Surfshark Review

Surfshark offers unlimited simultaneous connections on all plans. This means you can download and connect to Surfshark VPN on every device in your household. Even with all devices connected, you’ll find Surfshark is fast and stable thanks to its unlimited data and bandwidth.

Though most VPNs have a kill switch to protect your data if the VPN connection drops, Surfshark VPN has a unique take on this feature, with “soft” and “strict” options.

The “soft” kill switch acts like a standard VPN kill switch — if the VPN connection is interrupted, access to the internet is cut off until the connection is restored. Alternatively, with Surfshark’s “strict” setting, the internet connection is blocked until the VPN is active. During testing, both settings worked effectively to protect user data and avoid leaks.

Note that the kill switch won’t work on apps or websites that you’ve added to the bypasser (split tunneling) feature.

Surfshark is one of the best VPNs with ad-blocker features thanks to its CleanWeb ad, malware and tracker blocker. It comes in two versions: CleanWeb (included on the Surfshark app) and the CleanWeb 2.0 browser extension. The standard CleanWeb works well — it blocked invasive ads and malicious sites in our tests.

CleanWeb 2.0 is markedly better, so it’s a shame it’s available only for Chrome, Firefox and Edge. It blocks ads on streaming platforms, sends alerts if a site you visit has been involved in data leaks and blocks cookie pop-ups even when you’re not connected to the VPN.

Surfshark’s Nexus utilizes the whole network to get you the best connection. When you choose a server, Nexus finds the best entry point and routes your traffic through the entire network, changing IPs for optimal speed, stability and security. Surfshark’s Nexus technology is currently used in two features: dynamic MultiHop and rotating IP.

Surfshark’s MultiHop feature, or double VPN, routes your connection through two VPN servers rather than just one. This improves security and anonymity, making it almost impossible to trace online activity back to you.

In addition, Surfshark offers a unique dynamic MultiHop feature. This lets you choose the entry and exit servers, rather than the VPN assigning them. By selecting your own entry and exit, you can customize your connection specifically for your needs.

When you connect to a server with other VPNs, you receive an IP address that is different from your own and doesn’t change unless you disconnect and reconnect. With Surfshark’s rotating IP feature, the VPN IP address changes automatically every few minutes without requiring that you disconnect from the server, making it more difficult to track your activity.

During testing, the IP rotator feature worked flawlessly. The IP address changed without interruption, and the connection remained stable.

Surfshark offers two kinds of fixed IP addresses: dedicated and static. Dedicated IPs (a paid add-on) provide an IP address exclusive for your use, which is ideal if you want to avoid CAPTCHAs and the “bad neighbor” effect (when other VPN users cause sites and services to block a shared IP address). Surfshark has dedicated IPs in 11 locations.

Static IPs are included with your Surfshark VPN subscription, and they’re available for everyone to use. They provide the same IP address each time you connect and are useful for hosting game servers. However, they’re more likely to be flagged as VPN servers, as all subscribers can access them. Surfshark has static IPs in six locations.

Surfshark’s bypasser (or split tunneling) feature works by letting you dictate which traffic uses the VPN connection. You can configure apps or websites to avoid the encrypted VPN tunnel, or determine which apps are routed through the VPN.

The bypasser feature is available on the Windows and Android apps, but not on native apps for macOS, iOS or Linux. Fortunately, you can access the feature via router configuration, so you can still use it on other devices.

Camouflage mode is Surfshark’s obfuscation feature, which works by hiding traffic patterns and data that show you’re using a VPN. Obfuscation makes your VPN traffic look like regular traffic, helping you avoid network restrictions, government surveillance and ISP tracking.

You don’t have to switch on camouflage mode manually. Instead, all server connections automatically enable obfuscation when you’re using the OpenVPN protocol (UDP or TCP), which is convenient.

If you want to watch U.S. streaming services on a device that doesn’t support VPN apps, Surfshark’s smart DNS is a reliable choice. You can configure smart DNS with smart TVs. Simply follow Surfshark’s detailed setup guide in your account settings. It took only a couple of minutes during testing to add smart DNS to a Samsung smart TV and start streaming.

Smart DNS doesn’t provide encryption, which makes it faster but less secure. Smart DNS reroutes DNS requests your device makes, removing identifying data to let you access content that is usually blocked. Because it doesn’t offer any privacy features, your online activity can be traced back to you.

“Alternative ID” is a unique feature included with Surfshark VPN subscriptions. With it, you can generate a persona and an email address (plus a working phone number for an added cost). Surfshark will provide you with a name, date of birth and home address you can use to fill in forms when you don’t want to share your real information.

For example, you may want to sign up for a streaming account with a free service like ITVX, but you’re not in the U.K. The alternative ID feature can generate a U.K. address for you to use so you can sign up for the service. Take a look at our full guide on how to use Surfshark’s alternative ID for more details.

If you’re looking for more comprehensive device protection, Surfshark has a security suite called Surfshark One or Surfshark One+, depending on the plan you choose. This includes:

• Surfshark VPN — Provides all of Surfshark’s VPN features.
• Surfshark Antivirus — Includes real-time protection from zero-day threats, webcam protection and fully customizable scans. Take a look at our in-depth Surfshark Antivirus review.
• Surfshark Search — A private search engine with no ads that provides organic results from the location of your choosing.
• Surfshark Alert — Sends an alert if your personal data or passwords have been leaked online, with instructions on how to protect yourself.

You can purchase the Surfshark VPN by itself, but these other features aren’t available to buy separately.

Surfshark’s Windows app is the most comprehensive overall. It’s a sleek and easy-to-use app with a prominent quick-connect button and easy access to important data such as server lists, active features and configurable settings.

On macOS, Surfshark’s app looks identical and is easy to navigate. However, a couple of features aren’t available — there’s no split tunneling or invisibility on LAN.

Both the Windows and macOS apps feature the WireGuard and OpenVPN protocols. macOS users also have the option of switching to IKEv2.

Surfshark’s mobile apps are similar to its desktop versions — lightweight and simple to use, but with some key differences between the two operating systems.

Similar to the macOS app, the iOS app doesn’t include split tunneling, but it does have a beta version of its “invisible on LAN” feature. On Surfshark’s Android app, you’ll find a GPS-spoofing tool. This syncs your GPS location with the VPN server, so apps that use GPS will see the VPN location instead.

Surfshark has browser extensions (Chrome, Firefox and Edge) and is compatible with smart TVs (Apple TV, Fire TV and Android TV), routers and Linux. There’s a smart DNS service for devices that don’t support VPN apps, letting you change your DNS settings to connect to U.S. services.

Surfshark VPN offers unlimited simultaneous connections with all plans. This is unusual, as most premium VPN services cap simultaneous device connections. With Surfshark, you can protect all the devices in your household with one account.

You can opt for one-month, 12-month or 24-month subscriptions for its three plans: Surfshark Starter, Surfshark One and Surfshark One+. 

The Surfshark Starter plan includes Surfshark VPN, plus a couple of personal identity protection features. Surfshark One costs a bit more, with access to antivirus, spyware and malware protection, and more extensive privacy features. The top-tier plan, Surfshark One+, includes all the previously mentioned features plus data removal tools.

Surfshark’s introductory plans are cheap, but the renewal price is considerably more expensive — it ends up costing the monthly price, making it more expensive than most other VPNs.

Here’s a quick overview of the initial Surfshark VPN cost and the pricing on renewal:

You can get a dedicated IP address for an additional $3.75 per month after you sign up for a Surfshark subscription. You’ll be billed for the dedicated IP add-on in line with your subscription plan.

You can try Surfshark free for seven days on Mac, iOS and Android, but not Windows. If you sign up for Surfshark through the Apple App store or Google Play store, you’ll have to abide by their cancellation and refund policies, meaning you may not be eligible for Surfshark’s 30-day money-back guarantee.

A 30-day money-back guarantee covers all Surfshark plans purchased through the official website, so you can get a full refund if you change your mind. You’ll have to contact support to request a refund. Check out our guide on how to get a Surfshark refund for more details.

Surfshark undergoes daily speed testing of six popular server locations for upload and download speeds and connection latency. We perform all tests using the OpenVPN protocol.

Overall, Surfshark provides reliably fast download and upload speeds for internet traffic across its global network, with no major fluctuations. The average download speed during our testing was similar on both long-distance and nearby servers, as was the upload speed.

However, Surfshark has an issue with latency. Even local servers had a significant jump (almost 1000%) from our baseline connection. Though this didn’t impact browsing or online transactions, it was noticeable during online gaming. If latency is an issue, consider the other top VPN providers in our guide to the best VPNs for gaming.

Surfshark will automatically detect and use the fastest, most stable protocol for your connection. Alternatively, you can manually select a protocol based on your connection needs. 

OpenVPN and WireGuard are both considered fast and secure options. WireGuard is available either preconfigured or through manual configuration, the latter of which is useful for routers. IKEv2 is also secure and handles reconnections well, making it a better choice for mobile devices.

During tests with Wireshark — a diagnostic tool to test VPN encryption — Surfshark encrypted all network traffic successfully. The light-blue color in the image above shows encrypted connections.

Our team ran comprehensive WebRTC and DNS leak tests to ensure all data was kept within the encrypted tunnel. Surfshark passed these tests, protecting IP addresses and DNS data, and avoiding WebRTC leaks.

When you’re connected to Surfshark’s servers, it doesn’t record, store or share logs about your VPN use, your IP address or your online activities. It does log connection timestamps and user IDs, but they are deleted 15 minutes after you disconnect.

Disappointingly, Surfshark may collect some sensitive information when you visit its website, including your IP address and your device’s unique identifier. Though this data is collected to improve Surfshark’s operations, the information could be kept for up to two years, which is unusual for a privacy-focused service.

Surfshark also logs your IP address when you use its smart DNS service, but this is standard practice for any private DNS tool. Once you stop using smart DNS, the data is deleted.

Surfshark has undergone and passed independent audits by Deloitte and Cure53, two top auditing firms. These audits looked at the privacy policy, server configuration and infrastructure, and other security and privacy factors. Neither Deloitte nor Cure53 found any faults, meaning Surfshark’s systems and management work as described.

Yes, Surfshark can unblock Netflix — it’s one of the best VPNs for Netflix thanks to its fast connection speeds and global server network. During testing, Surfshark accessed multiple Netflix libraries without triggering errors.

During testing, Surfshark VPN easily accessed popular streaming platforms, usually on the first connection attempt. We encountered the occasional block, but were able to switch to a new server and start streaming quickly.

Surfshark uses virtual servers in locations that aren’t VPN-friendly or that have restrictive networks. These servers are clearly labeled in the app, making it easy to differentiate the connections. In our article on VPN physical vs virtual servers, we explain the pros and cons of these two server types.

Yes, Surfshark VPN works in China — in fact, it ranked as the best VPN for China in our tests. Surfshark provides reliable connections from within China with camouflage mode obfuscation, MultiHop connections and solid speeds for streaming, browsing and other online activities.

Surfshark’s live chat is freely available on the help site. Initially, a chatbot will ask you for some details, like your name, your email address and the nature of your question.

After typing “live chat,” we were connected with an agent in less than a minute. The support agent responded promptly, providing accurate answers to our questions until we were satisfied.