I tried Surfshark for 30 days, here’s how it went
Until recently, I wasn’t one to be interested in using a VPN. It would slow down my internet access and there was nothing I really wanted to watch from other countries that I couldn’t already access.
But as 2025 progressed, I was determined to make my information as private as possible (given that I have a public presence as a writer on the internet).
I tried data deletion services and moved much of my work to services with encrypted backups, such as Proton and Obsidian. But I hadn’t taken the plunge until I realized how cheap Surfshark was. With a 30-day money-back guarantee, I decided to put the service to the test and see if I wanted to stick with it, and I came away impressed.
- Logging policy
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No-logging policy
- Number of servers
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3,200+
Surfshark is a low-cost VPN service that offers unlimited simultaneous connections, making it a great choice if you want to share the VPN account with friends and family.
Easy to install, no matter where you need it
Even setting up the smart TV was a breeze
Of course, one of the main ways I wanted to test the VPN was to access streaming services from other countries. And Surfshark, like many modern VPNs, makes this incredibly simple. Simply download the app, set your location to wherever you want, and turn it on. The world of streaming services becomes your oyster.
But what if you want to access these services directly on your smart TV, without casting your screen to it? I generally try to use Google TV’s native apps, as I prefer not to watch media on my desktop and streaming has always been spotty. For me, the question was how to get Surfshark to work on my TV so I could enjoy the content I wanted.
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Initially, I thought putting Surfshark on the TV would be a frustrating act of installing apps on USB sticks and hoping things worked. However, Surfshark just happened to be on the Google TV app store, and downloading it was as easy as downloading something like Netflix. While I did have some frustration with having to change specific settings to get the VPN to work in the background, that wasn’t Surfshark’s fault in particular. This would have happened regardless of which VPN I was using.
However, once the app was set up, switching between locations was a breeze and I was able to access the UK Netflix library without any issues. I haven’t even encountered the most common problem when it comes to using a VPN.
Surfshark won’t slow you down
I expected speed drops, but my internet connection barely suffered
Essentially, a VPN sends your internet connection to a different digital “geographic location,” and going back and forth will result in a loss of overall connection speed. There’s no way around this, and it’s the biggest downside to using a VPN. If you’re unlucky, this might even mean the shows from other countries you’re trying to watch
However, that doesn’t mean it can’t be mitigated. In general, big names like NordVPN and ExpressVPN are well known for having minimal speed issues, even when connecting halfway around the world. Surfshark is a well-known VPN, but also more “budget”: when we tested Surfshark years ago, our reviewer experienced speed issues when connecting to servers further away from home.
This is to be expected. After all, when you seek to reduce costs, you expect a sacrifice in return. However, when I used Surfshark, I barely picked up any speed. The first image below represents my internet speed without Surfshark, and the rest when connected to different locations within the same time frame:
I tested them all multiple times using Surfshark, and while the exact numbers changed, the approximate percentage of speed loss remained the same.
So while I lost speed while connected to Surfshark, the loss was negligible most of the time. Connecting to other parts of the United States resulted in an average loss of just 50 Mbps in download speed. In comparison, most countries outside the United States experienced data loss of around 100 Mbps on average. I took the biggest hits connecting to nodes in Australia and Tokyo, but that’s okay: I’m on the east coast of the US, so those two places are basically on the other side of the world for me.
The raw numbers may look bad, but the important thing is that I don’t really feel this data loss while using the Internet. All the videos I watched looked good and loaded without any stuttering, and web browsing was still fast. My download speeds took a relatively big hit and sure, that would make it difficult to work while connected at times, but honestly that’s more a result of not being on fiber internet and not having great download speeds in the first place.
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I even put Surfshark to the ultimate test: running it while playing an MMORPG. My average ping for gaming is usually in the 70s. With Surfshark on and using a San Francisco server, my ping only increased to the mid 70s, sometimes reaching close to 80, which wasn’t uncommon even without the VPN active.
Sure, my ping would increase significantly if I ran Surfshark through Dublin, but unless I’m accessing a game that isn’t available to connect to in the US at all, there’s no reason for me to do that.
The price is unbeatable
Surfshark’s monthly cost is much lower than most competitors
Honestly, it’s shocking how cheap Surfshark is compared to many other VPN services on the market. For many, the features and speeds you get are more than enough, and since you’re getting such a big discount for the first two years, there probably won’t be a compelling reason for you to pay more.
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The exact cost varies depending on when you’re looking, but at the time of writing, Surfshark’s introductory price for its most basic plan is $1.99 per month, with an additional three months free if you commit two years in advance. You pay a total of $53.73 for those two years. The most expensive plan, One+, costs $4.49 per month with three months free for the two-year commitment, and you also get Incogni and other nice perks for upgrading.
Combine all of this with the ability to use Surfshark on unlimited devices, and the value is simply unbeatable.
Considering everything, I’m sticking with Surfshark for two years. The minimal impact on my wallet, coupled with doing everything I need to do without much hassle, is exactly what I wanted from a VPN service.
- Logging policy
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No-logging policy
- Mobile app
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Android and iOS
- Number of servers
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3,200+
- Free trial
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30 day money back guarantee
- Encryption
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AES-256
This article was produced in partnership with Surfshark.
