One of the most widely used VPN services is Surfshark. Isn't it wonderful that it's so affordable, with limitless simultaneous connections? The WireGuard protocol, split tunneling, SmartDNS, and specialized P2P servers are just some of the beneficial features of this VPN. 

If you have any queries about SurfShark, this review is here to help! In 2022, will it still be good? It is possible to unblock streaming services, enable torrenting, and have your internet traffic protected using this solution. The only way to find out is to give Surfshark a try and discover whether it's the ideal VPN for your specific needs. 

Pros 

1. Quick performance of the WireGuard protocol 
2. Strong safety measures are in place. 
3. GPS spoofing is available as an option. 
4. Many popular streaming websites can be unblocked. 
5. Outstanding assistance to clients 

Cons 

1. No split tunneling on iOS
2. Apple product apps are slightly weaker

Plans and pricing

Surfshark, like most VPN companies, doesn't impose restrictions on particular capabilities based on subscription level. Duration is the sole decisive element. Savings grow in proportion to the length of your membership. 

1. A one-month VPN membership costs $12.95, which is about average for this type of service. In this price range, the prices are nearly the same. 
2. Choosing the 1-year option, which costs $47.88 or $3.99 monthly, saves you a lot of money. You'll save more than half on your membership fees this way. A two-year plan that costs $59.76 in total or $2.30 per month is the greatest option for saving money. It's a great value, especially when you consider that it's just $12 more than the one-year option. 
3. Surfshark accepts credit cards, PayPal, Google Pay, and cryptocurrency as payment methods. You'll also need to provide a valid email address when you sign up. 
4. Consider the fact that Surfshark supports limitless simultaneous connections, so you may use it on as many devices as you choose. 
5. On Google Play and the Apple App Store, there's a 7-day free trial available if you're not satisfied. In other words, you may sign in to the desktop clients after activating the trial on the mobile device. 
6. Surfshark's 30-day money-back guarantee is another option. You may check out our advice on how to get a free trial of Surfshark if you have any difficulties. 

How many devices can Surfshark support?

Surfshark's infinite device compatibility is perhaps its most distinguishing feature. A single Surfshark account may be used across several devices. This may be worth a closer look, so let's get started. 

In addition to gaming consoles and routers, Surfshark provides compatibility for a wide range of devices and platforms. You may buy it once and use it on as many devices as you like, thanks to the unlimited usage and multiple device compatibility. 

Most folks won't have more than five to ten gadgets in their home at any given time. In our perspective, the peace of mind and simplicity of use this gives is the most important selling factor. So why aren't there any other VPN services doing this? This is a great question. 

When individuals start connecting from many devices at once, they may fear that this would harm sales. In reality, these are reasonable concerns that presumably do not materialize very often; otherwise, Surfshark would not be in operation. 

Getting a VPN implies you care about privacy and anonymity, at the very least. So it doesn't make sense to share your VPN account, and we don't think many people do this. 

When it comes to utilizing a VPN to connect to all of your devices simultaneously, you don't really need it all the time, do you? And even if you do, switching from one device to another while using the same server is probably not that typical. 

Sharing an account with family members, which Surfshark really encourages, is an exception to the rule. Who knows, maybe Surfshark is banking on tumultuous ties within the family? Surfshark, on the other hand, allows you to share your VPN with your family. 

It's possible to access Surfshark's Settings menu by clicking on the cog symbol at the left. The Language and Appearance options are found in the General Settings. Using Surfshark's CleanWeb feature, you can prevent WebRTC sites from discovering your IP address and location. You can also choose whether or not Surfshark connects automatically when your browser launches. 

If you've ever wanted to make a phone conversation or video chat without the need for a plugin, WebRTC, or Web Real-Time Communications, is what you're looking for. Since its debut approximately a decade ago, it's become a de facto standard in the industry. 

Surfshark's capacity to thwart WebRTC's geo-location capabilities is also unknown, as is WebRTC's level of usage. Based on how effectively CleanWeb and Connect at browser startup operate, we shouldn't have high hopes for the future. 

CleanWeb and Surfshark Connect at browser startup has never worked for us. In fact, it doesn't appear like CleanWeb is blocking any advertisements for us. There is no automatic connection when the browser is launched. But what difference does it make? 

CleanWeb isn't a need for us, to be honest. The number of ad blockers available has grown significantly in recent years, and we've already been using one. It's not a huge concern to us if CleanWeb doesn't work. Nonetheless, it tarnishes Surfshark's reputation for no cause. 

Surfshark wanted to be a one-stop-shop for safe and ad-free web browsing, so we included CleanWeb. People who have never heard of adblockers might benefit from such a feature. It's possible that this is a problem with the Chrome addon or with Linux in general. If an adblocker is provided but fails to do its job, is it preferable to have none at all? 

VPN Protocols offered by Surfshark 

There are several ways to set up a virtual private network (or VPN). Surfshark's Android, iOS, Linux, and Windows applications all support the OpenVPN protocol. Additionally, the IKEv2 protocol may be used on all systems (except Linux) and is the default on macOS. 

Because of its open-source beginnings, OpenVPN has been thoroughly vetted for any security flaws. WireGuard appears to be OpenVPN's logical successor. Although it's open-source, WireGuard is said to be significantly quicker than OpenVPN and other protocols. Surfshark's Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows apps will be protected by WireGuard in late October 2020. 

Locations of Surfshark Servers 

Because there are so many server locations across the world, it's much easier to spoof your location while you're away from home or even when you're traveling. Surfshark's server network reaches 65 nations, which is more than the usual number. ExpressVPN has servers in 94 countries, which is the most in the industry. 

Surfshark's coverage of South America and Africa is above average compared to other firms, which generally overlook these locations. China, Russia, Turkey, and Vietnam are just a few of the nations where Surfshark has servers. There should be more rivals following Surfshark's lead. 

Showing connection statistics on an application in dark mode with all panels expanded 

Virtual servers and virtual locations are used by some VPNs. Software-defined virtual servers allow a single physical server to host several virtual servers. The increases in demand can be accommodated by these. Using a virtual location, a server (physical or virtual) may be made to seem at a different place than where it is located. However, we prefer that corporations be more transparent about where and how their servers are located. 

There are no virtual servers at Surfshark, the company has confirmed to PCMag. On the company's website, we were glad to find that virtual locations were clearly labeled (Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Philippines, and South Korea). According to a spokesman, these servers are located in Colombia, Hong Kong, and the Netherlands. 

In the long run, having more servers implies that you're more likely to have a connection that works for you. However, it does not imply an improved quality of service. Over 3,200 servers are offered by SurfShark, which is more than double the average number of servers we've found in other VPNs we've tried. Despite this, CyberGhost retains the top spot in this category, with more than 6,520 servers. 

A virtual server with the appropriate label 

According to Surfshark, their servers are housed in "trusted third-party data centers." RAM-only servers are employed by the firm. This implies that removing the server in order to access the data on it would delete the server's hard drive. An official blog post from the firm also explains the advantages of diskless servers in protecting private encryption keys. However, ExpressVPN was one of the first to implement this adjustment. 

Surfshark VPN in Action on Windows 

Surfshark's VPN client apps are available for Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows. There is also a FireTV app from the corporation, which is unusual. Browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox are available, as well as a custom DNS resolver for the PS3/Xbox. 

Windows 10 Pro-64-bit was used to test Surfshark on an Intel NUC8i7BEH (Bean Canyon) desktop computer. You may expand and compress Surfshark on Windows to show more or less information by using the clever design of the program. That it offers a simple, apparent way to get online and that you can choose particular servers rather than entire nations is a big plus for us." Like the finest mobile applications, TunnelBear isn't quite as user-friendly. You may resize the window and the program modifies its layout like a responsive website, which is a very interesting feature. The system tray icon may be used to launch a smaller version of the software, and the accessibility features can be changed. 

Surfshark for Android: A First Look 

On a Samsung A71 running Android 10, we installed Surfshark's Android VPN software from the Google Play store. A teal gradient emerges while connecting to a VPN server, making the Android app seem exactly like the iOS version. CleanWeb and Whitelister are included in the Android app in the same way they are in the Windows version. Static servers and multi-hop connections are also available. 

A virtual private network (VPN) is an essential tool for protecting your privacy. On a Vienna, Austria-based server, we used the DNS Leak Test Tool to undertake an extensive test of this new feature. Without leaking our DNS information, SurfShark was able to modify our IP address. 

Surfshark VPN for iPhone: A First-Hand Experience 

On an iPhone XS running iOS 14.4.1, we installed the Surfshark iPhone VPN software. With teal buttons on a white background, this app is easy to use. Using a VPN, you touch the huge teal Connect button and the white screen turns to different colors of teal to indicate that you've connected. 

You can choose from a large number of servers, but you can't select a single server as in the Windows version. There are just two options: the nation in which the server is situated or the city in which it is located. Static IP addresses and multi-hop connections are also supported by the iPhone app. 

In addition to the Kill Switch and NoBorders mode included in the Windows version, the iOS app adds a few additional capabilities. 

For this test, we connected to a Toronto-based server through DNSLeakTest.com. Surfshark did not disclose our DNS information, as we checked, and our public IP address was altered as a result of this. 

There was no slowness or buffering on any of the streams that we watched on Twitch. tv after that. After that, we tried to watch a cosmetics instruction on YouTube. Loading YouTube took up to six seconds on the VPN server in this case. It took a long time to load the movie once it started, but the quality was superb. 

Hands-On With Surfshark for Mac 

On a MacBook Air (2020) running Big Sur 11.2.2, Surfshark's macOS program was straightforward to discover and install. In addition to the App Store, this app can be found on the developer's website as well. Mostly white with teal accents, the app's look is similar to that of the iOS version. 

VPN server locations are displayed on the app's home screen. In most circumstances, you can only pick the nation or city in which your VPN server is situated while configuring your VPN. An extra safety measure is provided by CleanWeb mode and a Kill Switch in this software. 

It's critical that a VPN does its job and protects your personal information. We logged on to DNSLeakTest.com while connecting to a server in Sao Paulo, Brazil, to conduct an extensive DNS leak test. This server was able to hide our IP address by not leaking our DNS information. 

All of the YouTube videos we loaded while still connected to the Brazilian server played without delay or interruption. After watching a live broadcast for many minutes on Twitch. tv, we were impressed by the site's speed and the visual quality. 

Chrome OS Surfshark Demonstration 

A Dell Chrome 3100 with an Intel Celeron processor was used to install the Android app. Using SurfShark VPN on Chrome OS is a simple and effective way to protect your online privacy. After logging in, users have the option of connecting to the quickest server or the nation closest to their current location. In addition, there are servers with static IP addresses and servers with several hops. 

Kill Switch, Bypasser, and CleanWeb are just some of the features that make this VPN stand out from the competition. It also has some unique user choices in the Advanced Settings section, such as the ability to hide your position, override your GPS, and a rotating IP address. 

Proactive measures to safeguard individuals' private information 

Surfshark does an excellent job at protecting client privacy. A British Virgin Islands data center, as we learned about in our ExpressVPN review, once housed this VPN's operations. The Netherlands will be the new home of Surfshark, which announced its relocation in October 2021. 

We highly advise against doing business in the United States and the United Kingdom (as well as the other countries in the Five Eyes alliance), but other European nations are less of a problem. For safe email, we still suggest providers based in other European countries such as Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands (all of which are formally part of the "14 Eyes" group), despite having thoroughly researched privacy regulations and real-world privacy tests scenarios. 

The Netherlands, where Surfshark is now legally situated, has no data retention rules and is generally beneficial from a privacy aspect, thus we do not find this problematic. We would have major worries if Surfshark relocated to the United States or the United Kingdom, but that is not the case. On Surfshark's website, the company adds: 

Be aware that it is one of the fastest VPN services available. While Android and Windows users may benefit from their applications more, this may be due to Apple's regulations rather than indifference on the part of Surf Shark developers. 

They're not skimping on security or cutting corners with new ideas (where part of the VPN market is stalling). This is evident from their encryption methods to their RAM-only server fleet. 

As an alternative to a paid VPN service, Surfshark is an excellent choice if you're on a tight budget but still want plenty of amazing features. 

We'd be pleased to address any questions or issues you may have about Surf Shark by leaving a comment below.