VPN, password manager, or any other cybersecurity tool, we put each product through its paces in scenarios just like the ones you face every day. Our goal is to extract genuinely useful information that speaks directly to your needs and concerns.

Rigorous Testing

When we test and review each product, we spend a minimum of 2 weeks testing every feature, determining the consistency of its performance, and evaluating the service as a whole.

Tiered Fact-Checking

Every word on our site undergoes 3 levels of checks before publishing to ensure that every article is fair, accurate, and aligns with our strict editorial standards.

Our Core Ranking Criteria: VPNs

Security and Privacy

We only recommend VPNs with industry-standard security features including 256-bit AES encryption, a no-logs policy, a kill switch, and leak protection. We also consider advanced security features like perfect forward secrecy, RAM-only servers, independent audits and transparency reports, an advanced kill switch and/or app-based kill switch, and more.

Speed

VPNs inherently slow down your internet speeds because they encrypt your data and send it over a longer distance. Still, good VPNs minimize the speed loss you notice, even with data-heavy activities like streaming, downloading, gaming, and video-chatting. We test the VPN on local and distant servers, check ping and latency, test streaming and P2P speeds, and more.

Customer Support

VPNs can be complicated for beginners, and you may have questions that need answering. We make sure the VPNs we recommend have comprehensive customer support systems in place, including live chat, email support, in-depth support libraries, and more. We also evaluate how helpful the customer support reps are.

Intuitive Apps

We test the functionality of the VPNs’ apps and make sure they’re easy to use, available for all major devices and operating systems, and are feature-rich.

Server Network

VPNs should have a large server network so you can connect to a variety of countries and find a nearby server in your own country. We make sure that the VPNs we recommend have servers in at least 50 countries. We also look for a high number of servers so there’s less overcrowding.

Extra Features

The basic purpose of a VPN is to encrypt your traffic and change your IP address, but that’s not all they should be able to do. There are many extra features available with VPNs, like specialty servers, split-tunneling, obfuscation, and more.

Overall Value

Since VPNs are usually long-term services, it’s important that they’re affordable. We look at a number of factors to determine the value a VPN provides, such as number of simultaneous device connections, price, and a money-back guarantee, among others.

Our Core Ranking Criteria: Password Managers

Security Options

We only recommend password managers that meet the minimum or industry standard for security, including 256-bit AES encryption, two-factor or multi-factor authentication, reliable account recovery options, and zero-knowledge structure.

Features

Password managers should be able to store your passwords, generate highly secure passwords, auto-fill and auto-save your passwords, and enable password sharing. We only recommend password managers that have these essential core features.

Apps

We only recommend password managers that have simple, user-friendly apps for all major devices. We also look for browser extensions.

Extra Offerings

Good password managers usually go the extra mile to offer their users extra features to help secure them online. We look for things like encrypted file storage, dark web monitoring, emergency access, password auditing, automatic password changers, and more.

Customer Support

It’s important that the password manager has great customer support options, like live chat, a support library, email support, set-up guides, phone support, and more. We also look for a money-back guarantee and how easy it is to request and receive a refund.

Our Testing Methodology

Our Review Process: Real-World Testing for Real People

Our Core Ranking Criteria: VPNs

Our Core Ranking Criteria: Password Managers

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