For the fastest VPN speeds in China, ExpressVPN and NordVPN consistently rank high, with ExpressVPN often praised for overall reliability and speed, while NordVPN shows excellent performance with its obfuscated servers and NordLynx protocol, maintaining high speeds even under heavy GFW throttling. Other strong contenders include AstrillVPN, particularly for bypassing blocks, and sometimes Surfshark, though Surfshark's speeds can be more variable.
Our top picks are:
The 5 Fastest VPNs in 2026
The Great Firewall of China causes issues for VPN connectivity into and out of China. It's not likely they are blocking ALL of your traffic, but the firewall will cause you to drop packets and sessions.
Get your own VPN
Has a strong reputation for bypassing internet access restrictions. Offers consistent speeds for internet in China.
TL;DR: In China, many popular apps and sites like Google, WhatsApp, and Instagram are blocked by the Great Firewall and travelers have to rely on VPNs to get around these restrictions.
Best Countries for Fast VPN Connections
Paid VPNs are safer, faster, and more reliable. Because you actually pay for the service, they don't need to sell your data. Instead, they invest in better servers, stronger encryption, and good customer support — all things free VPNs can't afford to do well. Premium VPNs offer real security and extra tools.
Our Proton VPN Free plan offers unlimited bandwidth and is free for you to use forever. We don't keep any logs of your activity, which means we cannot share data with third parties. All Proton VPN apps are open source and independently audited by security experts, so you can be sure they're safe.
Quick Look at the Best Free VPNs for China in 2026:
We found NordVPN is the most reliable VPN for China.
Finding a VPN for China is no easy task. After all, most are blocked outright, and several other comparison sites recommend services without performing the real-world testing required to see if they're suitable.
The Chinese government works hard to prevent the usage of VPNs, so don't be surprised if one day you won't be able to connect to your favorite server. In China, VPN traffic can be detected by the Great Firewall, which will block the server you're connected to.
The Short Answer. Astrill is by far the best VPN to use in China. After 10 years of tests on our Shanghai server, no VPN has bypassed the Great Firewall as consistently as Astrill. It works flawlessly to access Google, WhatsApp, Instagram and all other blocked services, but it is expensive.
Absolutely, which is why you should use ExpressVPN in China. This provider offers 256-bit encryption coupled with private DNS and RAM-based servers, which ensures total privacy and anonymity. Our opinion: One of the best VPN out there!
However, due to aggressive Chinese censorship, even reliable free options like Proton VPN don't work in China. Most free VPNs don't stand a chance in China because they lack crucial features like obfuscation and solid no-logs policies.
No, Netflix doesn't ban you for using a VPN. However, it will try to block the VPN IP addresses you use to bypass geo-restricted libraries.
The good news is that there is almost no way to track live, encrypted VPN traffic. Law enforcement can only obtain data, if available, about websites visited and so on. Otherwise, hackers and snooping government agencies are generally blocked by the fact that the data is encrypted.
No, free VPNs often aren't safe to use. They typically have weaker security features, making them an easier target for hackers. Many don't use strong encryption and leave your data vulnerable to interception. Some even monetize their service by logging and selling your data — defeating the very purpose of using a VPN.
Does a VPN hide your IP? Yes, a VPN hides your IP address by replacing it with the IP of a secure VPN server. This ensures that your online activity remains private and prevents websites, advertisers, and your ISP from tracking, recording, or misusing your real IP address.
Police can't track live, encrypted VPN traffic, but if they have a court order, they can go to your ISP (Internet Service Provider) and request connection or usage logs. Since your ISP knows you're using a VPN, they can direct the police to them.
TL;DR: No, WhatsApp is blocked in China by the Great Firewall. However, travelers can easily bypass this restriction using a travel eSIM (like Nomad eSIM) or a VPN. For most tourists, a travel eSIM is the most reliable and hassle-free solution to ensure WhatsApp works in China for messaging and calling.
It scrambles your connection and tunnels it through servers outside China, letting you peek behind that firewall and reach your usual websites and apps. Without a solid VPN, staying connected feels nearly impossible.