How to Unblock Facebook in Russia in 2024: Avoid the Russian Ban
A VPN is the best way to bypass Russian geoblocks and access Facebook. In this guide, we'll show how to unblock Facebook in Russia using a VPN, as well as what to look for in a VPN and how to set it up. You'll also learn our top three VPNs for Facebook in Russia.
Written by Wisdom Sablah (Writer)
Reviewed by Aleksandar Kochovski (Editor)
Last Updated: 2024-02-22T14:34:00+00:00
All our content is written fully by humans; we do not publish AI writing. Learn more here.
In February 2022, Russia launched a full-scale military offensive against Ukraine. In a bid to control the narrative about the war, the Kremlin began to target social media platforms, and on March 21, 2022, it banned Facebook. All is not lost, however. We’ll show you how to unblock Facebook in Russia with a VPN.
Key Takeaways:
- The Russian government has blocked access to Facebook and other tech giants in an effort to control information flow regarding the Russo-Ukrainian war.
- A VPN can help you get past the Facebook ban in Russia and help you enjoy all the features of the platform.
- ExpressVPN is the best VPN for bypassing the Facebook ban in Russia, thanks to its all-around security features and fast speeds.
The Facebook ban is part of the Russian government’s clampdown on social media and news platforms. So far, the likes of Instagram, Google News and Twitter have been blocked or severely restricted.
Fortunately, if you reside in Russia, you don’t have to stay off the grid; you can get around the Facebook ban and we’ll show how to do so in this guide. We also have helpful guides on how to unblock Twitter and bypass the Instagram ban in Russia.
A strong VPN can help you safely bypass Russian geoblocks and enjoy Facebook, whether you want to scroll through timelines, get in touch with friends and family or advertise your business.
In this post, we’ll provide a step-by-step guide to get you started, and we’ll also reveal our tried-and-tested VPNs for unblocking Facebook in Russia, of which ExpressVPN is our top choice. Let’s dig in.
How to Unblock Facebook in Russia With a VPN
Setting up a VPN is easy, as we’ll show you in the steps below. For this example, we’ll use ExpressVPN, but you can follow similar steps to set up other VPNs.
- Sign Up for and Download the Service
Go to ExpressVPN’s website and click on the “get ExpressVPN” button (or the “Купить ExpressVPN” button in Russian). Choose a plan and a payment method and enter your billing details. Next, download and install the VPN on your device.
- Choose a Server Location
Next, open your VPN and select a server in a nearby country.
- Open and Start Using Facebook
Finally, you can sign in and access your Facebook without restrictions or surveillance.
What Is the Best VPN to Unblock Facebook in Russia?
To unblock Facebook, you need a VPN provider with strong security and encryption features to avoid Russian censorship and geoblocks. Also, the VPN doesn’t need to have physical servers in Russia, but it does need at least one in a neighboring country. You can find out more in our best VPN for Russia guide.
1. ExpressVPN
ExpressVPN is our best VPN for unblocking social media in Russia. It offers best-in-class security with features like AES-256 encryption, a kill switch and leak protection. If the Russian government demands your Facebook data, there’ll be nothing to show, since ExpressVPN keeps no logs and the TrustedServer technology wipes your data from its servers periodically.
ExpressVPN has a handful of servers in countries close to Russia including Norway, Poland, Finland and Belarus. Plus, ExpressVPN has incredibly fast and stable connections, so it’s a great choice for data-heavy activities like livestreaming or organizing a watch party. Learn more in our exhaustive ExpressVPN review, or take advantage of its 30-day money-back guarantee.
2. NordVPN
NordVPN is another top-of-the-line VPN that matches ExpressVPN in many respects (see our ExpressVPN vs NordVPN comparison). Even though NordVPN has servers in only 60 countries, quite a few of those servers are in countries bordering Russia, such as Latvia, Ukraine, Estonia and Moldova, which makes it great at bypassing geoblocks.
We recommend NordVPN to journalists and anyone at risk politically because of its double VPN feature, which routes your traffic through two servers instead of one. Further, its new threat protection feature helps you ward off malware and ads while using Facebook. You also get an automatic kill switch and DNS leak protection to ensure your data never leaks.
Learn more about the service in our NordVPN review or use its 30-day money-back guarantee to try it out.
3. CyberGhost
CyberGhost is one of the most beginner-friendly VPNs we’ve ever reviewed. On Android, iOS and Windows in particular, the CyberGhost app is simple, organized and easy to use. Another appealing feature of this VPN service are its “NoSpy” servers that are all located in privacy-friendly Romania.
To cap it all off, CyberGhost is budget-friendly, especially on the long-term plans, so it’s no wonder it makes our best cheap VPNs list. Although it’s low cost, CyberGhost has a raft of solid security features, including AES-256 encryption, an automatically enabled kill switch and a strict no-logs policy. See our CyberGhost review to learn more or make use of its extensive 45-day refund period.
Can I Use a Free VPN to Unblock Facebook?
Although you can use a free VPN to access Facebook, such VPNs often come with a number of challenges and constraints. First of all, free VPNs often log customer data and sell it to advertisers. In addition, such VPNs might be riddled with malware and ads, giving you a frustrating time while using the VPN.
What’s more, you’re likely to have data caps and bandwidth throttling with free VPNs. That said, if you must use a free VPN, we recommend Windscribe and ProtonVPN, as you can see in our free VPN guide. Windscribe gives a whopping 10GB free, while ProtonVPN provides unlimited data but limits speeds.
Final Thoughts
Living in Russia and not being able to access Facebook is frustrating, especially if you use the social media platform to keep up with friends and family or for business. Fortunately, Putin’s online censorship is not the end of the road; with a VPN, Russian users can access Facebook with ease.
Like China, Russia doesn’t wholeheartedly welcome VPNs, so you need a robust VPN that can get past geoblocks without detection. As you’ve seen in this post, ExpressVPN is the prime choice for Facebook in Russia, while NordVPN and CyberGhost are cheaper yet reliable alternatives.
Have you tried accessing Facebook in Russia with a VPN? Which VPN did you use, and were you able to get in? Share your experience with us in the comments section. As always, thanks for reading.
FAQ
Russians can use a VPN, although they’re better off using it incognito. Since the escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian war and the banning of social media sites like Facebook and Instagram, Russians are turning to VPNs in droves.
Download and install the VPN of your choice. Next, open the VPN app and connect to a server location outside Russia. You should get a notification or message indicating that you’ve successfully connected. Finally, log in to your Facebook account and enjoy the app.
VPNs are not blocked in Russia, and you can use one to access blocked content. However, it’s worth noting that the Russian government has banned several VPNs following the introduction of the VPN law in 2017 and their refusal to comply with orders to connect to the Federal State Information (FSIS). As a result, some VPNs removed their physical servers from the country.