WindscribeVPN Review 2022

Are you wondering which features of Windscribe VPN are the strongest? Does it have sufficient speed for download, upload and ping? Does it prioritize user privacy and security? To what extent is the VPN good with torrenting?

In this review, we will conduct a variety of tests to examine all these questions and more!

We tested Windscribe VPN across different devices and operating systems to identify its strengths and weaknesses, in effort to present a comprehensive view of the VPN performance. Our tests included speed tests (Download, upload, ping), streaming, browser extensions, torrenting, and more. We also contacted customer support to test their response time and method, as well as quality in assisting customers.

Our key findings about Windscribe VPN

🌍	Country of Registration	Canada
🖥️	Number of Countries	63
🖥️	Number of Server Location	110
🖥️	Number of Servers	500+
💰	Price	$9 per month
⤵️	Download Speed	Avg. 10.76 Mbps
⤴️	Upload Speed	Avg. 18.08 Mbps
	Dedicated IP	No
📱	Multiple Devices	Unlimited
📺	Netflix	Yes
📥	Torrenting	Yes
💻	Operation System	iOS, Android, Windows, Linux, and MacOS
🌐	Browser Extension	Chrome, Edge, Safari, Opera and Firefox
	Does it Work in China	Yes
🆓	Free Trial	Free option with 10GB/month of data, unlimited connections and access to over 10 countries
👩‍💼	Live Chat Support	Email only

Servers and Locations

Windscribe VPN has an extensive network of over 500 servers in 63 countries, dispersed among 110 locations. This diversity is especially important for speed, because the larger the number of servers is, the more people can connect to a location close to them, which will enhance speed and thereby overall performance. Many other VPN service providers offer a larger number of servers, yet Windscribe is located in almost every region, including Africa, a somewhat neglected area when it comes to this field. Moreover, East Asia is very well-presented compared to other VPNs. Users can easily locate the server most compatible with their location, with the help of Windscribe’s real-time updates of server status and capacity.

Windscribe has built a strong reputation, especially through its Static IP feature. The Static IP is available only in 13 locations, but can be extremely beneficial when put to use. It connects users with the same IP address every time they’re online with VPN, reduces the chance of sites identifying and blacklisting the IP, makes streaming easier and more consistently accessible, and it can be used by about 10 other users.

	WindscribeVPN	Industry Average
Number of Countries	63	60
Number of Server Locations	110	120
Number of Servers	500+	1000

Speed Test

Windscribe offers a Free Plan as well as a few paid plans, which generally means that even though the free plan works fine and is equipped with some good features, its speed is not very efficient, at least compared to paid subscriptions.

We studied download, upload and ping speeds for 67 countries across the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Africa. Upload and download speeds were measured in Mbps. while ping speed was measured in milliseconds (ms). We also measured our internet speed without the VPN to compare it to test data.

Download Speed

Our download speed test encompassed 10 countries in the Americas, 37 in Europe, and 20 in both Asia Pacific and Africa. Download speed is extremely important for any VPN, and is one of the main tools users look for.

WindscribeVPN Regional Comparison of Download Speed

Header Label	Americas	Europe	Asia Pacific and Africa
Number of Tested Countries	10	37	20
Average Download Speed	14.85 Mbps	4.23 Mbps	13.19 Mbps
Lowest Download Speed	0.54 Mbps (Peru)	0.51 Mbps (Turkey)	0.6 Mbps (Vietnam)
Highest Download Speed	61.75 Mbps (Chile)	26.88 Mbps (Moldova)	117.21 Mbps (Philippines)
No VPN	105.4 Mbps	105.4 Mbps	105.4 Mbps

The table demonstrates variances of speed among different regions, with an average speed of 14.85 Mbps in the Americas, being the highest average download speed. 4.23 Mbps for Europe, and 13.19 Mbps for Asia Pacific and Africa. All of which are much lower than the download speed without a VPN connection, which is 105.4 Mbps.

WindscribeVPN Download Speed

Header Label	Country	Download
Fastest	Philippines	117.21 Mbps
Slowest	Turkey	0.51 Mbps
Overall	All Tested Countries	10.76 Mbps
No VPN Connected	–	105.4 Mbps

As shown in the table above, the fastest download speed for Windscribe VPN was recorded in the Philippines at 117.21 Mbps, relatively higher than the speed with no VPN. The slowest download speed however, was 0.51 Mbps in Turkey, a very insufficient speed for any user. The average of download speed for all 67 countries was 10.76, which is also pretty low.

Upload Speed  

We also tested the upload speed across the same number and distribution of countries. The upload speed is often less essential for users, because it has minimal use, such as when uploading files to social media.

WindscribeVPN Regional Comparison of Upload Speed

Header Label	Americas	Europe	Asia Pacific and Africa
Number of Tested Countries	10	37	20
Average Upload Speed	4.77 Mbps	4.13 Mbps	7.37 Mbps
Lowest Upload Speed	1.87 Mbps (Peru)	1.74 Mbps (Romania)	0.73 Mbps (Kenya)
Highest Upload Speed	9.6 Mbps (Ecuador)	9.78 Mbps (Italy)	31.4 Mbps (Hong Kong)
No VPN	24.46 Mbps	24.46 Mbps	24.46 Mbps

The average upload speed was lowest in Europe, 4.13 Mbps, while highest in Asia Pacific and Africa, 7.37 Mbps. In the Americas, average upload speed was 4.77 Mbps. Without a VPN connection however, the upload speed was 24.46 Mbps, concluding that Windscribe does not support uploading very well.

WindscribeVPN Upload Speed

Header Label	Country	Upload
Fastest	Hong Kong	31.4 Mbps
Slowest	Kenya	0.73 Mbps
Overall	All Tested Countries	18.08 Mbps
No VPN Connected	–	24.46 Mbps

In the above table, it is apparent that the highest upload speed of 31.4 Mbps in Hong Kong, is higher than the speed with no VPN of 24.46 Mbps. The lowest highly varied from other recorded speeds. It was 0.73 Mbps in Kenya.

Ping

Ping is an indicator of how fast or slow your server completes a data exchange cycle. It is measured in milliseconds (ms). A higher ping speed is not favored as it slows down the process of exchanging data. Thus, VPN providers with a large number of distributed servers across various locations, is more likely to guarantee a low ping speed.

WindscribeVPN Regional Comparison of Ping Speed

Header Label	Americas	Europe	Asia Pacific and Africa
Number of Tested Countries	10	37	20
Average Ping Speed	283.9 ms	224.4 ms	148.03 ms
Fastest Ping Speed	216 ms (Mexico)	177 ms (Italy)	8.74 ms (Cambodia)
Slowest Ping Speed	351 ms (Brazil)	386 ms (Moldova)	369 ms (Singapore)
No VPN	14 ms	14 ms	14 ms

The average ping speed for the Americas was the highest and thereby worst, it was measured at 283.9 ms. For Europe it was 224.4 ms, and for Asia Pacific and Africa it was the best regional ping speed of 148.03 ms. Regardless, the results are highly deviant from the no VPN usage result, which is as fast as 14 ms.

WindscribeVPN Ping Speed

Header Label	Country	Ping
Fastest	Cambodia	8.74 ms
Slowest	Moldova	386 ms
Overall	All Tested Countries	218.78 ms
No VPN Connected	–	14 ms

We recorded the best ping speed among all countries in Cambodia, with 8.74 ms, a result much better than ping speed without a VPN connection, which was 14 ms. On the other hand, the country with the slowest ping, Moldova, had a result much worse than when no VPN is in use of 386 ms. The average ping speed as a result of all our ping tests all over the world was 218.78 ms, which is much slower than when no VPN is connected, yet much sharper than the slowest ping speed.

DNS Leak Test

As we connect our devices to the internet through an ISP provided DNS server, the internet service provider will have access to our activities since most service providers assign their customers a DNS server that can easily record internet activities, even when connected to a VPN. For instance, some networks and countries such as China, monitor online activities and can block/alter DNS requests. To tackle these issues and avoid DNS leaks, Windscribe allows its users to configure an IP address to access the API, bypassing DNS. In addition, it offers IPv6 that directs all DNS requests to a tunnel to resolve domains, altering the ISP DNS and preventing leaks.

No VPN Connected	VPN Connected (WindscribeVPN)	DNS Leak Test
172.217.43.199 (Taipei, Taiwan)	107.150.30.194 (Atlanta, United States)	Good
172.253.4.2 (Hong Kong)	–
172.253.4.3 (Hong Kong)	–
172.253.5.2 (Hong Kong)	–
74.125.186.205 (Taipei, Taiwan)	–
74.125.41.67 (Taipei, Taiwan)	–

Our DNS leak test was successful with VPNhub. NO DNS leaks were detected.

Streaming

Users can access a number of streaming platforms through Windscribe VPN, such as, BBC iPlayer, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video from a range of locations, unblocking geo-restricted content especially from countries like the US and UK. We tested Windscribe VPN for Netflix streaming in the United States, United Kingdom, Japan and South Korea, however, it only works in the UK with 1080p streaming quality, enough to watch Ultra HD (4K) with a good internet speed. In addition, the streaming buffer is only 7 seconds.

Windscribe provides dedicated VPN servers specifically for streaming, which are called Windflix (available in the UK, US, and Canada), as it sets an IP within the country of viewing to help unblock geographically specific content.

Netflix

Most VPN users expect access to Netflix geo-restricted content, especially the US’s diverse library. With Windscribe, you are unable to stream Netflix with the free plan but can have access through paid subscriptions. For instance, with the Pro Plan, there is a WindFlix Location feature that should permit access to Netflix US content without any problems in various locations. However, based on our tests, we were only able to stream Netflix in the UK as shown in the table below, we present our results after testing Netflix streaming on Library, Streaming Buffer, and Streaming Quality for four countries.  

Netflix Streaming in Different Regions

Header Label	WindscribeVPN – Library	WindscribeVPN – Streaming Buffer	WindscribeVPN – Streaming Quality
Americas
United States	No	–	–
Europe
United Kingdom	Yes	7	1080P
Asia Pacific
Japan	No	–	–
South Korea	No	–	–

We successfully unblocked the UK library, while the US, Japan, and South Korea were blocked.

Torrenting

Windscribe is a strong VPN for torrenting, it offers servers compatible with peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing without uploading them to a server, this option is available on the official site, Status page, where non-supported locations are flagged. The use of the VPN’s free plan ensures safe and anonymous torrenting, yet the paid plans are particularly operating with high AES-256 cipher with SHA512 auth and a 4096-bit RSA key. Not all servers support torrenitng however because some countries where they have servers, abide by strong digital copyright protection laws.

Windscribe incorporates Flexible connectivity, allowing users to onnect via IKEv2, OpenVPN UDP, TCP or Stealth on a wide range of ports, contributing to anonymous torrenting.

Windscribe VPN is especially effective with BitTorrent and uTorrent. Supported by all major operating systems, including Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, BlackBerry, and Linux.

Torrenting – BitTorrent

We used BitTorrent to download a 3.29 GB file, which had a download speed of 427.3 kb/s with 0.125 seeders. Thus, the download time was 1h 55m, much longer than the industry average time (11 minutes), yet better than some other VPNs. These findings are demonstrated in the table below.

WindscribeVPN BitTorrent Test in Comparison with Other VPNs 

Header Label	File Size	Seeders	Download Speed	Time
WindscribeVPN	3.29 GB	0.125	427.3 kB/s	1h 55m
Other VPNs	1.85 GB	0.878	2.1 Mbps	11 min

Torrenting – uTorrent

Given the same conditions, we also tested uTorrent. The downloaded file size was again 3.29 GB, with 0.118 seeders. The download speed was 680.5 kB/s, completed within 1h and 34m. This result was somewhat better than BitTorrent, with higher speed and download time, but still deviant from the industry average of 22min.

WindscribeVPN uTorrent Test in Comparison with Other VPNs

Header Label	File Size	Seeders	Download Speed	Time
WindscribeVPN	3.29 GB	0.118	680.5 kB/s	1h 34m
Other VPNs	1.85 GB	0.219	2.1 Mbps	22 min

Router

Windscribe upholds safety and security in effort to attract customers, the VPN provider therefore created a secure hardware called InvizBox, which is a portable router made to help users secure all their devices simultaneously, while using VPN servers. This router is supported by IKEv2 Protocol Support, it can connect to multiple servers at once; WINDFLIX hotspot for TV, local server for normal browsing. Alternatively, users can use any router that has an OpenVPN client.

The current platforms supported by Windscribe include Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android, BlackBerry, Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Amazon Fire TV, Nvidia Shield, KODI, and recommends the use of DD-WRT, Tomato, and Asus routers.

WindscribeVPN Router App

WindscribeVPN can easily be installed on different devices. This VPN is compatible with various routers and can also work with the InvizBox. As security becomes more and more important for users, VPN providers equally work on maintaining privacy for their users. This VPN provider is not compatible with many routers, for instance, even though it can be supported by Asus, not all models can function with it.

Router Manually Setup for WindscribeVPN

The VPN can be manually configured through the following steps:

1. After connecting the router either through an Ethernet cable or WiFi, visit the following link http://router.asus.com/ to access router interface
2. Log into the router interface then go to the VPN section
3. Select VPN Client
4. Select Add Profile, then OpenVPN
5. Select the appropriate Config options (Location, Protocol, Port, Cipher)
6. Select download Config then select Get Credentials
7. Enter a description in the router interface
8. Sign in with username and password
9. Choose and upload the file, then activate it to get started

Browser Extension

Windscribe VPNbrowser extension includes:

• Firefox

• Opera

• MS Edge

• Google Chrome

Devices and Operating Systems

Users can operate an unlimited number of devices simultaneously with a single subscription, regardless of the platform. WindscribeVPN provides access to its VPN app in the following devices and operating systems:

• Windows (7, 8, 10) Computers

• Mac desktops (MacOS 10.12+)

• Linux (Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, CentOS)

• iOS devices such as iPhones, iPads, and iPods

• Android phones and tablets (5.0+)

• BlackBerry (Just Kidding)

• KODI

• Nvidia Shield

• Amazon Fire TV (Gen 2+)

TV

WindscribeVPN is compatible with different TV devices, including, Amazon FireTV, Nvidia Shield, and KODI. To access any other Smart TV, users can install VPN on a supported router, which will allow for VPN connection sharing to devices connected to the router. In the absence of a supported router, a virtual router can be a good substitute.

China

Yes, Windscribe operates in China, and can unblock various websites and censored content, however, due to strong monitoring of all networks and connections in the country, this can only take place through manually configuring an IP address to access the API and bypass DNS.

Price

Users can use Windscribe for free, which will give them access to servers in 10 countries, up to 10GB of data per month, however, without an email address confirmation, this will be limited to 2GB per month. In addition, the free plan has access to all the tools, allowing just as much security and privacy.

Users can also build their own plan by selecting a specific amount of servers. In this plan, there is a $2 minimum purchase, where each server costs $1 per month. In addition, to obtain access to unlimited data and full access to ROBERT, it will cost an extra $1.

Users can subscribe to the Pro Plan for $9 per month on a monthly basis, or $4.08 per month for annual payment, which gives access to all features and locations (except static IPs). The available features include unlimited bandwidth, connection to all countries, fully customizable ROBERT, port forwarding, Windflix servers (for Netflix streaming), and custom configs for all locations.

Users can benefit from the Scribe Plan for $3 per month, per account, if a team of 5 people register at once. This plan includes all pro features, centralized billing for all members, configuring and managing the team from a single panel, and sharing all purchased static IPs.

Discount

Windscribe VPN offers a discount on the annual plan, whereas you pay $9 per month on a monthly basis, you can purchase an annual plan for $49, which accounts for $4.08 per month. Moreover, the Team accounts option called Scribe Plan is beneficial for teams or groups who can purchase accounts separately and share beneficial features such as Static IPs for $3 per month, per account.

Free Trial

Windscribe VPN can be used for free, for an unlimited time, even without an email address, however, with a confirmed email address, users can access up to 10GB per month of data, with unlimited connections and access to various features.

Customer Service

Windscribe VPN provides customer support only through email. We contacted customer support and their response was not efficient or fast.

Header Label	WindscribeVPN	Industry AVG	Difference
Connect to an Agency	email only	10 seconds	N/A
Reply Speed	email only	15 seconds	N/A
Quality of the Answer	not fast	Great	–

FAQ

1. What is Windscribe used for?

Windscribe is a virtual private network (VPN) provider that focuses on optimizing tols to block ads and web beacons, access blocked content, and safeguard user privacy.

Windscribe has VPN servers in 63 countries, providing both desktop VPN application, and browser extension, while supporting two VPN protocols. It also has apps compatible with Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, and Windows phones.

2. How to change your location on Windscribe?

Users can either connect to locations automatically, or choose a location on Windscribe. The VPN provider also offers a feature called Location Warp, which prevents the browser location API from determining users’ real locations, which can otherwise determine user physical location based on GPS and Wifi SSID.

By connecting to the best location automatically, the Firefox browser extensions will especially provide high speeds.

By choosing a location manually, users will appear anonymous on the Internet with an IP address hidden within the VPN IP.

When coming across geo-blocked content, the automatic switch will redirect users to an unblocked location.

3. Where is Windscribe based?

Windscribe is based in The Great White North: Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada, which is not very ideal for many users as the country is part of the 5-Eyes data-sharing alliance. The alliance is known for collecting intelligence data about citizens within member countries. In addition, the CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Service) has previously been involved in recording personal user data to track and identify people of interest, this was facilitated especially by making ISPs log in user data for 6 months, under the Copyright Modernization Act, in this case, VPNs are a safeguard. Even though it is unknown whether such jurisdiction applies on VPN providers, Windscribe has a strict no-log policy.

4. How to use Windscribe free data?

You can use Windscribe’s free data by download the VPN to a phone, browser or desktop, and connecting with a confirmed email address, which is the easiest way to access free data of up to 10GB per month. However, if users do not provide a confirmed email, their free data will be limited to 2GB per month.

5. How good is Windscribe?

Windscribe is a very good free and premium VPN, with various features that especially value user privacy and security online. For instance, the VPN provides Torrenting, bypassing censorship, low price with value, extensive safety protocols and more. Moreover, both the free and paid plans have streaming capabilities, although the free plan only has access to 10 countries and so all other services including streaming are somewhat limited.

Windscribe unblocks platforms like UK Netflix, DAZN, and BBC iPlayer. The location where it is based may be suspicious to many, given that Canada is part of the 5-Eye, but the VPN uses high server security with tools like safe logging policy, strong encryption of AES-256 cipher with SHA512 auth and a 4096-bit RSA key, Config generators that OpenVPN, IKEv2, WireGuard®, and SOCKS configs for all devices, Port forwarding, which allows access to internal resources securely, etc.

6. Windscribe, what features does it offer?

Windscribe has a wide number of features that target different capabilities, these include:

• A Large Network- with over 500 servers, operating in more than 63 countries, distributed among 110 locations/cities.

• ROBERT – this tool blocks IPs as well as ads based on individual user choice.

• No Identifying Logs – prevents logging in user data.

• Strong Encryption – use of AES-256 cipher with SHA512 auth and a 4096-bit RSA key.

• Config Generators – generate OpenVPN, IKEv2, WireGuard®, and SOCKS configs for all devices.

• ScribeForce – creates team accounts with cool names.

• Static IPs – this comes only with purchased plans, allowing users to use the same IP address when activities go over a server.

• Port Forwarding – allows access to internal resources securely.

• Split Tunneling – individual user choice of what apps go over the VPN and what doesn’t.

• Firewall – in effort to avoid leaks, this feature blocks connectivity outside the tunnel.

• Secure Hotspot – allows users to turn their computers into secure Wifi routers.

• Proxy Gateway – allows users to create proxy servers on their network to connect to other devices.

• Flexible Connectivity – this takes place through connecting via IKEv2, OpenVPN UDP, TCP or Stealth on a wide range of ports.

• Auto Pilot – an automatic feature that picks the best location.

• Double Hop – allowing users to connect through two servers, guaranteeing more security.

• Ad Blocking – blocks ads and trackers.

• Time Warp – changes user time-zone to make them appear physically in the county they’re connected to.

• Cookie Monster – tracks cookies that are set and deletes them on tab close.

• Split Personality – rotates user agent randomly with the purpose of reducing any chances of basic fingerprints.

• WebRTC Slayer – in effort to avoid leaks outside the tunnel, it blocks WebRTC.

• Location Warp – prevents browser API from determining users’ physical locations through GPS.

7. How effective is Windscribe?

Windscribe uses a system that is built from scratch to ensure security, as the system does not store any permanent access logs or monitor user activity. This increases effectivity of the VPN provider because it permits users safe torrenting, browsing and streaming. In addition, Windscribe is very efficient in that it does not even require an email address for the basic free plan, users can also pay with Bitcoin for more anonymity.

8. How to get more bandwidth Windscribe?

Windscribe provides a promotion with a higher monthly bandwidth for free users from 10 Gigabytes to 50 Gigabytes. In order to access this voucher, follow the steps below:

• Sign up to Windscribe

• Select Use for Free then select Create Free Account (with email)

• Log in with username and password

• Go to My Account and select Claim Voucher then enter the code REDDIT50

• The account dashboard should display the 50GB monthly limit

9. In which countries can I use Windscribe?

Windscribe has a diverse network of over 500 servers in 63+ countries, spread around the globe in almost every region, including locations and countries that are often neglected, such as in East Asia and Africa. Moreover, Windscribe provides servers in countries with high monitoring such as China and Turkey.

10. What streaming services does Windscribe work with?

What makes Windscribe excellent for streaming in specific locations is that it offers servers that are optimized for streaming, called Windflix servers. However they are available in a limited number of countries like the US, Canada, the UK, and Japan. Some of the streaming platforms accessible by Windscribe with Windflix US are; Netflix, DAZN, and Youtube. However, many other platforms can hardly be unblocked by this VPN, especially given the increase in algorithms that actively detect and block VPN traffic.