X-VPN markets 26 free regions, eleven protocol options, and over 80 million installs, which sounds like the obvious pick if you want a free VPN that just works. Spend a week with it and the cracks show: the free tier interrupts every connection with an ad, the no-logs claim has never been audited by an outside firm, and the paid plan auto-renews into a pricier tier than the install screen suggests. For one-off browsing on hotel Wi-Fi that is tolerable. For daily use, the trade-off gets old fast.
If you want X-VPN alternatives that publish independent audits, list the company behind the brand, and keep their free tiers honest, the picks below earned our trust. We tested seven on Android and ranked them by audit transparency, free-tier limits, and how well they hold a connection on restrictive networks.
Quick comparison
| App | Best for | Free plan | Starting price/mo | Standout feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proton VPN | Unlimited free traffic | Unlimited bandwidth, 5 free countries | Plus around $4.99/mo annual | Audited no-logs, Swiss jurisdiction |
| Mullvad VPN | Flat anonymous pricing | None (paid only) | €5 flat | No account, no email, cash accepted |
| Windscribe | Pro-level free tier | 10 GB a month, 11 countries | Pro around $5.75/mo | Per-app split tunneling |
| Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 + WARP | Always-on fast browsing | Unlimited free | WARP+ around $4.99/yr | Routes over Cloudflare’s backbone |
| TunnelBear VPN | Beginners | 2 GB a month | Unlimited around $3.33/mo annual | Annual published audits |
| Hotspot Shield | Streaming speed | Limited free with ads | Premium around $7.99/mo annual | Catapult Hydra protocol |
| Psiphon Pro | Restrictive networks | Unlimited with ads | Premium around $4.99/mo | Multi-protocol fallback |
Why people leave X-VPN
The no-logs promise has no third-party audit. X-VPN’s privacy page mentions a strict no-logs policy, but the company has not published the kind of independent review that Proton, Mullvad, or TunnelBear all run yearly. Privacy without verification is closer to marketing copy than evidence.
The free tier shows ads on almost every action. Connect, disconnect, switch region, open the app, all trigger ad screens. Power users who hit the connect button a dozen times a day notice. Heavier protections like the kill switch and dedicated streaming routes also sit behind the paywall.
The premium price is higher than the install flow implies. The introductory rate looks competitive, but the standard renewal lands well above the equivalent Proton, Mullvad, or Windscribe plan, and the trial-to-paid conversion is easy to miss on the Play Store.
The company structure is opaque. X-VPN ships under several brand variants and the parent company is registered through layered entities. For users who care which jurisdiction their traffic flows under, that uncertainty is a problem.
Free server load is heavy at peak hours. The free pool is large on paper, but evening peaks push speeds down to a level where 1080p streaming and video calls stutter.
The alternatives
Proton VPN, best for an honest free tier
Proton VPN is the strongest free tier on the market and the closest like-for-like swap for users who liked X-VPN’s “no account needed” pitch. Unlimited bandwidth, five free server countries, an audited no-logs policy, and an open-source Android client. The Swiss company behind Proton Mail runs it under Swiss privacy law.
Where it falls short: the free tier limits country selection and streaming services usually detect the free servers. Free connections also slow down during peak hours.
Pricing:
- Free: unlimited bandwidth, five free countries, one device.
- Paid: VPN Plus around $4.99 a month on annual, Proton Unlimited around $9.99 a month for the full Proton suite.
- vs X-VPN: similar price ceiling, but the free tier is genuinely usable without ads and the no-logs claim is audited.
Migrating from X-VPN: install Proton VPN, sign up with an email (no payment needed for the free tier), and uninstall X-VPN. No profile import is necessary.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this as the default replacement. The free tier alone outperforms most paid VPNs.
Mullvad VPN, best for flat anonymous pricing
Mullvad VPN sells privacy the way you would expect privacy to be sold: a flat €5 a month, no account beyond a random number, and the option to pay in cash mailed to the company’s Swedish office. There is no upsell tier and no email required. Multiple third-party audits cover both the apps and the server infrastructure.
Where it falls short: there is no free tier, no introductory discount, and streaming-service compatibility is hit-or-miss because Mullvad does not chase Netflix unblocking. The UI is bare.
Pricing:
- Paid: €5 a month, billed in any increment (monthly, yearly, multi-year). Same rate.
- vs X-VPN: cheaper than X-VPN’s standard renewal and the anonymity model is genuinely uncommon.
Migrating from X-VPN: generate an account number on mullvad.net, pay, install the app, paste the number. The whole flow takes under five minutes.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this if anonymous, audited, and predictable pricing matters more to you than a free tier.
Windscribe, best Pro-level free tier
Windscribe gives free users 10 GB a month across 11 countries, which covers everyday browsing for most people. The paid tier adds per-app split tunneling, a built-in ad and tracker blocker called R.O.B.E.R.T., and static IPs. The Canadian company is open about its corporate structure and publishes a yearly transparency report.
Where it falls short: 10 GB caps disappear quickly if you tether or stream. The interface has more toggles than a beginner needs and the learning curve is steeper than X-VPN.
Pricing:
- Free: 10 GB a month, 11 countries, one device.
- Paid: Pro around $5.75 a month, build-a-plan from $1 per location a month.
- vs X-VPN: more transparent free limits, no ads on the free tier, and a flexible paid plan.
Migrating from X-VPN: create a free Windscribe account, install, connect. The free quota resets monthly.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this if the X-VPN free tier ad load was the dealbreaker and 10 GB a month is enough.
Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 with WARP, best for always-on fast browsing
Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 with WARP is not a traditional VPN in the geo-spoofing sense; it is a free always-on encrypted tunnel that routes your traffic over Cloudflare’s network. It tends to feel faster than commercial VPNs because Cloudflare runs the backbone, and the privacy policy commits to not associating browsing data with your IP.
Where it falls short: it does not change the apparent country your IP comes from, so streaming geo-restrictions and country-locked services are not what WARP solves. Some apps detect WARP and block it.
Pricing:
- Free: unlimited bandwidth, no account required.
- Paid: WARP+ around $4.99 a year for prioritised routing.
- vs X-VPN: free, no ads, often faster, but no country spoofing.
Migrating from X-VPN: install, tap connect. Nothing else to set up.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this when the goal is encryption on every network, not changing where your traffic appears to come from.
TunnelBear VPN, best for beginners
TunnelBear VPN keeps things deliberately simple: a map, country bears, one big connect button. Behind the friendly interface sits one of the longest-running annual third-party security audits in the industry. The company is owned by McAfee but operates as an independent unit.
Where it falls short: the free tier is only 2 GB a month, which runs out fast. Server count is smaller than the bigger commercial VPNs, and there is no obfuscation mode for restrictive networks.
Pricing:
- Free: 2 GB a month.
- Paid: Unlimited around $3.33 a month annual ($39.99 a year).
- vs X-VPN: the paid tier is cheaper than X-VPN’s renewal, and the audit history is one of the most consistent in the industry.
Migrating from X-VPN: install, sign in with an email, tap connect. The honeycomb interface is friendlier than X-VPN’s.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this if you are new to VPNs and want simplicity plus published audits at a low yearly price.
Hotspot Shield, best for streaming speed
Hotspot Shield built its reputation on a proprietary protocol called Catapult Hydra that is tuned for throughput rather than minimum latency. In our tests it consistently delivered higher download speeds than WireGuard-based competitors on the same routes, which matters for streaming and large downloads.
Where it falls short: the free tier is heavily limited, both in speed and country choice, and the company’s privacy positioning has drawn criticism in the past. Catapult Hydra is closed source.
Pricing:
- Free: limited bandwidth and country, ad-supported.
- Paid: Premium around $7.99 a month annual.
- vs X-VPN: paid tier is pricier, but consistently faster on streaming routes.
Migrating from X-VPN: install, sign up, connect. Hotspot Shield restores the same one-tap convenience X-VPN offers.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this if streaming speed is the priority and you do not mind a higher price tag.
Psiphon Pro, best for restrictive networks
Psiphon Pro was designed for one job: getting through aggressive network filtering. It rotates between SSH, HTTP, and obfuscated VPN protocols automatically until something connects. On networks where WireGuard and OpenVPN both fail, Psiphon tends to keep working.
Where it falls short: the free tier shows ads and routes through volunteer-run endpoints, so speeds vary by route. The interface is dated.
Pricing:
- Free: unlimited with ads.
- Paid: Premium around $4.99 a month or around $39.99 a year, removes ads and unlocks faster servers.
- vs X-VPN: more reliable on restrictive networks and the paid tier costs less per year than X-VPN’s standard renewal.
Migrating from X-VPN: install and tap connect. There is no profile state to transfer.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this when other VPNs cannot connect at all on the network you are on.
How to choose
Pick Proton VPN if you want the strongest audited free tier and a clear path to a paid plan that bundles email and storage.
Pick Mullvad VPN if you want one flat price, no account, and audits across both apps and infrastructure.
Pick Windscribe if 10 GB a month covers your usage and you want a free tier without ads.
Pick Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 with WARP if you want always-on encryption on every network and do not need to spoof country.
Pick TunnelBear if you are new to VPNs and want one-tap simplicity from a brand that publishes its audits.
Pick Hotspot Shield if streaming throughput matters more than price and you accept a closed-source protocol.
Pick Psiphon Pro if your school, office, or country network blocks regular VPN protocols.
Stay on X-VPN only if the free tier ad load does not bother you and you want a no-signup VPN for short bursts of light browsing.
FAQ
Is X-VPN safe to use?
X-VPN encrypts traffic and runs a kill switch on Android, which protects most casual use. The weakness is verification: the no-logs policy has no published third-party audit, the corporate ownership is layered, and the free tier monetises through ads. For low-stakes browsing the encryption holds. For anything tied to identity, banking, or work, a VPN with audited claims is the safer pick.
What is the best free X-VPN alternative on Android?
Proton VPN’s free tier is the only major VPN that gives unlimited bandwidth on a free plan, and the audit history backs the no-logs claim. Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 with WARP is the best free option for users who want always-on encryption rather than country spoofing. Windscribe is the best free pick if 10 GB a month is enough.
Can X-VPN unblock Netflix?
X-VPN’s paid tier markets dedicated streaming servers and works for some libraries some of the time. Streaming compatibility shifts week by week because services rotate their detection lists. Hotspot Shield and Proton VPN Plus are the most consistent for streaming in our recent testing.
Why is X-VPN so cheap on the first year?
Most paid VPNs, including X-VPN, run a discounted introductory rate to clear the install hurdle, then renew at the standard rate. The standard renewal on X-VPN tends to land above Mullvad’s flat €5 and above Proton VPN Plus on annual. Always check the auto-renewal price before subscribing.
Are no-logs VPNs really no-logs?
Only if the claim has been audited. Proton VPN, Mullvad, TunnelBear, and Windscribe all publish annual or near-annual third-party audits. X-VPN, like many large free-first VPNs, has not. The presence of an audit is a much stronger signal than a marketing line on the product page.
Which VPN works best on restrictive Wi-Fi networks?
Psiphon Pro rotates protocols specifically to defeat network filtering and tends to win where standard VPNs fail. Proton VPN’s Stealth protocol and Windscribe’s Stealth mode are also strong on networks that block WireGuard or OpenVPN. X-VPN’s eleven protocols help in some environments but lag behind Psiphon’s bypass focus.
