DuckDuckGo VPN review: Strong privacy, but missing key features

Best Prices Today: DuckDuckGo PrivacyPro

Privacy is DuckDuckGo’s strong suit, and while the powerful browser that avoids trackers and digital surveillance has become a must-have for many, you may not be familiar with its VPN service.

This is partly because, although DuckDuckGo offers a free alternative to Safari and Chrome, its VPN is a paid addition, and partly because its very existence is tied to the aforementioned browser – at least for now.

If you already use the DuckDuckGo browser, the VPN might be the easiest to recommend, despite the fact that it lacks some features of its competitors. On the other hand, as a standalone product, it is a little less easy to recommend due to these missing features.

High speeds and reliable geo-unblocking are one thing, but the lack of features like a kill switch will likely be hard to swallow for experienced VPN users looking for alternatives.

Should You Use DuckDuckGo VPN?

• Who is it best for?: Privacy-conscious users who already use DuckDuckGo’s browser and people who want a simple, low-effort VPN.
• Who should avoid it: Power users who want full control, a large server network, and coverage across multiple devices
• Main compromises and limitations: Compared to other VPNs, DuckDuckGO VPN lacks key tools like a kill switch, protocol choice, and deeper controls. It also lacks the large network of servers offered by others.

Check out our roundup of the best VPNs for Mac and the best VPNs for iPhone and iPad.

How to get DuckDuckGo VPN

DuckDuckGo VPN is available as part of a subscription to the DuckDuckGo Privacy Pro service which costs $9.99 per month/$99.99 per year and also includes personal information deletion and identity theft restoration.

1. Download the DuckDuckGo browser (Mac, iOS or other version). You can download it from the Mac App Store.
2. Subscribe to DuckDuckGo Privacy Pro.
3. Go to Settings > VPN in the DuckDuckGo browser.

Features and Apps – What Features Does DuckDuckGo VPN Actually Offer?

Right off the bat, DuckDuckGo VPN does things a little differently. The company’s excellent browser does a great job blocking trackers, and it’s always been fun to check the “protection report” to see how much it’s prevented from recovering your data.

It also now includes optional AI features, allowing you to interact with a chatbot with a little more privacy than a browser-based ChatGPT or Claude window.

Foundry

It is in this ecosystem that the VPN service arrives, and you will first have to use the browser to install it.

Once that’s done, you can access it from the menu bar as you would with many competitors, but there’s no standalone interface, so you’ll have to rely on the browser or menu bar – no big “button” to click here.

There are, as you would expect, versions for platforms such as Mac, Windows, iOS and Android, but keep in mind that there is a relatively restrictive limit of five devices. While some VPNs offer unlimited connections, at this price, we would have liked a few more from DuckDuckGo. Still, if you’re a solo user with a handful of devices, you’ll probably do just fine.

Foundry

Perhaps the biggest drawback right now is the lack of power features. A Kill Switch, which stops traffic when a VPN goes down, is not effective, for example. You will receive a notification, but there is no option to log out automatically.

Split Tunneling is available though, allowing you to route traffic from specific apps and sites through the VPN or outside of it, and you can configure the VPN to connect automatically when you connect, but that’s it for the features.

Don’t expect much else, though. There are no speed test options, no alternative VPN protocols (it’s WireGuard or nothing), and no dedicated password manager or other accessories.

Still, because DuckDuckGo VPN is part of a larger subscription service, you also get the AI ​​models I mentioned earlier, regular personal data scans, and even identity restoration if you’ve suffered at the hands of a bad actor. It’s the kind of service you hope you’ll never need, but it’s there if you need it.

Performance: How fast is DuckDuckGo VPN actually used?

DuckDuckGo’s server count is relatively small, with less than 50 countries included. Some, like the UK, only have one location for competitors to choose from, making it a significantly smaller server pool compared to options like ExpressVPN or NordVPN.

On the plus side, though, its speeds are pretty good. While there’s no built-in speed test, we found that download speeds only decreased by about 12% in general use when using WireGuard. There are unfortunately no other protocols to test, but download speeds are more affected with a speed loss of around 70%.

For browsing, it’s doable, but you might have difficulty with video calls or gaming when using the VPN.

While DuckDuckGo offers a great privacy-focused VPN, it also makes a great geo-unblocking tool, despite a small server list. I was able to easily access alternate versions of Netflix, for example, without any real performance downside.

Privacy and Security: Is DuckDuckGo VPN Really Private and Secure?

As you’d expect from DuckDuckGo, a company founded on the principles of internet privacy, there’s a lot to like about its approach to VPN.

On the one hand, it keeps its VPN servers separate from its browser and AI servers, while using Smarter Encryption to keep data encrypted while in use.

Although the company is headquartered in the United States, it maintains a no-logging policy. Still, the fact that the United States is part of the Five Eyes monitoring group is something to consider if you’re looking for more privacy, as the last audit was completed in late 2024.

Pricing and Plans: Is DuckDuckGo VPN Worth the Price?

At $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year, DuckDuckGo’s VPN isn’t one of the cheapest on the market, but that doesn’t tell the whole story.

Its private browser is free and you don’t just pay for the VPN alone, you also get access to AI models, data removal tools and identity restoration.

Should You Use DuckDuckGo VPN?

Already logged in to DuckDuckGo’s excellent browser? VPN might just be a no-brainer, delivering a great, easy-to-use experience at the cost of greater granularity.

Still, at this price, there are other options with more servers and features.