by Stephan Kubrik
digitalwelt Lead Columnist for IT Security
Updated: February 2024
hide.me VPN isn’t exactly the cheapest VPN tool on the market, but could its features and widespread compatibility actually be worth paying for?
A subsidiary of eVenture Ltd., a privacy company based in Malaysia, hide.me has been helping users mask their internet activity since 2011. This service might have not as much brand recognition as competitors like ExpressVPN and NordVPN, but that doesn’t necessarily mean hide.me VPN isn’t worth considering. In this hide.me VPN review, we’ll take a look at everything the VPN tool has to offer, so you can decide for yourself if this is the VPN for you
4.5 
Is hide.me a Good VPN?
hide.me is, without a doubt, one of the better VPNs we’ve tested. In our experience, the service was speedy and secure, and the interface offered many more bells-and-whistles than competing products. Additionally, hide.me has a strong privacy policy, and the fact that the business is headquartered in Malaysia — where logging requirements are near nonexistent — should appeal to most users. The only issue is that hide.me is a bit pricier than comparable products. But more on that later.
hide.me VPN Software Overview
- hide.me makes apps for virtually all modern desktop and mobile operating systems.
- The company also offers browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox.
- An independent auditor has verified hide.me’s commitment to not logging customer traffic.
- hide.me’s advanced features including split-tunnelling, IP leak detection, and IPv6 support.
- hide.me has 1,800 physical servers in over 70 locations throughout more than 35 countries.
- Customers can get a full refund thanks to hide.me’s 30-day money-back guarantee.
- The company offers a decent free tier and a relatively expensive unlimited paid plan.
- hide.me uses strong AES-256 encryption to protect subscribers’ privacy.
- Users can install hide.me on Android TV, Amazon Fire products, and videogame consoles.
- hide.me can also be configured to operate on many modern routers.
- The service uses IKEv2 IPsec, OpenVPN, SSTP, and SoftEther among other protocols.
- hide.me is headquartered in Malaysia, and the company is not subject to U.S. laws.
- Unlike many VPNs, hide.me accepts anonymous payments via cryptocurrency.
- This VPN’s apps include numerous and options other VPNs don’t offer.
- hide.me supports P2P connections, but it isn’t necessarily the best for file sharing.
- Support now offered for WireGuard.
Top VPN Tools | Updated: February 2024
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Is hide.me VPN Safe?
Safety is one of the most significant aspects to consider when signing up for service with a VPN. So is hide.me safe? Absolutely. The company’s VPN uses AES-256 encryption as well as some of the most secure protocols available. Additionally, hide.me is one of the few VPN providers that has opened itself up to an independent audit. This means that third-party analysts have confirmed that hide.me does not keep a log of their customers’ activity. All the company does logs is the amount of bandwidth customers use. They also keep track of the email address used to create an account. That’s it.
How Does hide.me VPN Work?
So how does hide.me VPN work? Most VPNs generally operate in the same way, and hide.me is no exception. Essentially, hide.me routes your internet activity through a remote server (or series of servers) located elsewhere on the planet. This makes it impossible for your internet service provider to monitor your activity, so you can use the internet with complete anonymity.
How to Use hide.me on Android
If you want to use hide.me on Android, there are two ways to go about installing the app. If your device has access to the Google Play Store, installing hide.me is as easy as searching for it in the store and tapping the install button. Otherwise, you can sideload the app by downloading the hide.me VPN APK directly from the company’s website. Some unscrupulous individuals may try to seek out a so-called “cracked” version of the hide.me VPN Pro APK, but signing up for the service legitimately is always the best way to go.
How to Use hide.me for Ubuntu
The instructions for installing the hide.me Ubuntu app are a bit more involved than they are on other platforms. hide.me recommends using OpenVPN, OpenVPN Command-Line, and IPsec IKEv2 protocols, and depending on which one you choose, you’ll find detailed instructions for configuring hide.me to work with your Ubuntu installation
How to Use hide.me for Mac, Windows, & Windows XP
You can download hide.me apps for Windows and macOS from hide.me’s website or from Microsoft’s and Apple’s respective software stores. It’s important to note that version of the hide.me app in the Windows Store is different than the one on hide.me’s website. The version in the Windows Store is only usable on Windows 10 devices, whereas the version on hide.me’s website can run on any machine using Windows 7 or later. Also, it is technically possible to manually configure Windows 10 to use hide.me without installing any software, but it’s not a great experience without hide.me’s UI.
hide.me VPN Pro vs hide.me VPN — What Is the Difference?
One of the most attractive aspects of hide.me is the fact that the company offers a relatively impressive free tier. This tier includes 10 GB of traffic per month using servers in five different countries. This plan precludes customers from using more than one device at a time, but it doesn’t inject advertisements or log any user activity.
hide.me’s Pro tier, on the other hand, includes unlimited traffic and access to all 1,700 of the company’s servers. And instead of limiting users to just one device, subscribers can enjoy up to 10 simultaneous connection through hide.me’s VPN.
4.5
hide.me VPN Speed Review & Average Speed When Connected
4.5 out of 5
During our time testing hide.me, we consistently achieved above-average speeds when downloading files, although upload speeds were similar to several other VPNs we’ve reviewed. Sometimes, our initial connection to a server took more than 5 seconds, but once the connection was established, we were good to go for hours on end without interruption.
hide.me Server Locations & Information
4.5 out of 5
Does hide.me VPN Keep Logs?
hide.me’s privacy policy clearly states that it does not maintain logs of customer activity. And because the business is based in Malaysia, they are not required to conduct logging by the local government. To back up hide.me’s claims, the company hired an independent auditor, which reviewed and verified that hide.me does not maintain customer logs any of kind.Is hide.me VPN Reliable?
Although, compared to some leading VPNs, hide.me doesn’t have as many servers in as many locations, we found the VPN entirely reliable throughout the time we tested it. Whether we were watching videos, downloading files, or simply browsing the web, our connection to hide.me’s servers remained consistently strong the entire time.hide.me VPN Customer Support
4.0 out of 5
If you ever experience issues with hide.me not connecting, your best bet is to use the company’s ticket-based support system to troubleshoot your connection. hide.me does offer chat-based support, but those support specialists can only assist with billing and account issues. If you need help with something technical, the ticket-based system is the way to go.
hide.me VPN for Streaming
4 out of 5
There’s a lot to like about hide.me, including the fact that the service is compatible with Apple TV, Android TV, and Amazon’s Fire TV products. But when it comes to streaming geographically restricted video service, you’ll likely have better luck with another VPN. Our experience was a bit hit-and-miss — YouTube generally worked worldwide, unlike Netflix, which was far less reliable. Simply put, watching geographically restricted videos is not this VPN’s strong suit.
More recently, additional support has been added to improve the Netflix streaming experience, and BBC, Disney+, and other streaming services are now available.
hide.me VPN Good For Mac & Windows
5 out of 5
When it comes to compatibility, few VPNs can match hide.me. The company supports all major operating systems, including Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Linux. And hide.me also works well with BlackBerrys, routers, and most modern gaming consoles. Additionally, hide.me offers an extension for two of the most common browsers. The hide.me Chrome VPN and the hide.me VPN for Firefox can each be installed directly from hide.me’s website.
hide.me VPN for Torrenting
4.5 out of 5
If you spend a significant amount of time torrenting, you’ll be pleased to know that hide.me doesn’t throttle or limit P2P file sharing in any way. Not all of the company’s servers are optimized for P2P sharing, but many of them are hide.me’s apps make it easy to identify the best servers for torrenting.
How Much Is hide.me VPN?
At the time of this review, hide.me’s paid plan is $4.99 per month on a monthly basis. The company is constantly offering discounts to new subscribers, however, so it’s easy to sign up for a reduced rate.
Closing Thoughts: How Good is hide.me VPN?
All in all, hide.me is a fast, reliable, and secure VPN with an independently audited privacy policy. The service is approachable for users who are new to VPNs, yet it also includes tons of settings and features that VPN experts are sure to love. You’re likely to find a better deal if you shop around, but if money’s no object, than hide.me should surpass your expectations.
4.5
by Stephan Kubrik
Stephan Kubrik is a Computer Scientist and expert on VPNs and computer viruses. Stephan has been researching for the Fraunhofer Society and has been developing software for the autonomous discovery of computer viruses and trojans using artificial intelligence.
He was previously a Research Associate at the Technical University of Cologne, studied Computer Engineering, and regularly publishes in IT magazines and journals, including the PC Magazine and digitalwelt.
digitalwelt Lead Columnist for IT Security
Top VPN Tools | Updated: February 2024
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