Bitdefender VPN Review 2022 – Affordable And Easy To Use

If you’re looking for a good VPN with many features, Bitdefender may just be what you need. The excellent protection, easy usage, and low prices will satisfy even the most privacy and security-conscious users. 

Keep reading our comprehensive Bitdefender review to find out everything you need to know about this provider.

Speed

Many Bitdefender reviews online praise the performance of this VPN, so we decided to put it to the test ourselves. It’s worth noting that speed partly depends on your location and connection. Sometimes, even the same provider won’t perform the same in different places.

We were impressed by Bitdefender’s performance on our tests. We first connected to a local UK server with a non-VPN speed of around 200Mbps, and we got a download speed in the range of 170Mbps–190Mbps.

We were also happy with Bitdefender’s performance when we connected to a US server, which gave us rates of 80Mbps–120Mbps. This is not the best speed—rivals such as CyberGhost offer faster connections, but it’s still acceptable for most purposes.

To speed things up, you can use the OneClick Optimizer, which is only available in Bitdefender Total Security. With this option, you can boost the performance of your devices.

If you get the Bitdefender download that comes for free with the antivirus suite, you have a limit of 200MB of traffic a day. But if you upgrade to the Premium version, you get unlimited data and the ability to switch servers.

Security and Privacy

Next, we explore the different privacy and security features offers by Bitdefender.

Encryption

Bitdefender uses unbreakable encryption—the 256-bit AES. This is the gold standard among VPNs and is used by banks and the military.

Security Protocols

The HotSpot Shield Catapult Hydra protocol makes Bitdefender one of the best and fastest providers on the market. 

How?

It uses perfect forward secrecy. That is a key-agreement protocol, which continually changes your encryption key. That means that even if your current session is compromised, the rest of your data will be secure.

Data Logging

Bitdefender has a very basic privacy policy. You’ll find that it collects randomly generated or hashed user and device IDs or IP addresses and randomly generated tokens to provide the VPN service. 

Still, this isn’t much information when it comes to logs. But since Bitdefender uses Hotspot Shield’s servers, we checked out its privacy policy for more details. It doesn’t keep logs of your web traffic or browsing history but does retain records of device identifiers, types of browsers, device settings, network info, etc.

Jurisdiction

Bitdefender is based in Romania and has to comply with the country’s data retention laws, which are less restrictive than in countries that are part of the 5/9/14 Eyes Alliances.

Kill Switch

Bitdefender has a kill switch option. This feature blocks your internet if the VPN connection drops. It’s available on all devices. 

DNS/WebRTC Leaks

We conducted several leak protection tests and found that Bitdefender is susceptible to leaks. We connected to a UK server, and unfortunately, our data was exposed, so it’s safe to say that Bitdefender doesn’t provide the best web protection.

Bitdefender Safepay

We added a Bitdefender Safepay section to our review to give you an overview of this unique feature. Safeway is a browser developed by Bitdefender that creates a sealed environment that keeps your banking, shopping, and other online transactions safe from hackers and spies. 

The browser comes with a built-in VPN and is part of the comprehensive Bitdefender package.

Split Tunnelling

Unfortunately, Bitdefender doesn’t have a split tunnelling option.

Servers and Server Locations

Bitdefender has more than 1,300 servers in over 25 countries around the world. To be more precise, it doesn’t have its own server network but instead uses Hotspot Shield’s one.

In any case, Bitdefender’s server park seems sufficiently broad in terms of geographic diversity but doesn’t come close to that of heavyweights such as NordVPN, which has 5,300+ servers in close to 60 countries worldwide.

Bitdefender’s Primary Uses

Streaming

Although Bitdefender has many benefits, it can’t unblock all major entertainment platforms around the world. You’ll be able to stream Netflix US from anywhere in the world, but you may have problems unblocking Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, or BBC iPlayer. If streaming access is among your priorities, check out competitors such as Surfshark.

Torrenting

As for torrenting, you won’t have any problems using Bitdefender for that purpose. You can even set the VPN to auto-connect when you launch a P2P sharing app. The speeds offered by this service are sufficient to have a smooth torrenting experience.

Gaming

Bitdefender VPN performs well when it comes to gaming, but it’s not always consistent. When we were connected to a UK server, the ping was 10ms, which is decent. But when we tried connecting to other servers, the ping went up to around 30ms, which may contribute to perceptible lag when gaming online.

Supported Platforms

You can use Bitdefender on Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS devices. It’s easy to use, protects your connection, and keeps your surfing anonymous. 

Bitdefender on Windows

On Windows, Bitdefender can be activated by just clicking the big blue “Connect” button on the app. It’s included as an extra feature to the Bitdefender Antivirus Plus plan. Once you install Bitdefender and launch the app, it will automatically connect you to the nearest server location. 

You can upgrade to the Premium version for unlimited traffic and the ability to choose whichever server in the world you like. The Windows app has a kill switch and automatically connects when you launch a P2P app. All you need to do is check a box to enable this option. 

Bitdefender on Mac

As with the other versions, the Mac VPN client comes as an extra feature along with your Bitdefender virus scanner. When you install the app and enter your Bit defender login, you have to give your permission for the software to be fully functional. 

You can set the VPN to be activated as soon as your device starts running, and you’ll receive notifications when it’s active and when it’s not. It also has a kill switch, in case your internet connection drops unexpectedly. 

Mobile Apps

It’s worth noting that Bitdefender VPN comes as a feature included in the Mobile Security app. 

There are Bitdefender mobile apps for Android and iOS devices. Both the Bitdefender iPhone and the Bitdefender Android app serve the purpose of keeping your data private, securing your connection, and hiding your IP address. With the Android app, you can also access restricted content, even if you’re in a country that enforces internet censorship.

Pricing

Next, in our Bitdefender VPN review, we’ll explore all the Bitdefender price plans and the features they come with.

As we mentioned earlier, the VPN app comes with the Bitdefender antivirus suite, but it has a 200MB daily data limit, and you can’t choose a server yourself; instead, the software connects you to the closest one.

But if you upgrade to the Premium package, you’ll have some additional benefits—unlimited encrypted traffic on up to ten devices and the ability to pick a server you want to connect to. Here’s the pricing:

The Premium plan also comes with a seven-day trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee. Plus, you get special offers on the official Bitdefender website, like discounts and coupons.

Overall, Bitdefender is cheaper than most popular providers, including budget-friendly ones, such as TunnelBear, especially if you get the monthly subscription.

Customer Support

If you want to reach Bitdefender customer reps, you can do it in one of three ways:

Additionally, there’s an Expert Community page on the website, including a Bitdefender forum, on which users from around the world ask questions, have discussions, and share issues experienced with this VPN. The support centre also offers a great FAQ section with some commonly encountered problems.

There’s no separate Trustpilot page for the Bitdefender VPN product. But the overall Bitdefender suite has a 4.1/5 rating on the website, with 75% of the people rating it Excellent and only 14% rating it as Bad. Some of the positive comments cite the excellent VPN offering.

Want to Consider Other Options?

Bitdefender is not the only VPN on the market, although it offers impressive performance. Let’s check out some Bitdefender alternatives and see how they differ.

Bottom Line

In our detailed Bit defender review, we went over all the excellent terms and features that Bitdefender offers, all of which come at an affordable price. 

Although this provider hasn’t got many advanced functionalities, it’s straightforward to use, and you can connect up to ten devices simultaneously. The speeds this VPN offers will not disappoint you, and you can rely on it for your ultimate protection.

We hope our Bitdefender review gave you all the necessary information to decide whether this VPN is a good fit for you.