A virtual private network, also known as a VPN. It offers you the ability to make a secure connection to a different network using the internet. If you want to access websites that are region-restricted or safeguard your browsing activity while using public Wi-Fi, a VPN can be used. In the recent past, the popularity of VPNs has been growing. However, their popularity is not increasing for the reasons they were initially created.
The main objective of the Virtual Private Network was to connect business networks over the internet by providing utmost security. But now, VPNs are mostly used by individual users for different purposes.
Key Things to Know About VPN Speed
While using a VPN, its speed is considered to be one of the crucial factors, as nobody would like to surf the internet at a low speed. The perk of using a VPN is that you get security and access to blocked sites on the internet.
Below are five facts that you must explore to understand the contributing factors to VPN speed.
1. Server Location of VPN
If the VPN server you connect to is near your location, then you will get good internet speed. This is because if the distance of the VPN server is close to you, then internet traffic increases as it is directly proportional to the proximity of your location. However, if the server handling the traffic is overloaded, then you will witness slow VPN speed.
It is a good practice to use a VPN server that is closer to your location. For example, if you want to log in to a US VPN server and you live in Texas, it would be better to use a VPN server in Dallas instead of opting for LA. But if you live in China, then it is advisable to use a VPN server within China. You should not use an American VPN while residing in China.
2. Protocols of VPN
You might be familiar with the protocols of a server; however, there are different protocols associated with a VPN server as well. PPTP, SSTP, and OpenVPN are some of the popular VPN protocols that you will come across.
However, it is not necessary to know about all these protocols, but you should know that these VPN protocols have a huge impact and result in different VPN speeds.
However, there is no such instruction manual where you will find the speed of the VPN. But you can expect excellent speed from OpenVPN as compared to UDP. If you wish to connect to a VPN that offers good speed, then the best option will be to try different protocols. You can see which protocol provides you with the best speed.
3. VPN Server and the Impact of Load Bandwidth
If the power of a VPN server is sufficient, then it will result in fantastic speed. However, when it is an overloaded server that fails to meet the bandwidth demand, the speed will also be slow.
The client software sets the number of IP addresses and the size of the bandwidth. If the numbers are high, the server’s capacity will also increase. In this situation, it will result in an overloaded server, and the best option for you would be to switch to another server to achieve good speed.
4. Encryption
If there is high-end encryption on the VPN server, then it will result in network complexity, and the speed will also slow down. For example, with 128-bit encryption, the connection speed will be far better when compared to 256-bit encryption.
However, you must know that when the encryption strength is lowered, the possibility of an insecure connection also increases. There is a high chance of vulnerable transmission of data. Therefore, it is good practice to use a VPN with more robust encryption unless and until you face a considerable difference in both.
5. Setup of the Network
Network setup plays an essential role in determining VPN speed, and the method by which your device is connected to this network must also be good. Here, the method refers to the type of connection, whether it is wired or wireless.
It has been observed that a wired connection provides better VPN speed than a wireless setup. If you have a wireless setup and are experiencing slow speed with a VPN, you can switch to a wired connection by connecting your system directly to your router through a wire.
Conclusion
Even if we’re talking about the ideal condition of the VPN server, we can’t guarantee that it will provide the same speed and efficiency. In case you have tried all the methods mentioned above and are still experiencing a slow internet connection. Then it is recommended to change the VPN provider. NordVPN is one of the most popular VPNs that does not compromise the internet speed.
We hope you have found what you were looking for. If you believe that we have missed any relevant facts about VPN speed, please let us know in the comments section. We will get back to you with a proper answer.
