Best VPN for Russia 2020
Russia is a beautiful country but is notoriously famous for severe internet censorship, government surveillance, and blocked websites. Therefore, you will have to depend on the best VPN for Russia if you have decided to spend quality time in the country in the coming months.
Here is the list of Russian VPNs including their server network and pricing plan:
| VPN | Russian Servers | Plan | Price |
| CyberGhost | 96 | 3 Year (2 Months Free) | $2.75/mo |
| Ivacy | 6 | 2 Year | $2.25/mo |
| Surfshark | 2 | 2 Year | $1.99/mo |
| PureVPN | 0 | 3 Year | $2.91/mo |
| NordVPN | 0 | 1 Year | $3.49/mo |
| ExpressVPN | 0 | 2 Year | $8.32/mo |
6 Best VPNs for Russia
I have selected the finest CountryVPNs that help you remain safe and anonymous while surfing the web in Russia. These VPNs are:
1. CyberGhost
CyberGhost offers 96 servers in Russia that help you to unblock famous local Russian TV shows like The Red Queen, Fartsa, and others from abroad. This Romania based VPN service provides 5500+ servers in 80+ countries that let you access Disney Plus and Amazon Prime even if you reside in Russia.
In terms of security and privacy, CyberGhost provides features such as kill switch, 7 multi-logins, WebRTC leak protection, and no-logging policy. You can get its 3-year plan by paying $2.75/month with a massive 79% discount and a 45-day money-back guarantee.
2. Ivacy
Ivacy provides 6 servers in Russia that allow you to access local Russian TV channels such as Channel 1 and NTV from abroad. The Singapore based VPN service offers 1000+ servers in 50+ countries globally that let you unblock famous streaming services like Fubo TV and BBC iPlayer while residing in Russia.
The provider caters to the online privacy and security needs of its users through different features like kill switch, IP leak protection, no-logging policy, dedicated IP, and 5 simultaneous connections. You will have to pay $2.25/month to get its 2-year plan at an excellent 77% discount with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
3. Surfshark
Surfshark provides 2 servers in Russia that allow you to access famous Russian TV shows like Better than Us, Method, and others from overseas. The BVI (British Virgin Islands) based VPN service offers 1040+ servers in 60+ countries worldwide that allow you to access Disney Plus and Sling TV in Russia.
In terms of security and privacy, Surfshark provides kill switch, cleanweb, whitelister, no-logging policy, IP leak protection, and unlimited simultaneous connections. You can subscribe to its 2-year plan at the cost of $1.99/month with a massive 83% discount and a 30-day refund policy.
4. PureVPN
PureVPN does not offer a server in Russia but provides 6 servers in neighboring countries like Finland that enable you to unblock Russian movies like Nobody, Resurrected, and others from abroad. The Hong Kong-based service offers 2000+ servers in 140+ countries globally that help you to access US Netflix, Hulu, and other popular streaming services in Russia.
The service provides various security and privacy features like kill switch, dedicated IP, DNS leak protection, 5 multi-logins, split tunneling, and no-logging policy. You will need to pay $2.91/month to get its 2-year plan at an astounding 73% discount with a 31-day money-back guarantee.
5. NordVPN
NordVPN does not have a server in Russia but offers 64 servers in Poland that help you to watch Russian TV channels such as Rossiya and Vesti from overseas. The Panama based VPN provider offers 5000+ servers in 55+ countries that enable you to access HBO Now, YouTube TV, and other streaming services.
The service provides numerous privacy and security features like kill switch, dedicated IP, double VPN, onion over VPN, WebRTC protection, 6 multi-logins, and no-logging policy. You may get its 3-year package at the price of $3.49/month with a humongous 70% discount and 30-day money-back guarantee.
6. ExpressVPN
ExpressVPN does not provide a server in Russia but offers 1 server in a neighboring country Poland that helps you to unblock Russian TV channels like MTV Russia and RTVi from abroad. The BVI (British Virgin Islands) based VPN service provides 3000+ servers in 90+ countries that allow you to access popular streaming services like All 4 and HBO Go in Russia.
The provider offers impressive security and privacy features such as network lock (kill switch), split tunneling, IP leak protection, 5 multi-logins, and no-logging policy. You can subscribe to its yearly package at the cost of $8.32/month with a decent 35% discount and a 30-day refund policy.
How to Get a Russian IP Address with a VPN?
You can follow these steps to get a Russian IP address using a VPN:
- Choose a VPN service that provides Russian VPN servers (we recommend CyberGhost)
- Subscribe and download that VPN service
- Sign-in to the VPN app with your credentials
- Select your desired Russian server from the servers’ list
- Check your new IP address through IPleak.org and start watching your favorite shows
Why do you need a VPN service in Russia?
You need a VPN in Russia to secure your digital footprints from hackers, ISPs, and government surveillance agencies. Similarly, you should connect to a reliable VPN service before connecting to Wi-Fi networks in public places. The government of Russia has instructed ISPs to record online browsing information of their subscribers.
Therefore, you will have to rely on a VPN as it masks your actual IP address through another IP address of your preferred country like the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and so on. Thus, you can access blocked websites in Russia without exposing your original whereabouts.
How to select the best Russian VPN?
Before subscribing to a VPN service that provides Russian servers, you must consider these following factors carefully:
- Availability of multiple Russian servers: You should select a VPN service that is based outside the Russian jurisdiction and offers various servers in the country.
- Security Features: Your Chosen VPN service must provide a kill switch feature that will disconnect your connection to the internet if it suddenly stops working for any reason. The potential provider should offer different tunneling protocols like IKEv2, SSTP, and OpenVPN alongside 256-bit encryption.
- Support for Anti-Censorship tools: Your provider should be compatible with different censorship bypassing tools like TOR and Smart DNS.
Can I use a free VPN in Russia?
You should not use free VPNs in Russia because they can sell your confidential information to a third-party marketer or provide your sensitive data to surveillance agencies too. They are usually slow and can’t compete with the finest VPNs.
If you want to try them at the cost of your privacy, here are few VPNs that offer free Russian VPN servers to their subscribers:
- Urban VPN (Provides 1 server in Russia)
- TunnelBear (Offers 0 server in Russia but has 1 server in neighboring countries like Finland along with 500MB data limit)
- Hide.me (Provides 0 server in Russia but offers 1 server in Poland)
Popular Websites and Services that are blocked in Russia and How to Access them?
Russia is another oppressive country like Venezuela and South Korea that does not allow you to use your freedom of expression right. Here is the list of different sites and services that are blocked by the Russian government:
- Open Russia
- Telegram
- btcphone.ru
- alfatop.me
- nicechange.net
- bitokk.com
- prostocoin.com
- Tutanato Email Service
You can access LinkedIn, Telegram, and Tutano email services through any one of these VPN services e.g CyberGhost, Ivacy, Surfshark, PureVPN, NordVPN, and ExpressVPN in Russia. If you are interested in accessing blocked Russian sites from overseas then you will have to use CyberGhost, Ivacy or Surfshark since they offer local Russian IP addresses.
FAQs
Are VPNs legal in Russia?
The Russian government implemented a law regarding VPN services regulations. According to this law, VPNs have to mention the list of restricted or banned sites in the country. VPN services did not follow this rule so, in order to get this law followed, they banned all those VPN service providers that refused to follow it.
Due to this harsh act, different VPN services have stopped providing their servers in Russia.
Why VPNs are banned in Russia?
The apparent reason for banning VPN providers in Russia is to stop Russian internet users from accessing websites or services that have been blocked officially. The government passed the law to curtail the use of non-complying VPN services that do not abide by the internet censorship laws in Russia.
How can I access US Netflix in Russia?
You can access US Netflix in Russia with a VPN like CyberGhost that offers multiple US servers. You can follow these simple steps listed below:
- Download and subscribe to a VPN service
- Sign-in to the VPN app with your credentials
- Connect to a US server from the servers’ list
- Go to Netflix official site and start watching your favorite shows or movies
How can I access LinkedIn in Russia?
If you want to unblock LinkedIn in Russia anonymously then you should use a VPN. A VPN changes your online location by the help of alternate IP address. Thus, you can access LinkedIn by connecting a VPN server of your desired country be it the US, Canada, Australia, and others in Russia.
How can I bypass Steam VPN ban in Russia?
Although, it is quite difficult to overcome Steam VPN ban in Russia. However, there are a handful of VPN services that will let you access region-blocked Steam content instantly. All the VPN services described above allow you to unblock specific game titles and features of Steam that are inaccessible in Russia.
Moreover, a VPN for Steam can protect your online identities from different privacy issues like identity theft and credit card frauds. This is because cybercriminals can harm famous online gaming platforms like Steam with DDoS and cyber attacks.
How can I access Netflix Russia from abroad?
You can access all your favorite Russian shows and movies by unblocking Netflix Russia content library with a VPN from abroad. You will need to subscribe to a VPN service that offers a Russian IP address. As a result, you can hide your actual IP address with another Russian IP address and continue watching the Russian version of Netflix.
Which are the best Russian torrent sites?
RuTracker.org is the best Russian torrent site. The website allows you to explore torrents based on different genres like games, movies, books, and music as well. Apart from this, you can use Kinozal.tv to find your favorite Russian movies torrents files.
If you want to download software related torrents then you should rely on NNM-Club.me. However, you should always perform the torrenting task after connecting to a VPN service.
Is it safe to use a VPN in Russia?
The Russian government has started taking action against VPN services since 2019. Thus, you should avoid using government-approved VPN services. It means these VPN services will not be able to secure your privacy from government interference. Hence, you should use a VPN that mainly operates from countries other than Russia.
Wrapping Up
The best VPN for Russia has become a need of the hour if you want to surf the web without leaving your online whereabouts accessible. This way, you can bypass severe online censorship and surveillance issues in the country significantly.
Feel free to share your feedback in the comments section given below.
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