StrongVPN 2024 Review: 5 Cons and 4 Pros

by Vít Nováček
updated January 1, 2024 (Report a bug)

1. StrongVPN Doesn’t Store Logs and Works in China

   • It has a low number of servers in operation (950)
   • It is compatible only with basic platforms
   • The average download speed is 65 Mb/s, and the upload speed is 16 Mb/s only
   • StrongVPN is based in the USA, which is a member of the 5 Eyes alliance
   • It cannot block ads, malware, or trackers

   • It offers the ability to pay via Alipay
   • Supports StrongDNS feature
   • The service can be used in China
   • The scramble feature allows you to hide VPN usage.

   StrongVPN is one of the products of the American company Strong Technology, LLC. Its US location may raise concerns among some users since the country is a member of the 5 Eyes alliance. Although StrongVPN does not log user activity and stores only a minimal amount of data, it must release the information to higher authorities if required.

   A disadvantage of StrongVPN is the relatively low number of 950 servers, which can cause below-average transfer rates. The average download and upload speeds for StrongVPN were 65 Mb/s and 16 Mb/s, respectively, in repeated tests.

   The level of compatibility is also considered weak, as StrongVPN lacks browser add-ons or direct support for smart TVs or Linux. Among commonly used features, StrongVPN does not provide ad blocking, malware, or tracker blocking.

   As one of the few private networks reviewed, StrongVPN supports payments via Alipay. Also of interest is the StrongDNS feature, which improves StrongVPN‘s ability to unblock streaming services. The scramble feature makes it possible to hide that the user has an active VPN connection.

   A significant competitive advantage is the ability to connect to some StrongVPN servers from China.

   Before ordering StrongVPN, we recommend comparing its parameters with the best VPNs in the rankings, such as NordVPN and Surfshark.

2. StrongVPN Subscription: Discount Code, Free Trial, Money Back Guarantee…

   • Your Price: $10.99​67% off  $3.67 /mo (12 devices)
   • Money Back Guarantee: Yes (30 days)
   • Free Trial: No
   • Cryptocurrency payments:
     No

     Bitcoin :No
     Dash :No
     Ethereum :No
     Ripple :No

   

   6.4

   ★★★

   The service was able to unblock all streaming platforms and can disguise the VPN as regular traffic. Downsides include a low number of servers and applications only for basic platforms.

   $3.67 /mo  ​30-day money back guarantee

   Get this VPN 67% cheaper

   StrongVPN is available as a monthly and annual subscription. In terms of content, the two options are identical, differing only in price. The price of the less favorable option with monthly billing is $10.99, while if you pay for a year in advance, you pay $3.67 per month only with StrongVPN.

   Both subscription options automatically renew at the then-current price when they expire. Subscriptions can be terminated at any time in the account settings.

   Annual subscriptions to StrongVPN are subject to a money-back guarantee within 30 days of the license purchase. Refunds are requested through customer support by filling out a simple form. The money-back guarantee is not conditional on anything; no reason needs to be given.

   A trial version of StrongVPN is not available.

   When registering for a user account, an email address and password are required, then a preferred subscription length must be selected. Payment can be made with debit and credit cards, PayPal, or Alipay. Cryptocurrency payments are not supported by StrongVPN.

3. StrongVPN and Supported Devices: Android, iOS, macOS…

   • Device limit: 12

   Platforms supported

   • Android:
     Yes

     Android is supported by 98 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Android TV:
     No

     Android TV is supported by 36 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Apple TV:
     No

     Apple TV is supported by 18 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Fire TV:
     Yes

     Fire TV is supported by 43 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Chromebook:
     No

     Chromebook is supported by 20 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Chromecast:
     No

     Chromecast is supported by 16 % of reviewed VPNs
   • iOS:
     Yes

     iOS is supported by 99 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Kodi:
     Yes

     Kodi is supported by 21 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Linux:
     No

     Linux is supported by 61 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Mac:
     Yes

     Mac is supported by 98 % of reviewed VPNs
   • NAS:
     No

     NAS is supported by 24 % of reviewed VPNs
   • nVidia Shield:
     No

     nVidia Shield is supported by 14 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Playstation:
     No

     Playstation is supported by 20 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Raspberry Pi:
     No

     Raspberry Pi is supported by 17 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Roku:
     No

     Roku is supported by 16 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Router:
     Yes

     Router is supported by 53 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Windows:
     Yes

     Windows is supported by 100 % of reviewed VPNs
   • xBox:
     No

     xBox is supported by 20 % of reviewed VPNs

   Browser Extensions

   • Brave :
     No

     The Brave browser add-on is offered by 43 % of reviewed VPNs.
   • Chrome :
     No

     The Chrome browser add-on is offered by 43 % of reviewed VPNs.
   • Edge :
     No

     The Edge browser add-on is offered by 21 % of reviewed VPNs.
   • Firefox :
     No

     The Firefox browser add-on is offered by 34 % of reviewed VPNs.
   • Opera :
     No

     The Opera browser add-on is offered by 43 % of reviewed VPNs.
   • Safari :
     No

     The Safari browser add-on is offered by 0 % of reviewed VPNs.
   • Vivaldi :
     No

     The Vivaldi browser add-on is offered by 43 % of reviewed VPNs.

   With a single subscription, StrongVPN can be used on a maximum of 12 devices simultaneously. For most users, this number is quite sufficient.

   The StrongVPN application is available for Windows and macOS desktop devices, but alternative Linux is not supported. The mobile app can be downloaded for both Android and iOS devices.

   Among TVs and media devices, Fire TV and Kodi are directly supported. Direct support for Playstation and Xbox game consoles, Raspberry Pi computers, or smart NAS storage is missing.

   With support for router-based traffic, all devices connected to the same network can be easily secured. In terms of the quota allowed, the router counts as just one device. Detailed instructions for setting up the router are published on the StrongVPN website.

   Browser extensions are not offered by StrongVPN.

4. StrongVPN App: User-friendliness, whitelist, server selection…

   • App Languages: 🇺🇸 English +1 more🇪🇸 Spanish
   • Whitelisting:
     Yes

     Whitelisting is supported by 52 % of reviewed VPNs

   Downloading and installing the app was easy. In case of complications, the links to install the app on the StrongVPN website come in handy, where instructions are published separately for each platform.

   The interface of the application is clear, and even less experienced users will have no problems navigating it. After launching, the window for connecting to the server opens first; other functions and settings options are accessible via the bottom bar. One of the few options for custom configuration is the choice of server. In the application, you can manage subscriptions, enable selected features, and contact customer support.

   A useful feature is Auto-connect to automatically start the app when the device boots and Auto-reconnect to restore the VPN connection in case of an outage. StrongVPN supports a whitelist, in which you can select apps and websites for which the VPN is always automatically activated.

   You can either choose a server manually from the menu or leave the choice up to the app, which will choose the fastest one currently available. The list of servers is sorted by location and can be filtered for better orientation. After a successful connection to the VPN, a red-bordered “Disconnect” button is displayed for quick disconnection, along with the current IP address, server location, and a stopwatch showing the connection time.

   The StrongVPN application is only available in English and Spanish; no other languages are offered. You can choose a light and dark theme for the app or override the device settings.

5. StrongVPN Connection Speed: Upload, Download & Latency

   • Traffic limit: Unlimited

   Download speed

   Higher is better. The average download of all tested VPNs is 115 Mb/s.

   Upload speed

   Higher is better. The average upload of all tested VPNs is 81 Mb/s.

   Server latency

   A lower value is better. The average response rate of all tested VPNs is 48 ms.
   Paying users of StrongVPN are not limited in the amount of data transferred. This is standard for fee-based VPNs.

   The speed of establishing a connection to the VPN was average; even with the choice of application server, there was no significant reduction. The connection was stable with no dropouts during testing with StrongVPN.

   Measured transfer speeds were below average in comparison to other VPNs tested.

   The download speed reached an average value of 65 Mb/s in repeated measurements, which is sufficient for normal use and allows playing a 4K video stream.

   An upload speed of 16 Mb/s, while passable for normal internet use, is insufficient for torrenting or bulky file sharing purposes.

   The server’s responsiveness reached an average value of 34 ms in the tests, which is within the limit for smooth gaming without annoying lags. For response speed, as opposed to download and upload, lower is better. The best VPNs tested have even lower values; for example, CyberGhost VPN had 11 ms, and we measured 11 ms with Private Internet Access.

6. StrongVPN Server Locations

   • Number of servers:
     950

     The average number of servers for the reviewed VPNs is 1699.
   • Number of countries:
     42

     The average number of countries available for the reviewed VPNs is 41.

   Europe	🇧🇪 Belgium 🇨🇿 Czech Republic 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇪🇪 Estonia 🇫🇮 Finland 🇫🇷 France 🇮🇪 Ireland 🇮🇹 Italy 🇱🇹 Lithuania 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 🇩🇪 Germany 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇱 Poland 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇦🇹 Austria 🇷🇴 Romania 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 🇷🇸 Serbia 🇪🇸 Spain 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇨🇭 Switzerland 🇹🇷 Turkey
   North America	🇨🇦 Canada 🇨🇷 Costa Rica 🇲🇽 Mexico 🇺🇸 USA
   South America	🇧🇷 Brazil 🇦🇷 Argentina 🇨🇱 Chile 🇨🇴 Colombia 🇵🇪 Peru
   Asia	🇮🇳 India 🇮🇱 Israel 🇯🇵 Japan 🇰🇷 South Korea 🇲🇾 Malaysia 🇸🇬 Singapore 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates 🇹🇼 Taiwan
   Africa	🇿🇦 South Africa
   Oceania	🇦🇺 Australia

   StrongVPN operates 950 servers in 42 countries around the world.

   Servers from StrongVPN are available on all continents, with the largest number traditionally in Europe. Among the countries available are the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, and South Africa. Among the less common ones are Luxembourg, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Peru.

   In countries with prevalent state censorship, StrongVPN has servers in the United Arab Emirates and Turkey.

   All features offered are available on all servers. StrongVPN does not operate any servers optimized for, for example, torrenting or gaming.

   The number of available servers is lower compared to other VPNs. For example, NordVPN runs 5,813 servers, Proton VPN Plus has 3,064. However, the number of servers is not a fully indicative parameter of the quality of service; it depends on their configuration and load relative to the number of active users.

7. StrongVPN Security Features: DNS Leak Protection, Kill Switch…

   • DNS leak protection :
     Yes

     DNS leak protection is offered by 92% of the reviewed VPNs.
   • Kill Switch:
     Yes

     Kill Switch is supported by 87% of the reviewed VPNs.
   • Multi-Hop:
     No

     Multi-Hop connection is offered by 20 % of the VPNs reviewed.
   • Tor:
     No

     Tor support is offered by 19 % of the reviewed VPNs.

   StrongVPN has implemented DNS protection, and no leaks occurred during our testing.

   An important feature of StrongVPN is the kill switch, which disconnects the device from the Internet if the connection to the VPN server is lost. This prevents the user’s location and real IP address from being revealed. The kill switch is available in Windows and macOS apps.

   Missing among the advanced security features is multi-hop, which routes connections through two different VPN servers simultaneously. While this allows for a higher level of privacy, the trade-off tends to be a lower transfer rate.

   StrongVPN supports Wireguard, IKEv2, L2TP, OpenVPN UDP, and OpenVPN TCP protocols. The good news is that it supports Wireguard, a modern and fast protocol that is gradually becoming the standard for VPNs. While NordVPN, AdGuard VPN, and some other services are strengthening security levels by developing their own protocols, StrongVPN has none.

   All transmitted data is protected by 256-bit AES encryption, which is considered very secure.

   Traffic on the Tor network is not supported by StrongVPN.

8. StrongVPN & Streaming: Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime…

   • Amazon Prime:
     Yes

     Amazon Prime streaming is supported by 52 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Disney+:
     Yes

     Disney+ streaming is supported by 53 % of reviewed VPNs
   • HBO:
     Yes

     HBO streaming is supported by 57 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Hulu:
     Yes

     Hulu streaming is supported by 49 % of reviewed VPNs
   • Netflix:
     Yes

     Netflix streaming is supported by 67 % of reviewed VPNs
   • YouTube:
     Yes

     YouTube streaming is supported by 97 % of reviewed VPNs

   StrongVPN is good for streaming video.

   In our test, the service was able to unblock foreign streams from Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus, HBO Max, Hulu, and BBC iPlayer. The stream was able to play on all of the servers offered, and credit goes to the StrongDNS feature.

   There were some issues when playing 4K content, for which a minimum download speed of 50 Mbps is required. In our tests, StrongVPN measured an average download speed of 65 Mb/s. When playing in 4K, we struggled with stuttering and loading content at times; after connecting to the nearest server, there was a slight improvement. When playing in full HD, playback was smooth.

   Some platforms systematically block VPNs to prevent content from playing in countries that don’t hold copyright. In such situations, disconnecting and reconnecting to the VPN can help by changing the IP address to another that may not be on the block list.

   For smooth playback of 4K streaming video, we recommend preferring Surfshark or NordVPN, which have sufficient speed for this purpose.

9. Features of StrongVPN: AdBlock, Static IP…

   • Blocks Ads:
     No

     Ad blocking is offered by 44 % of the VPNs reviewed.
   • Blocks Malware:
     No

     Malware blocking is offered by 33 % of the VPNs reviewed.
   • Blocks Trackers:
     No

     Trackers blocking is offered by 38 % of the VPNs reviewed.

   The ability to block ads, malware, and trackers is missing from StrongVPN.

   In the settings, you can enable the app to automatically start and connect to the VPN when the device boots. Along with this, reconnection to the VPN can be activated if the connection is lost. The kill switch is only available for Windows and macOS devices.

   Split tunneling allows you to divide the programs on the device into two groups, one of which will always connect to the internet directly and the other via VPN. This feature is only available for Android and Fire TV.

   StrongDNS improves the use of StrongVPN for the purpose of unblocking streaming video. In particular, the Scramble feature, which can hide the use of VPN security from the outside world, will come in handy in some countries.

   A static IP address can be set up, and instructions for the procedure are published on the StrongVPN website.

10. StrongVPN‘s CPU usage and App Performance

    The StrongVPN application for Windows showed an average load during testing. Most VPN applications are developed in such a way that using them does not unnecessarily slow down the computer or cause problems during use.

    You can reduce the system load by disabling features that consume more power. One of these is auto-connect, which keeps the StrongVPN application active in the background whenever the device is on.

    The size of the application is around 30 MB.

11. StrongVPN Torrenting Servers

    • Torrenting servers:
      Yes

      Torrenting support is offered by 89 % of the reviewed VPNs.

    StrongVPN supports P2P transfers on all its servers, so VPNs can be used for torrenting.

    The user should avoid sharing copyrighted files. Among popular torrenting applications, the service supports BitTorrent, Vuze, uTorrent, and some others.

    Our measured download speed of 65 Mb/s and upload speed of 16 Mb/s are not sufficient for torrenting purposes, as they are unlikely to use the full potential of the user’s Internet connection.

    For this purpose of using a VPN, we recommend considering getting ExpressVPN or Ivacy VPN. Both services support torrenting and offer faster speeds.

12. What is the country of origin of StrongVPN?

    • VPN Provider: Ziff Davis, Inc.
    • Country of origin: 🇺🇸 USA

    Strong Technology, LLC is the company behind the creation of StrongVPN and is based in the USA. The company was founded in 1994, initially selling desktop computers. As time went on, Strong Technology, LLC’s focus became providing Internet connectivity, and in 2005 it began operating its own VPN.

    The company’s headquarters in the USA may raise uncertainty in some users, as the country is a member of the 5 Eyes cluster. Police and intelligence services from these countries may monitor Internet traffic and share the information with each other.

    According to the privacy policy of StrongVPN, although user activity is not logged and minimal information is collected, the VPN operator must still comply with requests from higher authorities to release this data and hand over the information.

13. StrongVPN and Privacy: Logging Policy, Security Issues…

    • No-Logs Policy:
      Yes

      The No-Logs Policy is followed by 78% of reviewed VPNs.

    The privacy policy of StrongVPN states that any activity associated with the use of the service is not logged. Thus, information about the nature and amount of data transmitted or pages visited is not collected.

    Among the information stored are the user’s email address and the payment method chosen, both of which are required to maintain the user’s account. Diagnostic data needed for the development of StrongVPN is also collected. Cookies are used on the website and can be blocked in the browser settings.

    If you wish to manage the information that StrongVPN holds about you, simply contact support at privacy@strongvpn.com. You can have any information collected deleted through this service.

    In our testing of StrongVPN, we did not see any DNS request leaks. The service itself is not audited, but the website participates in a Trustpilot comparison in which it performs reasonably well.

    We rate the overall privacy conditions of StrongVPN as good.

14. StrongVPN Support: Chat, e-mail…

    Customer support can be contacted via the mobile app and via the web at StrongVPN. There, tutorials on how to use the app and a database of frequently asked questions and answers are published. Regular articles related to internet security are published on the blog.

    To contact technical support directly, you can use the live chat, which is available 24/7. Another way is the contact form on the website; the answer is sent to the provided email address.

15. StrongVPN FAQ

    Does StrongVPN have good privacy conditions?

    We consider the privacy conditions of StrongVPN to be relatively good. The service does not store any logs of its users’ activity, and the overall amount of data collected is minimal. The user can easily have all collected data deleted through customer support. We consider the operator’s location in the USA to be a potential risk, as the service is thus subject to local laws. Any requests from superior authorities to release user data cannot be refused.

    Is StrongVPN free?

    StrongVPN is a paid service, with the cheapest subscription option selling for $3.67 per month. The purchase includes a full money-back guarantee for a duration of 30 days. Neither a trial version nor a free version of StrongVPN is offered.

    Does StrongVPN work in China?

    Yes, it is possible to use StrongVPN in China. However, not all servers work, and some may be blocked. So if you want to use a VPN in China, it’s a good idea to ask for a list of working servers before you go there.