Tuxler VPN Review (2024): Is Tuxler VPN Safe?
Tuxler VPN is a free VPN service that connects you to real residential IPs — that is, an IP associated with a home address rather than a business. In concept, residential IP addresses reduce the chance of someone discovering you’re using a VPN. Tuxler VPN offers over 300,000 IPs to choose from, as well as unlimited bandwidth. All this sounds impressive compared to other free VPNs. But what’s the catch? Is Tuxler safe to use?
To find out, we did a full Tuxler VPN review. In the course of our research and testing, we noticed several security and privacy concerns. For starters, Tuxler does not provide much information on how it ensures security. Plus, there are inherent risks in using other people’s IP addresses to mask your own. Read our full article below for more details about Tuxler VPN’s security, privacy, and performance.
Tuxler VPN: A Short Review
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Unlimited free VPN | Very slow speeds |
Unblocks some streaming services like Hulu and Amazon Prime Video | Lacks basic security and privacy features |
Offers many residential IP addresses | Does not unblock Netflix |
Expensive premium version | |
Poor customer support |
Tuxler is a free VPN provider based in the United States. It has apps for Windows and macOS, plus browser extensions for Google Chrome and Firefox. It allows you to connect to residential IP addresses across the globe and offers unlimited bandwidth. While this sounds great on paper, Tuxler does not perform well in reality. Although it can unblock some streaming services such as Hulu and HBO, its speeds are too slow to actually enjoy videos.
Moreover, it cannot unblock Netflix and lacks basic security features like a VPN protocol and a kill switch. Tuxler VPN also collects and shares a lot of user data which is alarming from a privacy standpoint.
You can get slightly faster speeds by upgrading to a premium plan, which costs $7.99 per month. This is rather expensive, even compared to the best VPNs out there. Moreover, even the premium version lacks security features and is not fast enough for smooth streaming or browsing. Tuxler VPN also does not allow simultaneous connections across multiple devices.
Lastly, there’s no money-back guarantee for Tuxler VPN, and customer support is unresponsive. So, we highly recommend you go for a cheaper, safer, and more reliable VPN like Surfshark. For just a few dollars a month, Surfshark provides foolproof security and great unblocking capabilities so you can access the internet safely and anonymously.
💵 Price |
From $7.99 a month |
📱 Operating systems | Windows, Mac |
💻 Connections | 1 |
💳 Payment methods | PayPal, Cryptocurrency |
🔒 Protocols | Unknown |
📥 Torrent options | Torrenting allowed |
📅 Money-back guarantee | None Offered |
📋 Logs | Keeps logs |
🎬 Works with |
Speed – How Fast is Tuxler VPN?
It’s essential for a VPN to provide good speeds while keeping you secure online. Unfortunately, both the free and paid versions of Tuxler disappointed us with massive reductions in speed. Therefore, it scores 2 out of 10 in this aspect due to the following:
- The speed test results showed consistently low speeds across most IP addresses we connected to.
- We had problems using the internet with Tuxler because webpages failed to load and videos kept buffering.
Speed test results for Tuxler VPN
We used the trusted website speedtest.net to check Tuxler’s speed across several different locations. First, we tested the speed of our internet connection with no VPN. Then, we tried different TuxlerVPN servers multiple times and recorded the average download and upload speeds to get an overall idea of how fast it is.
We tested both the free and premium versions of Tuxler. The table below shows the results of Tuxler VPN premium, which performed slightly better than the free one.
Server | Download (Mbps) | Upload (Mbps) | Ping (MS) |
---|---|---|---|
No VPN | 94.68 | 94.75 | 2 |
US (Connecticut) | 4.74 | 6.10 | 144 |
US (Los Angeles) | 17.44 | 18.00 | 148 |
UK (London) | 53.09 | 21.06 | 21 |
Japan | 5.23 | 6.59 | 296 |
Australia | 4.63 | 2.60 | 339 |
The Netherlands | 55.51 | 20.55 | 34 |
Germany | 58.02 | 20.85 | 12 |
Brazil | 6.44 | 10.18 | 218 |
Canada | 17.4 | 17.68 | 97 |
South Africa | 4.21 | 7.17 | 346 |
As you can see in the table, we got the best results when connected to the Netherlands and Germany. But on the whole, speeds dropped pretty drastically even though the premium version promises “four times” the speed of its free VPN.
Fortunately, there are several other free VPN services that offer much better speeds. Moreover, if you want an even faster experience, you can opt for one of our top-rated premium VPNs like Surfshark or NordVPN, both of which offer high speeds at a much lower price than Tuxler.
Speed during daily use
Tuxler VPN was quite inconvenient to use as it caused frequent delays in loading webpages, buffering videos, and downloading/uploading files. At times, it seemed like the internet connection as a whole stopped working when connected to Tuxler. The only time we could use it effectively was when connected to the locations that worked best for us, namely the Netherlands and Germany. Even then, it still caused lags when streaming videos.
On the whole, even though Tuxler provides unlimited bandwidth to free users, its low speeds are a giant letdown. Our verdict is that Tuxler VPN is not suitable for general browsing, streaming, torrenting, or gaming. Instead, you should check out our list of the best VPN services that deliver great speed, security, and reliability.
Safety – How Secure is Tuxler VPN?
The primary purpose of using a VPN is to stay safe online and enjoy private internet access. We give Tuxler a score of 3 out 10 in this area. Here’s a summary of our findings:
- It claims to use military-grade encryption but does not provide much information about what protocols it uses.
- It collects a lot of user data and shares it with third parties.
- It does not have a kill switch.
- The free version can be used without providing any information while the paid version accepts cryptocurrencies and PayPal payments.
Protocols
Unlike regular VPN providers, Tuxler does not give much information about the protocols it uses. Most premium VPNs offer multiple protocol options such as OpenVPN, IKEv2, and WireGuard. Instead, Tuxler’s website mentions that it uses the SOCKS5 proxy which is an alternative to a VPN.
This raises the question of whether Tuxler can even qualify as a VPN provider or just uses proxy servers to connect users to a different IP address. We reached out to Tuxler’s customer support for clarification about this but did not hear back despite repeated attempts.
Further, Tuxler mentions that it uses end-to-end encryption to secure users’ data, but we are doubtful about this since the company does not mention what protocols it uses. So, you should be extremely cautious about using Tuxler.
Logging and privacy
Tuxlers is pretty clear about what user information it collects. This includes information about your browser, devices, online activity, and payment details. Furthermore, its privacy policy reveals that these details are shared with third parties, such as advertisers. This is a cause for concern because your data is a valuable resource and should be protected.
Another concern we have is that Tuxler is based in the United States, which is a 5 eyes country with lax privacy regulations. So, this VPN may share info about your online activities with authorities, which could get you in trouble.
Therefore, if privacy is your top concern, it’s best to go with a no-logs VPN like Surfshark or NordVPN. There are even free options like ProtonVPN which does not collect user data and is located in privacy-friendly Switzerland
Kill switch
A kill switch is an essential feature in a VPN. When enabled, it automatically “kills” your internet connection if your VPN connection drops. This prevents sensitive information like your IP address from “leaking” so as to maintain encrypted internet access. Unfortunately, Tuxler lacks even this basic security measure in both its premium and free version.
What information does Tuxler VPN need?
One advantage of Tuxler’s free version is that it does not need any information. You can simply install it and immediately begin using it. However, when you upgrade to the premium plan, you need to provide your name and email address. You can then pay using either PayPal or cryptocurrencies. Using crypto means you can buy this VPN completely anonymously.
Usability – How User-Friendly is Tuxler VPN?
It’s important for a VPN to be easy to install and use. Plus, it should provide adequate technical help to users when needed. We rate Tuxler 5 out of 10 on usability after considering the following points:
- The website is well laid out but lacks in-depth information about the provider.
- The Tuxler VPN app has a minimalist interface but lacks features.
- The premium version is quite expensive and doesn’t offer much value.
- The customer service was unresponsive.
Tuxler VPN’s website and installation process
Tuxler’s website is well laid out and is available in English, French, Russian, and Spanish. You can select the language using the dropdown at the top right of the homepage. Additionally, you can use the top menu to navigate to different pages like “What is VPN,” “Locations,” and “Downloads.” In the middle of the page, there’s a prominent call to action to download the free version.
Once you click the button, you are taken to another page where you can choose to get Tuxler VPN for PC or Mac or its browser extensions for Google Chrome or Firefox.
Note that Tuxler confuses macOS for iOS on its website (another red flag), which is a bit misleading. Tuxler VPN is only available for desktops and does not have any mobile apps for either iOS or Android.
Follow the steps below to download and install Tuxler VPN for PC or Mac:
- To get the free version, click “Install for free.” Once, the file is downloaded, open it and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation. You can then immediately begin using the VPN.
- For the premium version, click on “Download Premium Version” and then select a payment method.
- You can pay by using either PayPal or Coin Payments (for cryptocurrencies). Although the website shows the option of paying with credit cards, it redirects to PayPal when selected.
- Enter your payment information, and complete the purchase.
- Once your payment is processed, you will receive a confirmation email at the email address associated with your PayPal or Coin Payments account. This email will contain your login information. It will also contain instructions to download the Tuxler app if you’ve not already downloaded it.
- Once you have the app, you can log in to your premium account by clicking on the menu and selecting “Premium Member Login.” Alternatively, on macOS, you need to click on the menu followed by “Account Info.” Then, enter the login credentials mentioned in the confirmation email you received.
Note: You can download Tuxler VPN for Chrome or Firefox from the respective web stores of each browser.
Tuxler VPN’s appearance and ease-of-use
Tuxler’s app interface is pretty straightforward to navigate, though it looks a bit cluttered on macOS. It has a toggle to turn on/off the VPN and a list of countries and cities to choose from. You can click on the country or city list to see all locations and select which one you want to connect to. Note that free users can only select a country while premium users can also select a specific city within a country.
As you can see, there are no other settings or customizations you can select, which makes Tuxler pretty limited compared to other VPN providers. So, although it’s easy to use, it doesn’t offer much value.
Pricing and payment methods
Tuxler offers a completely free unlimited VPN, but you can upgrade to its premium subscription if you’d like “better” speeds and access to all its locations.
There’s only one subscription option which costs $7.99 per month. This is expensive compared to most other VPN providers that offer better features and security at less than half the price.
Moreover, Tuxler does not offer any money-back guarantee which means there’s no way for users to test out the higher speeds that the premium version promises.
On the whole, even though Tuxler is a VPN that accepts cryptocurrencies, it needs some major improvements to justify the high price point.
Customer service
The only way to contact Tuxler’s customer service is through a contact form on their website. We were pretty disappointed because we never heard back from the customer support team despite repeated attempts. We faced issues buying the premium subscription and submitted multiple forms asking for help but did not get a response.
At the same time, the FAQ section and blog on their website were not that useful, either. So, Tuxler lags behind its competitors, which provide reliable customer service and have more efficient support options such as live chat.
Tuxler VPN’s Server Network
A VPN”s server network determines its reliability and speeds. Tuxler scores 4 out of 10 in this area based on the following points:
- It is not explicit about how many servers it has but instead says it offers “over 300,000” IPs at any time.
- It does not offer the option of having a dedicated IP address.
Number of servers and locations
Tuxler differs from other providers because it does not disclose how many servers it has. Instead, it has the following claim on its website: “While regular VPN offers you 3 000 VPN servers, Tuxler VPN offers you more than 300,000 IPS at any time.”
It tries to lure users using the vast number of residential IP addresses it offers — but this isn’t the same as having lots of servers.
Moreover, whenever you use Tuxler, your device becomes a server, and Tuxler uses your IP and bandwidth to offer services to other users. This is a security risk because your IP could be used for malicious purposes which might get you on the wrong side of the law. You should therefore be extremely careful when using this VPN as your safety is not guaranteed.
The Tuxler app can automatically select the best server for you when you choose the “Any Country” and “Any City” options. Or, you can manually select a location from the following list of countries.
- Europe: Albania, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Macedonia, Moldova, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, and United Kingdom.
- Asia and Australia: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Australia, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, Oman, Pakistan, Philipines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Thailand, Turkey, UAE, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
- Africa: Algeria, Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
- The Americas: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, United States of America, Uraguay, and Venezuela.
With the free version, Tuxler VPN users can change their location up to 10 times a day, and with the premium plan, you can change it up to 100 times each day.
Dedicated IP address
A dedicated IP lets you use the same anonymous IP address each time you connect to a VPN. This is usually an add-on service offered by providers like NordVPN and CyberGhost. Tuxler does not currently provide dedicated IP addresses.
Tuxler VPN’s Options
Among the advantages of using a VPN is the ability to access geographically restricted content or download content through torrents. Here’s how Tuxler performs in these areas:
- We could unblock some streaming sites like Hulu, HBO, and Amazon Prime Video but did not have luck with Netflix.
- Torrenting is allowed but not recommended due to slow speeds and lack of security.
Tuxler VPN and streaming (Netflix, Disney Plus, Hulu, BBC iPlayer)
The greatest advantage of Tuxler’s free service is that it unblocks several geographically-restricted streaming sites including Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, and HBO. Unfortunately, we could not unblock Netflix as the platform detected that we were using a VPN.
Platform | Can TuxlerVPN unblock it? |
---|---|
Netflix | No |
Disney Plus | Yes |
Hulu | Yes |
BBC iPlayer | No |
Tuxler continuously assigns users new IP addresses when the ones they are connected to become unavailable. So, you could be assigned to a different location or country than the one you initially chose. This was probably why we couldn’t access localized content on Netflix.
Therefore, if you want to unblock streaming services, you should check out our list of the best Netflix VPNs that are trusted and effective.
Tuxler VPN and torrents
Tuxler claims to support torrenting and P2P, but it does not disclose which servers are optimized for this. Moreover, the speeds are much too slow for torrenting to be effective. Add to that the lack of a kill switch and things become risky. So you should choose one of our best VPNs for torrenting which allow safe and anonymous file sharing.
Our Experience With Tuxler VPN
To wrap up our Tuxler VPN review, we would like to reiterate that this is a pretty risk free VPN service. It lets you connect to residential IPs and offers unlimited bandwidth but poses some serious privacy and security risks. For starters, it does not use the most trusted VPN protocols such as OpenVPN or WireGuard. Instead, it uses the SOCKS5 proxy, which makes us doubt if Tuxler can even be called a VPN.
While both a VPN and proxy server mask your IP address, a VPN also encrypts the data you send and receive, something that a proxy server doesn’t do. Although Tuxler claims to use end-to-end encryption, we cannot confirm if this is actually true in practice.
Moreover, its privacy policy reveals that user data is shared with third parties like advertisers. Given its location in the United States, it can be obligated to share data with authorities, too, much like Psiphon VPN, which is based in Canada, or other lowly providers like Thunder VPN.
On the plus side, Tuxler VPN can unblock several streaming services such as HBO, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu. But the slow speeds and security risks offset this advantage.
Therefore, we recommend you opt for one of the many other great VPN services out there that are safe and reliable. Our top recommendation is Surfshark, which offers a free trial and all the features you need at a super affordable price.
Alternatively, you can go for a trusted free service like Proton VPN which also offers unlimited bandwidth. If there’s anything else you’d like to know, leave us a comment below, and we’ll be happy to help you out.
Got a question about Tuxler VPN? Check out our FAQ section below. Just click on a question to see the answer.
Yes, Tuxler is a free VPN that lets you connect to residential IPs across the world. However, it comes with some serious security and privacy risks, so we would recommend using a different free option, like PrivadoVPN’s free version or one of the other great free VPNs we tested ourselves.
No. In our review of Tuxler VPN, we found that it lacks basic security and privacy features like a kill switch and secure protocols. It’s also based in the United States, which is not a privacy-friendly country. So, you should be cautious about using Tuxler VPN.
Tuxler lures users with its free VPN that offers unlimited bandwidth. But is not a good choice as it offers very slow speeds and lacks basic security features. You are much better off going for our tried and tested top VPN providers that are reliable and affordable.